Chapter Five

“My mother is plotting again,” Theo sighed as he helped Elle unload the last of the cabbages. Three days had passed since the last ball, and they had resumed their morning walk together. Now, though, they held hands, and Theo always gave Elle a polite kiss hello and a not-so-polite kiss goodbye.

“Last time it was something to do with the ball. What’s your mother up to now?” Macy said from across the stall where she was helping a customer.

Theo sighed again. “I don’t know, but she’s been plotting. It’s worrying.”

“I’m sure it will turn out okay,” Elle said softly as he found and gripped Theo’s hand. “It did last time, right?”

Elle felt Theo nod and sigh. “And it will this time,” Theo agreed firmly. “I’ll figure out a way to fix whatever they’re plotting.” They finished unloading, and Elle and Theo waited while Macy took the cart and mule to the local stables.

“You’re sure you’ll be okay by yourself?” Elle asked worriedly when Macy returned.

She laughed. “Of course! Enjoy your date,” she added with a sly giggle.

“We will,” Theo agreed, happiness coloring his voice so much so that Elle couldn’t help smiling too.

“Well, get out of here, you damn lovebirds!” Macy called over her shoulder as she moved to help a customer.

Theo led Elle away from the market, chatting idly as they walked. When they stopped walking, Elle tried to place where they could be in the city.

“This is a riding park,” Theo explained softly. “I thought you might like to ride a horse.”

“Can I?” Elle gasped, wonder making his voice shiver. It had been years since he had been let near a horse, and even longer since he had ridden one. As a child, he had had his own small pony that he had been learning the finer aspects of riding on. But his favorite times had been when his father had held him on his gigantic horse as they rode together.

Theo laughed. “Of course you can! I’ve brought you a set of riding clothes so you don’t return home smelling of horse. There is a clean stall in the stables you can use to change in.”

Elle fingered the fabrics in his hands as Theo closed the door to the stall. The weave was tight and the cloth soft, but stiff, and he could feel delicate embroidery tooled into the material. He slipped his sackcloth shirt off and replaced it with the fine one with a small, pleased sigh. When he felt the stiff leather of the riding pants, he had to fight back tears.

It had been so long, so very long, since he had been able to wear good clothes—since he had been able to wear riding clothes! When Elle walked out of the stall a few moments later, he immediately wrapped his arms around Theo in a hug.

“Thank you,” Elle said softly.

“You haven’t even been on a horse yet!” Theo laughed. “Thank me after.”

“I will,” Elle promised.

*

Elle fought hard to keep a wide smile off his face as he walked up the servants’ stair from the kitchens; his stepmother would notice if he seemed unduly happy about something. A properly sober servant would go unremarked on, so Elle made sure his face was blank when he pushed open the door to the dining room.

“Well, that hussy did it somehow,” Lady Sadia snapped as Elle moved into the room.

“That hussy, Mother?” Everett asked his mother curiously as Elle set down the heavy tray he was carrying.

“That girl the prince spent all the balls dancing with,” she explained tartly. “She left her shoes behind, apparently, and by royal decree, the prince will be visiting every household that attended the ball. All eligible ladies will try on the slippers, and if the shoe fits, the prince will marry her.”

“He must really love her,” Everett said gently as he shifted out of Elle’s way to allow him to place the plate on the table. He ignored Sil’s snort of disbelief.

“Love?” Lady Sadia laughed. It wasn’t a happy sound to Elle’s ears. “No, it’s a ploy. There must be dozens of girls who attended the balls who will fit those slippers. But now the prince will be forced to marry the first girl the shoe fits, regardless of whether she’s the one he danced with.”

“The prince is being forced to marry?” Sil asked with a laugh. “That’s hilarious. We must send them a congratulations card,” he added with a snort.

Elle moved to stand quietly in the corner as the family ate, ready to fetch or pour anything they might need for their meal. When he heard his stepmother tapping on the side of her glass, Elle hurried forward with more wine. He groped for the cup and carefully filled it, but before he could walk away, he felt a rough tug on his hair.

