I turned away from her and took Rosalie’s hand, tugging her over next to Lady Catherine, who sat in her high-backed chair like the queen of the sitting room.
“Rosalie?” I asked.
“Yes?”
I stood, my body tense and unwilling. But I had no other choice. I’d already promised. I got down on one knee, her hand still in mine. Rosalie broke into a wide smile like she knew this was always coming. “Rosalie, will you marry me?” The words were acid on my tongue.
A sharp gasp sounded from across the room, and I couldn’t help but wonder if it came from Lizzy.
“Yes! Oh, of course, yes!” Rosalie threw her arms around me and kissed me.
I stood to break the kiss that felt all wrong. Enjoying it would be a betrayal. I spun to look at Lizzy.
She remained there unmoving, her eyes flashing with something deep. She whirled away. How did I explain? I’d just told her nobody would force me into marriage. I found myself stepping toward her.
“Lizzy…”
Mrs. Trent was there, hugging me as well. “Oh, what a glorious surprise! We are so excited for the two of you!”
She slipped a small piece of a fragmented mirror into my hand. “Look into this when you’re alone and ask it to show you what I overheard on the night of your parents' death,” she whispered in my ear. “I agreed to keep it hidden as long as a certain marriage event took place. When you said you weren’t marrying my daughter last night, his word was broken and I was free to make my own arrangements.”
She stepped back. Her words were cryptic, but not cryptic enough. My entire chest squeezed tight at them. At the one person they pointed toward. Surely I was wrong.
Memories were rarely stored in mirrors. It took quite the magical knowhow to put it inside and get it to hold. But Mrs. Trent had a reputation for controlling magical objects. In fact, she ran a whole business that had to do with magical artifact repair.
Mr. Trent slapped me good-naturedly on the back, then shook my hand. When I looked up again, Lizzy had disappeared.
I hurried over to Anne, who was standing with Ernesto looking shocked. “Where is she?”
“She headed that way.” Anne pointed toward the entryway. “I think she’s planning on leaving.”
Forgetting everything and everyone, I went after her, following into the front foyer. “Lizzy, I know I said that I wouldn’t—”
“You don’t need to explain. It’s none of my business,” Lizzy said, stuffing her arms into her coat.
“It’s not what you think.”
“That’s what you said about last night.”
“I…” There was so much to tell her. I couldn’t do it here, inside Rosings. I still reeled from everything, and the house’s confined air felt like it would overwhelm me.
Grabbing my coat, I threw it on before taking her hand and pulling her out the door.
“Darcy, what are you doing?” Lizzy hissed, her cheeks pink and her eyes blazing with annoyance. But I tugged her after me. She deserved to hear the truth.
“We need to talk, but not in there,” I said. “You need to know what happened.” Or maybe I just needed to tell her so she wouldn’t think me a horrible person… again.
We both stopped in our tracks when we saw the large horse-drawn carriage sitting in the front driveway.
“Surprise!” Georgiana shouted, clapping her gloved hands with Henry by her side. “Don’t be mad, Darcy. It will be a quick trip around Rosings’ gardens. Remember, you agreed to this!”
I had agreed to it. Another fae promise. Although the same didn’t hold true for Lizzy as a half-fae, and considering how mad she was at me, who knew if she’d go.
The front doors of Rosings burst open. “Darcy, where are you going—” Rosalie cut off with a gasp as she beheld the large Valentine’s carriage. “Is this for me? Oh Darcy, how romantic!”
Rosalie headed straight for the carriage as her parents followed her into the freezing night air.
“Wait,” Georgiana said, looking confused, and I now realized she hadn’t been in the room when I came back in from talking with Mrs. Trent. Georgiana hadn’t heard me propose to Rosalie. “This isn’t for you. This is for Darcy and Lizzy.”
