Snow

The Royal Palace

By sunrise, I was already working.

There was no special treatment simply because I was leaving the palace that morning.

If anything, the knowledge that I would be accompanying Felix seemed to make the other maids watch me more closely.

I carried a stack of freshly folded linens down the corridor, careful not to let any of them slip from my arms. The palace was unusually busy. Servants moved quickly through the halls, whispering to one another. Guards stood at nearly every entrance, their expressions tense.

Something had changed.

I already knew why.

Felix had told me the night before that we were going to the royal family palace.

His father, the king, was seriously ill.

And apparently, his condition had become worse.

I didn't know what that meant for me.

I didn't even know why Felix wanted me to go with him.

But I knew better than to ask too many questions.

Especially not questions he didn't want to answer.

I pushed open the linen room and placed the folded sheets onto the shelves.

"Careful."

I turned.

One of the older maids was standing behind me.

Her eyes moved over me before she looked away.

"I am being careful," I said quietly.

She gave a small, unimpressed sound.

"Of course you are."

I didn't answer.

I had learned that silence was sometimes safer than defending myself.

Ever since Felix had started giving orders concerning me, the other servants had changed around me.

They noticed everything.

The room I had been given.

The clothes that appeared without me asking.

The physicians attending to Daniel.

The fact that Felix had ordered that I accompany him to the royal palace.

They noticed things I wished they would ignore.

And they had begun whispering.

"She hasn't even been here long."

"I know."

"Yet the prince takes her everywhere."

"Maybe she's trying to become his favorite."

Their voices weren't always quiet enough.

I kept my head down and continued working.

I didn't want to be anyone's favorite.

I didn't want Felix's attention.

I wanted Daniel to get better.

That was all.

I left the linen room and continued down the corridor.

As I passed the infirmary, my steps slowed.

The door was closed.

Daniel was behind it.

For a moment, I considered going inside.

I wanted to see him.

I wanted to know whether he was breathing easier.

Whether the physicians had managed to stabilize him.

Whether he had woken up.

But I knew I had duties to finish.

And I knew Felix expected me to be ready.

I forced myself to keep walking.

By midmorning, Anna found me in the servants' quarters.

"You've been working since dawn."

I looked up from the pile of clothes I was sorting.

"So have you."

"That's different."

"How?"

She crossed her arms.

"Because I'm used to it."

I smiled faintly.

"I'll get used to it too."

Anna's expression changed.

She glanced toward the hallway before lowering her voice.

"You really are going with him."

It wasn't a question.

I nodded.

"Felix said so."

Anna sighed.

"I know."

She sat beside me.

"Then you need to be careful."

"I know."

"No." She shook her head. "You don't."

I looked at her.

"The royal family palace isn't like this one. This palace belongs to Felix. The other palace belongs to the entire royal family."

Her words made my stomach tighten.

"What's the difference?"

"Everything."

She lowered her voice further.

"Felix is a prince, but he isn't the most powerful person there."

I remembered what Adrian had told me.

His father was the king.

His brother Sebastian carried many of the royal responsibilities because the king was so ill.

"Sebastian," I said.

Anna's eyes flicked toward me.

"You've heard of him?"

"Adrian mentioned him."

She nodded slowly.

"Then listen to me. Be careful around him."

"Is he cruel?"

Anna hesitated.

"Not like Felix."

That answer somehow worried me more.

"What does that mean?"

"It means Sebastian doesn't need to shout to make people obey him."

I stared at her.

"He is the first prince," she continued. "The king is ill, so much of the kingdom's responsibility has fallen on him. He is respected. Feared, sometimes. Everyone watches what he does."

"Does he hurt servants?"

Anna shook her head.

"Not that I've seen."

That surprised me.

"I saw him once," she added. "A servant dropped some documents in front of him. Sebastian stopped and helped him pick them up."

I remembered seeing something similar.

So Felix wasn't the only prince who treated servants differently.

"Then why should I be careful?"

"Because kindness and weakness are not the same thing."

