Masquerade

Chapter Ten

I wake up the next morning in a daze, confused as to how I made it back into my room. I sit up and look around the room wildly, as if that's going to help somehow. After some inspection of the space, however, I come to realize that it wasn't such a bad idea after all.

Sitting on my bedside table is a small scrap of paper that looks like it was torn off from something. I pick it up and read it, instantly delighted by the beautiful script. It's handwriting like I've never seen; it's all slanted in a strange and foreign way, yet each letter has the familiar curves that I see in books all the time. Even though it's clear the note was written very quickly, it looks like something that could take an hour to write out.

"'You fell asleep so I carried you back'," I read aloud, "'I imagine I will have an awful backache tomorrow, so you better bake me something good to make up for it. Good night – Jac'".

Well, that explains how I got back here. After smiling at the note for a minute, a wave of guilt fills me. Not only was it incredibly inappropriate for me to fall asleep in a gentleman's presence, but it also made him have to put in a lot of work. It definitely wasn't a short walk to get there.

Another thing...

A scary thought pops into my head and I quickly touch my face, heart beating fast. But upon realizing that my mask is still on, my shoulders drop and I relax. I was afraid that it had fallen off at some point during the unexpected night, revealing the secret I've tried so hard to keep. But looks like I'm in the clear.

I get myself ready for the day and walk downstairs, instantly tasked with helping my parents in the bakery. I decide to use my free time later to try making custard for Jac, in return for what he did last night. It seems like he's expecting it anyway, based on what he said in the note.

Though being with Jac last night did help me get my mind off of everything, it all comes flooding back now that I'm not as distracted. I muddle through my duties, my mind bombarded with thoughts about Bellamy and my birth. Along with that, I haven't even started preparing for the supposed trip Jac and I are going to make. How are we – some privileged townsfolk – going to survive? And how am I going to tell my parents? Can I even tell them?

Kendry, perceptive as ever, can clearly tell something is wrong. As he works on his chores alongside me, he sneaks several glances over. My parents, on the other hand, are too distracted counting money to notice.

At some point, however, they leave to go to a business owners' meeting in town.

"Did Jac do something?" Kendry asks me once we're alone. "I have a feeling it has something to do with that, or else you would have told Mother."

I open my mouth to respond but am interrupted by the front door swinging open.

"Oh Fawn, I am ever so sorry for being away for so long."

I turn away from Kendry, surprised to see Wren standing in the entrance. I grab her hands without a second thought and exclaim "I've missed you."

"Same here. Once again, I'm so sorry it got this way. My family's been in an uproar since Grandmama was sent away. My parents and Grayson have been fighting a legal battle to get her back, so I've had to stay at the house. Someone has to host all the guests, you know."

"Guests?"

"Oh, yes. Apparently word has gotten around about Grandmama, so we have guests calling on us every day to ask about the whole mess. She isn't the first that's gotten sent to that containment center, of course, but this is the first time it hasn't been hush-hush. So everyone wants to know the details."