The Serpent's Chains

Sabine

Rosalie kept her arm looped through mine. I felt stiffer than cardboard as we walked through the main street of Vagra. It was the first time I returned to the city since Prince Cole took me from the auction and I was being paraded around by a princess.

"Is this necessary? Don't you have seamstresses at the palace to make your dress?"

Rosalie laughed and flipped her strawberry hair over her shoulder. "This isn't a shopping trip for me. We need to get you a dress."

"Me!?" I came to a dead stop.

The armored guards with Rosalie's crest on their chests closed in around us the moment we stopped moving.

"Is everything alright, Princess?" the lead guard asked. He dropped to a knee before her.

She flicked her wrist at him. "Everything is fine. We're continuing on our way now."

The guard stepped aside and Rosalie pulled me into motion again.

"Sabine, the Solstice Celebration is a huge event for the palace. You'll be attending as my brother's personal attendant."

"I will?" I arched an eyebrow at her.

"Of course! I know you're new to palace life but you're the closest staff to a prince. You'll be at every important event. But you have to look the part."

I sighed and nodded. The dress I had on was nicer than anything I ever imagined wearing. What could possibly be nicer than this?

"It doesn't feel right," I admitted.

"You're representing Cole at this event, and, in essence, the royal family. He expects you to look a certain way."

"I meant it doesn't feel right to have a princess accompany me."

Rosalie laughed and commoners stopped what they were doing at the sound. We had eyes on us from every direction.

I kept my eyes down and hoped no one noticed the collar on my neck. It was inappropriate for a princess and a slave to spend recreational time together.

"I don't mind tagging along."

I kept my eyes on my sandals as they shuffled along the cobblestone street. Rosalie's guards gave us plenty of space. They took up the whole street and carriages had to wait until we passed by before they could continue their journeys.

"As far as anyone knows, you're my attendant. You don't need to worry about what they think." Rosalie waved her hand over the pedestrian spectators that stared after us and our entourage.

That was easy for Rosalie to say. I'd lived my life in the shadows, as part of the scenery.

The dress shop Rosalie brought me to was on the main street of Vagra. It was where all the high-end shops that the nobles and people of the court used. Those that were wealthy enough to have the best but not important enough to have personal seamstresses.

"The seamstress here is lovely. She designed my mother's dresses when she was a girl. Madame Cecily will have something for you."

The shop was cluttered. Shelves stacked with the finest fabrics of silk, chiffon, and velvet in every color imaginable lined the walls. There were smaller cubbies loaded with ribbons and lace. One of the walls had shelves covered in fabric shoes of all designs.

Dress racks covered almost every square foot of floor space with dresses of every fashion. I'd never seen designs like them before.

The only area cleared of fancy dresses and merchandise was a section of the store that had an alcove of mirrors and a large, round pedestal to stand on while being fitted.

"Ah, Princess Rosalie, I don't see you down this way often." A woman with slender spectacles and dark hair pulled back emerged from the shrouds of dresses. She had wooden hairpins sticking out of her hair and a pincushion in hand.

I bowed my head and stood silently as she approached.

"The Solstice Celebration is coming up but I know you don't need a dress from me." I caught her wink at Rosalie out of the corner of my eye.

"Madame Cecily, it is good to see you. You're right, I don't need a dress. However, my brother's personal attendant, Sabine, is in need of a Solstice dress."

"Hmm..." Madame Cesily approached me and circled around me like a vulture.

I followed her with my eyes even as I kept my head low.

"Look at me, Girl!" she demanded.

I stiffened and raised my head.

Madame Cecily's brow creased deeply. Up close, I could see the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes and mouth.

"The Prince's personal attendant needs a dress fitting of her station. Come, come stand up here." She grabbed my arm and led me to the fitting platform.

I lifted my skirts and stepped up. My reflection stared at me from three different full-length mirrors.

Madame Cecily picked at my dress and made a few sounds in her throat. She pulled out a measuring tape, I didn't see from where, and started taking my measurements.

I glanced at the princess.

"Don't worry, Madame Cecily has the finest eye. She'll know what works best for you."

"Hmph. Poor thing is little more than skin and bones." Madame Cecily joined me on the platform and poked my cheek. Then she grabbed the waist of my dress and pulled it tight.

The dresses Prince Cole supplied me with were a few sizes too large. I had no reason to complain or expect something more fitted. Madame Cecily seemed offended by it.

"And this is so... unsightly." The seamstress tapped on my slave collar.

I clenched my jaw tight but willed myself to stand still.

"Sadly, the collar can't come off," Rosalie said. "Is there any way you can design a dress that could conceal it?"

"No." I quickly shut my mouth when both women looked at me.

"Why not, Sabine? I thought you'd want it covered." Rosalie's eyes shone bright and her lips trembled slightly.

I looked at my reflection in the mirrors. Three versions of myself stared back and mimicked my motion as I reached for my collar.

"This is a symbol of my status. Covering it would be pretending I'm something that I'm not. That is illegal."

"Sabine, you don't need to worry about that." Rosalie waved off my concerns.

"My status hasn't changed, regardless of who I serve."

"It's alright, Princess, I can design a dress that won't conceal the collar but won't draw attention to it either. Sabine, was it?" I nodded. "You won't be breaking any laws." She smiled and her eyes lit up behind her spectacles.

"Alright."

"Now, I think red is your color."

"R-red?" I gasped. That was Prince Cole's color, Talon's color.

"Yes. It will perfectly match your complexion. Let me take a few more measurements and then we can look at fabrics."

