The Archshade

Thirty-One

Aria finds me later that evening.

The bedchamber door opens quietly and casts a sliver of light into the room. I don't move. Faintly, in the back of my mind, a tiny flicker hopes it's Daynar, but I crush that flicker with the stone in my chest, smashing it to bits. I don't even stir as I feel a soft hand on my shoulder.

"My lady..." Aria says nothing more than that. She doesn't need to as she helps me to my feet and guides me into the bathing room.

Numb and in a haze, I'm unable to tell how late it is or how early. Aria fills the stone basin with hot water, helps me out of my clothes, and frees my hair from its wrapping. Wordlessly, she eases me into the tub and scrubs my skin as if trying to scour the sadness right out of my pores, as if all of this is no more than a layer of dirt that can be washed away. The water's heat seeps into my core and melts the knots in my muscles.

"Better than dirty water from a cow pond." Though it's not much in the way of conversation, Aria smiles at the sound of my muted voice as she massages sweet oil into my hair.

"Is that how they treat their noble ladies in Aaru-Sheol?" She clicks her tongue, but I can hear the teasing laughter in her voice. "For shame."

I pull my hand from the water and set it on the ledge, counting the drips falling from my fingertips. The water slides off me, making the hairs of my skin shudder.

Aria takes a fine-tooth comb to the knots in my hair, gently tugging them loose. "I know it isn't my place, my lady, but..."

I keep my eyes on the rippling water.

"Are you alright?"

Aria doesn't pause in her work, and she doesn't press the question. She just lets it hang in the air, mingling with the steam from the bathwater. I pull in a deep breath, and I answer her without fully knowing what to say.

"I will be." Though the words are honest and Aria seems satisfied with them, my lips continue speaking. "Aria... you've been so kind to me. You have washed and dressed and groomed me as if I'm no different from the other noble ladies."

"Of course, my lady."

I stare at my hands beneath the surface of the water. "But I am different," I whisper.

"My lady?"

I look over my shoulder at her, pulling my hair free from her hands. "If anything happens to the Archshade, I'll be sold, and you'll be sent back to the laundry pots."

Aria blinks at me, her lips parted slightly. I take her silence as my cue to continue.

"What if you left Arcadia?" I ask. "You're a servant, not a thrall. What if you wanted to leave?"

Aria slowly shakes her head, a sad smile lifting the corners of her mouth. "Oh, no," she mutters. "My sisters are here in Jannah with me, and my mother and father tend the family farm north of the city. This is my home."

"But how can you stand it?" I turn away from her, facing forward again. "How can you serve these people?"

Aria lets out a soft laugh as she resumes combing my hair. "I serve you, my lady. And as you said before, you're quite different." She laughs again.

"Aria..." I trail off, not knowing what to say, not knowing how to warn her of what's going to happen. I owe it to her. For the kindness she's shown me, I owe it to her to tell her I'm leaving. Yet, a lump of guilt lodges in my throat and keeps me silent. Will she try to stop me if I tell her I plan to escape? Will she sabotage me in hopes of keeping her handmaid position? It hurts my heart to even think Aria would do such a thing, but I have to be careful now.