Page 66 of Reflections of Silence

I’ve been away from people for too long already.

A large shape blocked the sea of eyes from my line of sight. I blinked at Dolion, dressed in a finely-tailored suit of red and black.

“You’re wearing clothes,” I blurted.

A fresh flush decorated my face as both of my monsters laughed. I shook my head in mock despair, letting their easy humor sweep away my fears for the moment.

A group of men with long hair, dressed in leathers appeared in the doorway to my side. Sebastian stiffened as they parted to reveal Granny Smythe looking anything but Granny-like in a stunningly simple gown of black, shimmery material. Knowing something of her age, if not the exact date, I had to admit the ancient creature aged spectacularly.

Sebastian sighed, squeezing my arm as he went to address his guest.

“You’ve quite outdone yourself,” Dolion murmured in my ear, bending low to speak to me. “Tonight will be a grand success. All will be well.” He straightened, linking back to our previous conversation in a louder voice designed to carry. “Yes, Minette appeared to enjoy the measuring process,” Dolion offered me his arm and led me into the ballroom.

Guests parted before the dark-skinned giant as we progressed through the crowd. Murmurs of rumors I expected reached me, but none seemed malicious. In fact, most party-goers appeared awestruck, and as I drew my attention back to the center of the ballroom, I understood their perception of the castle.

Black velvet draped from the ceiling in long rows, with a flicker of blue in between the wide swathes of material. Charleton had somehow stained the vines climbing the columns a brighter silver, so they reflected the sea of color swarming beneath in an ever-undulating mass.

I wondered if Minette hadn’t designed the color scheme as well as my dress and the uniforms.

“You seem quite taken with my maid,” I observed, watching him track Minette’s head of blonde curls bob her way across the room, collecting empty trays and glasses. “When did you take your measurements? Have you been keeping my staff up at all hours?” I teased, taking a fresh glass of champagne from a tray Minette offered with a genuine smile, albeit aided by the bubbles of the last glass.

Keep your head about you, wife.

Minette’s eyes lingered on Dolion for a long moment before she resumed her duties.

“Not at all,” he replied, watching her sashay away in her adjusted uniform, lace brushing the backs of her calves in a break in protocol. The masks gave everyone a chance to feel the fantasy that flowed through the event, and the staff were not immune from the magical feel of the night. “She’s been visiting me in the garden, bringing me lunch. Now that we appear to be out in the open, it is much easier to have…friends.”

“Friends who are human,” I said softly, the implications of my limited mortality hitting me.

I had been so busy planning, I’d allocated little energy to process the intricacies of my relationship with a relative immortal. And what was true for Sebastian and me, was likely also true for others.

“Yes,” Dolion’s gaze weighed heavily on me.

A hand slipped around my waist, the touch so familiar, his silent presence so undeniable that I knew who touched me. I leaned back into my husband’s broad chest.

“Please, mingle with my staff,” his voice resonated with all the unspoken things of the night as he spoke over my head.

Dolion turned his weighted stare on his friend and loped away into the crowd who parted for the huge man.

“Is she here, yet?” I asked softly, though the chatter of so many people in the ballroom filled the space and reverberated against the walls.

“Not yet—” His face shut down, and I spun around as the crowd parted for a pale woman dressed in a burgundy gown that flowed behind her in a long train. I stared past Amy for her husband, the young man who met her at the docks, but she appeared to be alone.

I wondered if she had killed him already…or worse.

“Gisella,” she cried in farce, sliding her arms around me in an embrace.

“Amy,” I croaked the name, but no one seemed to notice my failure. I remembered to smile, to play the part, that she knew nothing of our plans. Didn’t she? My stomach coiled back on itself, defiance and betrayal warring in a duel that drew my attention from our greatest foe in the room. But we had a plan, and I would go with it, until it failed us. Then...

It took everything I had not to recoil from her touch. Amy's fingers dragged over the choker Minette made up for me to cover her marks, and Sebastian’s. “But you look so beautiful.”

I murmured something inconsequential. My heart racing, I released her as soon as was socially acceptable, presenting Sebastian in a recited monotone. It was all sofake.We’d agreed to continue the pretense for as long as possible, as that’s what she would expect. Sebastian had detailed to me a hundred encounters where conversations were held at both vocal and mind levels during events, with society none the wiser. I had been flabbergasted, and still struggled to grasp the concept.

“Where is your lovely young man?” A pathetic attempt at conversation, but the most I could manage as my brain jammed.

“Oh, you know, he was so sweet, Idevouredhim.” She turned eyes full of mirth on me.

My stomach curled on itself again as I wondered at the reality of her comment. Any more of this and I would retch champagne all over the well-polished floor. My pale reflection stared back at me in the tile’s glossy sheen. Amy joined me, her smile widening. I half expected her face to morph into something demonic, but her sugar-sweet smile remained innocent beside my frozen reflection, denying the demoness hidden beneath.

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