“Sit, if you please, Lady Tribble,” she ordered. “Do take a seat.”
She returned for a second chair and slid it to Imogene.“Sit, Imogene. Breathe in three deep breaths.” Imogene glared at her and dropped to the floor beside the chair.
Drew laughed in spite of herself and slid the chair to Ivy. Lachlan wove his way through the scattered furniture and stood by her side, holding the lamp.
“Now,” Drew said, squaring off in front of the trio. “First I should like to say this is entirely my fault. A royal introduction was precipitous; I see that now. You are overwhelmed and afraid, and this has been my very grave error in judgment. Do not bla—”
“It is not your fault,” Imogene cried. “Iwantto meet the princess. Iwantto visit palaces, and parks, and museums, and concerts, and I want to go to balls. But I don’t want anyone to know about T.O.E.”
“Well,” ventured Drew, “we shan’t tell anyone, shall we? No one needs to know. You believe that people are watching you and judging you, but in fact they are far more concerned about their own perceived inadequacies to speculate about where you’ve been or what you may or may not know.”
“Oh yes,” cried Imogene, “and what of your mother?”
“Well, my mother notwithstanding. She would be the lone, unfortunate exception to this statement, but we shall endeavor to keep as far away from her as possible. There is being confident and then there is simply self-preservation. With her, we shall avoid. Take heart, however, she is hateful even to Princess Cynde, and Cynde is daughter-in-law to the king. Also, I now outrank her and will deal with her in my own time.” The words were out before she’d considered them, but perhaps they were true.
Beside her, Lachlan gave a snort.
“It is my fault.” These words, muffled and bleak, came from Lady Tribble, her head still buried in her hands.
“Timmie,” began Lachlan, his voice soft with compassion.
“No,” she cried, snapping her head up. “I would say it.”
“Yes, Mama,” said Imogene, “why don’t you say it?”
“It was wrong of me to allow Sagg and the Temple to swallow us up,” sobbed Lady Tribble. “To swallowme. It is my fault that the girls have been kept from so much. Every wretched thing that we encountered at the Temple is my fault. I was... I couldn’t...” She let out another sob. “I was so devastated when Tribble died. I could barely get out of bed. Meanwhile Sagg and his elders were relentless. They beckoned me. They promised peace. They promised I could learn to pray in such a way that would allow me tocommunewith Peter.”
“Who is Peter?” Drew whispered.
“Baron Tribble,” Lachlan whispered back.
Lady Tribble was still talking. “And there was a structure at the Temple, wasn’t there? A routine. The community would look after the girls when I could not. I was desolate on the inside, lonely and—”
“Wretched,” provided Imogene sourly.
“And wretched,” agreed Lady Tribble. “Everything about the Temple felt consistent with what I was experiencing in my head and my heart. I couldn’t... couldn’t make out the difference between my own grief and the life we would live there. Meanwhile, our life at home, with Peter gone, had carried on. His nephew was the new baron. The servants went about their old tasks for a new lord. The world had continued, but I had not—how could I? I should have managed better, I should have. It was selfish and shortsighted and Peter would have wanted better for his girls...”
“Why didn’t you bring us to Avenelle?” demanded Imogene. “Uncle had no idea, perhaps, about your grief or the two of us, but he would’ve been better than Reverend Sagg.Anyonewould have been better than Reverend Bloody Sagg.”
“High praise indeed,” mumbled Ian.
Lady Tribble was shaking her head. “My memories of Avenelle are very bleak, Genie. I didn’t view it as a place we would be safe or happy. Not on top of everything else. To grieve Peter and suffer Avenelle? It wasn’t to be borne.I’d not returned since Ian became duke. In my view, it was still my lonely girlhood home. And I thought—stupidly, I thought—anywherebut there.”
“Even the Temple,” marveled Imogene quietly.
“Perhaps you will never find it in your heart to forgive me, and perhaps you will, but you must know how terribly regretful I am. And that Itry. Daily, I try. Surely you see that.” She raised her hands, gesturing to the room, “I’m in a palace for God’s sake. And you know how I feel about turrets.”
“Iforgive you, Mama,” said Ivy, floating across the room to her mother. She came behind her chair and leaned over, draping her arms down her shoulders. Lady Tribble snatched up her hands and pressed them to her mouth, clutching her daughter like a drowning woman.
Drew glanced at Imogene. There would be no immediate forgiveness or embracing from that quarter, not for some time.
Drew rushed to fill the silence. “Part of becoming the ladies you hop—”
“A word, if I might,” cut Lachlan, stepping beside her. Four pairs of eyes swung to him.Ohthank God, thought Drew. She had no idea what she’d intended to say.
He tabled his lantern and shoved his hands in the pockets of his coat. He cleared his throat. “Since we seem to all be confessing—”
“I confess nothing but injustice,” said Imogene.
