I Shall Go With You
The Emperor blew right past Steward King's sour look and returned to the palace with Steward Payne in tow.
Meanwhile, Prince Ashworth and his daughter, Cassidy, woke from their nap feeling refreshed and immediately remembered the invitations they'd failed to snag the night before.
They shared a look and, without a word, set off for Donovan House.
Along the way, however, they made a quick detour to Crestfall Manor.
The sight of the father and daughter appearing on his doorstep was enough to give the Duke of Crestfall a splitting headache. It was as if the heavens themselves were conspiring to bring his entire house down.
"What are you two doing here?" the Duke demanded. "Didn't last night's interrogation make it perfectly clear? The servant boy, Leo, just happened to be near the Marquis of Stonehaven's study and saw the real thief frame him. So why are you bothering me at my home?"
Prince Ashworth leveled him with a stare so intense it felt like it could burn holes in the wall. "I had a nap. My mind is crystal clear now. I've thought it over, and I'm still convinced the person in that veiled hat was you, you old snake."
The Duke felt a wave of despair wash over him. Fine. Let it all burn.
Cassidy stepped forward, her expression grim as she handed him a piece of paper.
On it was the pattern she'd copied from the handkerchief.
"You need to find the person with this pattern on the back of their neck, Duke," she said.
"You have about twenty days. If the Stonehaven case isn't solved by then, I'll have no choice but to arrest you as the mastermind."
If the lives of his entire family weren't hanging in the balance, the Duke would have gladly strangled them both right then and there. He watched them turn to leave, the threat hanging in the air between them.
"Fine," he gritted out. "I'll look for this person. But what, exactly, will you and the Princess be doing in the meantime?" He wasn't about to be the only one busting his ass while this pair waltzed around town.
Cassidy snorted, puffing out her chest. "I'm going to be investigating your accomplices, obviously. You think we're just sitting around? I have a whole list of names to check out."
This piqued the Duke's curiosity. Crushed under the weight of the accusation, he found himself desperate for someone else to share the misery. "So, who are you planning to investigate?" he asked, leaning in. "Maybe I can help."
Prince Ashworth gave him a deep, knowing look. "You want to know how many more accomplices you have?"
The Duke nodded eagerly. He was dying to know. Being the fall guy was getting old, fast.
The prince held out his hand. "Two hundred dollars, and I'll give you the list."
Cassidy stared, floored. Her father was an even better shakedown artist than she was.
The Duke was speechless. How could someone so utterly shameless exist? "Are you that desperate for cash, Prince?"
"My daughter risked her life memorizing this list," Ashworth shot back, his voice dripping with contempt. "You think that isn't worth a measly two hundred dollars?"
Hearing that the princess had risked her life for it, the Duke's heart skipped a beat. He quickly fished out two hundred dollars and slapped it into the prince's hand.
Money secured, Ashworth didn't hesitate to hand over the list Cassidy had copied. "Everyone on this list is a suspect. I'm investigating them one by one."
The Duke took the paper, and his scalp prickled as he scanned the names. The Third Prince. The sons of several high-ranking officials.
"This many people are involved?" he whispered.
Cassidy nodded, full of confidence. "Yep. Lucky for everyone, I was clever enough to memorize the whole thing."
The Duke swallowed hard. "Princess... where did you memorize this list?"
She just lifted her chin, looking smug. "That's for me to know and you to find out. All you need to know is that everyone on this list is a prime suspect."
The list suddenly felt like it weighed a thousand pounds.
The Duke's head spun as the pieces of a massive conspiracy began to click into place.
The Crown Prince's health was failing, leaving only the Second and Third Princes as serious contenders for the throne.
Both had powerful families, influential relatives, and supporters both in and out of the Imperial Court.
The other princes were either too young or lacked the backing to even be in the running.
So, he thought, the Third Prince wants to start a rebellion.
He tried to get the Marquis of Stonehaven, who held military power, on his side.
When the marquis refused, the prince framed him for treason.
Then, he tried to pin the whole thing on the Second Prince, dragging a loyal subject like *me* into it to make me look like an accomplice.
The final step would be to find some excuse to serve the sickly Crown Prince a bowl of "restorative broth" and quietly send him to his grave.
By then, the Imperial Court would be packed with the Third Prince's cronies. He could just waltz over a pile of bodies to the Dragon Throne.
The thought sent a cold sweat down the Duke's back. He looked up, his expression dead serious. "How far have you gotten in your investigation?"
The father and daughter answered in unison. "The Donovan family."
The Duke frowned, his mind racing before it clicked. "Of course. The Donovans are the Third Prince's maternal family. No wonder they were pushing so hard for His Majesty to close the Stonehaven case. They were the ones who framed the marquis all along!"
Cassidy shot her father a dirty look. He'd conveniently failed to mention that little detail.
Prince Ashworth just looked back at her as if to say, *What are you looking at me for? I thought you knew!*
She bared her teeth in a silent snarl that clearly meant, *Believe it or not, I will end you.*
His expression screamed back, *You ungrateful child!*
After their usual silent argument, they turned their attention back to the matter at hand.
"Looks like the Donovans are our top suspects," Cassidy said. "Let's head over."
Without another word, the two of them started to leave.
"I'm coming with you," the Duke called out, hurrying after them. The old patriarch of the Donovan family was a crafty fox, and the Duke was terrified these two would get played and somehow the blame for treason would wind up right back on his doorstep.
They stopped and looked back at him, their eyes narrowed with suspicion. "Are you going to tip off your accomplice?"
The Duke's face darkened. "I'm going to assist two brilliant and sharp-witted investigators with their case," he said through gritted teeth.
Cassidy and her father immediately stood a little straighter and cleared their throats. "In that case," Ashworth said grandly, "you may tag along."
*These two are a real pain,* the Duke thought.
The whole group then swept off, making their way toward the Donovan estate. On the way, Cassidy didn't forget to "reassure" her guard.
"Don't worry, Reid," she said. "Even though your family committed treason, you're my guard. As long as you weren't involved, I can probably find a way to save your neck."
Reid Donovan hesitated for a moment. "In that case, Princess... could you spare one more person? My mother has nothing to do with the Donovan family's business."
Cassidy ground her teeth. "Don't push your luck."
Reid fell silent.
Just as they reached the gates of the Donovan estate, a chaotic noise erupted from within. Two shadowy figures leaped from the top of the wall, landing in a panicked, clumsy stumble. One was small and delicate, the other tall and graceful, and both had their faces covered with black cloth.