I yawned my way through breakfast the next morning, despite my feigned headache the night before. I had made it back to the room before Ella had returned from dinner, slipping back into my nightclothes before anyone could catch me in my uniform dress. But despite pretending to be asleep when the other girls returned, I tossed and turned until well after midnight thanks to my growling stomach. Unluckily for me, instead of breakfast in our suite, we were expected to dine with the royals later in the morning, which meant that I had nothing but strong tea loaded with milk and sugar to get me through the hour and a half it took us to groom and prepare Ella.
When we were finally seated and the breakfast served in much the same way it was the first morning we had dined with the royals, I reached over and served myself a heaping portion of scrambled eggs and fried ham despite Mary Marquette's scandalized stare.
"A little decorum please," Rosanna said, leaning over to whisper to me. I was caught mid-yawn again, hastily covering it with my free hand as I served myself some toast. Ella cleared her throat across the table as Mary whispered something venomous to Camilla, one of her ladies in waiting. I studiously ignored all of them, instead shooting sidelong glances towards where Prince Andrew was chatting with his brother at the head table.
Andrew hadn't looked at me once since he'd entered, so I was unable to gauge whether he'd deciphered the note or if he'd even received it. I contemplated him as I chewed my toast, oblivious to the conversation at my own table until Rosanna not-so-subtly elbowed me. I looked around at her with raised eyebrows, only to notice that the entire table had fallen silent to stare at me, the only sounds coming from the string quartet in the corner and the other ladies chatting quietly around us.
"Yes?" I asked no one in particular, my eyes jumping from face to face as I dabbed at my lips with my napkin.
"I wonder if you could go back upstairs and fetch me a sash," Ella said finally, her face flushed crimson. I darted a look at Emily, who was staring straight down into her plate. The fact that she wasn't taking pleasure in my being dismissed from breakfast surely did not bode well.
"If only so that the rest of us may eat without sharing the table with a hog," Mary sniffed, her three ladies in waiting tittering as they grinned maliciously at me. I met her gaze, holding it until she pursed her lips and resumed slicing her fruit with a huff.
"Excuse yourself to the head table!" Rosanna hissed as I stood. The queen's eyes had landed upon me the moment I stood, so I dropped a curtsey, rising only when she gave the smallest of nods. I couldn't be sure, but it seemed that Prince Andrew looked over at me before I turned tail and bolted from the dining room.
Fuming, I stormed upstairs, determined to return as quickly as I could with a stupid sash for Ella. Clearly she had only asked to get me to leave the table and I wondered whether there was some palace rule against women eating large portions at mealtime. I hadn't been smacking my lips or chewing with my mouth open, of that I was certain, for there were certain rules that even I wouldn't dream of breaking in the presence of royalty. As I threw open the door to Ella's suite, it dawned on me that Mary Marquette had been one of the girls at the croquet game yesterday, so perhaps this was her payback for me sneaking a word in with the prince. I fished through Ella's collection of coloured sashes with a grimace, finally picking out a white lace one that would match her sunny yellow dress nicely.
I hurried back down the hallway, absently swinging the sash as I imagined what quippy reply I should've muttered when Mary had insulted me, only to slow my steps as I reached the top of the stairs. The hall below was silent, save for the music wafting out from the dining room. My hand rested on the polished wood banister as I cast a glance around, finally leaning over to peer into the hall below.
It was utterly deserted, so I could think of no possible reason to resist the banister any longer. I sat my derriere up onto it and slid, restraining myself from shrieking with glee as I sailed down. I hopped off at the last second, skittering to a stop as I clapped both hands to my mouth to muffle my giggles. I cast a final look around before hurrying back towards the dining room, unable to hide my smile that not a soul had witnessed me finally conquering the banister.
My mouth had set to watering as I pictured the meal I had left on my plate when the dining room door opened ahead of me and Ashley Mayfair and Sarah Thornbury exited, a tide of ladies in waiting behind them. I flattened myself to a wall as they passed, ignoring me as they chattered. Ella and Mary exited near the back of the group and I fell in next to Rosanna, casting a longing look into the dining room where the servants were now clearing the plates.
"Why is breakfast over so soon?" I asked, handing her Ella's sash.
"We're to spend the rest of the morning in the queen's salon," Rosanna said, "Apparently it's too rainy for badminton and a picnic today."
I made a face as I followed the rest of the ladies towards the queen's solar, bemoaning not only my lost breakfast, but also another day spent in tedium.
****
The string quartet from breakfast had been set up in a corner of the solar, the windows clouded and spotted with rain. Lamps and wall sconces were lit to chase the gloom from the room, the quartet starting into a number of slow pieces to fill the room with music instead of sunlight. Ella's ladies' maid had brought squares of embroidery for the four of us, but I was unable to focus on mine, instead curling up on the seat of the bay window to watch the raindrops.
Ella conversed quietly with Sarah Thornbury, who had taken a seat near her with Ashley and Penelope as they each worked on their own squares of embroidery. Emmie and Mary had commenced a round of cards with two of their ladies in waiting, while the queen listened as one of her own ladies in waiting read aloud from a book of poetry.
