The Consort

Chapter 21: Gifts

I crane my neck to look at the door as a loud knock echos throughout my room. My heart races as the knocking continues, and I struggle to wrack my brain and think of who could come to visit me. The Beasts will enter without permission, and the humans are so scared of Heloix that they stay away.

Whoever is outside knocks once more, jiggling the doorknob a second later as they try to enter. I slowly stand, careful not to make too much noise, and begin inching my way over to the door.

"Adeline! Let me in!" A desperate voice that I immediately recognize to be Betty's calls out. I rush to unlock the door as her cries make their way to my ears, ripping it open in a panic.

"Are you okay?" I ask as she comes barreling in, face pale as if she's just seen a ghost.

She slams my door shut behind her, turning the lock immediately after. I try to keep my voice calm as I ask her what's wrong, not wanting to panic before I know what's happening.

"I can't clean the King's chambers today!" She announces as she turns to face me.

I'm filled with even more confusion at her statement, and motion for her to sit on my bed.

"Why?" I probe.

Her cheeks flush as she looks at my bed and she shakes her head no, choosing to stand with her back against the door.

"I'm bleeding."

Betty gestures to her waist as she speaks, shifting her weight from foot to foot in embarrassment. I can't help but sigh in relief as I realize her concern, my tense muscles relaxing. The rumor of Heloix harming bleeding women is widely spread, and terrified me when I first began working in his chambers, but I've come to realize that they were all lies.

"You are okay." I assure her, rushing to my bathroom to grab a couple of tampons. "I have bled around Heloix many times, and he has never punished me for it."

As I enter my bathroom, I can't stop myself from glancing at all my new products, my cheeks heating as I imagine Heloix walking through the marketplace picking out all the soaps and creams. The soaps were pretty self-explanatory, but he left little notes on all the creams telling me what they are for.

Two are for hydration, one for my body and another for my face, and the third cream is to make me smell nice. They all came in beautiful glass jars that I'm sure cost a fortune, and the products smell like the gardens.

I felt embarrassed when I first entered my bathroom and saw them, wondering if Heloix purchased them because he finds me smelly, but have ruled that reasoning out. I shower every day and wash my clothing at least once a week. While I may not have the best smell in the world, I wouldn't go so far as to say that it's unpleasant.

Eventually I settled on the realization that he must have bought these items to curb my anger and get me to stop arguing with him about the humans. It's a good attempt but isn't going to work.

Betty calls my name from my bedroom, snapping me out of my thoughts and bringing my attention back to the present. I grab a couple of tampons off the counter and bring them out to her.

"Here, you can use these if you're worried. It will keep the blood inside." I inform her, setting them in her outstretched hand.

Betty takes them from me, her expression still full of worry. "I heard that he killed a woman once because he didn't like the scent of her blood."

I shake my head, eager to inform her that that's false.

"That's untrue. As I said, I've bled around him many times and he hasn't once said or done anything."