Chapter 29
“Have Stella’s things taken to my room while Orrin and I are at dinner,” I whisper to Milly, knowing that Orrin’s guards may be lurking in the hall outside the kitchen. “Take Brutus with you. I don’t want the guards to give you any trouble.”
Brutus, a big supporter of putting an end to my brother, nods.
Of all the staff members, I was most surprised when he decided to stay at the manor with me. But after being around him for four years, I’ve come to realize that he didn’t choose to support me. He chose to support the man that he believed would make the better duke.
After hearing of my brother’s exploits, I’m beginning to agree that I can’t be a worse duke than Orrin.
“We’ll take care of it,” Brutus assures me, tossing his apron on the counter.
“And there’s a gold quill hidden under a loose piece of window trim,” I explain, using Stella’s directions to tell them how to get it out. “Once you have it, hide it in your boot, then take everything to my room.”
“Denise,” I say, turning to the maid, “I need you, Franchesca and Tilda to go to the library and hang a tapestry over Stella’s mural—use two if you have to. There are a bunch stored on the second-floor housekeeping closet. Then gather my notes and the books on my table about artifacts and take them to my room. Go ahead and take Carson with you.”
Tilda looks reluctant to take her son anywhere the guards might be, but she nods. We need Orrin gone, and the best way to do it is to make sure he doesn’t find a reason to stay.
“We’ll take care of it,” Milly assures me, squeezing my shoulder.
Then she and the others leave, and I stand there in the empty kitchen, relieved that the younger staff members are hidden away in their rooms for the moment. Things are bound to become unstable soon, and if something goes awry, I don’t want the blowback to end up on anyone but me.
Speaking of which.I turn toward the door to the dining room, dread building in my stomach. I have no wish to see my brother. Now or ever. After hearing what he did to Stella, I don’t care if he falls from a cliff. It would be the least he deserves.
But dealing with him is a necessary evil in keeping my loved ones safe. So, I take a deep breath and step into the dining room.
Orrin is already there, seated at the head of the table. “You’re late,” he announces, and I can tell by the set of his shoulders that he’s losing patience with me.
“My apologies,” I say sarcastically, sitting in my chair. “There are a thousand other places I would rather be, so you can imagine that I wasn’t excited to settle for dining with you.”
“Would you prefer more feminine company?” he prods, studying me like the predator he is.
I keep my expression unbothered and slightly arrogant, but I’m afraid that he sees through me. He can’t know that the reason I wanted to have dinner so early is so that Stella won’t be magically pulled to the room while Orrin is still in it.
But he knows I’m lying about something.
“Brother, any company—swine, infection, infestation—would be more welcome here than you,” I quip with a sardonic smile. I haven’t been using the expression lately, but it takes no effort to use it on him.
Orrin laughs, nodding approvingly. “This place has hardened you, Brother. You’re not quite so weak anymore. Which serves my purpose well as I have no use for weak people.”
“You have use for everyone, even if it means their death.”
“True. But your death would help me very little right now. You see, I’m planning to march on the capital in a month”s time. I will take the queen’s throne and you will take my position as Duke of Roburry.”
I set down my fork, my mind spinning. I knew he had his sights set on a crown, but I didn’t realize that he was planning to move so quickly. How am I supposed to stop him without time to prepare? “And what will you do with the queen?”
“Marry her of course,” he says, as if it should be obvious. “Once she bears me an heir, I will be free of any rebellions as my offspring will have a legal right to the throne.”
“Then you kill her?”
He rolls his eyes and takes a bite of his steak. I hate that we’re wasting it on him. It takes me half the night to travel into town to buy meat and this cut isn’t cheap.
Part of me hopes he chokes on it.
“So dramatic, Alistair,” he sighs. “I have no reason to kill the queen unless she attempts to rebel against me. And I will only do so if absolutely necessary.”
“After she unwillingly bears you a son,” I point out.
He nods like this is common practice even though such things are illegal, punishable by death. “That girl you used to chase around—Carissa, I think—is married now, but there are other, better connected women for you to woo instead. And once you return to the castle, I anticipate quite the welcome from the women of the court.”
I don’t return his greedy look.
Annoyed by my lack of exuberance, he tosses his fork on the table and glares at me. “What do you want from me, Alistair? I’m offering you a future. Power, recognition, money.”
“I would be your puppet.”
“You would be my partner. My lieutenant. We will be the most powerful family on the continent. Except for Mother, of course,” he adds, watching me studiously. “It’s a shame she’s still hiding from me. If she had come back sooner, I wouldn’t have had to put a price on her head.”
“You ordered a hit on our mother?” I shout, standing from my seat.
Orrin laughs and puts his napkin on his plate, unconcerned with my reaction. “You of all people should know what I do with those who don’t respect me.”
“Yes,” I fume, leaning forward as I brace my hands on the table. “I know quite well how you handle obstacles. You burn their houses down and murder their young. You flog anyone who questions you, kill anyone who has what you want, and punish everyone that doesn’t wish to see you on a throne…And you killed your own father just to take his seat.”
Orrin’s face goes cold, his blue eyes filled with a deadly threat. He doesn’t move an inch, but I can see him preparing himself for a fight. Do it, I dare you.
“Don’t forget, little brother,” he whispers, his voice deadly, “Who was beside me the whole time. Don’t forget who watched me kill and steal and plot and lie without saying a word to stop me. Don’t forget who saw me poison our father and let me get away with it. You have a reputation too, Alistair. One I made for you. You are a beast to the people of Roburry, and I can either redeem you or destroy you with one well-placed lie.”
I want to tell him that he can do no such thing. Not without Stella. We both know that she’s the one he would use to plant the lie. The one he would force to spin a tale and tear me down.
But instead, I say nothing. Because he’s not entirely wrong.
If Stella and I overcome everything and go back to Roburry, getting the people to accept us will be an uphill battle. I’m not even sure it’s possible. But there’s only one way to find out.
“Fine,” I say, stepping back from my chair. “You have your lieutenant. March on the capital, marry the queen. I will go to Roburry and be at your disposal. But you’re forgetting about my curse.”
A wolfish smile spreads across Orrin’s face. It’s so warped and evil that it bears no resemblance to the one we used to share. “Am I?” He pulls a necklace from the pocket of his jacket, swinging it by the chain. “Or am I your guardian angel?”
He tosses the necklace to me, and I have to lean over the table to catch it. The second it touches my skin, I feel the magic lift from my body as though I’ve shed ten pounds in two seconds.
I don’t have to test it to know what it will do.
“You can walk in daylight again, Brother,” Orrin announces proudly. “Leave the manor and come home. Anyone wearing that necklace is safe from the curse. It’s over. You’re welcome.”
I don’t point out that there’s only one necklace and twelve people cursed to this manor. Orrin already knows that. He just doesn’t care.
I can’t tell if he believes me that Stella isn’t here, but part of me thinks that this is a test. He’s giving me a way out, and if I leave, Stella will be unprotected. Something that I think Orrin is counting on.
Because despite his insults and hostility, he’s afraid of what I’ll do. It’s why he’s offering me the dukedom. Orrin Godfrey is afraid of his little brother. And you should be.