These Gilded Seas

Chapter Fifteen: Blood and Vanilla

"All the housekeeping staff stays in shared quarters," Madam Amaia says as we approach a series of doors. "Boys in one, girls in the other. Absolutely no crossover, understand? That's one quick way to end up back on the street."

She glances at me, and I nod. I've no interest in anyone in this palace. There'll be no romance for me.

Madam Amaia raps on the first door. It's a simple entry—rectangular and plain black. Boring, like everything else in this place so far. "This is my room," she says. "Don't go in there. Josef sleeps in the nude."

I nearly choke on my own breath. "So, you two are married?"

"Unfortunately," she says bitterly. But there's a softness in her eyes that gives away her true feelings. "For thirty-five years now. So I think I know how my scrawny husband sleeps and how you don't want to see it. Leave our room alone, okay?"

"I will. I promise."

Seeming satisfied, she moves on to the second door. There's a large circle painted in the top-center. "Boy's Room. Once again, you are not allowed in here under any circumstances. Got it?"

"Yes, ma'am," I say with a firm nod. Not that I'd want to. I've seen my fair share of boy's bedrooms. Finn's pretty neat, and so is my brother, but even saltwater can't hide that masculine stench. I don't want to imagine having a ton of them together in one enclosed space.

Madam Amaia and I walk side-by-side quite a ways down the hallway until we reach another door. It's the same black as the other two, with a smaller circle painted on it. This one has an empty center, though; it's just an outline of a shape. The madam knocks once and then pushes it open.

For the most part, the room is empty. What few residents inside are asleep, buried up to their necks in covers. Madam Amaia holds a finger to her lips and shuts the door behind us silently.

"We're a busy bunch," she whispers to me. "Our quarters are a place for resting and recuperating. You'll find it stays quiet here."

I start to tell her that it's okay because I like the quiet, but there's something so serene about the silence that I hate to break it. So, instead, I just take in the long, rectangular room—the one that's about to be my home for a month.

It's about the same size as our dining room back at Hygge palace. Two long rows of single beds line each side. The beds are placed about two feet apart, giving enough room for each resting place to have a side table. A plush navy carpet runs down the center of the room, the same as what covered the hallway floors. Some of the residents have clothes hanging over the foot rails of their beds: socks, undergarments, aprons, and dresses.

While some of the beds are neatly made, others are haphazardly thrown back together. Plush animals and books lay littered across pillows and hand-patched quilts. Pictures—both hand-drawn sketches and framed paintings—have been hung to give each space its own personality. On the left side of the room, a window opens up into the heavens, shedding silvery moonlight over the scene. The rest of the flickering light comes from candles placed carefully on the side tables.

"You can have this bed," Madam Amaia says, pointing to a pristine, blank mattress set atop a wooden frame. A small pile of folded fabric sits in the center. "The sheets are clean, I promise. I didn't ask Britta to do them." She rolls her eyes and walks away. I toss my bag on the bed and hurry after her.

Further down, we walk through an archway and into a room filled with tubs. One is taken by a girl with long, black hair. Steam rises from the water, and the heady smell of perfume wafts around the room. The lady bathing doesn't even crack an eye at our entrance.

"Do you have any spare clothes?" Madam Amaia asks as she leans down to stoke a fire in the corner. That's where the room's heat is coming from.

"No, ma'am," I say, tugging the daisies out of my hair. I lost a few of them during the game, and some of them look pretty ragged. But I'd hate to ruin all of them; they're a shred of hope in this cold, human world. With a soft sigh, I set what's left on a small table near one of the empty tubs.