The long hall between the library and the grand staircase was one of the places Amaryllis hated the most in her father’s lavish castle. On one side large glass windows looked out over expansive gardens, and the opposite side was lined with paintings and sculptures from famed artists. 

All of which needed meticulous cleaning each day. Servants were constantly working to dust and polish every inch of the space with care and caution. She could always feel their eyes silently following her as she hurried along as unobtrusively as possible.

At both ends of the hall guards stood at attention. Their stares were far more unnerving than the servants since they were charged with protecting the space. After all, it wouldn’t do to leave such valuables unattended. 

As one of the most powerful men in the Tesslands, Duke Lavalham regularly hosted various nobles and other esteemed guests. This hallway was one of his many ways to show off his power. 

Her father, not long after inheriting his title, had renovated the castle so that this hall was the only way to get to the guest quarters in the east wing. The servant stairwell and other adjoining chambers were mostly locked and all were hidden by silk curtains that perfectly framed the artwork on display. 

Even Amaryllis was occasionally struck by a beautiful piece of art when the sunlight caught it just right. She knew the guests couldn’t help but marvel as well. Just as her father had intended.

When Amaryllis was lucky, she could slip into the hidden rooms to at least avoid the guests. As the eldest child of the duke, she couldn’t help but draw attention while she moved about. Those who worked for her father were quick to report her every action to him. While the guests were intrigued by the duke’s reclusive eldest. 

Despite being of age to do so, she had yet to debut into high society and had a reputation for being frail. Too frail to make the four-day journey by carriage to the capital. 

Curiosity spurred some guests to approach her, but most were merely hoping to use her to build favor with her father. A foolish attempt so far as she was concerned since she was far from her father’s favorite. 

The smart ones usually caught on that her younger brother, Romello, was the one to build connections with. And the not so smart ones tended to not be invited back.

As a rule, Amaryllis avoided the busier areas of the castle. Her father preferred her out of sight, and she preferred not to upset him. 

But she regularly braved the art hall since it was the only way to get to the library, her favorite place in the estate. 

The library was three stories and took up most of the far corner of the east wing. It was another area her father liked to use to show off his wealth. Generations of dukes had filled the space with thousands of tomes. There was no topic or famed scholar that couldn’t be found within those shelves.

The first floor had been set up for socializing. The center of the library held luxurious couches and small tables with historical relics on display under crystal covers. Shelves were arranged to show off the most expensive tomes for those seated in the middle and the outer rings were structured to create little alcoves where smaller groups could meet. 

The second and third floors were more traditional. A few desks were set sporadically by the walls while neatly lined shelves took up most of the space. 

The books were available to be read by anyone. However, more often than not the librarians were simply selecting tomes to help the nobles look smart. They would quietly brief them on the contents as they passed over the book with sections already discretely marked for easy reference. Few took advantage of the library so Amaryllis mostly had the space to herself.

The librarians, used to her frequent presence, gave only the smallest of nods to greet her. After realizing that her father found her to be an annoyance, they had stopped making an effort to gain her favor. 

And after they realized there were no repercussions to their insolence, so long as they weren’t blatantly rude, they’d stopped speaking with her altogether. 

That was just fine with Amaryllis though. It meant no one questioned what books she read or how much time she spent tucked away into the little window seat on the third floor. She had spent years exploring the expansive library and knew it well. As such she rarely needed help finding what she wanted.

With another sendoff banquet set to begin that evening, and possibly another the following evening as well, Amaryllis knew that she would not be able to leisurely enjoy the space like usual. She had slipped in briefly to grab an armful of books to take back to her room. 

Normally that wouldn’t have been allowed, as books were terribly expensive, but the librarians turned a blind eye when so many guests were present. They knew that her father did not like her speaking to outsiders without his supervision, so her taking a few books meant she would not cause trouble for them to report on. 

Delivering bad news to the duke rarely went well for the messenger.

The first order of knights headed to the border to fight the raiders had arrived the night before. They had left at dawn, but two additional knightly orders were expected to arrive soon. 

No one had expected the royal knights to get there so early, but she still silently chastised herself for being careless. When she knew guests were coming, she tried to make her book selections well before anyone had arrived. 

She walked out of the library with four heavy tomes cradled in her arms. To her relief the hallway was still empty save for a few servants who were polishing the windows.

Amaryllis paused to glance out toward the gardens where hundreds of knights with at least a dozen supply wagons were pulling into the main courtyard. Her reflection in the shining glass showed her the inadvertent frown their arrival had brought on and she bit her lip. Unlike the twins with their wavy light brown hair, deep blue eyes, and sculpted features, she couldn’t help but agree with her father that she was no beauty.

While the twins had inherited the best of her father and stepmother, she had gotten an odder combination. Her mother’s lavender eyes looked washed out against the dark indigo hair she had inherited from her father. The curls that were well managed for the duke since he kept them short had become utterly unruly as soon as they’d grown past her shoulders. But a noblewoman with short hair was more embarrassing than one with wayward curls. As such, her hair hung down to the small of her back when loose. Her button nose was framed with large eyes and a single dimple that made her look altogether unbalanced, especially when she smiled.

Amaryllis shook her head and started walking again. Those were the features that she had been given. There was nothing to be done by gazing at her reflection, and she needed to hurry if she wanted to get out of the hall before the new arrivals started heading upstairs.

