The Addition (The Selection)

Chapter Fourteen

I flip through several pieces of paperwork. The Women's room is a good place to work, I've discovered within the last few weeks. No one can really disturb me here. Slightly over a month ago I joined the project with the castes. I'll admit, it's been a great change rather than just sitting around the castle.

I stand up and walk over to the windows facing the gardens. The guards are outside running laps and doing their training. I take a seat away from the table and watch them, having to restrain myself from giggling at all the shirtless men.

"Think we could find Elise a man within that group?" I look around, not sure where the voice was. I smile as soon as I spot the source.

"Kriss!" I cry. I stand up and wrap my arms around her. The increasing size of my stomach gets in the way, though, causing her to giggle.

"She's gotten so large! How long?" Kriss asks, dragging me in the direction of the couches. I allow her to pull me, but I can't help to chew on my bottom lip. We never told her.

"Kriss, I have to tell you a secret and you promise not let anyone know," I say. She raises her eyebrows and nods but does not speak. "I lost the baby several months ago. . . And my body still thinks I'm six months pregnant because of the psychological need to have a child or somethings," I explain. Kriss sucks in a gasp, quickly raising her hand to cover mouth.

"Oh my gosh, America! Why did you never tell me?" she asks. I shrug.

"You haven't been here any since the accident occurred and it was too risky to send it through the mail or telephone. Anyone could be listening or snag the piece of mail and-" I begin.

"You don't need anyone knowing the queen failed to produce an heir," she says. I look over at her and nod. "Everything will be okay, though, you can always try again, right?" I nod.

"I suppose you're right," I tell her. She grins and studied the Women's Room for a few moments. Upon noticing, I whisper, "This place really hasn't changed much."

Kriss nods. "It hasn't." She looks over at the table where I was doing my paperwork. "I remember when Queen Amberley would sit there and do her papers, too." I smile at Kriss.

"Or when we did those makeovers and she agreed to let us give her one," I sighed. Kriss let out a little giggle.

She smooths out a wrinkle in her dress. "Life was much more simple then, was it not?" she asks. I let out a pathetic laugh and nod.

"I would love to go back to that time," I admit.

"What if we called Marlee up and were to do those again?" Kriss asks. I shake my head, knowing it is not a good idea to resort to somewhat childish uses of my time.

I nod back towards the table. "I have so much work to do, Kriss. Someone has to track the financial trends of the castes since the last change. The meeting is ne-" I start, standing up to walk back over to the table. Kriss grabs my wrist and pulls me back down.

"America, those trends can wait," she says. I open my mouth to explain that they can change quite fast but she stops me. "You need some relief from serving this nation. I'm calling Marlee and there's nothing you can do about it."

True to her words, Kriss had maids bring makeup and Marlee to the Women's Room in a matter of minutes. She also made sure to add a picture of Celeste and Queen Amberley to the table with my papers.

For almost two hours, we played in the Women's Room like we were little girls again. The sound of giggles could likely be heard in all parts of the palace as we coated one another's faces in layers upon layers of makeup. By the time we were finished, our faces looked like a piece of abstract art.

The fun began to come to an end as Kriss finished pinning up pieces of red curls to the top of my head in a style she claimed to watch one of her maids once do. The results, though, were nothing anyone would ever wear out of the house.

"I'm afraid my attention is required down below. Someone has to be in charge of the King and Queen's meal," Marlee says, watching us. I nod in agreement with her.

"And I have to get to work as well. Someone has to, well, fulfill the duties of a Queen," I tell them. Kriss nods.

"I'm sure I can find some kind of mischief around her," she tells us. The three of us tell one another our goodbyes and part ways, our faces still covered in makeup. I quickly stop in a bathroom to wipe it all off before anyone of importance sees me even though no reporters or outsiders should be within the palace.

Once all the makeup is gone, I begin the journey up to the top floor of the palace to my room. The halls of the palace are silent, but this silence is not as nerve racking as usual. Something about the events of the afternoon has put me in such a good spirit that even the empty halls comfort me.

I reach my bedroom doors and walk over to the desk, setting all of my unfinished papers down. I uncap my pen and try to get to work on them. I fill out several forms but there's a noise coming from an unknown source that distracts me.

I walk out onto my balcony to see if the noise is coming from the gardens, but all that is there are flowers and stone benches. I step back inside and begin walking towards the door to the hallway but stop as I pass the nursery door.

I creep over to the door and lightly turn the handle, scared to open it too quickly. I slide it open and through the first, tiny peek I get I can see that the nursery is a wreck.

The cradle is turned sideways in the middle of the room. Stuffed animals and toys from the teepee are scattered about the room. And amongst all the mess, my eyes come to the biggest one last.

"Maxon?"

I apologize for it taking me so long to update! I hope you enjoyed that ending!

Disclaimer: I do not own The Selection, Kiera Cass does.