A Golden Fury by Samantha Cohoe

Author:Samantha Cohoe [Cohoe, Samantha]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781250220400
Publisher: St. Martin's Publishing Group
Published: 2020-10-12T18:30:00+00:00

12

The next day I rose, ill-rested and sore of head. I looked at my dirty robe à la polonaise, lying crumpled on the floor, and concluded that I could not face the day in it. I decided to test Valentin’s assertion that the black-haired girl’s clothes wouldn’t fit. I took out each of the gowns and laid them on the gilded brocade bedspread. The petal pink was too girlish, I decided, and another was clearly a ballgown, and much too elaborate for daily wear. The most practical option was a sprigged, egg-blue muslin. I tried it without my stays, and couldn’t close the thing. With a sigh, I laced myself into my undergarments and forced the dress closed over them. I was taller than the girl it was meant for, but without the hip pads, the dress fell to a respectable length. I tightened the ribbons that drew the neck closed and examined myself in the mirror. I stretched my arms forward, and though it was tight I could move well enough.

I would have chosen a more dignified dress to meet my fate in, if there had been one. This was a dress for a young girl going for a walk in the park on a suitor’s arm, or to a picnic on a fine spring day. It looked wrong on my nervous, taut frame. It didn’t suit my wan face or my heavily shadowed eyes.

I considered taking it off and suffering the future in my own, sullied dress. There was only a little blood on the hem. Perhaps I could wash it out in the basin.

But it was too late. There was a knock at the door, and I answered it still in the robin’s-egg muslin. Valentin started to say good morning, then saw what I wore, and his voice failed him.

“Good morning,” I replied. I no longer wanted to change. The stricken look on Valentin’s face was worth a little incongruity. “Do you have the supplies I asked for?”

Valentin opened his mouth but didn’t use it. He nodded. Even that seemed to cost him something.

“Good. And where would you have me work? I will need somewhere with a good space and a fireplace of suitable size.”

Valentin turned his head away. He stared resolutely at the wall as he answered.

“The library.”

I raised my eyebrows, but Valentin did not see. No adept would have suggested a library. Between the smells, smokes, and occasional explosions, books were not safe in an alchemist’s workroom. But these were Burggraf Ludwig’s books, and therefore I felt no particular desire to protect them.

“I’m ready,” I said. “Lead the way.”

Valentin did not take my arm and walked farther from me than he had before. We climbed the stairs and I saw that the room where they held Dominic was still guarded, this time by the large, florid German.

“Guten Morgen,” I said to him. Valentin held the library door open expectantly, but I ignored him and continued in German. “How is the prisoner today?”

“Well enough, I think,” said the German, with a hesitant look at Valentin.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.