"Where are you taking me?" I ask the soldier as he drags me into a room overlooking the gardens."Sit here and wait. Do and you are told. That's an order from his highness. " He says.He then turns and leaves me in the room. It appears to be a dressing room. It's filled with different coloured silks displayed on racks. There is another rack on the wall next to the window with all types of sandals. I've never seen so many shoes in one place. "Why is this happening to me? " I ask the empty room. I take off the wreath on my head and set it down. Today was supposed to end well. It's just my bad luck that it ended with my arrest. The door opens and a woman in red silk walks in followed by three servant girls. One is carrying baskets filled with herbs, another is carrying butters and the other has a pale of hot piping water."Take off your clothes now." She orders me, impatiently.She starts flipping through the silks on the racks. I stare at her dumbfounded."Now!" She repeats.I start undressing, and take off my top and cover my breasts with my hands. The other servant girl have already drawn a bath in a wooden tub. She then gestures for me to get in the water."I took a bath this morning, thank you." I smile at them.I took a long and thorough one. As a contortionist I knew my body would be in display, and I'd groomed myself beforehand. This is insulting. I may not wear perfume but in no way do I smell.The woman handling the rack stares me down. "Get in the water, now." She snaps. I take off my pants and get in the water. The three servant girls add herbs and milk in the water and start scrubbing at my skin. It's humiliating."Your hands are so hard, do you work in the fields?" One of the servant girls complains.I chose not to answer her as they scrub everything from my face, my lips to my heels, till I feel sore. Then when I get out of the water, and they massage me with oils. I wont lie I like this part. It feels good as they knead on the knots on my shoulder area."Red or green." The woman in the red silk places both fabrics on my bare, oiled shoulders. She places her hand on her chin as she compares the two against my skin."Red is the color of passion." One the servant girls says."Red looks good on her." The other agrees.They speak as if I'm not in the room. As if I'm not standing right here with them."Then red it is." The woman concludes.She then proceeds and drapes a scarlet red silk around my body. It starts at my shoulders and covers my breasts, my belly remains exposed, then it covers around my thighs and ends just below my hips."That will do. Finish dressing her and bring her down.", She instructs the two servant girls before leaving the room."Yes Mistress." They reply."Isn't it too short?" I ask, looking at my reflection in the mirror. My cheeks heat up as I stare at myself. Its a luxurious silk but it looks scandalous on me, I feel exposed in it. My thighs and my belly are out. It barely covers my breasts. "Don't you worry about that, you won't stay in it too long." One of the servants giggle, and her friends join her."W...why not?" I ask."Are you serious." She asks me, and I nod."She is serious." She tells her friends.Her eyes twinkle with mischief, then she clears her throat and stares at me in the mirror. "I'm sorry to be the one to tell you this but you are our province's sacrificial lamb tonight." She shrugs her shoulders."W-What?" I ask her. My heart is beating fast. She is on the verge of smiling, so are her friends. How cruel could they be to be enjoying relaying this to me?"It's all because of your clumsy performance today. Your wreath fell twice as you performed before the Crown Prince, therefore you will be sacrifice tonight. When night turns to day, your blood will be shed to pacify the Crown Prince's anger." She narrates my fate to me."B...but it was an accident." I'm on the verge of tears.Was the Crown Prince this merciless that he couldn't overlook a simple mistake?"You are scaring her Malkya." One of the servants warns as she helps my feet into gold sandals.Malkya takes down my braid so that my moisturized curly hair now falls to my back. "Stay still. Don't cry, you will ruin your looks." Malkya orders as she lines my eyes, and tints my lips with the color of a bloomed rose.She finishes by layering my skin with a perfume that smells divine. When I look at myself in the mirror, I look the best I've ever looked. But I'm not happy, infact I'm the saddest I've ever been. I'm dying today. In a few hours to come I'll be sacrificed. I stare at the open window. What if I jumped and run. But the ground is way too far down. I'll crush my skull soon as I fall on the ground."Don't look so scared. I think you'll like it." Malkya teases me."Who would like being sacrificed? I'm yet to meet them." I ask, another tear falling down my eyes."I do. I wish I was in your place. I'd twirl out of here, dancing with joy." She says as they lead me out of the door."You are crazy." I tell her.We find a guard waiting outside for me. Probably to make sure I don't run. If these people think I'm going to be sacrificed willingly then they are in for a rude shock. I may have been sheltered my whole life, and my father may have locked me in so I don't have much experience except for being a contortionist which my friends taught me, but I can ball a fist and punch.We walk down the hallway. The guard is holding me by the arm. My head is heavy with thoughts. I stop walking when we get to the entrance of the banquet hall."Come on." The guard tightens his hold on my arm as he drags me forward. The Crown Prince and the rest of the nobles are chatting and dining as we walk inside. Their wives sit next to them, and so do their sons and daughters.The room grows silent as the guard drags me towards the Crown Prince. When I get to the front where he's sitting I bow down. "Your highness, I apologize for how my wreath fell down while I was performing. I plead for your mercy, I promise it will never happen again.. Please don't sacrifice me." The Crown Prince remains silent, but I can feel his gaze on me."Sit down." The guard who brought me in orders.He pins me down by the shoulders to the floor, next to the Crown Prince. I fall down to the cold floor. Then I notice that there is a woman on the floor too. She's sitting next to Senator Hedari. She's gorgeous and she's wearing a red silk like me. I realise that there are five other women sitting down on the floor next to some of the noble men. It dawns on me who they are, why they are so close to the nobles but are still not around to sit on chairs, why they are wearing silks that expose their bodies.They are the property of the nobles. They are concubines.