“Such hair, boy!” Lady Sadia said snidely. “So much of it, and so long.” Elle felt her fingers drop away and quickly moved out of reach. “Silvester, remind me to set up an appointment with the wigmaker. That hair should fetch enough to buy you a nice coat for your wedding.”

“For what time, mother?” Sil asked, and Elle could hear the smirk in his voice.

“Sometime tomorrow afternoon, I think,” was the woman’s reply.

As the family continued to talk about wedding plans, Elle was happy to hide in the corner. Yes, his hair was unfashionably long for a man. But, in recent days, the long hair had become important to him. How else could he have managed to pretend to be a girl so he could successfully sneak into the ball? Besides, Theo liked his hair too. Elle would prefer to keep his hair uncut.

But his stepmother was even going to sell his hair so she could better the life of her oldest child. It wasn’t like she hadn’t sold his very life into servitude in his own home, so he shouldn’t expect anything less from the woman. Still, Elle had to turn his head away so he wouldn’t give either her or Sil the satisfaction of seeing any pain on his face.

Any remaining happiness Elle felt from his wonderful day with Theo had long since evaporated.

*

“So?” Macy asked eagerly when Elle brought the empty dishes back to the kitchen for cleaning, which he dumped in the sink before turning to face Macy. He heard Lucy go by with what must have been a tray of dessert; she would stay there for the remainder of the meal, so Elle knew he couldn’t escape this interrogation.

“So what?” Elle asked dully. He didn’t really want to discuss his hair being shorn until after it had already been done.

“So how was your date?” she responded with a huff, as if it were the most obvious question. Before dinner service it would have been, but not now.

Elle dredged up memories from the wonderful afternoon and gave Macy a wide smile.

“I got to ride a horse!” he said eagerly. “First Theo led from the ground,” he explained, and much of the wonder from those first moments crept back into his voice.

Theo had walked them both around a track for a time while Elle got the feel of the horse under him. Elle loved the sounds of the hooves clomping over the hard ground, the feel of the wide, fuzzy horse’s back under his hands, and the sharp smell of the leather of the saddle and the reins he had clutched in his fingers. Even the wind in his hair, a thought that now made him wince, had broadened his smile at the time. Theo had eventually mounted his own horse and led Elle’s at a faster pace, finally leading them to a wide path that he described as straight and wide with no obstacles for at least three miles.

So Elle had ridden on his own for the first time since he had lost his sight. Even with Theo carefully shadowing him on his own horse, the exhilaration had left Elle breathless and smiling for long after.

They had taken lunch out in the field while their horses grazed, and Theo had kissed Elle until he was breathless again. Only when it was time for Elle to get back to the market stall to help pack up for the evening had they separated and headed back to the stables.

“It sounds so romantic!” Macy sighed dreamily.

“It was,” Elle agreed, but of course his stepmother had to ruin everything for him without even trying.

Elle tossed and turned in bed that night, so restless that he beat Lucy to the kitchen the next morning. As he went about his morning chores, Elle’s heart began to sink. Every brush of his long braid down his back reminded him that in a few hours the length would be gone. He really didn’t want to be forced into getting his hair shorn off.

As Elle walked through the market, he thought of what to tell Theo, but the man had not appeared by the time Elle reached Macy and their stall.

The day passed normally, and as the sun finally dipped below the horizon, Elle and Macy finished hitching up their cart and headed home. It was only when they reached their street that Elle realized the day was going to be somewhat different from what he expected.

“What is this?” Macy grumbled to herself as the cart slowed and the noise levels on their street rose. There were horses and carriages and lots of people, from what Elle could hear, and they all seemed to find their street the place to congregate.

The curiosity did not raise Elle’s spirits, although the sounds his straining ears picked up were able to distract him for the time it took for Macy to maneuver their cart through the busy street. Still, once he was done with his work and he was ready to report to Lady Sadia, his anxiety had not lessened any.

His stepmother just sighed when she saw him. “I had hoped to go quietly,” she grumbled, “but with the prince’s entourage in the streets, that’s just not possible.”

“You shouldn’t go anyway, Mother,” Everett called from the couch across the room. There was a soft thump of a book being put aside and the noise of Everett shifting to face his mother. “The prince is testing all eligible ladies who attended the ball. Who is to say that he won’t visit you? You are an eligible lady.”

