“Where to?” Lucille picked at an invisible piece of dust on the seam of her gown.
“Up north to a village called Yadir. Killian thinks there might be someone worth talking to there.”
“Well, I sure hope he has something valuable to say,” Victoria mumbled as she grabbed at her overcoat. “It’s cold as hell here, and it’ll only be worse up there.”
Smiling, Lace opened the door to the shop. They filed inside to find it deserted other than a fragile-looking woman leaning against the glass counter, casually stirring a steamy teacup in front of her. Her heavy eyelids lifted in surprise as the bell over the door chimed, announcing their entrance. Her gaze ran over Victoria and Lucille before landing on Lace. She paused for a moment. A strange look crossed her face that she quickly replaced with a warm smile. Running her hands down her over-the-top gown, she stepped out to greet them.
“How can I help you, ladies?” she asked, clasping her slender fingers together. Her thin brown hair was pulled into a tight bun atop her head with an extravagant feathered bonnet that tied just below her chin with a ribbon. Her cream corset was pulled tightly against her tiny waist, leading into a hoop skirt that was nearly too big to wear inside of the little shop.
“We need a few dresses for tonight’s show.” Victoria’s eyes trailed over the available racks of finery. “Nothing too fancy, Mrs...?” Her gaze shifted to the woman.
“Atlaw,” the shopkeeper announced, “just, Atlaw.” She waved her arm toward the corsets and skirts behind her. “Anything, in particular, catching your eye?”
Lace walked through the aisles taking in all of the colorful fabric and draperies. They were beautifully made, but none compared to the dresses Caspian used to leave for her before each show. Her heart clenched once more as she remembered the black boxes and hand-written notes she would never receive again.
Lace ran her fingers over the soft velvet of a purple skirt while watching the shopkeeper show her wares to Victoria and Lucille. She had no reason to join in on the conversation. She wouldn’t be needing a new dress. Instead of flowing skirts, woven lace, and embroidered fineries, she would be wearing one of her many performer’s costumes and masks.
Atlaw shot a quick glance at Lace. She’d barely caught it out of the corner of her eye and by the time she looked back at the woman, the shopkeeper’s gaze was locked on the dress in her hands. Lace shook her head. She had to be imagining things. Desperate for clues that she’d never find. Her nerves were shaky from Killian’s question and from the hopeless journey they’d taken. With the lack of sleep she’d been experiencing, it was no wonder she was also hallucinating.
“What do you think about this one, Lace?” Victoria held up a simple, but stylish, light blue dress.
“It’s lovely.” Lace walked toward her sister as she held it up to her small frame.
“And this one?” Lucille asked, presenting a soft pink corset and long skirt in her direction.
Lace leaned against a solid shelf in the middle of the shop. “What are you two up to? Trying to cause a man an injury? You’re both going to turn heads in those.”
Lucille giggled and Victoria nudged Lace, her face flushing. “Oh, stop it.”
“Are you blushing right now, Victoria?” she teased, causing her little sister’s cheeks to grow even pinker. It was nice to see Lace could still get away with teasing her.
“Why don’t you two go try on your gowns?” Atlaw pointed toward the back. “There’s a dressing room over there.”
“Will you need any help?” Lace asked as Victoria and Lucille ran down the hall toward it.
“Nope. We’re good,” Lucille called back as they disappeared behind a curtain.
Lace casually meandered through the shop, letting her fingers continue to trail over each dress as she waited for the girls to finish changing. The hair on the back of her neck raised. She was being watched. This time, when she turned, the shopkeeper did not move her sharp gaze away. Lace forced herself to stand tall and lifted her chin as the woman continued to hold her stare. Though she wanted to step away, to disappear completely under those watchful eyes, she didn’t.
“Is something wrong?” Lace tried her best to act nonchalant. She didn’t want Atlaw to see how much she affected her.
“Not at all.” Atlaw lifted her teacup and took a sip. The look that made Lace want to run, melted away into something else entirely. Or had it been there at all? Now when she looked at the shopkeeper, all she saw were questions of her own, but Lace knew they were questions she didn’t want to be asked.
The heavy curtains to the dressing room flew open, and Victoria and Lucille strode out strikingly dressed in their choices. She hadn’t been kidding when she said they would turn heads.
Victoria’s amber eyes lit up when she caught sight of herself in the mirror. She twirled. “It’s perfect,” she whispered to herself.
Lucille nodded, the pink fabric floating as she spun, catching the light beautifully. “Yes, they are.”
“You both look stunning.” Lace clasped her hands together, a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.
“Are you sure you can’t wear one? There are so many choices here that would make Killian fall even more head-over-heels in love with you.” Victoria wiggled her eyebrows, and Lace giggled.
“I’m sure. No dresses for me tonight.”
“Alright then,” Victoria replied, slightly deflated at Lace’s refusal. She turned to the shopkeeper. “We’ll take these.”
“Excellent choices.” Atlaw’s once cagey expression was but a memory as she shooed the girls back toward the dressing room. “Go ahead and change, and I will ring you up.”
Victoria and Lucille disappeared through the curtain once more, and Lace joined the shopkeeper at the counter. “I’ll take care of the bill while they’re changing.” Atlaw nodded.
Lace heard the dressing room curtain rustle and she set the money owed on the counter. Something within told her to ask. To find the courage to call the shopkeeper’s odd behavior out. To seek out answers anywhere she could. She hadn’t been imagining it, she just knew it. She opened her mouth to speak, but Atlaw interrupted her.
“Don’t leave without your box.”
Lace stilled. “What box?”
Atlaw reached behind the counter, rustling around for a moment before bringing forth a familiar black box. She smiled softly as Lace’s mouth went dry. On top, sat a hand-written card adorned with the same red lettering she’d read over and over months ago. She nearly fainted when she saw what was written there.
For you
-Caspian
Chapter Four
The entire walk back to the tent was riddled with unanswered questions that threatened to drown Lace with each step she took. Drenched in icy shock, all three girls agreed it was best to keep the box a secret from Killian for now. Not because he didn’t deserve to know, but because no one knew how to tell him.
After making their way through the maze-like corridors and into Lace’s room, they sat on the bed and leaned against one another. The black box sat in the middle of the floor and they stared at it like it might turn into a rattlesnake and bite them all.