What Jade heard under Theo’s plea was,Don’t get in over your head.He was right to warn her, but that didn’t mean Jade would heed his advice. With both Matherson and Nicolas to appease, Jade needed to find something incriminating at this dinner. Small talk and guesses weren’t enough.
Jade met Theo’s eyes and gave a subtle nod in reply as she left the carriage. He would be in the stables with the horses with the other drivers, but he could manage a clear view of the back and side of the palace. Should Jade need some backup or a quick exit, she was to feign heat exhaustion and ask to find a door or open window within Theo’s sightline. She would fan herself as if she were too hot as a signal to let him know they needed to get out of there.
The swipe of Theo’s thumb over the backs of Jade’s fingers as he released her hand made goosebumps erupt down her bare arms. She wanted to look back at him but resisted. No young woman of the nobility would glance back at her driver when a party awaited her. Jade had to behave as if every action she took might be scrutinized.
And not only by the other guests and staff at Evenshold Palace. After meeting Nicolas, she now had no doubt he lurked somewhere in the shadows, watching her every move while remaining unseen.
The thought made her heart stammer, but she took a calming breath and forced it out of her mind, focusing on her objective.
With long strides up the wide steps, Jade approached the ornate front doors. This time, the doorman turned to her and inclined his head, his features forming a more pleasant expression than before at the masquerade.
“Welcome, Lady Elena,” he said, swinging open one of the massive doors.
Jade gave him a polite smile and walked inside, her hands clasped tightly in front of her. It was part of her show. She wanted to give the impression that Elena was nervous, having been personally invited to attend a smaller gathering than the masquerade, primarily with members of the royal family.
The heels of her shoes clicked on the tiled floor of the entrance hall and echoed off the high ceiling, gilded and painted to display the wealth of the palace’s inhabitants. She wandered for a moment, pretending that she didn’t have the palace’s entire floor plan memorized, but the click of quick footsteps sounded to her left and Marguerite appeared in the entrance hall.
“Oh, you’re here!” she squealed. She rushed to Jade, her fawn-brown curls bouncing as she crossed through the room. “Why, you’re exquisite! I adore your gown!” Without permission or invitation, Marguerite grasped Jade’s clutched hands and pulled them apart, spreading them to her sides to get a better view of her dress.
A sheath of pale blue linen jacquard with a defined waist draped down Jade’s body, featuring a round neck and wide, gathered straps that covered the tops of her shoulders. A shimmery floral pattern of a slightly darker blue covered the entirety of the dress, catching the light as she moved. While it was less formal than the ball gown she had worn to the masquerade, the dress made a statement and flattered the curves of her body.
“We’ve gathered in the sitting room while we wait for dinner to begin.” Marguerite turned and looped her arm through Jade’s, then started back in the direction she came, taking Jade with her. “I haven’t told Harrison I invited you. I can’t wait to see his face.” She giggled before patting Jade’s hand and facing her as they walked. “You don’t have to spend the whole evening with him if you would rather not. Alanna is here, along with my younger sister and sister-in-law. You mustn’t feel obligated to stay with my cousin. You’re just as much my guest as his.”
Jade nodded, eyebrows to her hairline, and Marguerite released Jade’s arm as they reached an open doorway. She stepped through, and Jade followed, keeping perfect posture and making sure her chin tipped up as any noblewoman in her position would.
As Marguerite continued forward, Jade performed a quick survey of the room. She spotted Harrison, lounging on a couch with his brother Simon while Cecile and Pyotr occupied the one opposite, engaged in conversation with the brothers. A pocket of ladies, including Alanna, occupied a grouping of chairs around a low table. Three more women, older than the ladies in the chairs, stood beside the rich velvet curtains surrounding a tall window. Jade identified them as the princess consort Tabitha, wife to Reynauld and mother of Arabella and Alanna; the duchess Beatrice, Grannam’s wife; and LadyPaulette of Remcourt, mother of Harrison, Simon, and Cecile. The women were deep in what appeared to be a serious discussion based on the severity of their expressions, hardly befitting the dinner party.
Jade peered into the shadowy corners and the far ends of the room for any other occupants before she reached Harrison with Marguerite. Two men occupied a corner, their faces hidden from view. Neither of the men had the height and build of Lord Grannam, nor was either Prince Reynauld. The intelligence the military had obtained earlier in the week informed her that Reynauld would not be in attendance, which didn’t surprise Jade. With one last sweep of the room, she noticed only a tall, round butler with gray hair blending into the wall. They were missing both Grannam and Arabella.
But Alanna said Arabella had decided to come.
Had she changed her mind again? It was possible. But Jade had the sneaking suspicion that wherever Arabella might be, Grannam was as well. She couldn’t imagine they would willingly create any kind of treaty, each dead set on becoming the next sovereign of Marran. But if Grannam was behind the murders and Arabella had found out after the death of Count Aubergine, one of her most loyal supporters, she might be forcing him into a deal as blackmail or to keep him in check.
Heads lifted from conversation as Marguerite and Jade approached the couches. Surprise quickly changed from confusion to delight on Harrison’s and Simon’s faces, and they rose to their feet while Cecile arched an eyebrow.
“I invited a special guest tonight,” Marguerite began, her twinkling eyes landing firmly on Harrison.
“Ah, yes, Lady Alina.” The words rolled off Cecile’s tongue as she twisted her neck to look at the newcomer.
“Elena, my lady.”
A snide smile curled Cecile’s red lips. “My mistake.”
“How absolutely delightful that Marguerite invited you tonight,” Simon said, extending his hand toward her. She returned the gesture, and Simonplaced the dusting of a kiss on her knuckles. “I don’t believe you’re meant for me, however.”
Harrison shot a glare at his brother, there one second and gone the next, and Marguerite let out a chuckle.
“You’re right. I invited her formyself, thank you very much. But I’m willing to share her with Harry for a little while.”
Jade schooled her features into something neutral, aghast but not surprised at how brashly they spoke about “Elena” right in front of her as if she belonged to any of them.
Marguerite gave her a little nudge, and Jade stepped closer to where Harrison stood. He picked up her hand as well, placing an almost identical airy kiss on the back of her hand. Jade replied with a shy smile and a downward tilt of her head before Harrison gestured to the sofa, where she took a seat between the Remcourt brothers.
“So, Lady Elena, how has time outside Ellyris been treating you?” Simon asked, reclining against the back of the sofa.
Jade broke into a simple answer about the difference in weather, what staying with her “aunt” in Tourrine was like, and how excited she was to have been invited back to Evenshold Palace. Harrison joined the discussion, but Cecile and Pyotr turned in on themselves to have their own quiet conversation.
Minutes later, Jade caught movement out of the corner of her eye, and a dark-haired woman clad in a plum gown joined the older ladies by the window. Even against the lit backdrop as the sun shone its last rays, Jade immediately identified the woman as Arabella. Jade carried on speaking with the brothers, not missing a beat, but her ears were primed for any indication of the other missing member of their party: their host and the lord of the house.
