“Is it from Yuri?” I asked. I couldn’t think of what else would cause her to act like this.
Her smile revealed all her teeth. “It’s from Prince Anton.”
My heart lurched at his name. Then it fell. “He wrote to you?”
“No, you oaf!” She smacked my arm with the letter. “He wrote to you, and he asked me to deliver his missive.”
My heart reared up, pounding so hard it sent a rush of blood to my cheeks. “Oh.” Why? Why would Anton send me a letter when he could simply knock on the door to the tapestry room in an hour? I took the folded parchment and held it in my lap, my finger idly bending one corner.
Pia waited all of three seconds, then exhaled with impatience. “Oh, read it now!” She bounced in her seat.
“Did he say what it contained?”
“No,” she admitted. “But, it’s the prince. Sonya, he wrote you a secret message! Don’t you think that’s romantic?”
Before last night, her question would have triggered an eye roll. But now her rosy vision of Anton and me was one I hoped for, too. What would Pia think if she knew the prince had seen me more times than I’d like to count in nothing but my nightdress? Unfortunately, the truth would disappoint her. Anton would never act on his feelings for me, nor would he ever trust in my feelings for him.
“I’m sure this letter has nothing to do with romance, Pia.”
“Prove it to me.” She grabbed my wrist. “Please? Nothing exciting has happened all day.”
“Wasn’t last week’s ball enough excitement to tide you over?” I asked. She’d told me how Yuri had given her quite the passionate kiss after their stolen dance together. I couldn’t help but wonder if it finally outmatched the one Valko gave her months ago.
“Yes, well, now Yuri is gone for a fortnight on some recruitment errand for the emperor.”
I turned the letter over and wondered if Valko had already sent men throughout the empire to announce the lowered draft age. The council had approved the directive. Anton and Nicolai were outnumbered.
Pia touched my knee. “You don’t have to read it aloud. Just tell me when you’re done if I’m right and it is romantic. I have no shame in living through you until Yuri gets back.” She grinned.
I shook my head at her. “That soldier needs to marry you quickly. You’re going to torture me every day until he does.”
She giggled. Despite myself, I laughed along with her. “Just read it!” she said.
“Fine.” I groaned a sigh. “But you’re going to be wrong.”
I rose and moved a few steps away so she wouldn’t peer over my shoulder. I broke the seal, unfolded the paper, and pressed a free hand to my stomach to settle my nerves.
Meet me an hour after midnight at the kitchen door facing the stables.
Wear a simple dress.
That was it. No salutation with my name or signature of his. There was little to go by, but knowing Anton, this was a critical errand if it involved endangering me. Surely I would be punished if I were discovered fleeing the palace, even though this outing must be brief since he didn’t ask me to bring anything more than what I had on. Only I couldn’t wear this. Lenka would come soon and change me into my nightgown. Anton knew that. He knew my clothes weren’t stored in my bedroom. That’s why he sent Pia with the letter, I realized, so I would find a way to keep my dress and evade Lenka. But I couldn’t think of an excuse that would fall below her suspicion. Besides, the fabric of my dress was a rich brocade. Not exactly discreet.
Pia, however, was someone I could trust with at least part of this plan. Anton had trusted her to the extent he gave her this letter. Yuri had, as well, in that he used her room as a meeting place for Anton’s league of revolutionaries. The prince said Pia was uninvolved beyond that. She wasn’t a part of his inner circle, and I could see why. She was too scattered with light emotion and free with gossip to trust implicitly. Still, she was my true friend, and the only ally I could secure tonight.
“Well?” Her large eyes were round and beautiful.
I folded the letter. “No one can know what I’m about to tell you.”
She nodded and inched forward in her seat. “I understand.”
I bit my lip, preparing for her to draw the wrong conclusions. “It seems I’m going somewhere for the night, though I imagine I’ll be back before dawn.”
Pia’s mouth dropped open.
“And I need your help,” I went on in a rush. “I need a plain dress.”
She sprang up from the couch and threw her arms around me. “Oh, Sonya! I’m so happy for you! Didn’t I tell you it would be romantic?”