“I think at first your parents didn’t realize I was still here. They never saw me much in the first place. And then when Catrin was quietly brought around for visits, it was handy to have me around to tend to her needs. But then Ingrid left. And the maid and...suddenly I was needed by your mother as well.” She looked at me, guilt filling her eyes, pleading with me to understand her plight.
“I know she was a terrible mother to you,” she said. “They were both...so horrible. So many of us in the household felt such pity. How could one be so cruel to their own children? You were perfect girls. Kind, funny, smart, and so beautiful. But they saw none of it.”
I sat across from her and her eyes met mine again, this time filled with a fierceness that startled me.
“She has not changed, fräulein. Evil runs through her blood. She will not be happy to see you. You can still change your mind. You can still go.”
“No. I can’t,” I said. “Not until I’ve seen Cat. Where is she?”
Paulina’s eyes searched mine.
“You did not hear she died?” Her voice was faint. She knew I knew the truth.
“I did hear that. But I know it was a lie.”
The older woman sighed.
“She does not live here.”
“I know. But I also know she visits. When will you expect her next?”
Paulina shook her head.
“I never know. She comes when she can. She was here two weeks ago. It could be a month, even two, before she’s back again.”
My heart sank, but this wasn’t unexpected.
“Do you know where she is? Can you contact her?”
She clasped her hands in front of her. “I... No. Your mother wouldn’t like it.”
“Why not?”
“She has kept your sister’s existence carefully hidden. If she came more often, your mother worries someone would take notice. Maybe the same people who tried to kill her years ago. And then there’s the matter of the young soldier who checks in every other day or so.”
“What do you mean?”
“It is disgusting,” she said, sitting back and crossing her arms over her chest. “It is clear the way he eyes your mother’s belongings that he is counting the minutes until she dies. He has asked many times my plans for after, making sure I aim to leave. He thinks there is no one else to claim all this.” She waved a hand at the room. “If he knew your sister was alive...that there was an heir to collect...who knows what he might do.”
I nodded, understanding.
“And now you are here,” she said.
“She won’t care about keeping me safe,” I said. “And I don’t want anything from her—or this house. I’ve only come for Cat. Can you help me? Please, Paulina.” I reached for her hand. “I don’t have much time. Can you tell me where to find her?”
She pulled her hand from mine and pressed her fingertips to her lips, her gaze drifting past me. A moment later she took in a long breath and got to her feet. As she passed me on the way to the door she squeezed my shoulder, and then she was gone.
I sat quietly, waiting, my eyes on the clock on the far wall. A minute passed. Two. Just as I began to fret that she wasn’t coming back, the door swung open and she stood before me, holding out a small square of paper. I reached for it, but she pulled it away, her gaze holding mine.
“I must warn you,” she said. “She is not the same girl you knew.”
My smile was grim.
“Are any of us the same people we once were, Paulina?”
She sighed, shook her head, and pressed the slip of paper into my palm.
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