The Cold King(24)

Calia had.

"I thought she would just fall over with jealousy. Her daughter married  the baker's son a few months after you left and the way she carried on  you would have thought she had married a prince! But now her perfect  daughter has to help at the bakery and you should see her. Her hair is  dreadfully plain and she always has flour on her clothes. Little miss  baker's wife isn't so perfect anymore. And when she saw you, I thought  her eyes would fall out of her head." Her mother leaned back, relishing  in the other woman's jealousy.

Calia fought back her anger with coldness. "I did not go off and marry a  king, mother. I am a slave to one. And no matter how well he treats me,  I will always be a slave while she will get to be a wife and a mother  and grandmother. I hardly see how I came out the victor with a haircut  and a new dress."

Her mother pouted and sat up straight. "I was paying you a compliment.  Really, you've always been such a sour girl. I would have thought you  would be happier with everything that's been given to you."

Calia sighed and rolled her tense shoulders. "I'd like to retire now. Where shall I sleep?"



Her mother's brow furrowed and she glanced around the room. Before she  could suggest the armchair or the floor, Calia cut in. "Moli shall sleep  with you tonight and I will take her bed."

Her mother and sister opened their mouths to argue but Calia jumped up,  snatched her bag and left for the tiny room that had been half hers  before they could say a word.

She sat on the hard little bed for a long time, not thinking, not  feeling. She had known she would be unhappy here again but she did not  know it would be in such a painful, uncomfortable way. She was just a  curiosity they all felt free to inspect.

Calia got ready for bed and lay down but sleep wouldn't come.

The sun wasn't up before she finally gave in and got up. The rest of her  family was still sleeping and she quietly fixed herself a cup of tea.  She stood at the counter drinking it and taking in her old home. Her  hands itched to scrub and wipe and straighten but she refused to give  into it. She had done enough cleaning for them.

Eventually her sister rose and began to the get breakfast ready. She  shot Calia a sullen look. "This used to be your job, you know."

Calia glared at her. "And now I have a new one with no hopes of ever  leaving it. At least you will one day get to leave to start your own  family."

The wisdom of her words was lost on her sister.

After a terrible breakfast, Calia's mother insisted she put on her best gown. "We have some shopping to do."

The younger siblings clamored to go along and she shushed them quickly.  "You will all stay here. I wish to spend time with my oldest daughter. I  get to see you brat's every day." Calia winced at her harshness but was  touched that her mother wanted to spend time with her.



Tender happiness soon turned back to anger and annoyance. Her mother's  intent was not to spend quality time with her but to drag her along and  show her off while she spent the kings gold. Calia was taken into the  hat shop and the meat market and the dress maker's store. Whoever hadn't  gotten an eyeful of her the night before was getting their chance. Her  mother showed her off maliciously and with the attitude that she was  responsible for all the good changes her daughter had undergone.

Calia seethed quietly well into the afternoon until she could take it no  longer. Her mother tried to pull her into the general store and Calia  balked. "I do not want to see Mr. Horatio. He's a terrible man and I  never liked him. I could not care less if he sees me in a new dress or  not."

Her mother pulled her lips back in a snarl. "I care. Life is very  difficult for me and it would help me and your siblings a great deal if  you would show this town what good standing you with have the king."                       
       
           



       

Calia's jaw dropped open. "Good standing? He allowed his slave to visit her family. That is all."

Her mother grabbed her arm with hooked claws and jerked her closer.  "Stop acting like the most pitiful child in the world. The king took you  in when no one else wanted you. And the last time I checked, slaves do  not get paid. He has transformed you from a pitiful little girl with no  future to a beautiful servant who has been afforded every luxury."



Calia's cheeks burned as realized the futility of arguing with her  mother. "I will wait outside for you," she said evenly and pulled her  arm from her mother's grasp.

Mrs. Thorn huffed and glared and pursed her lips but Calia just turned  her back and wandered around to the side of the store to tame her  emotions and gather her thoughts.

A long, low whistle pulled her back to the awful present. Mr. Horatio's sons stood at the side entrance, staring down at her.

Delmar and Durand were handsome, wealthy and had parents who thought  they were angels. To all the elders in the town they were respectful,  helpful young men. To anyone their age or younger, they were bullies or  worse. When she had still lived with her mother, Calia had wondered how  their bad behavior had escaped the notice of the king until she finally  realized money and well respected parents could erase a lot of misdeeds.

Suddenly fearful, Calia turned away and began walking back towards the front of the building.

"Hey, slave girl!" one of them called and she walked faster.

She could hear their feet shuffling along and risked a glance over her  shoulder only to find them right behind her. She surged forward and  Delmar caught her shoulder, flinging her around.

The brothers stood over her with evil grins and evil twinkles in their eyes. "We were talking to you."

Calia shuddered and wrapped her arms across her chest as they looked her  up and down. "What do you want?" she asked, praying her mother would  come for her soon.



"We just wanted to see for ourselves," Durand said, not dropping his creepy grin.

Calia shifted on her feet, fearing that wasn't all they wanted. "See what?"

Delmar stepped closer and Calia inched back. "To see if the ugly stick girl really got transformed into a beauty queen."

"Not a queen," his brother interrupted. "Still a slave. But you are  pretty now. How much magic did that take?" He laughed loudly and his  brother joined him.

Calia gave a tight smile and stepped back again but Delmar reached out  and crushed her arm in his meaty fist. "We were wondering why the king  would waste any magic on making you pretty but I think we have it  figured out. I mean, you are his personal slave right?"

Durand winked at her. "You are probably good at lots of things now." He  licked his lips and Calia nearly gagged. "Your mother is going to be in  that store awhile, maybe you could show us a few."

"I do not know what you are referring too, but I am not showing you  anything," Calia spat and pulled her arm from Delmar's grasp.

Both their faces tightened in anger and Durand lunged for her. Calia shrieked and jumped back, just out of their reach.

"Calia!" her mother shrieked from the entrance to the ally. "What are  you doing down there? And why are you making all that noise?"

Relief flooded her and she ran to her mother. Delmar and Durand  followed, their faces smoothed into kind smiles. "She just wanted to say  hello," Delmar said with an easy lie.



Her mother eyed the brothers suspiciously before pulling Calia away.  When they were out of ear shot her mother hissed, "What were you doing  un-chaperoned with two boys in an alley? Do you have any idea how that  looks? What would the king think?"

"They followed me down there," Calia protested.

"Do not be ridiculous! What could those boys want with you?"

Calia bit her lip, refusing to answer her mother. She had heard terrible  rumors about the brothers but no one seemed to think they could be  anything but angelic.

Hurt and angry, Calia followed her mother back to the small house. Her  siblings crowded around them as soon as they entered, demanding to know  what they brought back for them.

"I have a headache," Calia mumbled and excused herself to bed.

Her mother did not come to check on her, even when she did not come out  for dinner. No one asked if she was all right and no one came to bid her  a good night. Calia curled up in a tight ball on her bed, faced the  wall and prayed for morning to come.

She hadn't realized it would be so awful to visit. She had secretly  hoped her family would be happy to see her, happy that she was doing  well. At worst they might have ignored her or demanded that she clean.  But instead they just wanted the gifts the king had sent and her mother  wanted to rub her ‘status' in everyone else's face.