A quiet giggle made her glance at one of the curtains where she spotted two pairs of shoes peeking out from the bottom. Amaryllis couldn’t help but smile at the sight. Since entering their teens, the twins had been trying to act more mature and reserved. It was refreshing to see them enjoying themselves so freely. 

She bit back a sigh and angled towards them. While she didn’t want to be the one to ruin their fun, this was an entirely inappropriate time and, more importantly, place to be goofing off. Something they both knew and was likely why they were giggling so uncontrollably.

“Romello, Veronica,” she forced her voice to be stern.

The giggling stopped and the curtain shook slightly as one grabbed the other. She rolled her eyes.

“I can see your feet. Hurry along, the guests will be here soon and father will be cross if you’re discovered like this.”

“We just wanted to see the knights,” grumbled Romello as he slunk out from behind the silk.

Veronica followed with a slight blush tingeing her cheeks pink.

“You can see them from the main hall or the other windows that overlook the courtyard,” Amaryllis chastised and gestured with her head for the pair to follow her. “Come on now.”

“I told you,” Veronica shot a glare at her brother, but he merely shrugged.

“You’re no fun, Ryll.”

She rolled her eyes and strode down the hallway, knowing that they would follow. While they had stopped listening to their nannies and nursemaid, she still managed to hold a bit of authority over them as their older sister. Not much though. 

Romello had recently gotten into the habit of only using her nickname when he was trying to get out of trouble. Never with a tone of embarrassment either. Even when he was caught like this.

Amaryllis froze at the sound of a loud crash followed by the sound of stones skittering across the floor. She winced, closing her eyes and slowly opening them. The guards nearby were staring behind her, eyes wide with shock and mouths slightly opened. 

Already knowing what was there, Amaryllis turned to look. Romello and Veronica stood before a shattered bust of an ancient king. The shards of marble had spread across the hall and a few had nicked the twins. Blood dripped down their ankles, creating stains on the floor and their shoes.

“Get more servants at once to clean this before the guests arrive!”

Amaryllis turned to the guards, pointing out the window to the busy courtyard. Understanding the need for urgency, both men dashed off while the two guards on the opposite end came over. The three maids that had already been in the hall were frantically gathering the larger pieces. 

The twins stood frozen, too shocked to move as everyone around them hurried about.

“Remove the stand into the nearest room, the shards too,” Amaryllis ordered.

The servants quickly complied, relieved to have some guidance. Two used their aprons to gather pieces while the third went to find an unlocked door.

“It was an accident!” 

Romello cried, moving forward to clutch onto Amaryllis’s arms. His deep blue eyes were watery, the cocky attitude gone as fear and worry filled him. He hated disappointing their father. 

“I was just stretching and I didn’t realize I was so close and-”

“I know, I know,” Amaryllis gave him a comforting pat on the cheek after passing her books to Veronica. “You’re both hurt. Go to the cleric and have him tend to those and get changed.”

“Oh,” Romello looked down, finally realizing he was bleeding. 

He cleared his throat and set his lips in a firm line as he tried to contain his emotions. He was just as proud as their father at times. The idea that someone, even a servant, might think he teared up from a scratch would be too embarrassing. Normally she worried that his pride was growing too big, but today it worked in their favor as he managed to quickly collect himself.

“What are you going to do?” Veronica asked cautiously as she hugged the books to her chest.

“It was my mistake, bumping the statue because I was reading as I walked,” Amaryllis shot a warning look to the servants who meekly nodded, unwilling to look her in the eye.

“But it was-” Romello started to protest but Amaryllis shook her head.

“You’ve been looking forward to the meeting the knights, right?” she gave him a gentle smile, fighting back her own fear and anxiety. “You won’t be able to if you’re in trouble.”

Romello hesitated a moment.

“But what about you?”

“Father will still have me attend the banquets as the eldest, but I’ll leave early, is all,” Amaryllis tried to give a reassuring smile. “You know I don’t like loud gatherings anyways. Just make sure those books get to me so I can read them later.”

“Thank you, Ryll,” Veronica said quietly while Romello nodded his head in vigorous agreement.

“Now go,” Amaryllis shooed them towards the servant’s stairwell and they disappeared into the dark space.

She watched as more maids arrived with brooms and quickly swept away the remaining mess. In a matter of minutes, the floor was back to being spotless. 

Once that was done Amaryllis glanced at the remaining guards who seemed a bit hesitant. No one wanted to upset the duke, but he was particularly sensitive when he was hosting guests. The bust had likely cost more than either man would ever see in their lifetime. Even on a good day he would be angry at the news they would have to deliver.

“I will wait in my room while you report my,” Amaryllis swallowed around the nervous lump that had formed in her throat. “My mistake to father.”

The guard nodded and she went to the servant’s stairwell to escape. The knights would likely be coming by in a matter of minutes. 

She was relieved that the mess had been taken care of before anyone else had seen it. However, she still didn’t want to be caught there. 

Her father would immediately notice the missing bust and would direct his rage at her as the culprit. Better to be out of sight when the news of her involvement reached him.

Amaryllis bunched her skirts in her hands to help her move faster and hide her shaking hands. With so many people around her father was going to be far too busy to give her a proper punishment anytime soon. That meant he would either lessen the punishment as his fury dimmed over time, or that it would grow as the thought bothered him like a pebble stuck in his shoe. 

Either way, she was certain to be confined to her room so being there when the order arrived was her best option. Luck favored her slightly as she managed to reach her room in the annex without crossing paths with anyone, guests or servants alike.