Because he couldn’t stop sneaking glances at Sadie, despite practically having his back to the card players, he noticed when Jane moved to the table and said something. Abigail threw down her cards and leapt to her feet, hurrying over to the dowager. Jane took her seat.
“Your turn,” Helen said softly.
Nicholas absently moved a knight, his attention drawn away from the game this time because he wanted to know what his mother was up to.
Helen hesitated, then captured his piece, looking up at him with wide eyes. Since he couldn’t hear what his mother and Abigail were saying, he reluctantly turned his mind back to the game and realized that Helen was playing with enough skill that she shouldn’t have hesitated to take his knight at all. Was she afraid he’d get mad if she won?
He moved his next piece with more care. “It’s been a while since I’ve enjoyed the challenge of a game. Thank you for indulging me,” he said, though they both knew playing had been his mother’s idea. Still, he hoped his words were enough to reassure her that he didn’t want an easy win.
He succeeded in paying more attention to his game after that, but he still noticed as each woman playing cards stepped away from the table to speak with his mother.
Eventually Helen caught his king in a trap and he conceded defeat with a genuine smile. “Good game. We’ll have to have a rematch later.”
Helen rose, a flush of pride in her cheeks, and it was the most expression he’d ever seen on her. “I look forward to it.”
“Helen, is your game done? Come sit with me,” Nicholas’s mother called out.
She was certainly up to something, talking with each woman the way she was. He knew better than to move closer, his mother wouldn’t hesitate to get rid of him. Probably by making him play chess with someone else. As much as he had actually enjoyed the game with Helen once he started concentrating, he didn’t want to risk being forced to play with Abigail.
Helen had concentrated on the game. Abigail would not be as quiet. As luck would have it, though, Sadie was currently the lady sitting out of the card game, having just finished her conversation with the dowager. Nicholas made his way to her side, where she watched the others play.
“What’s my mother up to now?” he asked softly, and debated throwing a one-way aural ward around them for good measure. Then he decided he didn’t care if his mother heard him.
She looked at him in surprise, then grinned. “Nothing you can do anything about.”
“Oh, I know. Madeleine Huxley is a force to be reckoned with. But even if I can’t stop her, I’d still prefer to be forewarned.”
“And you think I will share her plans with you?”
“It is the least you can do, since you won’t share your own secrets.”
“That’s not how secrets work.”
“I guess you would know; you have plenty of experience with them.”
She flinched. Just the slightest recoil.
It took him completely off guard. She reveled in refusing to tell him the truth, despite knowing he knew she was lying. Then he remembered the shadows in her eyes at breakfast when he’d sworn to discover all her secrets. Just like it had then, her hand rose to the amulet at her neck.
He nodded toward it. The charm was barely pulling in any ambient magic. It had either been engraved by a witch with a rather weak earth affinity, or been made long enough ago that its power was waning. “That charm isn’t going to protect you, you know.”
???
Sadie’s fingers clenchedaround the amulet for the moment, then she made herself relax and release it. “You’d be surprised.”
“I doubt it.” Nicholas reached out, and Sadie’s breath caught, but all he did was tap the agate. “Even if the glyph were a more powerful protection, it can’t do much at present. It is barely drawing any power. I could make you something stronger.”
Sadie couldn’t stop herself from wrapping her fingers protectively around the charm again, brushing Nicholas’s fingers away in the process. When he’d mentioned having an earth affinity before supper, it hadn’t occurred to her that he might sense the power in her amulet. Would he realize there was a second glyph on the back? “No.” She swallowed, tried again. “No, thank you. It was a gift from my grandmother. I wear it more for sentimental reasons than practical.”
He dropped his hand, taking a step back, and his gaze cut to the left. Sadie looked over and saw the dowager still sitting with Helen, but her attention was on them.
She swallowed. “Should I be worried by how gleeful your mother looks?”
“Not nearly as worried as I am.”
They looked back at each other, and suddenly they were laughing, and everyone’s attention was focused on them.
“Sadie, why don’t you take my spot?” Abigail rose. “I’m tired of playing cards.”