Madame Cecily poked and prodded me, took multiple measurements, and pinned my dress up in different ways to see how the fabric fell around me in different styles. She made sketches on a pad of paper and walked around me dozens of times.

Rosalie browsed through the shelves and presented me with red fabrics, golden ribbons, and embroidery options.

"I have everything I need. The dress will be stitched in a few days. Sabine, you'll have to come back for a fitting so I can make sure it is tailored to you, unlike that smock." She pointed a pin at my current dress.

"Thank you, Madame Cecily." I bowed to her and stepped off the platform.

"Yes, thank you. My brother will send along payment."

My eyes widened and I stared at Rosalie. She ignored me as she and Madame Cecily said their goodbyes.

"Why is the prince paying for my things?" I questioned the moment we were out of the shop.

It was mid-afternoon and the streets were even busier than in the morning. I kept my voice low as I confronted Rosalie.

"This is more about his image than yours. He wants you to look a certain way since you are representing him," she explained.

My stomach twisted. I felt a pit form in it. I was a doll, a status symbol to pat the prince's ego. I shouldn't have expected anything different.

"Come on, before we head back to the palace, we have to stop and get a pastry at this bakery. You'll just love it!" She grabbed my arm and pulled me along, her guards hopping to attention and coming after us.

Rosalie and I sat at a patio table. Her guards were stationed around keeping watch. The rest of the patio had been cleared of patrons for the princess to dine privately. A server brought us our pastries and warm drinks.

Pedestrians who walked by tried to sneak peeks around the guards and see who was having a private snack with the princess.

I stared at my untouched pastry and kept my hands in my lap. My skin prickled whenever I felt eyes on me, which was constant. I'd never been to a carnival where they had animals on display, but I imagined this was how the animals felt.

"We're a little... exposed here," I muttered.

Rosalie chuckled. "This is normal. Actually, if it were my father or Cole, it would be a lot worse. As the king and heir, both of whom are single... you would not believe the boldness of some of these women."

I gave a sharp laugh, thinking of my former master and his love spell. "Not much surprises me anymore." I pulled off a corner of my pastry and stuffed it in my mouth. The warm, buttery dough melted on my tongue and the fruity center burst with flavor.

My toes curled and I closed my eyes. It was like eating the food of the Gods.

"I was at a meeting with the king and prince recently."

"Ugh. Did they bicker nonstop?"

"Yes. That seems to be how it goes."

Rosalie rolled her eyes.

It wasn't entirely appropriate for me to discuss the prince's personal business with his sister but she was the only one that didn't mind telling me more about the people I was in servitude to.

"I don't get it. All my life, my dad favored Cole. From the moment Cole tamed Talon, he was the favorite. They were so close when we were younger but... in the past couple of years, they fight all the time."

"I'm sure there is a reason." I nibbled at the pastry again.

"No. I think Cole is just an idiot."

I pursed my lips and shifted in my chair.

"Oh, Sabine, I'm sorry. I shouldn't say things like that about him. I know you have your loyalties."

I smiled tightly and flicked my eyes to the side. Ownership didn't equal loyalty but I wasn't going to correct her.

"All I mean is that my brother knows the importance of getting married and having children. Not just for the royal family but for all of Talis. A kingdom without an heir is considered weak."

"And that's why they fight?" I'd seen how resistant the prince was to the king's discussion of marriage.

"I don't know. I just know that it was around the time my father told him to find a wife that they began to argue. I'm sure there is more to it. It's not like either of them confide in me about those things." She sighed and rolled her eyes again.

It wasn't my place to question my owner or his familial relationships. He kept asking me to give my opinion but my understanding of these relationships was limited and I felt I couldn't provide him with the appropriate answers. As his personal attendant, I needed to know more about the dynamic to better serve him.

That was the reason for my curiosity. The only reason. I could convince myself of that.

By the time we left the bakery, the sun was setting. The streets were nearly empty as we traversed back to the palace. Men with torches ran up and down the streets lighting oil lamp posts to chase away the coming dark.

Rosalie's guards moved in a little closer around us.

"I took a peek at some of the sketches Madame Cecily put together for you. I think you'll be very pleased with what she comes up with."

"I have never been concerned with fashion or fine dresses before. As long as it's not a burlap smock, I'll be happy."

Rosalie laughed and shook her head. "You're so funny." She looped her arm through mine.

Our group was alone on the streets. A shiver ran down my spine and I froze, pulling Rosalie to a stop.

"Sabine?" her brow furrowed as she faced me.

"I can feel... magic."

"Well, there are mages in the city."

"Not this kind." It was the same magic I felt when I was attacked in the garden.

Princess Rosalie was an easy target this far from the palace with no one else around.

"Everything's fine. I've got my guards. They haven't let me down yet." She shrugged and kept walking.

The shadows on the streets took shape again and, just like in the garden, figures emerged from the shadows, reaching for us with long, wiggling arms.

"Princess!" I shoved her back and her guards immediately closed in around her.

The arms coiled around me like vines and held me fast. I reached for my magic but the collar zapped me. The magical arms wound around me, pinning my arms to my sides. They pulled me to the ground.

"Sabine!"

"Don't worry about me. Get yourself to safety!"

Her guards were already on it. They forced Rosalie away from the attack. Through the shadows, I saw her protesting but her guards wouldn't listen.

Good. She was safe.

The arms held me fast and a face shrouded in a dark mask appeared. All I could see were green irises set in white eyes.

"Tell the Captain that we've got her."

Dark chuckles rippled through the shadows. Something heavy collided with the side of my head and darkness took me.