Slaves of the Night

Chapter 5

Kaisa

A rapping at my door doesn't wake me, but it scares me all the same. I realize I could have expected someone to show up. It's just that Essie doesn't actually knock she just comes in. it's on the main door, not my bedroom door. I take advantage of one of the long white robes, which blessedly has a hood. I pull that up and go to the door, wishing Essie were here. Threateningly answering the door is her department, not mine.

"Sorry um---are my girls here?" Prince Eero is at the door, wearing just a white undershirt and his pants from dinner. He doesn't look like he's been to bed. "They aren't in their rooms—sometimes---last night they were begging to meet you--- I didn't know if they'd sneaked out."

"No, no they did sneak out earlier they were waiting when I arrived---no one's come in," I say, shaking my head.

"Damn---okay sorry," he says, preparing to go.

"Wait—I'll help you look," I say, snatching some convenient slippers. The hall is quite cold.

"You don't have to do that," he sighs.

"Don't be ridiculous they're little—and I'd be lying if I said I didn't sneak about at their age."

"My useless bodyguard's intended to help me find them," he says, shaking his head, "They're probably just playing a silly game."

"Did they maybe go to their grandmother?" I point out. My nieces and nephews love their grandparents.

"Ah---no. Not exactly. My family isn't close."

"Okay—do they have a servant or nanny—"

"I doubt they could get all the way to the servant's quarters, you really don't have to help—they're probably just in the kitchens looking for food," he sighs.

"Well they're little, still," I say, following him. So much for not wandering around all night.

"They are---like I said it's not entirely unlike them to go on a candy run to raid the pantries. Even so after that mess at dinner," he sighs, as he leads me to another set of confusing stairs. How many stairs does this place have? Damn I should've gone with Essie. She'll have the place memorized and labeled before the night's out.

"About that---has that happened before?" I ask.

"Once---just before my last wedding. My father wants to make out it doesn't mean anything."

"But it does mean something?" to be fair, this entire day has been playing out more and more like a strange tragedy play my sisters would make me read, and less and less like real life.

"I don't know. I'm just on edge. If my stupid useless lame idiot bodyguard hadn't done a disappearing act we'd find those kids in a minute," he growls, looking in closets that I didn't know were there. I don't see why closets exist on stairs.

"Rax?" I ask.

"Yes, the cripple who showed you to your rooms, apparently. After I expressly told him not to."

"Why did you tell him not to?"

"You met him; I should think it's obvious."

I was going to say that he wasn't really that bad and that Essie rather egged him on. But I don't. He seems to almost take pride in having a horrible creepy manservant so I'm not going to contradict him.

"Wait-------did you hear that?" he asks, cautioning me by putting a hand on my arm then quickly moving it away. It's long enough for me to steal a memory however. He was just thinking of his last wedding. How badly did that go? As badly as this one?