Page 3 of Ties of Deception

Feeling a bit steadier, I let go of Flavia’s arm and followed her through the door. I stopped in amazement at the sight.

I stood at the edge of a huge room, and as I drank it in, sensations of peace and beauty washed over me. My heart rate calmed, and it became easier to breathe.

There were no walls. Instead curtains of pale cream gossamer drifted in the breeze as morning light glinted golden between the fluted pillars. Cushions of every bright color were heaped around a low table laden with fruit. On one side, the floor was lower, and a sunken bath large enough to swim in was filled with red petals. The steam from the bath smelled of lavender and honey. Giant flowerpots held cascades of flowers wherever I looked. On the far side of the room, curtains were tied back around the pillars to show a fountain in front of an endless vibrant garden. Four other maids in plain grey dresses stood as still as statues with their backs against the pillars.

Pris smiled at me. “Don’t you think it’s beautiful? This is the main room of your home. We were approved by the priest for a goddess only last month, but you will see we have tried to go beyond the minimum requirements to make you as comfortable and happy as possible.” She gestured to the door we had just come through. “We gave you a private room in case you needed it, but it might get stuffy at night—especially in summer when the heat can be unbearable. There is another, bigger bed there.” She pointed to a far corner where the curtains were heavy velvet instead of gossamer, partly drawn to reveal a giant bed heaped with more colorful cushions. “If you sleep there, you will feel the sea breeze. The gardens on this side will be deserted at night, and the outer walls are patrolled by guards, so you will be quite safe to sleep without a locked door. If you wish, a maid can stay overnight if it makes you more at ease.”

I blinked, still taking in the enormous scale of this room. I was no longer trapped.

Pris took my amazement as approval and continued her tour. “The villa is shaped like a rectangle around a square courtyard. This is the main room, but there are others down this passage here.” She pulled aside a gossamer curtain to reveal a covered walkway open to a courtyard on one side, and a wall with two doors on the other. “One room is for storing and admiring your gifts, the next is a receiving room for petitioners, and there’s another room on the far side for entertaining more familiar or distinguished guests.” She pulled me through the curtains onto the walkway. The courtyard to our right was full of marble statues and low box hedges. Pris opened the first of the doors on our left, and we peered into a smaller room. It was fully enclosed and contained a low table that appeared to be made of pure gold. Pris entered and gestured for me to follow. “Come and see all the gifts your people have brought you to welcome you.”

I caught Pris’s sleeve, needing her to slow down the pace with which she was giving information. “Who do you meanmy people?”

She flung out her arms. “Why, the Riverside District, of course. Your presence here will send Blessings to everyone around the villa. The District is so grateful that you’ve come to live here.” She gestured to the boxes and jars on the table and those lining the back wall. “Just look at what they’ve sent you. Don’t worry about all the names, we’ve made a record of who sent each item and sent appropriate thanks on your behalf. We also thought you might want to refer to the list later when families come to visit to pay their respects. Some of these gifts are more extravagant than others, so we’ve been careful with our records.”

I swallowed. I was overwhelmed and felt like a fraud. How could one person deserve all this? And how could all these people know more about who I was than I did? Surely being a goddess should feel more innately familiar if it were true?

I walked to the table laden with gifts from people I’d never met. “What are they expecting me to do in return for all this? What are my duties? Are you sure I’m even a goddess?”

She laughed with genuine delight, clasping her hands to her chin. “Of course you are, Purity. Don’t worry. And you have very few duties. You don’t even have to receive visitors if you don’t want to, although at some point you’ll need to go to the capital when requested by the empress.” She gave me a wide, bright smile. “You simply have to enjoy yourself and be happy. Be the happiest you can be.” She spread her hands on either side of her hips. “That is your only true duty.”

I frowned, automatically searching for the hidden meanings behind her words. “That’s it?”

She nodded, her bright smile not dropping. Her hands trembled with her excitement. “The happier you are, the more the people and places around you will be Blessed. A goddess’s power is tied to her emotions. If you are happy, businesses will flourish, children won’t get sick, and the crops will be bountiful. If you are sad or angry, things will break and shatter around you.” She dropped her voice to an excited whisper. “Sometimes, with stronger goddesses, they say earthquakes and terrible storms can break loose if they don’t control themselves when they’re really angry. But I’ve never actually seen that happen.” She finished with a little shrug.

I blinked, processing her words and remembering the broken vase by my bed. The idea that I could break things without touching them was disconcerting. “So you’re saying that the people who live around me will aim to make me happy? And in return, they’ll be Blessed?”

She beamed. “Exactly. Anything you want or need, just ask. You will live a life of luxury, and in return we will live off your happiness.”

I looked out at the table piled high with gifts, then back at the grand courtyard behind me, my heart pounding. “Oh. Am I allowed to leave the villa?”

She nodded. “We’ll give you a tour of Yienna tomorrow afternoon, if you’d like. We would recommend always leaving with a proper escort, however. Sometimes people can be a little…eager to get close to you. We have employed extra guards to ensure you always feel safe.”

I nodded. It made sense for me to not travel alone, especially when I knew next to nothing about this place or what dangers there might be on the streets. I knelt on one of the cushions beside the table, curiosity leading me to open box after box of beautiful jewelry and various items of exquisite craftsmanship, from books to small statues, all accompanied by letters asking that I see them favorably and Bless their families once I was receiving petitions. Every single gift only made my sense of disconnect grow.

“Who’s this?” I asked, holding up a small oil painting of a pale woman with golden hair who appeared to be floating in the air. Her only clothes were strategically placed flowers.

Pris leaned in and squinted. “Oh, that’s Ismara. The original goddess of life. She and Ienear, the original god of death, created the world. Neither of them do anything any more, though. Not like you Graces who dwell among us. I’m not sure why people bother to paint them.” She shrugged and examined one of the broaches instead.

I placed the painting back in the box and asked Pris if we could return to the main room and if I could have some time alone. To my surprise, she embraced me as we reached the pillars.

“I’ll see you tomorrow, Purity. Please rest and ask the maids for anything you need.” She leaned in and whispered. “And the stricter one, Flavia, she is very experienced, but if she’s a little too…stern and downcast, we’ll switch her for another. Just tell me or my parents. Everyone should make you happy.”

I nodded, taken aback. Flavia had been the most calming presence so far.

After Pris had gone, I reclined on the cushions in the main room, needing the calm open space, and listened to the birds singing all around, their song underlined with the fainter chirrups of grasshoppers. The gossamer curtains wafted in the breeze, showing glimpses of the gardens behind. The maids kept their distance, staying quietly near the pillars and barely moving.

After a while, I found myself drawn to the scents wafting from the bath. I walked toward it, and Silvia hurried to help me undress. She backed away as I lowered myself into the hot water, smelling the floral perfume, and disturbing the curtain of rose petals. Slowly, the tension melted from my body.

The information from Pris was a lot to process, but could my life really be this simple—I had only to be happy?

The steam and scent of lavender pressed down on my eyelids. Flavia silently appeared with a thick fluffy towel. I dried myself before collapsing on the huge bed behind the velvet drapes.

Tomorrow I would try harder to understand who I really was. There must be something familiar in this world that I could hold on to.

Chapter

Two

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