They Gave Me a Check at Twelfth Night, So I Took Their Mardi Gras novel · Chapter 18 of 32
Chapter 18: Paste
The Krewe Ball filled the Municipal Auditorium with twelve hundred people, and every one of them was looking at the crown.
It rested on a white velvet cushion at the center of the stage, under a spotlight, carried in by two pages in gold.
The Queen's crown of Thalassa stood eleven inches high, with a band of old silver and a spray of points, and eight emeralds the size of grapes set across the front.
They were green and deep and wicked under the lights.
Twelve hundred people made a soft sound when it appeared.
I sat at the Queen's table at the foot of the stage with the baby's card in front of me.
I held Gaspard's hand under the tablecloth so hard that the bones shifted.
"Easy," he murmured.
"I am easy."
"You're crushing my knuckles."
"I'll stop."
I didn't.
He let me.
On my left sat the oldest queen, in a full-length gown of violet velvet, with a diamond brooch and the ebony cane across her lap.
She looked perfectly peaceful.
At the head of the table sat Hortense in black, with her chin high, and beside her Auguste in white tie, staring at the centerpiece.
The rest of this chapter is part of the paid portion of the series. Chapters 1–16 of They Gave Me a Check at Twelfth Night, So I Took Their Mardi Gras are free to read — start from the beginning, then unlock the rest with coins in the app.
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