I folded my arms and hissed out a breath. The mirrors were a reflection on one side and a window on the other—how fitting. Riyan got to see all of me, but I still did not know who he truly was…other than that he was a leering bastard like the rest of the men.
As much as I hated to admit it, Daigen was beginning to make sense. Riyan loved me because he got to choose me. He got to look through the glass, reject Brietta, and pick me to marry. He got to see me at my most vulnerable and decided thatIwas right forhim.
But I never got the same choice…and of course the creator of the mirror illusion knew that.
I wanted to punch those damn mirrors until they shattered into a thousand pieces.
Brietta gently stepped across the room until she stood at my side. “The humiliation and pain after Annalisa’s ball washorrible but…” Her knuckles turned white as she gripped her candlestick. “Theyallsaw me in here.”
Her voice was tempered, but her chest rose and fell faster.
“There is nothing Annalisa, Dinah, or Camille ever did that made me feel as low as knowing all those men watched me break down from the shadows like I was just…meat.”
Brietta let out a breath. “I willneverfeel that low again, and neither will anyone else. What Freya and I are planning…it will change the fabric of the Dukedom forever.”
I dragged my eyes up to hers—they glistened with rage and a glimmer of determination. If her anger matched mine, maybe I could trust her with not only my secrets, but Fraleigh’s as well.
She took a long breath like she was about to jump into the ocean. “Full citizenship for every woman in Lycaster—not just the nobility. Women will own property, inherit titles, and Selection Night will be nothing more than an embarrassing chapter in the history books.”
My eyes widened. Maybe I did not have to sneak around Hyton Palace to uncover Ilsa’s secrets after all. The women of the House of Hyton were already working on plans for liberation that perfectly aligned with mine.
I lifted my chin slightly and matched her measured tone. “Would those plans of citizenship include the Great Sorceress of Nordingaard?”
Shock flashed across her face. “No, Fraleigh…”
“Made a bad deal with the Hytons long ago and ended up in the same place as us,” I finished. “Thatis why Ganora took Riyan, she wants to use him as a weapon to finally free her sister.”
Her mouth fell open slightly as the machinations of her mind processed the impossible. After a moment, Brietta looked away from me. “The situation may have just become more dire, but I am glad you are here. You played a crucial role in our plans…”
I furrowed my brows. “What did you have planned for me?”
She swallowed. “I cannot get pregnant. You heard Freya, the only scrap of power I have right now is an empty womb. My cycle ends soon and…I want you to keep Derrick as far away from me as possible.”
I scanned her face, looking for a clue for what she meant, but for once I could not read her. “Exactlyhowdo you want me to keep him away from you?”
Her eyes stayed on the rug. “He is still obsessed with you. He has barely looked at me since the…incident.” Her hold on her arms tightened. “I want to keep it that way.”
Now it was my turn to stare at the swirling filigrees on the rug. Derrick certainly had not put his feelings for me aside when he had married Brietta. We had kissed, my hands had wandered along his chest, and I had wanted to go further, but we never did.
Did Derrick still want me like he had before? Everyone believed I was still married to Riyan, but that did not matter. Despite what we were taught in Ashmore, fidelity was not a pillar of any Lycaster marriage.
But Brietta never specified how she wanted me to distract Derrick. He was still…just my friend, after all.
I finally pulled my gaze away from the rug and looked up at Brietta. “We cannot take long. The Queen of the Giants gave me until the next full moon to free Fraleigh.”
Brietta hissed out a breath. “That is in less than three weeks…no time at all.”
I shook my head and suppressed a smile. Brietta could act tough, but she still had no idea how to manipulate people. “If you want the Duke to give you what you want, you have to threaten him with a larger cudgel than an empty womb.”
Brietta arched an auburn brow and I let my smile finally break through.
“You threaten him with the truth of whatreallyhappened with his mother,” I said.
She gave me a sly smile and extended her hand. “Allies?”
Allies.Not friends.
I bit back my disappointment and took her hand. “Allies.”
