“It will be up to your daughter and my son if they shouldmake their own union, but Derryman, you and I, the House of Dalton and theHouse of Derryman, will have no such public alliance.Consider this the cutdirect, sir, and please do me the favor of never corresponding with me in anyway again.”
My gaze swung to Edgar, who was staring death at me.
Fix this, he mouthed.
Frantically, I turned full body into Loren, pressing intohim.
“Please, your grace,I need to speak to you.”
Loren looked down at me.
“Please,” I begged.“Privately.”
He glanced at his father, then back to me and nodded.
Okay.
All right.
A start.
He began to draw me from the room as I thought,Now whatdid I do?
I caught Edgar’s eyes, he narrowed his at me warningly, andI started to breathe funny.
I didn’t know what I was going to do, but I was going tohave to come up with something.
Loren didn’t take me to the yellow, cream and green sittingroom.He took me to a room that could only be described as a kind of this-worldfamily room.It had warm, deep colors and comfortable-looking furniture, butwas still stately and refined.
He closed the door behind us.
And as it would seem was his way, he got there first.
“Countess, you’re safe here.I can well imagine what yourlife has been like with that man, and I’m now realizing the answers to a numberof questions, including why you remained inFleuridiaas long as you did.But there are laws against this type of behavior.Thisisn’t your mother’s times.We have a new king.And you have my promise, we willsee what is to come between us, but my father and I both will be certain youare seen to in the manner to which you’re accustomed.”
“You can’t make him leave,” I blurted.
“My lady—”
I tugged my hand from his, wrapped both around the sides ofhis neck, pulled him down to me, got up on my toes, met him nose to nose, andwhispered, “Loren,you cannot make him leave.We must mend this.Now.”
He stared into my eyes and said not a word.
“I can’t explain it, just, I beg of you,play nice.Go back to that room, share with your father that I’m a klutz—”
“A klutz?”
“Clumsy.Awkward.Two left feet.Whatever…just—”
“I don’t know what hold he has on you, my lady,” he saidgently.“But you shall understand freedom.He will be sent from here, but wewill be calling the royal inspectors immediately to investigate this.He’ll bejailed, he’ll be fined, and he won’t be able to get to you again.”
Oh my God!
It was getting worse.
If Edgar was jailed, I’d never find Mom.
And evenworse, he might do something to herbeforehand, or if he wasn’t around at least to pay whoever was giving hergruel, she’d starve to death.