“I am, although I am far too old for the prince.” Despite her comment, Lady Sadia sounded pleased at the thought that the prince might consider trying her feet into the shoes. “Well, I had better change into a better dress, just in case.” She giggled as she stood and walked by Elle as if he weren’t even standing in front of her.

When the parlor door thumped shut, Elle finally turned to leave the room as well. He wasn’t sure if it was relief or further dread he felt. Relief, certainly, because his hair would not be cut today, but dread because he had no doubt that day would come soon.

“You weren’t meant to return from the barber shop,” Everett explained quietly before Elle could open the door. “I’ve no doubt she means to sell your hair to pay for Sil’s wardrobe, but she planned to take you to a shop that specializes in making bodies vanish as well.”

Elle shivered. He had known his death was inevitable; as long as he was around there was still the chance that Sil could be denied the dukedom. Having Elle killed was the best way to ensure his claim to the title vanished entirely.

Elle left the room before his morbid thoughts had him curling up in a corner in fear. He was quick to enter the warmth of the kitchen where an early dinner was waiting for him.

“You’re okay!” Theo cried the second Elle stepped into the kitchen. “I was so worried when I heard.”

Elle jumped, startled. “Worried?” he asked, wondering what Theo was doing there.

“Of course I was!” Theo exclaimed as he helped Elle find his chair. “When Everett went to see Duchess Estelveld this morning, he told her your stepmother’s plans, and she went to see Lady Adelina at once. Lady Adelina spoke with my mother, and suddenly I’m organizing an entire afternoon here, carrying around the prince’s missing lady’s shoes. Which reminds me, Elle, I have your shoes here too.”

“Thank you,” Elle said dazedly, taking his shoes from Theo. He wasn’t sure if he was thanking Theo for having a hand in saving his life or for returning the shoes, but he was thankful either way.

“Tomorrow’s a holiday, so nothing will happen to you then. We’ll get everything fixed up, don’t worry,” Theo added gently.

“Is it the fall equinox already?” Elle asked absentmindedly.

“Yes,” Theo said happily. “The castle isn’t holding a ball this year, as they just had three, but the city is supposed to have good entertainment.”

“Speaking of entertainment,” Lucy said as she plunked Elle’s food in front of him, “I’ve been hearing some interesting stories of the prince and his shoes.”

Theo laughed. “Oh, yeah. You wouldn’t believe what some women are doing. You see, the prince actually knows exactly who his mystery lady is; most of this is just a scheme to make the romance sound more intriguing. So we switched the lady’s real shoes with a child-sized pair, just in case someone did have the same-sized feet. We’ve had women try to switch the shoes.” He paused before continuing in a somewhat horrified voice. “There was a woman who cut off her heel, and another her toe, to force their feet into the shoes. That was quite gruesome.”

“I bet,” Macy said with a gagging sound. It sounded like she and Lucy were busy making the formal dinner for the family. Elle reluctantly tried to eat faster. He didn’t want to leave Theo, but he needed to set the table and begin his other nighttime chores.

Theo groaned. “Women crying, begging, there was even one who tried to bribe me! It’s a bit of a disaster, really, but the prince should be happy when everything concludes.”

“He’ll be happy, no doubt,” Macy said with a giggle. “Right, Elle?”

Elle looked up, surprised to be asked such a question. “I guess?” Elle asked. “I don’t know the girl or the prince, so I couldn’t really say.”

Before anyone could reply to Elle, Jack rushed into the room. “They’re looking for you out there.”

Theo groaned. “All right, I had best be on my way. Time to visit more houses, I suppose.”

Theo left and Elle hurried to finish his meal so he could get to his own chores.

“Ah, don’t forget, Elle,” Lucy called as Elle headed to the cabinet where the fancy dishes were stored. “Tomorrow is an early morning because Her Grace and her sons are leaving to attend a number of parties all day.”

Elle had forgotten. He would have to hurry his chores so he could get to bed at a reasonable hour. “Thanks, Lucy,” Elle said with a smile before he headed out of the kitchen.