Ryder Sinclairs Burst of Inspiration
Standing between them, the Duke of Crestfall was getting a serious headache listening to the father-daughter duo whispering and talking trash about him. He'd been so tormented by them over the past few days that he could now listen to their insults with a completely straight face.
Nearby, Old Master Donovan's face went pale at the Duke's sharp words, and his knuckles turned white as he gripped his cane.
"Did you come to my home today just to scold an old man and lecture me on how to run my family?" he demanded, slamming his cane on the ground. His voice was dripping with contempt. "I had no idea the esteemed Duke had the time or interest to stick his nose into other people's business."
Cassidy Sterling's eyes went wide as she watched her two supposed allies start to argue. Her expression screamed, *Fight! Fight! Get on with it already!*
Meanwhile, Ryder Sinclair was so hyped his eyes were practically bloodshot. The hand holding his wolf-hair brush was moving so fast it was a blur.
This was too good.
*Conflict erupts at The Red Silk Banquet! One woman stirs up a storm between two powerful families!*
*When a Duke clashes with a respected scholar, who will win this epic war of words?*
The Duke of Crestfall was about to lose his mind.
Seeing Old Master Donovan mock him for being a meddler, while the very people who were supposed to be investigating the case were just watching with gleaming eyes, waiting for a fight to break out, was infuriating.
They hadn't so much as mentioned the Stonehaven case.
He felt a renewed sense of relief that he'd tagged along.
Otherwise, forget solving the case in a month; they wouldn't get it done in a year.
These two clowns would just dig up dirt on every family in town, stirring up trouble without doing a single bit of real work.
And after they'd finished trashing the Donovan family, they'd probably decide that he, the Duke, was a stooge for the Third Prince.
To clear his name, he had to handle it himself.
The Duke snorted coldly at Old Master Donovan and pointedly ignored him.
Instead, he pulled out the piece of Xuan paper Prince Ashworth had given him and held it up in front of the Marchioness of Stonehaven and her daughter.
"You've lived with the Donovan family for so long," he asked.
"Have you ever seen anyone with this pattern on the back of their neck?"
The mother and daughter took the paper and studied it, but their expressions were blank with confusion.
"No, we've never seen this before."
"Then have you ever seen it at the Stonehaven Estate?"
They shook their heads again. They really hadn't.
Old Master Donovan frowned, his eyes fixed on the paper in the Marchioness's hands. "What is the meaning of this, Duke? My family has committed no crime that I'm aware of."
"Oh, you'll know soon enough," the Duke shot back. "You'll see exactly what kind of disaster your family has brought upon itself."
With that, he began walking around the Main Hall, showing the paper to every member of the Donovan family and asking if they'd seen the pattern.
He was even tempted to reach out and pull down Old Master Donovan's collar to check the back of his neck, but considering the man's age, he figured the old guy would just fake a fall and try to sue him.
Seeing the Duke showing the pattern to everyone, Cassidy suddenly remembered they were actually on a case. Her eyes swept over the people in the hall, noticing that everyone's gaze was fixed on the paper in the Duke's hand. She rubbed her chin, carefully watching their expressions.
Then, her finger shot out, pointing right at Lady Bradford, who was still in her wedding dress. With absolute certainty, she declared, "You recognize this pattern!"
The Duke froze, then immediately acted as if he'd found his smoking gun, shoving the paper right in Lady Bradford's face so it was nearly touching her forehead.
Lady Bradford, who had been silent the whole time, stiffened as every eye in the room snapped toward her. She frantically grabbed her new husband's sleeve and shook her head. "The Princess must be joking. I live a quiet life. How could I have ever seen such an unusual pattern?"
Cassidy crossed her arms and slowly closed in. "The second the Duke showed that pattern, I saw the panic in your eyes. Are you still going to stand there and tell me you don't recognize it?"
Lady Bradford's expression faltered, her lips pressing into a thin line. She just kept shaking her head and mumbling that she didn't know, but her eyes were locked on Vice Director Donovan, a perfect mix of hurt and a desperate plea for help.
Seeing his wife's distress, Vice Director Donovan quickly stepped forward.
"Perhaps you were mistaken, Princess. My wife is a timid woman. After everything that's happened today, it's only natural she'd be a bit frightened, which might make her expression seem off. If she had seen this pattern, she would never hide it."
"My eyes don't miss a thing," Cassidy said, frowning. "Are you suggesting I'm seeing things?"
Vice Director Donovan was speechless. When had he ever questioned that? "Princess, that wasn't my intention at all."
"Then what *are* you trying to say?" Cassidy stared him down, her displeasure obvious. She had just struck her perfect interrogation pose, and the System had even started playing her theme music. Getting interrupted right at her big moment was incredibly annoying.
Meeting her death stare, Vice Director Donovan swallowed whatever he'd been about to say. He could only turn to his wife. "Look closely. Do you recognize this pattern?"
Lady Bradford hurriedly shook her head, still insisting she didn't.
Cassidy snorted. "I've been watching you. You're hiding something."
Although she didn't know what it was yet, she could feel that something was off.
"Logically, as the mistress who just got promoted to the new wife, you should be on top of the world right now. But earlier, when we were accusing your husband of treason, you just stood on the sidelines without saying a word, perfectly calm, like you were just here for the drama."
"Something's not right," she finished. "Something is very, very wrong."
Seeing Cassidy zero in on another suspect so quickly, the Fourth Princess was filled with admiration. After all, she was now a member of the Capital Inspection Bureau herself. She might have basically bought her way into the position, but she still had an official title.
She leaned forward eagerly, copying Cassidy's investigative style. "I know what happened!" she declared, pointing at Lady Bradford. "In order to marry into the Donovan family, you gave your husband the idea to murder the entire Stonehaven family so you two could finally be together!"
The more she spoke, the more it made sense to her. She nodded with certainty. "Yes, that's it, no doubt about it!"
Hearing this, Ryder Sinclair, still holding his wolf-hair brush, bit the end of the handle and thought for a moment, muttering to himself.
"Wife's Family Wiped Out, Husband and Mistress Live It Up!"
"Treason Frame-Up! Rich Heir Dumps Wife for Mistress!"
"General's Daughter Dead! Cheating Couple Takes Control!"
As he finished, his inspiration exploded again. He grabbed his brush, buried his head in his work, and started writing furiously.
Cassidy's eyes widened. Who said Ryder was useless? The guy was a literary genius. With such a hardworking manager at Spring Breeze Tower, she felt a deep sense of satisfaction and decided to give him a bonus when they got back.
On the side, Old Master Donovan had been trying to just lower his gaze and ignore the troublemakers, but Ryder's muttering made his eyes drift uncontrollably toward the paper he was writing on.
Once he saw the headlines, a wave of blood rushed to his head, and his vision swam before going completely black.