Chapter 9
Chapter Nine
“Can I help you with anything?”
Thalia started at the question, having not seen who it was asked by. She had been far too distracted, busy skimming the spines of the hundreds of books that lined the shelves in front of her.
“Oh!” she jumped and turned around, clutching at her chest in fright.
“Did I startle you? Oh my, I am terribly sorry.” The woman who spoke to her had a kind face, and big curious eyes that blinked quickly and continuously. “Typical of me, isn’t it? Sneaking up on people and then being surprised when I nearly give them a heart attack.”
“No…” Thalia shook her head and took a calming breath. “It was my fault. I need to be more aware of my surroundings.”
“Let us both take the blame, shall we?” the young woman said brightly. “That way, neither of us are at fault.”
Thalia could not say why exactly, but the young woman’s affable nature and kindness was overwhelming so that her throat became tight and she very early burst into tears.
The consequence of spending the last few days in a household where even a smile is considered an unnecessary display of emotion, I guess.
“I like the sound of that,” Thalia said. “And might I ask your name?”
“Of course! To those who don’t know me, I am Miss Finch, and I work here.”
“And those who do know you?”
Somehow, her smile grew. “Olivia.”
“Olivia, it is nice to meet you. My name is…” Thalia paused, very nearly telling the young woman that she was a duchess. But that felt wrong to do, as if this random woman was too good of a friend to call her as such. “You may call me Thalia.”
“Thalia, wonderful.” She took Thalia’s hands and squeezed them. “Now, seeing as I am at work, I suppose that I should be asking if you need any help finding anything?”
“Oh, no, I’m just browsing for now.”
“As you say. But if you do need anything…”
“You will be the first person I ask.”
“I’ll just be over there.” Olivia indicated down the row of books. “Please, do not hesitate.”
“I certainly will not.”
Olivia Finch had a pretty face covered in light freckles, and when she smiled, Thalia saw that there was a small gap between her two front teeth. But her blue eyes sparkled with unbridled happiness, and she sensed in the woman a gentle soul.
She watched as Olivia moseyed down the row of books, humming to herself, and Thalia smiled the whole time. That single interaction, as small as it was, reminded her that goodness still existed in this world, and sometimes all one needed was faith.
A stark reminder, also, of why she was here, and what she was doing.
It was earlier this morning when Thalia had come upon a plan…
or rather, a vague notion of a plan. She needed to find ways to coax her husband out of his shell, because she knew that there was more to him than he was letting on.
He was not as cold as he pretended. He was not as emotionally distant.
There was a soul hidden behind his high walls, and she would get to it. No matter what it took.
Thus, Thalia found herself at the Guildhall Library in London.
She was searching for books on human behavior. Anything that she thought might give her a better understanding of her husband and how to… manipulate him sounds wrong. Perhaps inspire a better version of him? Yes, let’s go with that.
She scowled. Perhaps I should search for romantic tales, and assume my husband will do the exact opposite of whatever they contain.
The library was huge, and Thalia got lost rather quickly. It was a maze of tall standing bookshelves acting as walls, the way they were stacked and lined up seeming random, but surely with an order that she did not know?
Thalia walked the shelves, her eyes glued to the spines of each book as she read their titles.
With no idea what she wanted exactly, the darkness of the library made her eyes ache, the dust in the air made her nose run, and it was because she could not see properly, and because she was wiping constantly at her nose, that she did not see where she was going.
And it was because she did not see where she was going that she walked right into the back of an unsuspecting browser.
“Oh!” she cried as she walked right into him. “I am so sorry.”
The man who she walked into groaned loudly. “That is quite fine…” He trailed off as he turned around and saw Thalia standing there.
Thalia’s eyes widened and she was taken by the sudden urge to turn and run as fast as she could. “Lord Donmere!”
“Lady Thalia,” Lord Donmere sneered. “Or rather, Her Grace, as I believe you are now titled.” His lips curled as the sneer grew and the look in the man’s eyes was venomous.
Lord Donmere was none other than Rosaline’s father, meaning that he was the very last person who Thalia wanted to run into this morning…
or ever, for that matter. The last time that she had seen the man was at the wedding that Thalia had interrupted, and she could still picture clearly the red of his face as he screamed at his daughter not to flee.
“It is… good to see you,” Thalia stammered as she took a step back.
“Somehow, I doubt that very much.” He was not particularly tall, but he was stocky, and with a neck so thick that it seemed to reach his shoulders. Beady eyes, a small mouth, and a thick mustache, the man was more than capable of intimidation when it was required.
