Page 56 of The Prince Falls First
Agnes sat there with an encouraging smile and several handkerchiefs.
Gen took one and slowly sat up, realizing that they were men’s handkerchiefs; they must belong to Gabriel.
While she cleaned herself up, Agnes rose and filled a glass with water from a glass pitcher on the counter and brought itto her, taking a seat on the floor next to her again. “I hope you won’t mind water from the sink.”
Gen shook her head as she blew her nose, making very unladylike noises. “Thank you.” Tears were threatening again but she took several deep breaths and drank the water in several long, also unladylike gulps.
“I’m so sorry about Miss Kaur, Miss Ruffin. She was a wonderful woman.”
NO. She had to stop crying for fuck’s sake. If Sam were here, she’d tell her to…
Eventually, Gen said, “Sam was the best.”
“Sam?”
“It was her nickname. She hates…hated.” She took a deep breath. “Hatedwhen people pronounced her name wrong. They’d say Sam-eye-ra instead of Suh-mee-ruh. So she started going by Sam.”
“I always thought the name was beautiful. I do love my parents, but ‘Agnes’ is a very old-fashioned name.”
Suddenly feeling awkward, Gen wasn’t sure what to do or say, so she went to the default her mother had brainwashed in her. “I’m sorry.”
“Oh Miss Ruffin, whatever for?”
Gen put a hand over Agnes’s. “Please, call me Genevieve.”
Agnes put her other hand on top of Gen’s. “Then you must call me Agnes. I insist,” she added when Gen was about to protest.
Gen nodded. After a few moments of debating how to start, she said, “I didn’t mean to…I mean I…”
Agnes patted her hand. “I understand completely. You don’t have to apologize for anything, certainly not for your grief. Cry all you want, yell, scream…this palace and the royal apartments are remarkably well sound-proofed. Though Gabriel would needto let the nearby security know so they don’t storm in here if they did overhear anything.”
At the thought of Gabriel, suddenly she remembered what she looked like. Sobbing on top of that would have only made her face puffier and her eyes swollen.
“He thinks your beautiful,” Agnes said, somehow reading Gen’s mind. “And he’s very worried about you. I could tell in his voice when he called me earlier. No doubt, he’s standing guard outside the door in case you need anything.”
“You’re both very kind. I certainly wouldn’t be so kind if someone showed up to my house, disrupting their lives, and spending ages sobbing.”
Agnes patted her hand, then let go. “Yes, you would. You don’t fool me, or Gabriel. Now, would you still like a shower? Or have you changed your mind for a bath? I’m not sure what injuries you may have, but do you need help getting out of your clothes?”
“No!” Gen fisted the top again, holding it even tighter against her body. Then the tension suddenly left her. “I’m…I’m sorry. This top…it was Sam’s and it still smells like her and I can still feel her and hear her and?—”
Agnes pulled Gen into a hug. Gen didn’t reciprocate at first, startled as she was, but then she relaxed into it.
“No one will take your clothes away, we’ll make sure of it. We’ll just set them aside for now while you shower and sleep. Okay?”
Feeling tears again, she didn’t speak but nodded. As they broke apart, Agnes held out a hand, which Gen took to help her slowly stand. She picked up the glass and set it on the counter, then picked up the hankies and looked around for where to put the used ones. Agnes gestured to what looked like furniture but was actually a clothes hamper.
“Are you sure you’ll manage on your own? I don’t mind staying and helping.”
Gen nodded. “Thank you, for everything. I’ll manage.”
Agnes gave her a final soft smile before leaving.
This time when Gen looked in the mirror, she took a deep breath, inhaling the lingering scent of Sam from her clothes, then took them off and her bandages off and took a shower, taking care with her injuries as best she could.
When she came out, she saw Agnes had left a stack of clothes and a bag of items on the counter. There was a set of clothes for tomorrow, but for now she put on the impossibly soft cotton pajama short set, similar to what Agnes had been wearing. Thinking of pajamas reminded her of the time Gabriel had visited her house while she’d worn something much skimpier.
Shaking her head free of the memory, she peeked inside the bag. There were some skincare items, a new toothbrush, a hair dryer, fresh bandages and ointment, and a few other small things. She took her time and used most of them, and rebandaged her hands and arms where the scrapes and burn marks were.
