“You know what I noticed about him?” Lia beamed. “He let all the palace children play with him. It didn’t matter if theywere royal or servants or guests. He was a perfect gentleman to everyone.”
Lady Salamar had such a dreamy look, Tyrell thought she was going to swoon onto the sofa.
Lia squeezed Tyrell’s hand and turned a face on him that was similarly dreamy. Tyrell was so grateful she had come back, because her acting was superior to his in every way. Why, the way she was looking at him, had him believing she was madly in love.
14. A Dark and Stormy Night
Ribbons of orange and yellow light burst through suffocating clouds as the sun made its hasty dive into the blackening sea. Lia could feel a storm brewing in the warm heavy wind that whipped around her as she made her way back to Manor Salamar that evening.
Earlier that day, Lia managed to tail Tavia long enough to locate the guest room where she was staying. Then, she dropped an embroidered handkerchief in the hallway and made a hasty retreat back to Tyrell who was distracting their hosts in the lounge. How they escapedLord and Lady Salamarwas still something of a mystery. Julian wasn’t much for conversation, it was no wonder those poor dears were so desperate for company.
“When they answer the door,” Lia explained. “We tell them I left my handkerchief behind. It’s in the hall by Tavia’s room.”
Tyrell nodded. His large, vacant eyes indicated he was thinking of everything that could possibly go wrong with their plan.
Reaching the door, Lia pounded on the knocker until the skeletal ghost of a doorman answered.
“I’m so sorry to bother you,” Lia smiled. “But I think I dropped my handkerchief when I was here this morning.”
Without even twitching a muscle of his face, the apparition of a man leaned sideways for a moment to retrieve something next to the door, and then held out an embroidered handkerchief, clean and neatly folded.
“This handkerchief?" he droned.
Lia’s jaw dropped. Tyrell looked like he was about to faint.
She couldn’t exactly deny it was hers . . . it had her name on it. So she forced a relieved smile and took it.
“Yes, that’s the one!” she breathed. “Thank you so much.”
The doorman answered with a somber nod and slowly closed the door.
For a long moment, Tyrell and Lia stood on the step, not daring to look at each other. The warm air pressed in all around Lia, filling her lungs, and suffocating her—or perhaps that was just her anxiety.
“New plan,” Lia whispered finally. She took Tyrell’s arm and started down the walkway as if leaving the property. When they reached the gate, she stepped through it and retreated around the outer wall until she was no longer visible from the windows. After a quick glance around, she continued speaking in a hushed voice, “We’ll climb in her window from the garden.”
“What?” Tyrell whispered back, glancing up at the towering manor. “Do you even know which window is hers?”
Lia bit her lip. “No, but if we can get inside somehow, I’m sure I can remember the way to her room.”
Tyrell aggressively shook his head. “Evenifwe succeed, you could be thrown in prison for trespassing."
“This is Princess Tavia’s life we are talking about.” Lia hissed. “Since when has the prospect of prison stopped you from trying to protect her?”
“Sinceyouinvolved yourself in this,” Tyrell answered.
“My Lord,” Lia scoffed, crossing her arms. “I don’t care what the princess says. Iamher handmaiden. My life will always come second to hers.”
It was then that Tyrell straightened up, glared down at her, and said something that shook Lia to her core.“Why?”
“I beg your pardon?” Lia asked.
“Why shouldyourlife be second tohers?” Tyrell answered.
Lia’s brows rose in disbelief. WasTyrellbecoming subject to some kind of terrible magic now? Was he even thinking about his words before letting them escape his lips?
“Do you . . . hear yourself, my lord?” Lia laughed in spite of herself.
“Perfectly,” Tyrell answered. “Yes, Tavia is a great lady by title, but she certainly doesn’t behave like one.”