I had no answer to that.

Before I could say anything else, Anna stood.

"Come on."

"Where?"

"You're leaving soon."

She pulled me to my feet.

"You can't go looking like you've been cleaning rooms all morning."

"But I have been cleaning rooms all morning."

"I know."

She smiled.

"That's the problem."

She led me toward the room where the maids kept the clothes prepared for special occasions.

Inside, several dresses had already been laid out.

Dark colors.

Simple cuts.

Nothing too extravagant.

Anna picked up one of them.

"This."

I looked at it.

It was a dark blue dress.

It was simple, but beautiful.

"I like it."

"So do I."

She helped me change after I finished the last of my duties.

As she adjusted the sleeves, two other maids entered.

They stopped when they saw me.

One looked at the dress.

Then at Anna.

Then at me.

"So she's really going."

Anna's expression hardened.

"Apparently."

The girl smiled without warmth.

"Must be nice."

I pretended not to hear her.

Another maid laughed softly.

"Imagine being here for only a few days and already riding in the royal carriage."

My fingers tightened around the fabric of my dress.

"I didn't ask to go."

She raised an eyebrow.

"But you're going."

I looked away.

There was no point explaining myself.

They wouldn't understand.

They didn't know about Daniel.

They didn't know that the only reason I cared about going anywhere with Felix was because my brother was trapped inside this palace.

They didn't know that every privilege they thought I had felt more like another chain.

Anna stepped between us.

"She has work to finish."

The maids exchanged looks before leaving.

Once the door closed, I let out a breath.

"You don't have to defend me every time."

"Yes, I do."

"Why?"

"Because you're my friend."

The simple answer caught me off guard.

I smiled.

"Thank you."

She adjusted my hair.

Then the sound of footsteps came from the corridor.

Heavy.

Measured.

The entire room seemed to change.

The maids who had been talking moments earlier went silent.

Anna's hands froze.

I knew who it was before the door opened.

Felix entered.

His eyes went immediately to me.

He said nothing for several seconds.

His gaze moved over the dress Anna had chosen.

Then his expression hardened.

"Change."

I blinked.

"What?"

"That dress."

Anna lowered her eyes.

Felix looked at me.

"Wear black."

I swallowed.

"Why?"

His eyes narrowed.

"Because I said so."

There was no room for argument.

I looked down at the blue dress.

Then back at him.

"How long do I have?"

"An hour."

He turned toward the door.

"And Snow?"

I looked up.

"Yes?"

"Do not make me come back for you."

Then he left.

The silence he left behind seemed heavier than before.

Anna exhaled slowly.

"Black, then."

I nodded.

Neither of us spoke about it.

She helped me change again.

This time into black.

When I looked at myself in the mirror, I barely recognized the girl staring back.

The dress was elegant.

Too elegant for a servant.

But I didn't feel beautiful.

I felt like I was being dressed for something I didn't understand.

An hour later, the palace gates opened.

The royal carriage waited outside.

It was larger than any carriage I had ever seen.

Dark wood.

Polished metal.

The royal crest engraved across the doors.

Guards stood around it.

Servants moved quickly, carrying luggage and preparing everything for the journey.

I stood at the top of the palace steps.

For a moment, I looked back.

Somewhere inside those walls was Daniel.

My brother.

The only person in this world who had always been mine.

My chest tightened.

I didn't know what waited for me at the royal family palace.

I didn't know what the king was like.

I didn't know what Sebastian would think of me.

I didn't know why Felix wanted me beside him.

But I knew one thing.

I couldn't let fear stop me.

I walked toward the carriage.

Felix was already waiting.

He looked at me once.

"Get in."

I climbed inside.

Felix followed.

The door shut.

A moment later, the carriage began to move.

The palace slowly disappeared behind us.

And for the first time since I had been brought here, I was leaving its gates.

I pressed my hand against the cold window.

I should have felt relieved.

Instead, I felt like I was moving from one prison into another.

Only this one belonged to the entire royal family.