Chapter 80 True power
SOMA
The buzz welcomes us into the cafeteria, but as soon as we draw closer to the lunch line, the noise dies, and everyone steps aside to make way for her. It’s automatic, different from how it happened with me.
Is this the true power of a royal?
Sienna must be used to it because she heads straight to the front. After receiving her food, she doesn’t pick up the tray, but drags me back to a lone table.
Moments later, two students stop at our table with our trays. She dismisses them with a wave of her hand and digs into her food immediately.
My gaze drifts back to the food station, where the line has been restored. I lean in to ask, “Is that okay?”
“Of course,” she says. “They’re serving their princess.”
A small laugh bellows out of my lips. I would have called her spoiled, but this is what she knows. This is how she was raised. It’s a reality I need to embrace since I’m not just a lady, but will also be a princess soon. Once the awkwardness of having an omega as the future Luna fully fades, people will trip in their haste to be in my good graces. It’s only a matter of time.
“It’s really okay,” she states, her conviction stifling my doubts. “Haven’t you been paying attention in class? Some people exist to serve others. But the smartest ones among them position themselves in places that can benefit them. And I’m smart enough to use them when necessary. Trust me, it’s fine. It’s better this way.”
My head bobs, and I grab my spoon. After one bite of the meal, I stare at her and chuckle. She’s right. It’s all about strategies. It’s harder for a royal like her to find genuine friends. Sheila and Maeve were only ever nice to her in exchange for favors. So the best she can do is use people the way they want to use her. Smart is truly what she is. She’s staying ahead of the game.
Lunch rolls on with idle conversation. She points out important students to me, mostly descendants of the founding families. Most of them are years above us.
None of her brothers shows up for lunch, and I’m as disappointed as I’m relieved. After the meal, we part ways and head to our different classes. As a true princess, she doesn’t need some of the lessons I do.
The next few hours pass in a whirlwind of lessons. For most of them, I catch whispers of the ball. When I return to the house, Jade is also buzzing about it.
“Are you going to attend?” she asks.
“What? No.” I kick off my shoes, flopping down on the bed with my arms stretched out. Today has been so hectic. “How do you even know about it?”
“Tristan told me,” she says. “We should attend.”
We? I sit up, and she wanders to my closet, shoving clothes aside in search of Goddess knows what. I’ve not had a chance to wear most of the outfits I brought here.
Minutes later, Jade shimmers back to me, waving a hanger with a black dress that drags across the floor.
“What do you think, my lady?” she asks. Her fingers run over the neckline, and her forehead pinches in a frown as she analyzes the outfit. “This is fine, but it will be perfect with some jewelry. A silver necklace. Or some white pearls and earrings to match it.”
My laughter rings out in the room. I stare at the dress without seeing her vision. It’s beautiful, but pearls? Matching earrings? Silver necklace? That’s over the top. But she looks so confident about her suggestions that I choose to keep my opinions to myself.
“How do you know these things?” I muse. “Styling.”
She returns the dress to the closet and walks back to me with a smile. “I’ve been in the palace long enough to know what’s best or befitting for the right occasions.”
“How long?” I ask.
Jade shrugs. “I don’t know.”
That trips all the alarm bells in my head. My jaw clenches so hard the muscles there twitch.
“How long, Jadesola?”
Her throat bobs before she whispers, “I was born to a maid, so it was only right I also become a maid.”
The words land too hard, and my eyes fill with tears. It’s an unending cycle.
“Is there really no way out?” I ask.
“My lady.” She lets out a nervous laugh. “I don’t know. We don’t ask questions. We serve. And I think I have a good life here with you. Every day, I’m grateful for you.”
A small smile touches my lips, but I’m not satisfied. I take her hand, pulling her down to the bed to sit beside me.
“Don’t you want more?” I ask.
Jade laughs so hard she doubles over from the force of it. “My lady,” she says with a wheeze. “Stop it.”
As she sits upright, her eyes gleam with a certainty that shows she believes this is all she deserves. That she’s already living her best life. I want to argue. I want her to be furious and to demand more from life. Then, I remember I hadn’t dared to dream this big or at all until weeks ago, so I force myself to shut up.
“My mother was a maid. She died as a maid,” she says with the voice of someone who has moved on from her past. “But here I am, serving your gorgeous ladyship with a prince who likes me. That’s a privilege many of us don’t get. The Goddess has blessed me, and I’m not ungrateful. What more can I ask for?”
Maybe I should learn to be more grateful for what I have. I reach for her face, fingers stroking her cheeks.
“Do you love him?”
She slaps her hand over her eyes. “I think so.”
“Does he know?”
Her hand drops. “I don’t know. I don’t want to tell him yet.”
“Why not?”
“What if he doesn’t love me back?” she whispers. Drawing closer until our knees touch, I take her hands. She exhales, fear leaking into her voice the next time she speaks. “What if he finds his true mate?”
“We both know you’re his true mate.”
“Maybe. But there’s no way to know because King Rowan will never allow the mating ritual to happen for us to confirm or establish the bond,” she points out. Not if he knows it’s the Moon Goddess’ choice. “If he finds out I have feelings for his son, I’m sure he’ll recall me to the palace and have me executed.”
“That’s not true,” I argue. “You can’t know until you try.”
“Yes. But it doesn’t matter now,” she says, pouting. “He wants us to wait until Prince Brynne becomes king before we tell any other person. It’s easier to gain his brother’s acceptance than that of his father.”
“Easier with Prince Brynne?” I mutter.
They might as well go directly to the king.
“Yes. Prince Brynne can be nice,” Jade protests. She must have taken the same pill Tristan did for her to be defending him in my presence. “It will take a while before Prince Brynne becomes the king. If Tristan changes his mind about me—or us—before that day comes, then I guess I won’t feel too bad since I haven’t confessed my love to him. But if we make it to the coronation, then I’ll let him know I love him.”
“If you say so.”
“Yes, my lady.”
“That’s a good plan,” I tell her, only because I know she’s trying to protect her heart. My head drops to her shoulder, and my arms circle her waist. The air thickens with tension and sadness, and I add, “Maybe we should go for the ball. You can come with me.”
That elicits a small laugh from her, and she goes on to tell me everything she knows about the Mask Ball.
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