Stranger to the Crown by Melissa McShane

Author:Melissa McShane [McShane, Melissa]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Melissa McShane

15

Elspeth examined the gown Honey held up for her inspection. “I’ll freeze,” she said.

“It’s a beautiful day, your Majesty, and this is the perfect weight for early spring,” Honey pleaded. “And it’s so pretty.”

The dress was white muslin embroidered with yellow daisies, with a wide scoop neck, a high waist, and a narrow skirt that would swirl around Elspeth’s ankles. It was also thin enough to require a full-length silk slip for modesty’s sake. Just looking at it made Elspeth shiver. “Can’t I wear a coat or something?”

“And cover up the dress? No, your Majesty. You said you’d take my word on what was appropriate clothes for things, and this is a garden party dress.” Honey brandished the gown like she was shaking it out of winter wraps. “There’s a scarf goes with it,” she said as if offering a wonderful treat.

It was beautiful. Elspeth realized she was tired of heavy clothing. So what if she froze her nose off? “All right,” she said, removing her accustomed jacket. “I certainly don’t want to stand out as odd.”

“You will stand out as beautiful, your Majesty,” Honey said.

The muslin gown was comfortable as well as being pretty. Elspeth sat while Honey did her hair in a roll low on her neck, deliberately encouraging wisps of it to fly free around her face. Elspeth had to agree it was a nice effect. She wound the scarf, made of the same filmy muslin, twice around her neck and tossed the ends over her shoulder to trail down her back. Honey clapped with excitement. “You look so pretty, your Majesty! I wish you’d let me dress you like this every day. You shouldn’t wear those dull trousers and plain shirts all the time.”

“Those are more comfortable for what I do every day. But…maybe you’re right.” Nobody really cared if the Queen was pretty, but if she wanted to attract a Consort, maybe she needed to care about that.

Her guards formed up around her as she left the east wing and proceeded down a spiraling ramp to ground level, three stories below. Elspeth didn’t know what lay beneath the east wing and was mildly curious about it. That was a lot of empty space, if it really was empty space and not solid rock. Whatever it was, it wasn’t a danger to her or Faraday would have done something about it.

The small door at the foot of the ramp was pretty and delicate like nothing Elspeth had seen in the rest of the palace. Lieutenant Anselm opened it, straining as if it weighed a ton, and Elspeth, looking closer, realized the door was solid metal three inches thick. So much for it being a security weakness.

The lieutenant gestured to the others to wait. Elspeth craned her neck to look outside, but saw only masses of green that could have been anything from bushes to a painted wall. The smell, though…that could only be a garden, fresh and cool and damp even at this hour of the afternoon.

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