On the bench of the ruby red standup piano in the corner lay a maroon jacket.In more assorted piles throughout the tables and chairs were small red, pink, black, and white coverings that would reveal far more than they concealed.I didn’t have to look at all the clothing to know ashes filled them.
Cards lay on some of the tables.It was probably morbid, but I lifted some playing cards to reveal the last hand this immortal had ever seen: a pair of aces.
I placed them back on the table and tapped them as I eyed the pile of chips in the middle.I almost walked to see what the others once held and who would have won, but I resisted the whim.
No ghosts floated between the buildings or down the streets, but I couldn’t help feeling as if the dead lingered here.And while I’d snooped on these cards, I couldn’t bring myself to look at the others.
As we walked across the room and around the bar, the other half of the building came into view.A stage took up most of that side; more clothing lay on top of it and the many chairs gathered around it.
Turning in a circle, I took in the vast space surrounding us.Golden sconces hung on the paneled walls, but there weren’t any decorations.
Three hallways branched off from the main room.I didn’t doubt private rooms lined those halls, but I had no desire to confirm my suspicions.
“There were so many in here,” Scarlet whispered.
“And they never had a clue what was coming,” I murmured.
No one else said anything.
“We should go,” Ryker said.
I didn’t argue with him, and when he offered me his hand, I took it.His calloused palm was familiar, and mine fit perfectly within his.
Our boots thudded against the floor as we left the bordello behind.Many other businesses and homes lined the street, but I didn’t explore them.
The street carried us higher until we arrived at the castle gates.The open front gates further confirmed that no one in this town had seen this coming.
If there had been an attack, they would have closed the gates.As we stepped into the bailey, Ryker released my hand to grip his sword with both of his.
The red light pulsed over the land.
CHAPTERFIFTY-ONE
Ryker
Piles of clotheslittered the inner bailey of the castle.The stands set up for merchants to hawk their wares still had their coverings open to reveal the merchandise.
Piles of clothes lay behind and in front of them.Ribbons hung from hooks on some of the stands.At others, empty plates, covered in black residue, remained.Some of the stands still had bolts of cloth on display, and others had already assembled shirts, pants, and dresses dangling from hooks.
Everything on display, and the stands themselves, was outdated.I didn’t know how outdated it was, but I didn’t recall seeing these styles in any of my schoolbooks.But then, I’d never paid much attention to those books.
“How long ago was this style popular?”I asked Tucker.
He’d spent a lot of time reading through the many parchments and histories in the temple and was a lot more scholarly than I’d ever been.
“I don’t know,” Tucker answered.“I don’t recall ever seeing anything quite like this before.It’s all so colorful and layered.Why are there so many layers?”
“And that iswaytoo much lace,” Scarlet said.
I didn’t know why there were so many layers, and Scarlet was right; there was alotof lace on everything.While the colors were vibrant and eye-catching, the sleeves on almost all the shirts and dresses had multiple layers that resembled fuzzy caterpillars and ended in lace.
“How long has all of this been down here?”I pondered.
No one responded because there was no way to know.While many things were similar to our lives above, a lot of them were also different, and it wasn’t just all the dead bodies.
The amsirah above liked colors, but not to this extent.Even beneath the dirt with no sun and very little light, everything down here was vibrant to the point of distraction.
It was beautiful, but I didn’t like it.I didn’t know where to look; my eyes were drawn in too many directions.