I couldn't help from yawning every few minutes, the dreary day and sleepy music eroding my resolve to remain awake. When my eyes had crashed shut for nearly the third time, there was a knock at the solar door and the queen's lady in waiting stopped reading her silly love poems.
"His Highness, Prince Andrew and his courtiers," the butler announced, bowing as he held the door open. There was a collective gasp from the debutantes as the queen's face melted into a smile, an expression I had rarely witnessed on her while in the presence of the debutantes.
"This is a lovely surprise," she said, rising as Andrew, Prince Thomas, James Amberly, Martin Pendleton, Dorian Fletcher, William Weatherington and two other men I didn't recognize entered the room. Princess Anne scampered from her seat across the room and landed with a thump in her brother's arms, releasing him to give Thomas a whack on the arm. The younger prince returned her surprise attack with gusto before the queen cleared her throat at the display.
"Our pheasant hunt was rained out," Andrew said, coming to kiss his mother and her ladies. Around him, the debutantes were hastily arranging themselves. Ashley Mayfair tugged the neckline of her dress lower to expose even more of her decolletage while Mary Marquette was not so subtly pinching her cheeks and biting her lips so make them more pink.
"Make yourselves comfortable then," the queen said, still smiling as she gestured to the butler by the door, "Let's have some more tables for games and some refreshments, please,"
I watched the queen as she settled back into her seat, marvelling at how very much a smile changed her face. I wondered why she didn't wear one more often, but was reminded not a few moments later when Ashley sauntered towards the prince, who was now making his way back towards his men.
"I was hoping you'd join me in a game of backgammon," she simpered, halting him in his tracks. Andrew smiled graciously at her while the rest of the debutantes scowled that she'd gotten to him first.
"Thank you, Ashley, but I was rather hoping that Ella would join me in a game of Hearts with her ladies?" he said, his eyes turning towards where we were seated behind Ella. Rosanna let out a little gasp as Ella rose, beaming. Andrew's eyes found mine for a moment and his eyes crinkled, finally matching the smile on his face.
"We would be delighted, your Highness," Ella said, dropping a perfect curtsey, "Rosanna, Emily, come join us,"
Mary Marquette sniggered as she looked at me, the insult plain. But I couldn't care less if Andrew played cards with me or not. Watching him lead my cousin to the cards table in the corner while she grinned and dimpled at being picked over the other debutantes was enough of a reward for me.
The other courtier men fanned out among the ladies while the servants brought up more games tables. Backgammon, checkers, dominoes, and more card decks appeared as the debutantes paired off with the courtiers and the ladies in waiting huddled around to watch. Satisfied that my note had worked, I crossed to the bookshelf in hopes of finding something entertaining enough to keep me awake.
"So you're the troublemaking redhead,"
Prince Thomas had moved in beside me at the bookshelf and I shot him a sidelong glance.
"It is very nice to make your acquaintance as well," I replied, stunned by his frankness. He grinned, a more rakish version of the lopsided smile Andrew favoured.
"Leave Libby alone," Princess Anne said, coming up on my other side.
"But I haven't even properly met her yet!" Thomas protested, folding his arms and leaning against the bookshelf, "Goodness knows I've heard enough about her from-"
"You should go play cards with a real debutante," Anne interrupted, pulling a book off the shelf to throw at him. He caught it as the grin snuck back onto his face.
"What if I want to play cards with Libby?" he shot back. My head swiveled from one royal sibling to the next, caught between them with my eyebrows raised.
"Quit trying to cause a scene," Anne hissed, leaning across me to poke Thomas in the chest. He held his hands up as he laughed.
"All right, all right! I'll leave you two aspiring librarians alone!" he laughed, chucking the book back at the princess, who deftly caught it and slid it back into the shelf.
"But I do eventually want to hear how you survived jumping side-saddle on Sable," Thomas whispered, pausing next to me to flash that rakish grin again before he made his way towards where Ashley's ladies in waiting were dealing out a game of cards.
"You'd do best to avoid the likes of him," Anne said, as I turned to watch him go before whipping back around to look at her. She was glaring at her brother's retreating back before she turned back to the bookshelf, "You're conspicuous enough as it is and all Thomas ever does is stir up trouble,"
"I wasn't intending to," I said, wondering how my simple wish for a book had turned into me getting caught between a pair of quarrelling royal siblings. Anne resumed her perusal of the bookshelf, seemingly unaware that I'd even spoken.
"My brother asked me to give you something," she said, standing on tiptoe to reach for a book. She flipped it open as if perusing it, only to slide a thinly folded piece of paper in between the pages, before she closed it and handed it to me. I accepted it wordlessly as the princess reached up for another book of her own.
"I hope you'll enjoy that one as much as you enjoyed the last," she said, glancing down at the cover of the book she'd given me before returning to sit near her mother. Angling my back to hide the book, I flipped it open to the page with the note, hastily unfolding it.
Consider it done. However, in return I expect a dance this Friday. I require some answers that only a spy can provide.
I grinned to myself, tucking the note up my sleeve and returning to my spot on the bay window seat. It was only when I'd opened the book to the title page that I realized what kind of book the princess had chosen for me and stifled my laugh with a cough.
A Modern Guide to Coded Messages and Ciphers.