In the cozy quiet of her room, Pricilla was pacing back and forth, her perfect pearly teeth nibbling on her thumb. The meeting with the Beast of Norden had proceeded more or less as expected, and, in the end, he had finally shown her genuine sympathy after she had blabbered that nonsense about Ronan molesting her. At least her idiot brother would be useful for once and serve as a stepping stone on her way as the new Duchess. She doubted that anyone would dare question him or her father on the matter, so her story was solid. Why then did she have a bad feeling?

Throwing herself on the cushioned chair in the window oriel, Pricilla waved her hand.

“Go to the kitchen and bring me something sweet. And don’t you even think of fraternizing with the maids or those nasty white demons.”

“Y-yes, mistress.” Bessie lowered her head further and whispered.

“Don’t forget, I hold your leash and you rise or fall with me. Should you betray me, you’ll die a slow and painful death.”

“I could never forget, mistress. Thank you for being so kind to me.”

Without further word, the maid left the room.

Pricilla shivered. A fleeting thought passed her mind. What kind of education had the girl been through to act like this after a clear threat? Maybe she was acting coyly on the outside and, in reality, was mocking her behind her back? But the dull look in her eyes, the expressionless face, and the unquestionable obedience with which Bessie served her were hardly the traits of a shrewd maid making fun of her mistress.

Pricilla remembered Lionel’s dotting smile while explaining that the girl was there to serve and protect her while she stayed with those northern savages. Emphasizing that Bessie has… special abilities that are at her disposal at any time. While devouring her lips and indulging in her body for one last time, he had mockingly whispered that should her charms prove to be an insufficient weapon against that burly brute, her unassuming maid could provide assistance. Lionel’s parting words attracted Pricilla’s attention and made her forget all else about Bessie. Not that she doubted her charms, but having an additional card in her sleeve could perhaps speed up the process.

Stretching in her seat, Pricilla closed her eyes and stroked her belly, humming a content tune. When Bessie arrived with a tray of sweetmeats and maple cookies, her mood had improved considerably.

“I was told,” she said, nibbling on a candied apple, “that you are versed in love magic and potions.”

“I do know the basics, mistress,” mumbled Bessie in reply, fidgeting and hiding her head between her shoulders.

“So, can you charm the Duke to fall in love with me?”

“T-that… there should still be wards and talismans protecting the due and castle against malicious hex-”

“You worthless waste of life!” Pricilla threw her half-bitten slice at the stammering maid. “What’s the point in keeping and feeding you precious potions if you can’t do a single thing!?”

“N-no, mistress!” Fear spread on the servant’s face and she shook behind the curtain of her greasy brown hair. “I… I mean… If I try doing something to the Duke directly it might trigger the local shaman’s defenses. But… I can put an infatuation sigil on you.”

“On me!?” Pricilla’s eyes rounded. “Are you plotting to curse me? Have you forgotten the oath you gave before His Highness? Your soul is bound to mine! If any harm comes to me, you’ll die.”

“I beg your mercy, mistress!” Bessie fell on her knees and trembled. “I had no malicious intentions. An infatuation charm isn’t harmful. It only enhances the wearer’s allure. The lady is already so beautiful, having the sigil will make everyone mesmerized with you. And the hex won’t be strong enough to be detected.”

Pricilla studied the terror on the maid’s face and deemed it genuine. As low and disgusting as that creature was, she was no fool and not willing to seek her own death.

“I see. Come here.” At her beckoning, Bessie flinched but didn’t dare disobey.

“Stretch your hands.”

Two quivering palms inched slowly toward their mistress.

“This is for you.” Under the maid’s stupefied gaze, Pricilla put two cookies and some sweetmeats into the servant’s hands. “Remember, Bessie, as long as you do a good job, you will live a rich life.”

“T-thank you, mistress! Thank you so much!”

“Enough.” Annoyed, Pricilla waved her hand. “Now, what do you need for that conjuration of yours?”

“There are two ingredients, mistress.” Bessie seemed livelier, her blue eyes sparkling from behind the veil of dull hair. “Flower ash is the one easy to get. But… if you want the charm to work on men, you would need a few drops of blood from a virgin male.”

