Reasons for Silence

Meeting Amador

Chapter Fifteen ~ Serefina

The day had come. The entire time I spent at the Palace up to that point had been in preparation for that night; the night of the Ball.

"I didn't get an invitation," I insisted as Daisy brought me a gown.

She rolled her eyes and mumbled under her breath - she was annoyed.

"Yes you did," she said.

I gave her a look.

"Just take the dress and start getting ready, I'll get you the invite before you leave," she handed the dress off to me.

The women who had helped me bathe my first night in the Palace reappeared.

It took hours before I was deemed presentable.

The dress I wore was a soft green; its sleeves reached my elbows, the neckline exposed my collar bone and the tops of my shoulders. It was fitted at my waist and the skirts reached all the way down to the floor.

The woman named Agnes fixed my hair simply in the back of my head, so that half of it was up and the other half fell over my shoulders and back.

Daisy left halfway through my transformation and when she returned she held an envelope in her hand.

"Here," she said, "your invitation."

Instinctively I straightened my back before taking the envelope.

I opened it and, sure enough, it was an invitation to the Ball that was being held that evening. I let out a deep breath.

"Do I have to go?" I asked slowly.

The women who were cleaning up their supplies all turned to look at me with an expression of indignation.

Daisy glared at them before turning to me.

"Yes, honey, you do,"

I nodded my head, obviously they had gone to a lot of trouble in order to prepare me for this event but I had a deep seated feeling in my gut that this was not going to be one of my best nights. I was in no position to complain but I couldn't shake the feeling that I was going to end up as the event's entertainment.

I wanted to protect myself as best I could without appearing rude. I figured that the best way to guard myself was to ward off men. So, I walked over to the nightstand to pick up the ring that Kobe had given me.

"I don't think that's such a great idea, Serefina," Daisy warned as soon as I touched the metal.

"I don't think that you understand how social gatherings work," I countered.

Her eyes widened and I could see a smile surfacing on her face.

"Trust me when I tell you that you know nothing,"

I felt as though I had been struck, so I looked away for a moment.

"Could I take one of the fans with me then?" I asked, motioning to one of the dressers.

She nodded.

As we approached the ball room Daisy gave me last minute pieces of advice; don't eat too much, take small sips of beverages, be polite.

"And," she said, turning back to me, suddenly very severe, "if someone asks you to dance, then dance."

I nodded my head and swallowed. I wanted to throw up, because if I threw up, then maybe the crippling sensation in my stomach would go away.