ine
ious effort, my legs feeling like lead. In the formal sitting room, my stepmother was a
perfect mask of warmth the moment she saw me. "Lady Beatric
n elegant woman, but her eyes were sharp and calculating. Her daughter, Lou
y, saying nothing as a ser
ing forward, her voice a conspiratorial whisper. "I came as soon as I heard. Is
e a stone in the quiet
haven't heard anything about th
e's hardly aware of anything. Yes, the Mack family did purchase it. A precaution, you understand.
nd. "Seraphina, you must help me! It's my son, my dear Nathaniel! He's terribly i
sa began to sniffle on cue. "My
"Addy, you see the situation. The Kensingtons are old family friends. And Nathaniel..
ward, faking a mysterious ailment to avoid being deployed to the dangerous northern
" I asked, my voice soft. "That's strange. I saw him just last week at the St
"That was... a final burst of ene
ng to him? Is it the King's own Dr. Sterling? Or perhaps our Dr. Hayes? I could
ey hadn't hired a prominent doctor, of course. That would be too
the outer territories. You wou
icate clink of porcelain on porcelain was t
s. "Lady Beatrice, are you questioning my intelligence
ng his illness to avoid the campaign against the Rogues in
e's and Louisa's faces. They l
e. "Adeline! What a terrible accusation!
he gravely ill Nathaniel. We can have the Royal Physician himself give a full diagnosis. If he is truly at death's door, the Blackwood Pack will cover all expenses as a gesture of goo
absolute. Treason against one's Pack w
, but my stepmother was trapped. She had underest
two trembling women on the sofa. "The Moonpetal Root was purchased with my private
't utter a single word as Rose politely but firmly g
leaving me alone
or annoyance. It was fear. The weak, pliable stepdaughter she had always dismissed w

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