Tears of the Dragon Read Online Free PDF Page A

up.” He held
out his hand. “If you will come this way, I will show you the
facilities. Your pardon, princess. There are no servants to attend
you, but I gladly offer my services … if you will
allow.”
    Khalia merely stared at him, not entirely
certain whether that was a question or not, or precisely what it
was that he was offering. She’d been on the point of asking for
water to bathe, but when he mentioned facilities it occurred to her
that, in all probability, the fortress boasted indoor plumbing.
That thought propelled her forward at last and she followed him to
a smaller set of double doors. These swung open at their approach
as the first door had, illuminating to reveal a bedchamber that
rivaled the previous room in opulence. The bed alone was
approximately the size of the bedroom in her tiny apartment in the
city. Elevated on a platform, two tiered steps approached it. Sheer
draperies were attached to a circular canopy above the center of
the bed and fell in swags which were tied to each of the four
corner posts.
    Beyond the bed, the room was surprisingly
sparsely furnished. A long vanity with a mirror above it and a
padded stool before it sat along one wall on one side and a pair of
comfortable looking, overstuffed chairs faced a small, low table on
the other side of the bed.
    Several moments passed before Khalia
realized that Damien was standing patiently beside another pair of
arched double doors, these only slightly wider than a single, wide
door. Curious, she rounded the bed and moved to the threshold.
    It was white and gold. The walls and floor
were tiled with square slabs of what appeared to be marble.
Stepping inside, Khalia saw that the fortress indeed boasted indoor
plumbing, but she had never seen the like of this. Instead of a
tub, the main feature of the room was a small, round pool that
looked to be about eight feet in diameter. A half moon tiled wall
surrounded one side. Spouts, gold, or at least gilded, protruded
from the walls in a half dozen places, making Khalia wonder if they
were spouts at all or served some other purpose she couldn’t
imagine. Peeking from a small alcove to one side was the rounded
edge of what appeared to be the bowl of a porcelain throne. Along
another short wall, a cabinet had been built to support a solid
slab of marble nearly six feet long and about two feet wide.
Centered in the slab was a washbasin filled by way of a golden
faucet. There were no handles and Khalia wondered how the thing
worked.
    At Damien’s touch, she jumped. He was
frowning when she whipped her head around to look at him.
    “ I do not see how this garment
fastens.”
    Khalia blinked at him. “Excuse me?”
    “ I am not familiar with this type of
garment. How does one remove it?”
    Khalia stared at him, dumbfounded, for
several moments. Finally, dimly, it sank in. He’d offered to attend
her--she was supposed to be royalty. “One doesn’t,” she said
flatly. “One leaves while I attend myself.”
    His brows rose almost to his hairline but
after a moment, he merely bowed and left. When the doors had closed
behind him, Khalia removed what was left of her clothing. In truth,
there wasn’t much. She’d shredded it when she’d shifted and the
tattered remains had been slowly disintegrating since.
    She had no idea what she was going to wear
when she finished bathing, but for the moment she was far more
interested in getting clean. Sand showered down around her as she
undressed and it occurred to her that there was so much dirt in her
hair she was more likely to make mud than get clean unless she
managed to get most of it sloughed from her skin and shaken from
her hair before she got in. Removing the last of the pins that had
held her hair coiled sedately on her head, she bent over at the
waist and shook her hair out, combing as much sand from it as
possible.
    She stood for some moments in front of the
pool, her hands on her hips, her gaze wandering around the tub, the
walls, the lip of the