“I… I think I owe you an apology,” Thalia said, doing her best to straighten.
“Oh?”
“For what happened with Rosaline.”
“What you did to Rosaline, you mean.”
She swallowed again. “All I did was help her. Lord Donmere, your daughter did not wish to marry His Grace. Surely, you must see that?”
“So, you are not sorry at all?”
“I am.” Her eyes flicked past him, searching for a way out. “I am sorry for the trouble it has caused. What I am not sorry for is helping my friend.”
“And the fact that you have managed to find yourself married to a duke must surely help to soften the blow of guilt. Is that right?”
“I… no, that is not –”
“Listen to me, Your Grace.” He kept his tone flat, but his eyes brimmed with fire as he took a step toward her.
The aisles of the library were narrow, and they felt even more so with the thick-bodied viscount leering over her.
“What you did was not only improper, but it was the height of indecency. Never in my life have I been so insulted.”
“I did not mean to –”
“His Grace is married to you now,” he spoke over her.
“And there is nothing I can do to change that. But if you think that I have forgotten about you, or that I will forget, know that I have not. Nor will I ever.” Another step closer and Thalia froze.
“You were always trouble, and I should have never allowed my daughter to spend so much time with you in the first place.”
“Rosaline is my friend,” she tried. “All I did –”
“Was corrupt her,” he said sharply. “Loose women tend to pull down those around them, and my daughter was no exception. You might think that your husband can protect you, but know this, even he cannot stop –”
“Is there a problem here?” a familiar voice spoke from over Lord Donmere’s shoulder.
Thalia exhaled with relief when Lord Donmere turned to see Octavia scurrying toward them. She wore a large smile, seeming to skip as she walked, and it did much to diffuse the tension brought by Lord Donmere.
“I could not help but overhear,” Octavia said pleasantly. “Which I suppose is the issue.” She blinked a few times. “This is a library, I will remind you, and I will ask that you keep your voices down.”
“I will speak how I wish,” Lord Donmere said.
“Perhaps I should take my own advice!” Octavia laughed. “Listen to me, nearly shouting when asking others to keep it down. Oh, Octavia, you really are too much.” Her smile grew and she fixed it on Lord Donmere.
Lord Donmere sneered at Octavia and then sneered at Thalia. “Very well. Your Grace…” He held his sneer on her for a moment longer. “It was lovely seeing you.”
“As it was you,” Thalia said.
He stepped around her and stalked down the aisle, and Thalia could feel the anger wafting from him as he went.
“Your Grace?” Octavia blinked at Thalia. “What did he mean by that?”
“Nothing…” Thalia watched after Lord Donmere a moment longer before turning back to address her savior. “Thank you, Octavia. That was… rather awkward.”
“He did seem a tad upset, didn’t he?”
“That is one way of saying it,” she laughed. “Although perhaps I am to blame? I have found lately that I have a knack for…” Thalia trailed off when an idea suddenly struck her.
“A knack for what?” Octavia asked her.
It is so obvious! So very clear now that I cannot believe I have not thought of it sooner.
The problem with Thalia’s husband wasn’t that she did not know him as well as she wanted to.
Rather, it was how emotionally guarded he was.
He was so damn careful to keep up his walls and not let his emotions get the better of him that there was no chance he would ever show his true self to Thalia.
And thus, there was no chance that she would ever know the real him.
Seeing Lord Donmere now, and how angry he had been, made Thalia realize what she was doing wrong. If she wanted to learn who her husband really was, she needed to see that emotional self-control that he held onto so tightly shatter and break entirely.
What she needed was to see him angry. Or upset. Saddened. Joyous. Anything beyond the cool apathy he so often fixed her with.
How was she going to do it? She had no idea. But based on her interaction with Lord Donmere right now, Thalia had no doubt that she could get it done. She had to.
“Would you like some tea?” Octavia asked suddenly.
“Huh?” Thalia brought herself back into the moment to find Octavia beaming at her.
“Tea?” she asked. “Would you like some tea? I am about to have some myself, and I find tea is always better when drunk with another. Wouldn’t you agree?”
There was something infectious about Octavia’s personality. Something that made Thalia want to spend time with her. And, seeing as she had nobody else to do so with, she couldn’t imagine a reason to say no.
“Tea sounds lovely,” she said. “But only if you promise me one thing.”
“Oh?”
“Tell me about yourself,” Thalia said. “And I will do the same for you.”