"Were you?"I turned to face her."Even though everyone knew I'd been lied to about the marriage being permanent and no one bothered to mention it?"
She flinched."That wasn't our place, Your Highness.I'm sorry.I should have found a way to tell you."
"You're right.It wasn't your place.It was Archie's place.Or the Grand Duchess's place.Or anyone's place except the lying cowards who let me walk around for weeks thinking I had an escape route."
"Yes, Your Highness."
"But I appreciate you trying to help today.Thank you for that."
She nodded and left, closing the door quietly behind her.
I sank onto the bed and pulled out my phone.Seventeen missed calls from Archie.Twelve texts.Three voicemails I hadn't listened to.
And one message from a number I didn't recognize:Welcome back, Your Highness.I look forward to continuing our important work together.- VB
Viktor.
I stared at the message, at his casual assumption that we were on the same side, that he could congratulate me for returning like he hadn't been orchestrating my destruction.
I deleted it without responding.
My phone buzzed again.This time it was Archie:Thank you for coming back.I know you didn't do it for me.But thank you anyway.
I started to delete that too, then stopped.Archie might be a liar and a manipulator and someone who'd stolen my choices.But he was also the only person besides me who seemed to understand that something bigger than a failed marriage was happening here.
I typed back:We investigate together.That's all this is.Don't mistake cooperation for forgiveness.
His response came immediately:Understood.Meet tomorrow morning?My study, 8 AM?I have more to show you.
Fine.
I set my phone on the nightstand and stared at the ceiling of my new bedroom in my permanent palace in my permanent marriage to a man I couldn't trust.
But at least now I had a purpose beyond surviving.I had someone to fight.
And Betty Montclair, barista, community college student, accidental princess, had never been particularly good at losing fights.
Tomorrow, we'd start figuring out who was trying to destroy me.
And then we'd destroy them first.
