Loyalties Lie

Chapter 6

The announcement of an upcoming banquet elicited a chorus of groans from the maids.

"Why, what does that mean?" Mina murmured to Sophie.

Sophie let out a dry chuckle. "What that means is we'll be working our asses off for the whole week to get ready."

Mina frowned, her hand drifting to the ends of her hair. Even the overly energetic and quick-tongued Sophie seemed to be discouraged by the news, and Mina soon found out why. She spent the next few days on her knees and hunched over, scrubbing the floor until she could nearly see her reflection in it. Her whole body ached, especially her right shoulder whose movement was already inhibited thanks to her old injury, and the added strain made her feel as if the wound was going to tear open again. By the end of the day, she was usually too tired to do anything else before passing out on her cot, sometimes without changing out of her uniform. Even her longest nights at the tea house didn't compare to this. Here, she was supposed to be doing something that mattered, taking a real step toward her goal, but instead she was slaving away, serving the very people she despised. She hadn't even seen the prince in a while, much less the king, which was the worst part of it all. If she wanted to work like a dog for no reason, she'd just go back to her hometown, to her father and to that leaky cottage roof. She had believed those days were long behind her, but now she saw the fallacy of those thoughts.

Sophie was notably much less chatty than usual, with her usual side commentary being replaced with ragged coughing that only seemed to worsen each day. She covered it up with her crooked smile as best she could, but even Mina noticed how little she managed to eat and the lack of sleep she was getting. By the middle of the week, Sophie was especially sluggish, dragging her cleaning supplies behind her since she felt too weak to carry them normally.

"Oh, don't mind me," Sophie wheezed, even though Mina hadn't said anything. "If I drag the mop behind me like this, it'll continue to clean the floors while I walk."

She continued to mumble more nonsense, but Mina had stopped listening as soon as a familiar man came into view. He was wearing all white today, save his tall black boots. Gold embroidery detailed his suit coat, and his short dagger hung from his belt as usual. He was walking the opposite direction, talking to some official looking men dressed in dark blue suits. His guard wasn't with him, but Mina assumed he was just right around the corner somewhere.

Mina stood up to go, her eyes still fixed on him.

"Come on," she ordered Sophie. "We still have more rooms to clean."

Sophie nodded, grabbing onto a nearby ledge to help hoist herself off the ground. "Yes, yes, just give me—"

Mina barely had time to hold her arms out before Sophie slumped over. She didn't weigh much, but the sudden dead weight made Mina stumble a little. Lowering her down to the floor, Mina supported Sophie's head on her lap as she tried to rouse her. Why did this have to happen now? Hearing footsteps, her head shot up to see the prince approaching. She immediately diverted her eyes, as if looking away would make him spontaneously disappear. Not surprisingly, he stayed right where he was.

Magnus, upon hearing the thud from Sophie's fall, had hastily excused himself to attend to the situation.

"What happened? Is she alright?"

"It's nothing, Your Highness," Mina responded, still not looking at him. "She's just exhausted is all. Don't worry about us."

Magnus frowned, reaching over to touch Sophie's arm but recoiling when he felt her burning skin. "She doesn't look good. Come, I'll help take her to the physician."

"There's no need. I really don't want to burden you."

He shook his head, gingerly pulling Sophie's limp body away from Mina and into his arms. "It's no trouble. You would need help carrying her anyway."