Read Online Sterling by Emily June Street - Free Book Online Page B

flushed. How did one say it? Bath chamber was too grand and would mark me as upper class.
    “A necessary?”
    I nodded.
    “Follow me.”
    I did, wincing on my battered feet.
    “Are you hurt?”
    “My feet are blistered from the walk. It’s nothing.” I did not want her to see my too-fine shoes.
    “Now, now, if you don’t treat a blister, it can get infected and slow you down. Let’s have a look. I keep a salve in the kitchen for when my hands get raw.”
    I hesitated, but I feared she was likely correct.
    “You have a seat,” she directed as she rummaged on her shelves.
    I removed my shredded slippers and torn silk stockings, attempting to hide them behind my skirt.
    Rachell crouched and lifted my foot. “Ouch, girl, that’s some blister.” She dabbed on her salve and repeated the process on the other foot. Then her gaze fell upon the shoes and stockings. She snatched one of the shoes and stared. “Why, look at the beadwork! I never seen the like, so pretty. What were you thinking to soil such lovely shoes by walking to Lyssus in them?”
    “They were the only ones I had.”
    Rachell raised her eyebrows and eyed my fancy stockings. “My mama would have skinned my hide if I bought such foolish attire before practical boots.” She did not meet my gaze, and I feared she knew I had told her lies.
    “I have a weakness for pretty things,” I said lamely.
    She clucked her tongue. “Well, you can’t wear them anymore. They’re ruined. I’ve got an old pair of boots you can have. They ain’t pretty, but they’re serviceable.” She hurried out to fetch the shoes. I drew out my cosmetic and smeared a generous dollop across my right cheek. I’d only just rubbed it in when Rachell returned.
    “There you are.” She handed me the old shoes, battered, but more functional than the slippers. They were only a little tight.

    * * *
    W hen the stagecoach finally arrived , I was exhausted. I’d fallen asleep on the benches in the waiting room.
    “Gracious, Sera, how can you sleep the day away?” Rachell jostled me awake. “You’d better shape up,” she advised as the coach pulled up. “Gotta be on your toes when you’re traveling alone. Stay—what they call it?—vigilant.”
    As I climbed into the public conveyance already crowded with people—my mother would have been horrified at their proximity to my person—I scanned all the occupants, praying none of them would be dressed in Galatien or Talatan colors. Most looked more downtrodden than I did. I squeezed into the only seat, between an elderly lady also dressed in the uniform of service, and a too-handsome man who sent me into a panic—was he a Talatan agent? A Galatien loyalist? I shielded my face with my hand, adjusting my mob-cap.
    “Where are you headed?” the man asked me.
    I let the cap brim hide my face as much as possible. “I’m seeking a new position.” My voice wavered.
    “You, too?” the man crowed. “I’ve just been hired to work in Avani. I’m to be a footman. Name’s Cortis.” Hearing this relieved my anxiety. He fit the part, and there was no reason to believe he lied; his face was sunny and open as he went on, “Scelpts, on your right, is going to a new position as a housekeeper.”
    The older woman, whose iron-grey hair was pulled back tightly into a severe bun, said, “Some housekeeper. I haven’t even got the staff I need to start. Stupid girl didn’t show.” She sighed. “What am I do, I ask you, hire a Temple acolyte from Avani to be our maid?”
    “I’m Sera,” I said. “Are you—are you looking to hire someone?” I tried to mask my interest so I didn’t come across as desperate.
    The housekeeper turned to me, a spark in her eyes. “The chambers girl we hired in Engashta never showed for the stagecoach. That’s why there was an open seat.”
    My heart raced. Was she offering me a position? “Yes, ma’am,” I said.
    “You seem a proper sort of girl,” the housekeeper said. “It would be a great help