Chapter 26

The next morning, Annalise woke to the sound of low humming as Elsabeth pulled the curtains and allowed the early morning light to shine through. 

Annalise took a moment to fully appreciate her assigned room in the dawn light. Like the rest of the keep, it was made entirely of wood, the floors worn smooth by generations of use. Several woven tapestries of women, birds, deer, and winged horses frolicking in a forest decorated the walls. When she stretched and swung her feet out of bed, they sank into a thick white fur that she guessed was from one of the wild goats that inhabited the mountains between Dovea and Rhinnea. She peered at the tapestry, daring to run her fingers gently over it. The work was well-done and incredibly detailed, on par with the finest weavers of Dovea.

“Would you prefer to eat breakfast before or after you get ready?” Elsabeth asked, retreating to the doorway of Annalise’s bedroom. 

“After, please,” Annalise replied. 

The dress Elsabeth set out wasn’t her own. When Annalise looked at it with one eyebrow raised, the older woman tittered. 

“Your maid could only fit one change of clothes in that pack. You don’t think we’d let our esteemed guest wear the same garments day after day now, do you? One of the well-to-do families has a daughter around your size and frame, and she was more than happy to lend a few dresses and an old chemise or two to Lady Telimary’s niece.”

“That’s very kind of her.” 

“Yes, she is a nice young lady. I heard from the healers that Captain Kierson will be staying here for at least a couple more weeks, and it sounds like he’d rather cut off both his legs than see you travel to Rea without him, so you’ll have more than enough chance to meet Miss Rosaline before you leave.” 

Elsabeth continued chatting as she helped Annalise into her dress and did up the laces, then had Annalise sit in a chair and started to brush her hair as if it was the most normal thing in the world. 

Annalise would have protested if Elsabeth’s constant stream of words had given her half a chance, but by the time she registered what was happening Elsabeth had already picked up the brush and started on the worst of her tangles. Her eyes swelled with tears as the old maid chattered on, telling her all about the harvest from several months ago and the latest trouble her nephews were getting into. Once her hair was brushed and shining, without breaking stride in either or storytelling or the fluidity of her movements, Elsabeth donned a thin pair of gloves and began sectioning Annalise’s hair. There was something calming about the tug on her scalp, and Annalise found herself relaxing into her chair.

“Do you have any children of your own?” Annalise asked when Elsabeth paused for a rare breath. 

She watched Elsabeth shake her head in the mirror. The older woman had begun a braid on each side of Annalise’s head. “No, princess. I never married, either. I was always so busy taking care of my lady or serving others I never had any time to settle down and before I knew it, it was too late.” 

“Oh. I’m sorry for prying.” 

“No apologies needed, Your Highness. There’s more to life than having a man and children.” Elsabeth glanced at Annalise from the corner of her eye as she grabbed another hairpin, her face twisting into something terribly sad and full of regret before smoothing out. The entire expression was as fleeting as a hummingbird, nearly gone before Annalise had seen it, and left her wondering if she’d imagined it. 

She hesitated to ask her next question, but Elsabeth had been so friendly and welcoming that she decided to risk it. “As you grow older, with no husband or children, are you ever lonely?” 

Elsabeth’s hands paused in their work, and Annalise worried for a moment that she’d offended her, but then the older woman threw her head back and let out a bark of laughter. “Lonely? Me? Dear, I’m so busy I hardly have a chance to think. When you’re an old maid like myself, you have time and energy to invest in others. Why, if I were to have a rare evening to myself I could probably walk down the village and stop by any of the houses for dinner… or, if I wanted to sit alone in my room and drink a cup of tea and read a book until the candle burned low, I could do that instead.” 

“Your life does sound rather lovely.” 

“Don’t get me wrong—it’s hard work some days, but I’ve always been too busy taking care of others to have any time for children of my own.” Elsabeth dropped her voice to a conspiratorial whisper. “And if I’m being honest, even when I was a young girl I never wanted to raise the little ragamuffins. Even with my nephews, love them as I do, I’m glad to hand them back to their parents when my turn with them is over.” 

Annalise felt a tug as Elsabeth tied the ends of her two braids together and fastened it with a small hair clip. 

“Now, what do you think, Your Highness?” Elsabeth asked, hands on Annalise’s shoulders and face beside hers. 

She was closer than Annalise had been to another person without her mask in years, and it took a moment for her to focus enough to look in the mirror. 

Large, round blue eyes set in a pale face stared back at her, perched above a small nose and pink lips. Elsabeth had pulled her long hair away from her face by braiding each side and joining them in the back but leaving the rest of her hair free, and curls the color of ripened wheat cascaded down her shoulders. 

“It’s beautiful,” Annalise said. “You are beautiful, Your Highness. You may have had to hide behind that mask for Goddess-knows-why, but don’t ever forget that under it you’re as lovely as a white rose.” Elsabeth paused and looked as though she’d say more, but she held her tongue and shook her head. “Take as long as you’d like to look at yourself in the mirror. Whenever you’re ready, I’ve set your breakfast out for you in your receiving chambers.”