The Ordained Bride

The Freckled Maid

Cyris spoke the truth. The vote swung in Cyris' favor, making him noticeable to the king's eye. After that, Kleio never saw her husband. It was just as he said. He did not come to bed ever. He did not eat meals with her. He did not summon her. She went weeks without seeing him. Obviously, his promise to Anson was unkept.

Every so often, he would send her a letter containing instructions on what he wished her to do. The last instruction was always to burn the piece of evidence. Kleio would watch the ink stained parchment shrivel up in the fire. The flame's like her husband's rule over her life. Destructive and merciless.

The maid he wished her to befriend was not in the court house's kitchen the last time they visited. Cyris had told her not to worry about it. He had other things he wished her to do.

Kleio received a letter one morning after weeks of silence from her husband. Inside it wrote that she was to go into town and sit at it's center, watching for a man with a rose pinned to his lapel. When she spotted him, she would follow him to the brothel and report him to the authorities when he entered. Kleio did as she was told.

That man was a duke in the courts. No man of the king's court was ever to commit an act that might be deemed as immoral. Groping maids was not evil, so long as it never grew to be anything more. Visiting a brothel was as awful as a crime in the king's eyes. When Kleio reported the man with the rose, he was hauled away and she never heard of him again.

Though she still didn't know what men and women did together, she now knew why it was such a terrible secret. It was evil and she shuddered at the very thought of it.

The next time they were in court, she noticed that the far right seat beneath the king was empty. The time after that, Cyris occupied that seat and Kleio sat behind him. Cyris was the youngest man to sit beneath the king. The other lord's and duke's were older, many widowed. These men were highly esteemed in the eyes of the king and yet Cyris seemed to know every dark secret about them. He intended to tear them down.

Kleio finally met the maid she was to befriend the third time they were in court. She managed to slip through the halls, leaving her husband in the company of Adelaide. Adelaide was surprisingly frustrating to Kleio. The gaudy woman wore such tight, low cut dresses. Fanciful hats sat atop her red locks and the smirk she wore was always self righteous.

Adelaide draped herself over Cyris' arm so often, it looked as though she were his wife. Kleio didn't understand it, but it annoyed her.

Kleio slipped into the kitchen. It was hot and fragrant. Chefs yelled across the room to one another, maids scurried back and forth. Kleio did not spot the freckled girl until she had reached the farthest corner. The young lady was sitting on a short stool, peeling potatoes.

"Hello," Kleio said kindly.

The maid turned to look at her. When her eyes caught Kleio's rich clothes, they widened. She dropped to her knees and leaned her forehead to the dusty floor.

"Milady," She cried.

"No, no. Rise. I do not wish to make a scene," Kleio took a step forward and placed her hand on the girl's shoulder. The young maid slowly sat up. Her forehead was smudged with dust and dirt. Her hair was falling from its braids, creating pretty wisps around her face. Her freckles were very prominent, big blue eyes accenting them. She was a willowy girl and Kleio thought her to be quite beautiful.

"May I help you, my lady?" She asked.

Kleio shook her head,"I only wished to escape for a bit. Here seemed a good place to hide. Court can be so stuffy."

The young maid looked astonished by Kleio's words. Kleio tasted bitterness inside her. She was reciting what Cyris had written for her. It was as though she were a performer in a play, a character in a story. Here this girl thought her to be genuine and sweet when in reality, Kleio was deceiving and lying. Kleio felt resentment grow in her heart for her husband.