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Eloise woke up and instantly wished she hadn’t. Her head buzzed, and she had a splitting headache. She squinted, unable to fully open her eyes, and raised her head to try to make out where she was. The pain was unbearable, so she groaned and fell back against the pillows. She felt as though a herd of horses had danced on her head the day before. What had happened?
Had she fallen and hit her head? What time was it? It seemed rather late in the day. She tried to peel her eyes open again, but the bright light didn’t let her.
Bright light? Oh, god, it was probably past noon! Why didn’t Ford wake her?
She sat up suddenly, causing a splitting headache, and cursed. She never cursed. Where did that come from?
When her eyes gradually got accustomed to the light, she was able to look around.
Damn it!Eloise wasn’t in her room; she wasn’t even in her house. She was still at Hades’ mansion. Eloise groaned.
She’d completely forgotten that’s where she’d spent the past few days. And then the memories of last night came crashing down on her. After they cleaned the kitchen, Verity, Prudence, and Charity took her to their chambers. They told her all about Ava, Hades’ sister, and how Hades went mad after her death, imprisoning one person after another in a quest to find the killer.
There was a nagging thought at the back of her mind. She made a note to herself something about this entire situation, but she had forgotten now. She tried to remember what happened next. Right, the harlots had shown her all their gowns, painted her like a doxy, even put on a wig. They spent most of the day gossiping about various hell customers and retelling some of the amusing things that had happened while they worked.
Later, they continued their chatter at dinner… and the rest seemed a bit foggy.
Eloise looked down at herself. She still wore the gown from the night before. Christ, she hadn’t even disrobed for bed! She wiped her face with her hand. And yes, she still had the makeup on. Her hand immediately traveled to her head.
At least I took off the atrocious wig.
Eloise struggled to make it out of bed, her skirts tangling with her feet, the sheets pulling her back. She squeaked and fell down with a loud plop. A knock sounded on her door.
Eloise straightened from her crouching position on the floor, the sheets still around her legs.
“Please come in!” she cried out and instantly regretted it.
Her ears buzzed, and a sharp pain shot through her head. She covered her head with both her hands.
The door opened, and Sal peeked his head in. “Are you up then, miss? Master told me to have Verity help you in the morning. He said you’d be helpless on your own.”
Hades said that?
When had he seen her last night? She didn’t remember talking to him the night before or seeing him, for that matter. But he wasn’t wrong.
“Yes, thank you,” Eloise said. “Please, ask her to come to my aid.” She tried for a smile, but she worried it was more of a grimace.
Eloise slowly disentangled the sheets and stood, leaning on the bed. She padded to the windows and shut the drapes tighter. No need for the bright light when her eyes ached so much. Why was she experiencing such a horrible headache?
She walked to the chair and noticed a new gown and unmentionables lying there. She closed her eyes in relief. She wouldn’t have to wear the old clothing today.
Verity entered a moment later, chipper and happily bouncing around the room.
“Oh, Lord, Verity, please could you step lightly and not prance about the room? My head feels like it’s about to split in half.”
Verity laughed merrily, and Eloise gritted her teeth.
“Luckily, I have a cure for that,” Verity sang.
“Cure for what?” Eloise frowned. Only then did she see the mug in Verity’s hands.
“You are crapulous!” Verity announced.
“I am what?”
“Ill from the night of drinking. It happens.” Verity shrugged.
“I do not drink alcohol. Almost never. A glass of wine now and then, if that,” Eloise protested.
