Deals With the Devil

Dress Up

“Beth,” Molly’s sing-song voice broke through Beth’s dreams. “Elizabeth. It’s time to get up and get ready.”

“Get ready for what? Why can’t I just sleep?” Beth mumbled, burrowing deeper into the blankets and pillows.

“You have five minutes to get out of bed and be ready for your bath,” Molly said, rolling her eyes. She headed into the bathroom to get Beth’s bath ready. “It’s already ten thirty.”

“Yay! Five more hours of sleep!” Beth cheered quietly. Within moments, she was once again sleeping peacefully.

Once Molly had gotten the water to the perfect temperature and added the perfect amount of bubbles, hitting the top but not overflowing, she returned to the bedroom. When she saw her sister sleeping peacefully, she couldn’t help but laugh. Fortunately for Molly, but not for Beth, Beth woke up instantly. She sat up quickly with her hand dropping to her waist where her dagger should sit.

“Good. You’re awake,” Molly said smugly. “It’s time for your bath.”

“I don’t take-” That was when the fog from Beth’s REM sleep lifted, and she remembered the deals she made the night before. She fell back onto her pillows with a cry of anguish.

“Do I have to get ready this early? The date isn’t until four o’clock tonight!” Beth cried as Molly pulled her to the bathroom.

“This is a date with a king,” Molly argued. “And this is your very first date. I am not going to let you pass this up. One of the maids already told me the color of your dress.”

“I don’t care, Molly. This is my date, and I don’t want to deal with all of this fuss. I just want to sleep.”

“Well, I’m your big sister, and I promised to keep you safe. I say that you must ‘deal with all of this fuss’,” Molly ordered as she exited the bathroom. “I expect you to be fully and properly washed by the time I get back in here.”

Beth growled as the bathroom door closed behind Molly. For a few minutes, she just stood there, fighting the lull of the water until she couldn’t anymore. The bubbles overrode her annoyance. They welcomed her with open arms. Bubble never judged anyone; let alone troubled souls.

After a ten minute soak, Beth took the washcloth and scrubbed off the touch of grime that she hadn’t gotten off in her shower the night before. She was still careful when she washed her stomach. The scars had been a part of her life for over five years, but sometimes they still hurt like they were still an open wound. Some habits die hard. Others never do.

“Beth! Are you done in there?” Molly asked, standing right outside the door. “You’ve been in there for almost an hour!”

“No, I’m not done yet!” Beth shouted back. “Come back in an hour or two.”

“Elizabeth! If you do not get your ass out here, I will go in there and drag you out myself. Put on the robe so we can get your hair done. Then we can eat lunch.”

“Fine. But I’m only coming out for the food.”

Molly heard water splash against the sides of the tub as Beth climbed out. Moments later, Beth came out of the bathroom with sopping wet hair and wearing the fluffy, black robe. With a sigh, Molly grabbed a towel and, when she saw that the tub was still full, pulled the plug.

“What’s for lunch?” Beth asked hopefully, sitting down at the table. “I hope it’s grilled cheese.”

“Don’t worry. The cooks promised you grilled cheese sandwiches for lunch,” Molly said, pulling up a chair behind Beth with a slight smile. “Now, let me get your hair dried before lunch arrives.”

When a maid knocked on the door, Beth smiled. Her grilled cheese sandwiches had arrived! Once the two, perfectly grilled sandwiches were placed in front of her, Beth dug in. Those two sandwiches were the best grilled cheese sandwiches Beth had ever had!

“Let’s get you cleaned up,” Molly said with a laugh as Beth licked the melted cheese off her fingers. “Your dress should be here soon.”

“It doesn’t take four hours to get ready for a date, Molly,” Beth groaned. “Why can’t we rest for a few hours first?”

“I want you to look perfect. And you will need at least an hour to get used to walking in heels,” Molly argued, a smirk forming on her face. “I mean. Unless you want to be falling onto King Seth the entire time.”

“I would never!” Beth growled, her cheeks turning a light shade of red. “How dare you even suggest such a thing!”

Molly chuckled. “Then let’s get working. Once your dress arrives, we will pick out the perfect pair of shoes.”

The dress arrived less than ten minutes later. Its midnight black color perfectly matched the boots Beth had worn when they were brought to the compound. Since Beth didn’t need to get used to wearing her boots, the two girls talked while Molly did Beth’s hair.

