Page 52 of The Black Key

“Help the Black Key, you mean? Sure.” He shrugs. “It’s not like our lives can get any worse.”

I bite my lip.

“I’m staying in Ash’s old rooms,” he says. “I’m sure you can remember the way there.” He winks. “Meet me tonight and we’ll talk.”

I wait a few seconds after he leaves, then hurry down the hall to Coral’s room. I’m so distracted by this new development while I’m dressing her for the trip to the Bank, I end up putting her high heels on the wrong feet.

“Is something wrong?” she asks.

“Nothing, miss. I’m sorry,” I mumble, correcting the mistake.

Miss Mayfield’s is one of the top dressmakers in the Lone City, with a waiting list a mile long, and Coral cannot stop chattering about how fabulous her dress will be.

“I chose pink, obviously,” she says, looking up as I apply her eyeliner. “My mother always wore blue or silver to the Auction.” She sniffs. “Pink suits me better.”

“Yes, miss.” I suddenly remember I haven’t told her about the doctor’s appointment. “Dr. Blythe would like to see you this evening, after your fitting. He said—”

“My very first surrogate appointment!” Coral studies her reflection in the mirror as I finish with the eyeliner. “Of course. We’ll be back well before then, won’t we?”

I’ve learned over the past few weeks that “our” whole schedule is entirely in Coral’s hands. She doesn’t want to do something? It doesn’t happen. Yet she always insists on asking me anyway.

“Yes, miss,” I say. “Will Garnet be accompanying us this afternoon?”

I haven’t seen much of Garnet since his father’s death. He’s thrown himself into his role as a Regimental, making more trips to the lower circles than he had before.

Coral giggles. “Boys don’t come to dress fittings.” She scrunches her nose. “Carnelian will be coming though. She’s always so dull and serious.”

“Is Carnelian going to the Auction?”

“Of course not, Imogen, she isn’t married. But there will be lots of festivities the day after, the dinners of course, and some other parties, so she must look nice for those, even if she can’t come to the event itself.”

Coral fusses with a curl by her left ear.

“My mother has been telling me stories about the Auction since I was little and I can’t believe I finally get to go. It sounds so wonderful. There are rooms for entertainment, and games on the lawns. It starts in the afternoon and lasts the whole day! And there are distractions for the women waiting to buy surrogates and then things to do once you’ve bought yours. I’ve never been inside the amphitheater before, but I’ve heard it’s just lovely.” I have been inside that amphitheater and lovely is not a word I’d ever use to describe it. “There will be food and drinks and games to watch and musicians and jugglers and all sorts of fun things!”

She looks so excited. As if the Auction isn’t about a bunch of girls being carted off to a strange place, drugged, dressed up, and then paraded onto a stage. As if all that fear, all that anxiety and worry, all that abuse, is merely entertainment.

But this Auction isn’t going to be like the others.

I’m going to make sure of that.

Eighteen

I SIT IN THE MOTORCAR OPPOSITE CORAL AND CARNELIAN as we drive to the north train station. Miss Mayfield’s is in the North Quarter of the Bank.

“This is so stupid,” Carnelian grumbles. “After all those bombings and riots and stuff. I can’t believe she’s sending us out there.”

“Nonsense,” Coral replies. “There hasn’t been a bombing in a week.”

“Not in the Bank, maybe,” Carnelian says. “But the Smoke and the Farm are getting pretty dangerous. Don’t you read the papers?”

I’m impressed Carnelian is following the Society’s movements. Though I do remember, at a dinner so many months ago, the Duchess mocking her for working on her father’s printing press. Maybe she’s always read the papers and I just never noticed.

And privately, I agree with her. With the Auction almost here, it’s unsafe for royals to be in the lower circles. But of course, they don’t know that.

“The Smoke has always been rather rough around the edges, though, hasn’t it?” Coral says. “The Bank is lovely. It will be nice to have a change of scenery.”

“I still don’t see why I couldn’t have brought Rye,” Carnelian says.