***

Returning from her eventful walk to the beach, Lorelei was welcomed in her chambers by the worried Milly and equally anxious Rish. The two girls stormed her with a barrage of well-meant questions, to which Lorelei replied with a heap of impeccable lies and half-truths without batting an eye.

‘If things go on, I might end up as good at this as Stone-face William,’ she thought with a mix of bemusement and horror and allowed her friends to coo around her and comfort her.

And she really needed that comfort. Despite the heartfelt talk with Kash-baba, Lorelei still felt shaken and lost. The old shaman had shown her the right way but it was a path she had to tread alone. At least for now, however, the weight of making a life-changing decision was postponed to a nebulous, later time point.

She patted her waist pouch, making sure that the dreadful little flask was still securely in its place. Before taking any further steps, she needed to talk to Noah and clear things between them. The sheer thought of the upcoming conversation made her knees weak. There were too many what-ifs and maybe-nots, enough to rob her of her sleep and make her heart quiver. But it was something that had to be done. She was tired of one-sided yearnings and hidden desires. She was going to face him, clear her doubts once and for all, and then… do what she had to do.

But now was not the best of times to act. With her father and Pricilla present, Noah likely had more than enough headaches to deal with. And then, at the end of the seventh month, the Crown Prince and his retinue were due to visit and stay until the autumn equinox. It was likely wisest to wait until everyone was gone on their merry way before burdening her husband with the question of their marital future. The winters of Norden were long and until next spring when their marriage would be officially voided, there was enough time to clear things up. She just had to be patient.

Content with postponing the inevitable, Lorelei readily indulged the company of her friends. It had been an eternity since she last sat together with the girls and had a bubbly chat. Only Saya’s absence threw a shadow on their conversation but even that couldn’t stifle the joyous spirit of their gathering.

At Lorelei’s request, Milly agreed to share her embroidery craftsmanship and brought her sewing kit. For the next couple of hours, the three were busying themselves with the fine art of stitching, with varying degrees of success.

“May the wraiths take you, you vile rag!” Rish hurled the handkerchief she was trying to embroider at the other end of the room and sucked on her thumb. “You can’t really find this an enjoyable pastime!”

“I do.” Milly cocked her head, her nimble fingers continuing their fine work without the need for her to look at the needlepoint. “And it’s a useful one too.”

“Useful to relieve you of any blood and feeling in your fingers and drive you mad!”

Lorelei chuckled and halfheartedly followed the two’s banter, the majority of her attention concentrated on the terrible, worm-like stitches on her own handkerchief. As much as she wanted to embroider a beautiful flower arrangement to cheer up Saya, it seemed that it would take some more time. Likely eons.

While she pondered over the perspectives of eternity spent with a needle in hand, three rapid knocks landed on the door. Startled by the unexpected intrusion, the three women froze in silence for a second before Milly jumped up and invited the untimely guest in. With an uneven, dragging step, Stone-face William entered the room.

“Good afternoon, Duchess.” The Steward of Norden greeted dryly and put a stack of books and papers on the table. He continued without further delay. “Rish, Milly, leave us alone. I must discuss important matters with the Duchess on the Duke’s order.”

“Good day to you too, De Mar,” grumbled Rish and gave the man a sour look. “I knew you to be a prude, yet you barge into your mistress’ room-”

“I knocked.” William brushed away her comment and sank into the free chair where Milly had previously sat. “And I hardly have so much free time to waste on empty pleasantries. I have an audit to oversee and imbecile nerve-wracks to entertain, so spare me the additional bother. If you want to continue impairing my work, I’ll have a word with Karusa and the Duke and rearrange your guard duty.”

“You wouldn’t!”

“That’s enough.” Lorelei put down her embroidery and gave Willaim De Mar a stiff smile. “Let’s not waste the Lord Steward’s time. Please, have a walk and we’ll meet at the Misty Garden after I finish with the formalities in… an hour?”

“Make it two,” William said dryly and furrowed his brows. “Now go.”