Broken Dove (Fantasyland #4)(166)

I tried to force my mind to wrap around a vision of Frey Drakkar folding his long body into one of Élan’s little chairs and one of his big hands holding a daintier than dainty teacup. My mind refused to do it, but my lips smiled at the thought.

“Even if it’s just you and me, I’ll be here,” I told her.

“Huzzah!” she cried.

She’d be happy with just me. Hell, she’d be happy with just her dolls. She was just a happy kid.

Though, I figured she’d be happier if Frey showed.

I kept smiling at her as I straightened. Then I aimed my smile at Bella and moved to my cloak.

“I’ll see you both later,” I called as I made my way to the door.

“See you at dinner!” Élan called back.

I aimed another smile at her wondering if she would.

I then waved and walked out the door, busying myself with arranging the cloak over my arm, folding the gloves more firmly in my hand, trying to think what I was feeling.

And still, all I could come up with was that I was feeling nothing.

It was the nothing part that worried me and I was so lost in thought as I made my way down the corridor, I barely processed the women’s voices I heard coming from not close, but not too far away.

“I’m shocked,” one said. “It’s unlike Ulfr. His father, absolutely. Him? No. But what he’s doing is much the same thing.”

“It is and not much the same. Exactly the same,” another voice replied. “And you know, I overheard Jeremiah. Apparently, Ulfr has a house in Estranvegue all set up for this Madeleine for when it’s safe to send her away.”

At hearing my name, I stopped dead.

Or, perhaps, it was hearing the part about Apollo sending me away.

“In Estranvegue?” the first voice asked.

“Yes,” the second voice confirmed.

“Goodness, that’s all the way across Lunwyn,” the first voice noted.

“Indeed,” the second voice stated. “He’s also set up an account for her. Obviously, he still intends to take on the responsibility of caring for her, but he won’t be doing it here.”

“But,” the first voice started, “I’ve heard they’re to wed.”

“I’ve heard that too. And maybe he intended to do that, if the children had accepted her. Now, that’s obviously not going to happen. I know little Élan likes her but she likes everybody. Young Christophe doesn’t like her. It’s not in his nature to cause alarm by doing something like running away, even when things aren’t topsy-turvy as they are now. Her being here, he ran away. And who can blame him? I’ve seen her and she’s the image of his mother. It’s uncanny. It’s also downright cruel to force your lover on your son if she looks exactly like your dead wife. Ulfr may be behaving like his father, as shocking as that is, but I figure in the end, he won’t do anything to harm his son.”

My breath suddenly coming in pants, I was teetering on my feet. I should have shifted to the side to put a hand on the wall to hold myself up but I couldn’t find it in me to will my body to do so.

I could do nothing but listen.

“Cristiana tells me she’s lovely,” the first voice said

“I’ve heard that as well. But she can be very lovely and that won’t make her look any less like Christophe’s departed mum. It’s no surprise Ulfr took up with her, considering how severe he grieved the passing of his wife. She wouldn’t even have to be lovely for him to do that. But when enough is enough, it’ll be enough. And I reckon young Christophe running off like that, Ulfr will decide enough is enough.”

It was at that, I swallowed and finally shuffled to the side. Leaning heavily into my hand on the wall, my head dropped because the effort of holding it up was too much as their words burned into my brain. My skin.

My soul.

“At least she’s on pennyrium,” the first voice noted. “Sally from the village said Ulfr gets Loretta to acquire it from her. Though, it’s still shocking, what with what his father did to his mother. From how he is, it’s impossible to believe he’s repeating history like this. But it seems he is, since his father also installed his mistress at the dower house just like Ulfr has done with this Madeleine.

“But the old Ulfr did it to get her with child,” the second voice remarked and I blinked at my feet in shock.

There was a clucking noise before the first voice said, “I know. Desperate for an heir, he put his wife through that. Can you imagine, living in this house knowing your husband journeys ten minutes away every single night to engage in such activities?”

“Can you imagine living in the dower house knowing your lover leaves you for his barren wife and you’ll never have him that way?” the second voice returned.

The first one’s voice stated clearly she couldn’t imagine it when she said, “I felt for her. For both of them. Especially when old Ulfr got his heir. All of that still going on, having the best of both worlds, but her sitting in the dower house having to wait for visits from her own son that the lady of the house was raising, and poorly, seeing as she didn’t think it all that grand having to raise her husband’s child with another woman. A woman that was just along the way. I was here when it happened and it was actually a relief when he finally sent her away.”