Surrendered To The Lord Of Sin

The chamber was quiet enough that Lucrezia could hear the faint crackle of the fire. She stood there for another moment, her fingers tightening around the book Greed had given her.

The book, she thought, her consciousness returning, but she frowned immediately after. Why had he given it to her?

It was easy enough to tell herself it was simply a gesture of courtesy, perhaps even boredom, yet Greed did not strike her as the sort of man who did anything without a reason.

Her gaze drifted toward the doors. She had questions, but there was no one she trusted enough to ask. And perhaps that was precisely why the book unsettled her.

Lucrezia walked toward the small table near the window and carefully placed it there. She considered opening it, but stopped herself.

Not yet.

She had barely returned from her first walk outside in weeks. The last thing she needed was to spend the rest of the day buried in a book while her mind was still crowded with everything she had seen and heard.

Her attention shifted toward the tall windows. Beyond them, snow continued to fall over Blackvale, covering the courtyard in a soft white veil. For a moment, she wondered where Vespera was.

She had gone outside searching for her, after all, and she still didn’t find her. The thought left a small ache in her chest.

Perhaps tomorrow, if the healers allowed it. If she was permitted.

Lucrezia exhaled softly and moved toward the fireplace. The warmth brushed against her chilled fingers, and she held her hands toward the flames.

She couldn’t help noticing again how strange the room was. The warmth didn’t belong here, neither did the faint scent of cedar or the curtains drawn partially open.

Rheonara was right. She could feel the obvious change in the room, and somehow, she suspected she knew exactly why.

Her cheeks warmed, as she immediately shook the thoughts away.

No. She refused to think about that.

Instead, she turned toward the book. If Greed wanted her to read about Blackvale, then she would. Perhaps it would tell her something useful. Perhaps it would answer one of the many questions she had been too afraid to ask aloud.

Lucrezia reached for it.

As she lowered herself carefully onto the mattress, her gaze wandered once more around the chamber. For the first time since waking here, she wondered what it would look like if Vaeron were actually present.

The thought came so naturally that she didn’t realize how strange it was until afterward. Her lips parted slightly. Why did she keep thinking about him?

Lucrezia pulled the blanket over herself and turned onto her side, determined to put the thought out of her mind.

Outside, the snow continued to fall, yet she remained restless. At last, Lucrezia sat on the edge of the bed for a while, the book resting loosely in her lap.

She ran her thumb absentmindedly along its worn leather cover, studying the silver emblem pressed into it.

It was old, older than anything she had seen since arriving in Blackvale. She wondered what Greed expected her to find inside. Perhaps nothing at all. Perhaps he had simply noticed her curiosity and decided to satisfy it.

Still, she couldn’t shake the feeling that accepting anything from one of the Sins was a dangerous thing, especially from Greed.

He was pleasant enough, almost charming even, but there was something beneath his words that she couldn’t quite place. Something watchful.

Lucrezia had learned long ago that the kindest smiles could hide the sharpest intentions. Greed being one of them.

She set the book upon the bedside table. She would read it later. For now, she was exhausted. The walk had taken more from her than she cared to admit, and the cold had left her limbs aching faintly beneath her gown.

One of the attendants approached quietly. "Would you like to rest, my lady?"

Lucrezia nodded. "Yes."

The servants moved about the chamber with practiced silence, drawing the curtains and feeding another log into the fire before leaving her with a cup of warm tea.

She drank only a little. Soon enough, the heaviness behind her eyes became impossible to ignore.

Lucrezia slipped back beneath the covers. Her last thought before sleep came was of amber eyes beneath falling snow, and the book waiting beside her.

***

When Lucrezia woke again, the room was still dark. For several seconds, she didn’t remember where she was. The unfamiliar ceiling above her made her heart jump.

Gods!

It looked even scarier than the last time. Then came the quiet crackle of the hearth, the faint scent of woodsmoke, and the heavy curtains that made her recognize Blackvale.

Lucrezia slowly pushed herself upright. Her hair fell loose around her shoulders during sleep, and she brushed it away from her face with a tired hand.

For once, there was no sharp pain in her muscles, dizziness, or an overwhelming weakness. She sat there for a moment, surprised by how much better she felt. Maybe the healers finally stopped treating her as though she might shatter at the slightest movement.

A quiet knock sounded.

Before she could answer, the doors opened and the brown-skinned maid entered carrying a small tray.

"Good morning, my lady."

Lucrezia blinked sleepily. "Morning?"

The maid smiled. "You slept longer than usual."

Lucrezia glanced toward the windows. Pale morning light had begun creeping around the edges of the curtains. She hadn’t realized how late it was.

The maid placed the tray upon the nearby table. "There is tea. And something light to eat."

Lucrezia nodded and slowly rose from the bed. This time, her legs held which alone felt like an accomplishment.

The maid noticed too, and remarked, "You’re improving."

"I think so."

"You’re certainly walking better, my lady,"

Lucrezia gave a faint smile. She crossed toward the table, but her attention immediately fell upon the book sitting where she had left it.

Greed’s gift, and her fingers brushed over the cover.

"What is that?" the maid asked.

Lucrezia looked up. "A gift."

"From whom?"

She hesitated for a moment, before admitting, "Greed."

The maid’s hands paused briefly over the tray. Lucrezia noticed her expression changed, only slightly. It was such a small reaction that another person might have missed it, but she had become accustomed to noticing the smallest changes in people. Especially here.

"Lord Greed?"

"Yes," she said. "He gave it to me yesterday."

The maid glanced at the book again, then back at her.

For a moment, Lucrezia wondered if she had said too much. Don’t tell them, the thought came almost immediately.

She had been told enough times, in enough different ways, that speaking carelessly in Blackvale could be more dangerous than remaining silent.

Everyone here had an opinion about her. Either a Punishment, a mortal, or the strange wife of Lust. Whatever they believed her to be, Lucrezia knew better than to hand them pieces of herself they could use against her.

Yet she was tired, most of all, tired of having no one to speak to.

She looked at the maid. The woman had been beside her for weeks. She had helped her bathe when she could barely stand, brought her food when she had no appetite, and sat quietly nearby during the worst of her nights without demanding an explanation.

If there was anyone in this castle she could trust, it might be her. Or perhaps that was exactly the sort of thought that got people into trouble.