♦YOU MUST HAVE READ THE PREQUEL, THE GOLDEN DUCHESS, TO READ THIS BOOK!♦
BEWARE--spoilers in this blurb, for those who have not read previous books! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!
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The world is upside down, and those you thought you knew... you no longer...
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Never did Céleste imagine she'd cry so much over a man; and especially not her own brother.
Emeric always had a temper, but this attitude, she didn't recognized. Never had he been so rash, so cruel. She had no say in her actions, her opinions, even her thoughts; and now she feared for Esther, the girl she'd pushed into Emeric's embrace without knowing his true nature.
But was this monster the real him? Or had his worries, his father's worries, brought out the worst in him?
All night, his words weaved in and out of her head, firing up with every scenario her mind could invent. In the few hours she slept, she had no dreams, but woke sweating and coughing and sobbing as if nightmares had plagued her.
In the early moments of morning, she gave up on resting and opened her curtains. She had to figure out how to meet with Sébastien, or with the King, and overturn all Emeric's nonsense. He couldn't restrict their access, could he?
Settled at the window-sill, allowing the sunlight to graze her cheeks, she sighed. Would Antoine and Sébastien visit her once Emeric showed them Prudence's note? Because he would, she had no doubt. He'd press upon Antoine the urgency, blowing the Giromian Princesses words out of proportion, and linking Céleste to them, somehow. He'd mention a coup, a conspiracy—and that would be enough to rile Antoine up.
And what would he say to Sébastien?
"That I am not trustworthy, corresponding with a foreign royal that everyone hates." A few tears slithered out and dropped into her lap. She wiped her nose, then snorted as she sat up straight. "No, they would not listen to Emeric. They trust me."
Her chapped lips and hoarse voice drew her to the sitting area to find a pitcher of water, likely brought in by a servant overnight. She poured herself a glass, downed the liquid, then poured another.
Halfway through the second cup, she realized the risk of Antoine invading was still high. Because while Céleste saw Prudence's message as an apology for leaving, Antoine would read something else in it. If anything, her letter would further encourage him to want to rescue her. He'd see her as a captive of her own mind, he'd visualize codes in her sentences, and he'd blame Romain, saying he coerced her into writing it. Her note would send him into a frenzy to recover her from those he believed to have poisoned her head and turned her against him.
I know him better than anyone thinks.
If Antoine led his men into Giroma... he'd lose. Emeric could boast about Totresian forces all he wanted, but even Céleste knew they were minuscule compared to the Giromian army.
"He will still invade. His undying love for her... no matter her rejection, her running away... it will not stop him, will it?" She flopped onto her sofa and blew out her cheeks. "He will attack Giroma to get the woman who might not want to return."
