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Iko's POV:
Falling Apart
When Wolf explained his plan to us, I was pretty optimistic. We'd get Cinder and the others out, and we'd score some new allies as well! I don't know about you, but to me that sounded like a pretty good deal. So I was in a good mood for a while afterward. Unfortunately, my own considerable skill in keeping up with the gossip chain came back to bite me, when I heard the servants and guards exchanging whispers on just what had happened in the throne room.
"Do you think that girl really was Selene?"
"I still can't believe the Alpha Intended is alive, after all these years!"
"I always knew Clay couldn't be trusted. He never showed true loyalty to our queen."
"Her Majesty is extremely angry after that escape. Best to try and stay away."
"At least Jael managed to bite the Alpha Intended. Hopefully that will mollify Her Majesty somewhat."
Practice from attending an Earth high school made it fairly easy to put the pieces of gossip together. And what I'm left with isn't a pretty picture. Cinder and the others escaped, so that's a good thing, but at the cost of Wolf becoming a mindless slave for one of Levana's lackeys. I'm not sure who this "Jael" person is, but I'm definitely going to keep an eye out for him now, and maybe leave a wet patch on the floor just right so he steps on it…
I have to quickly suppress a gag at the thought. There's a guard in the room with me, and I'm pretty sure me gagging will attract some serious suspicion, especially when the floors I'm cleaning have nothing on them besides a few specks of dust.
There's nothing more to be done about it. I have to meet up with Thorne, Cress, Erland and Winter, and see if any of us can think of a way to salvage this situation. We're going to have to kill Jael, that part's not an option, no matter how much it makes my stomach heave. It's the only way to get Wolf back, and we desperately need his muscle and any influence he may have over the werewolves. And while we're in here, it can't hurt to sabotage some stuff, right? Maybe Cress can screw up their security systems or something, or Thorne could, I don't know, tamper with the guards' food? Ugh, this all looks so much easier when Cinder does it!
I stand up (the floor was clean since before I got here it's not going to look like I haven't done my non-existent job) and hastily gather my cleaning supplies, rushing out of the room like I have somewhere else I urgently need to be. My best bet is finding Winter, since Cress and Thorne will both be off doing their own things and I have no way of getting to the labs where Erland is, so that leaves Winter as easiest person to find. I'm not sure where her quarters are, and asking would almost certainly be way too suspicious, so that leaves the menagerie.
I hurriedly make my way over to the glorified zoo, not daring to put down my cleaning equipment even for a moment, lest some guard or thaumaturge decides to question me.
It's only after I cross the entrance and run onto the walkway lined with animal enclosures that I start to realise the serious flaws in my plan. Just because I know Winter likes the place doesn't' mean she spends every spare minute in here. There could be a dozen places here she likes that she could be! Second, I'm not sure if a bucket of soapy water and a sponge are the right props for blending in where the pathways are shiny white pebbles that gleam like stars (I'll give Levana this she knows how to decorate) and the floors of the enclosures are nothing but dirt and rock. Maybe I can find a tool-shed for a shovel or something…
"What are you doing?"
I squeak in surprise (admittedly not entirely voluntarily) and whirl around, splashing water all over those shiny white pebbles. The guard who'd been stationed in the room I was cleaning before was staring at me suspiciously. And I really, really don't want him to be suspicious of me.
The man is huge, with dark brown skin and hazel eyes, with wild black hair tied back in a ponytail. The gleam of his too-sharp teeth seems unnaturally bright, and scars criss-cross his bare neck and arms. Every inch of him is just bulging with muscle, like a professional bodybuilder with a side-job in illegal street-fights. All in all, he's someone I really, really don't want to be angry at me. Seriously, I wouldn't be surprised if he was capable of literally ripping my head off. This man was terrifying.
I hastily scramble away, curling in on myself and trying to seem as meek as possible. "Just cutting through the menagerie to get to some rooms that need cleaning, Sir."
He raises an eyebrow. "You're going to clean the motor pool?"
I nod fervently. Thank God, there is something I can cut through here to get to.
"All by yourself? With one bucket of water? And a sponge?"
Crap. "I will be joined later by some more servants Sir."
"Then why don't you get something more suited to the motor pool, like a mop instead of just a sponge?"
"I was in a hurry."
"Why? You're clearly early, if the other servants aren't going to arrive until later."
Okay, clearly my lie is falling apart faster than a house of cards in an earthquake, but how in the world am I supposed to salvage this situation. I can't keep going, that's obvious, and I can't run. Look at this guy, he'll catch me in, like, fifteen seconds! I doubt breaking down in tears and begging for mercy will have any effect, and flirting will seem way too weird. Come on brain, give me a solution I can work with!
"What is happening here?" A soft, high voice says, and I breathe an internal sigh of relief.
Winter, in all her ethereal beauty, wanders over, head tilted curiously.
The guard bows his head. "Princess, this servant was behaving suspiciously. I was just questioning her."
Winter smiles. "I'm sure she has committed no-crime worse that anything that has already happened in this castle. The walls are crying today, did you know? It's strange, where there was blood there now is now water. The castle can still drown, and I fear it will, in its grief for the loss of the Alpha Intended."
"The Alpha Intended was a rebel and a threat to the security of the nation." The guard says, but his tone is flat, almost robotic, and his fingers are twitching at his sides like he wants to curl his hands into fists.
Winter nods, still smiling, and gestures to me. "Come servant girl, one of my dresses needs to be repaired. I'm sure you can clean the motor-pool later with no consequence."
I jolt, and quickly bow. "Yes, Your Highness." and hurriedly follow Winter out of the menagerie.
A/N: Please review!