“I miss my family. They must be getting worried about us. I wish I had my wolf and was able to tell them that I’m okay,” Molly murmured as she pulled her brush through Beth’s hair. She paused as a thought hit her. “How have none of the warriors found us? We’ve been gone for more than a week, and we aren’t that far away from home!”

“Our scents may have been masked by something,” Beth replied thoughtfully. “But I have a sneaking suspicion that there is a different reason behind our lack of saving.”

Molly paused once again. “What do you think it is?”

“I think our pack knows exactly where we are, but they are leaving us here. Maybe King Seth talked to them before bringing us here,” Beth suggested. “He let us come five times before bringing us to the compound.”

Neither of them said another word while Molly got back to work. She expertly curled Beth’s hair, letting the golden curls cascade down her back. She left two small locks of hair on each side that she would pull back and connect with a black rose to hold back the rest of her hair. This would be done after Beth was wearing her dress.

Beth glanced at the clock. It was nearly three o’clock! Time really does fly when you are focused on your tasks or thoughts. Standing up, Beth picked her dress up off the bed.

“Nope! You’re going to let me help,” Molly said, carefully taking the dress back and leading the way to the bathroom. Then she used her evil puppy dog eyes that always worked against Beth. “Please?”

“But-” Beth said reluctantly.

“Beth, darling. I know about your scars. You don’t have to hide them from me.”

She slid the dress off the hanger and helped Beth into it. The dress that looked gorgeous on the hanger looked even more so when it was on Beth. It hugged her curves perfectly, the way tailored dresses always do. The hem ended just before her knees and the top of her black boots. While the neckline dipped low, it stayed high enough to remain modest. Molly applied light makeup to make her emerald green eyes pop. As she was putting Beth’s earrings in, they heard a knock on the door. Beth picked up her necklace and followed Molly out of the bathroom.

“Holy s**t,” King Seth gasped as he came into the room wearing a simple suit and tie. “You look stunning, Beth!”

“You were the one who had a dress secretly tailored to fit me perfectly,” Beth said sarcastically, trying to hide the broad grin slowly filling her face. But she held out her necklace to King Seth. “Could you put on my necklace, please?”

He carefully took the necklace from her hands, and she turned around. Once he clasped it around her neck, he took half a step back.

“Thank you, King Seth,” Beth said as she gifted the locket to sit perfectly around her neck.

“Tonight, I am not a king. Seth will be just fine,” Seth said with a smile as he held out his arm. “I’ll take Beth off your hands for a while, Miss Molly. But I promise to return her to you.”

“Be careful with her,” Molly teased. “She can be quite a handful sometimes.”

Beth lightly kicked her sister in the leg with a laugh before taking Seth’s arm. Seth shut the doors behind them as they walked through the throne room and out of the small, stone house.

“We will have to ride the horses for a few minutes before we get to the car,” Seth explained as he led Beth to the stable. “Then it will be a short drive to the restaurant.”

During the horse ride to the car, both of them remained silent, each lost in their own minds. Both wondered what was going to happen.

“I thought this was supposed to be a date,” a man standing near the hood of a black limo said, interrupting the silence as the two horses came to a stop, “not a solemn funeral ride.”

“I didn’t know you had a limo,” Beth said softly as Seth helped her off her mare.

“There are many skeletons in my closet, my dear. As many as I can assume are in yours,” Seth replied. “Truman will show you around the limo while I take care of these beauties.”

“Isn’t showing the lady around your job, my King?” Truman asked, a grin spread across his face.

“Truman. You know that limo better than I know my compound. And we both know that you are deathly afraid of horses.”

“And with good reason,” Truman muttered, turning to Beth. He directed her into the limo while he spoke. “What would you like to drink?”

Seth returned to find Beth sitting in the limo, sipping from a bottle of Coca-Cola, and snacking on a few Oreos. “Are you going to have room for dinner?”

“Yeah, I’ll have room,” Beth chuckled. “But I’ve been thinking. We should play a game; a question for a question.”

“I ask you a question, then you ask me one?” Seth clarified. “All answers must be given in complete honesty. I can’t tolerate any lies.”

“Duh. Do you agree to play my game?”

“It would be the perfect way to get to know each other. I agree.”

They shook hands before resuming their silence. Both were thinking of questions they wanted to ask the other. The silence was only interrupted by Truman’s question, “Can I play?”, which resulted in a burst of laughter from all three.