“You call three different mistresses a mistake?”
“He has repented to both Cyra and Aristea. And both have forgiven him. Besides, no marriage is perfect.”
“Not everyone has the marriage you and Father have.”
Mother laid her hand over Liane’s, and some of her temper cooled. “But it still takes work. I just want you to be happy.”
Aristea was an excuse, as was stardust, and everything else she said. No matter how many lords, dukes, and princes her mother introduced her to, none of them were Elias…
“You promised to let me choose,” Liane said. That same old refrain she’d used as a shield.
“And I stand by my word. But the Vice Premier has read the bones and stars, and she says you’ll have a fated encounter soon. Does it really hurt to open yourself to the possibility?”
Mother trusted the Vice Premier’s omens too much. Liane didn’t have Aristea’s skill for diplomacy, but she knew that if she wanted her mother to take the stardust problem seriously, she’d have to give a little.
“Who is it you want me to meet?”
“You know me too well.” Mother smiled. “Duke Licht has just arrived for the Sun Ceremony. I thought you could get to know one another tonight at the masquerade.”
“I’ll talk with him, but I won’t make any promises.”
“That’s all I ask.” Mother grasped her hand and squeezed.
Their chat finished, Liane and Mother walked out of the garden to where her siblings waited with curious expressions. Liane forced a smile to keep them from worrying. It wasn’t the first time her mother had tried to play matchmaker, and it wouldn’t be the last. And she didn’t want to waste this precious time with her siblings worrying about that. She was headed toward them when Ludwig entered the garden, scanning for her. And when she saw him stride toward her with a scowl on his face, her stomach sank.Bad news.
She excused herself and walked off into a secluded corner with Ludwig.
“Don’t tell me,” Liane said, hoping she’d read his expression wrong.
“They released Niklas. He didn’t even stand before the magistrate.”Ludwig’s fisted hand trembled.
Kicking a helpless bush, she shouted, “Nameless blighted darkness!” She thought she had him this time.
“There is a single ray of hope, however. I followed Niklas and his thugs to their hideout, and I overheard them talking about a meeting with their supplier tonight.”
The hairs on the back of her neck stood on end. This was what they needed. If they intercepted the supply, they could find out where it was coming from. It could be the break they’d been waiting for all along.
“I know that look. I’m planning on handing this information over to the Midnight Guard. We should let them handle it.”
“That’s pointless. Niklas has connections. Who’s to say he doesn’t know someone inside the guard? If we find out who’s bringing it into the city, we can eliminate the problem, yank the infection out by the root.”
“This is too dangerous.”
“Hasn’t stopped me before.”
“What about the masquerade?”
“I can do both.”
“They’re meeting in the ruins just outside the city.”
“We’ll take the tunnels; I know the way.”
“That’s not what I meant, and you know it.”
The ruins were forbidden. According to the church, they were a source of corruption, and everyone heard stories about some hapless fool who wandered there and ended up with the withering, a wasting sickness that blackened the body before killing them. But her mind was made up.
“I’m doing this whether you come or not.”
