Page 19 of The Healing Dragon
“Dinner should be ready soon. Your father wants you to be cleaned up and presentable to sit at the table.”
I look out to the only small window on the back door and see that the sun has begun to set. The small amount of light coming from there is nearly all gone.
“I’d rather have it in my room.”
“You have a room because of him, so I would show more respect if I were you. When the King asks you to be present for dinner, you do it with a smile.”
“Has being his dog given you the satisfaction you want out of life?”
“My name is Ernesto, not dog,” he says, and waits for Janelle to react, but she doesn’t. “Iris is upstairs. She will show you to your room.”
Janelle doesn’t address anything else as she makes her way up the stairs. I follow her and hurry past her once at the top.
An older woman waits for Janelle at the end of the hall. There is no pleasant expression on her face, but a familiarity passes her eyes as they land on Janelle. Regardless, she says nothing to her. Janelle knows to follow the woman to the second floor of the house. I’m always a step behind.
On the second floor, the floor plan spreads into two sides. Each side looks to be hallways with doors to either side. We take the left one.
“The soldiers are to the right,” the woman says without looking back. “Female staff and your parents are to the left. It will be best if you stay to the left at all times.”
We pass several doors before we reach one at the end of the hall. The hall turns left again and another hall of doors. At the end of that hall, there is a set of double doors.
“The end leads to your parents. Don’t go there. If you need to speak to them, do it when they are up.”
There are still ten doors that need to be crossed to reach Janelle’s parents’ door from her own. She walks into her bedroom, and I’m glad she remembers I’m right behind her. Leaving the door wide open, she waits for me to come after her. She looks so natural you would think there was nothing amiss. The maid doesn’t wait for Janelle to inspect her room. It’s not like Janelle would make any requests. It’s clear that the staff is currently providing a “You get what you get” service.
The room is a sad white and beige space with just a bed and a nightstand. The mattress looks lumpy and old, but at least the space smells clean.
I remove my cloak and move about the room, inspecting it. Janelle stays seated at the foot of the bed while I conduct my inspection. There is a bathroom adjacent to the room. That in itself is going to prove very useful.
When I exit the bathroom into the bedroom, Janelle passes me, then locks the door behind her. After a few minutes, the sound of running water begins. A shower sounds amazing after sleeping outside and then spending hours on the cells downstairs.
Janelle is speedy with her clean up. When she walks out of the bathroom, she’s changed to a dress I recognize as hers. Her hair is down her shoulders, wet and curling at the tips.
“Where did you get that?” I ask.
I think I would remember this dress being packed in her bag. Perhaps not since her bag can very well be spelled to have more room than appears.
“The dresser in the room is full of my clothes,” she says as she laces up her boots.
I look at the dresser in question. Starting from the bottom, I open each drawer one by one, finding Janelle’s clothes, neatly folded and smelling fresh and clean.
“They expected you to come here,” I say.
“Of course they did,” she says with a smirk. “Well, I’m off to dinner. I will try to get you something, but it might be easier if we get it when everyone is asleep.”
I tell my heart not to confuse her concern with whether I eat for anything other than assurance that I won’t hinder her mission. But my stupid heart still argues with me because when it comes to Janelle Duelo, it has never cared for logic.
CHAPTER SEVEN
JESSE
Janelle leaves for dinner with her parents, and I start the job of getting myself clean. The water feels like heaven as it hits my skin. I don’t even want to look down and see what goes down the drain. I keep the time of my shower short to decrease the possibility of a maid passing by and hearing the water running.
Unlike Janelle’s freshly laundered clothes, mine have been packed into my bag for days now and they don’t smell anywhere near as fresh. I need to find the laundry room and throw in my clothes with the maids. When they come across them, they will probably think it’s one of the soldiers and put it aside. Hopefully, if not, I can always steal from one of the men here. One of them is sure to be my size.
When I’m changed and ready to go, I press my ear against the door and listen in for anyone going or coming. When I hear nothing, I open the door and shut it quickly behind me. The cloak is already over my shoulders, but I make sure no part of me is showing. The halls are far more empty right now than before. As I make my way down tothe first floor, a flow of voices come from different directions.
I turn left and the kitchen comes into view. The doorway is open and from my place I can see the maids and other staff eating while leaning against different countertops. Jokes and laughter ring out of the room.
