Page 25 of The Shadowbound King

She sighed, then spoke like she was reciting something. “Just becauseyoudon’t like it doesn’t mean someone else can’t.”

He looked at me. “Just so we’re clear, I didn’t like it. And my, uh,waterthing was a solitary adventure, so it doesn’t count. Try everything once, I always say. Anyway, let’s get you to the bathing chamber.” He ran a hand down the bars. Like the day before, light zipped around the cage. A door appeared, and a softclickfilled the air.

Ginhad opened the door and extended his hand. “You’ll like me a lot better after a hot bath.”

He led me across the chamber and through the opening. As I’d suspected, it opened onto a large bedchamber decorated just as sumptuously as the main room. More carpets spread over the floors. Beautifully carved chairs and armoires filled the space. The large hearth was cold, and the huge, curtained bed hadn’t been slept in.

My stomach did a nervous flip as we passed it, and I averted my gaze from the dark, embroidered coverlet and carved headboard.

The twins followed as Ginhad guided me through a smaller archway and into another chamber. Instead of carpets, it boasted dark marble floors. Steam rose lazily from an enormous sunken tub carved from the stone. Shelves bursting with crystal bottles filled with colorful liquids lined the walls. Sunlight streamed through a glass dome in the ceiling.

“The garderobe is there,” Ginhad said, pointing to a wooden door tucked into one corner.

I hurried to it and discovered more finery. Another glass ceiling allowed sunlight to illuminate a marble toilet and wash basin as ornate as the rest of the castle. The sound of rushing water filled the air. When I peered cautiously into the toilet, a fast-moving whirlpool spun at the bottom of the bowl, which was as distant as a well.

Magic.But a useful sort.

When I emerged from the garderobe, Ginhad stood from where he’d been dumping the contents of a glass vial into the water.

“Hope you like peonies!”

The twin with the bolder tattoos snorted. “No one likes them as much as you, Ginhad.”

“Please,” he said airily, “like you haven’t polished half the swords in the king’s army.” He turned to me. “Elodie and Nerissa will help you bathe. Don’t ask me which one is which. Eighty years old, and they’re still dressing the same.”

The woman with the more delicate tattoos propped a hand on her hip, exasperation and amusement in her blue eyes as she smiled at me. “Don’t listen to him. He can tell us apart. I’m Elodie. My sister is Nerissa.”

It felt odd introducing myself. They weren’t servants. But they weren’t really my captors, either. On the other hand, they’d opened the cage. Undoubtedly, they had the power to put me back in it.

Erring on the side of caution, I bobbed a quick curtsy. “I’m Mirella.”

Ginhad turned to the twins. “Those are the kind of manners we need at court. Everyone is too familiar with each other. Where is the pageantry? The splendor? When did we go from chivalry tofuck you, pass the potatoes?”

“The water is getting cold,” Nerissa said.

Ginhad threw up his hands. “Fine, no one listen to me.As usual.” When he didn’t budge, I cleared my throat.

“Yes?” he asked, recovering quickly from his tantrum.

My cheeks heated. “Are you staying in here while I bathe?”

“Oh, you don’t have to worry about me. I like men. Elves.” He paused. “Elves with dicks.”

We stared at each other.

He jerked a thumb over his shoulder. “I’ll wait outside.”

The second he left, Elodie and Nerissa sprang into action, helping me bathe and wash my hair. They were both kind and competent, and I slowly relaxed under their ministrations.

Before long, I was dried, brushed, and dressed in a soft, floor-length robe that belted at my waist. Nerissa arranged my hair in a combination of braids and loose waves. When she handed me a mirror, I hardly recognized myself.

“Oh, you’re absolutely lovely,” Elodie said, clasping her hands under her chin as she beamed at me. More delicate flowers circled her wrists. I bit my tongue against the urge to ask if they covered her arms.

“And probably starving,” Nerissa said. When my stomach growled like a wild beast, she laughed and pulled me to the main chamber.

One of the large, round tables groaned with food. Just as I made a beeline for it, the chamber doors opened, and Ginhad entered with a mountain of dresses in his arms.

“I hope you like green because that’s all anyone seems to wear in this kingdom.” He huffed, clearly struggling under the gowns’ weight as he lumbered to a sofa and dumped the stack onto the cushions. Then he muttered as he sorted through them, tossing the rejects to the carpet. “Green. Green.Reallygreen. Green with flowers.” He turned his head to the side and mimed puking. “It’s like a crime against the gods.”

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