Chapter 4

When I woke, a maid I didn't recognize was changing my bandages.

I grabbed her hand. "Where's Rose?"

"Rose... Rose..."

The girl's eyes darted away, and her whole body trembled.

"Tell me!"

She dropped to her knees, tears splattering onto the floor, looking terrified out of her mind.

"Rose is dead! She hanged herself this morning. They found her and left her wrapped in a straw mat by the back gate!"

I ran for the back gate like I'd lost my mind, falling and scraping myself raw and not stopping once. When I finally lifted the straw mat and saw Rose's body, I broke down sobbing.

The maid beside me was crying too. "Rose was always so good to the rest of us. I don't even know who she crossed. Her hands had been cut off, and she'd been... violated by a group of beggars before they sent her back, barely dressed.

"She said she couldn't face you anymore, My Lady, so she found some rope and hanged herself..."

I clutched Rose's body to my chest. I thought of the day she'd slapped Melanie, and the murderous look in Julius's eyes right afterward.

It was him. He had done this to Rose.

Hatred churned in my chest. After I'd buried Rose properly, I sharpened a hairpin to a fine point. "Where's my guard?"

A maid answered, "He's been out on a spring outing with Lady Melanie these past few days. He should be on his way back by now."

Sure enough, I found the two of them on the street, gazing into each other's eyes. Julius had his arms full of packages, and he was holding out a candy apple to keep Melanie happy.

My vision blurred with tears. I gripped the hairpin and charged straight at them.

"Julius! I'll kill you!"

The street was too loud for him to hear me over the noise. By the time he and Melanie turned to look, a carriage was already barreling toward me.

"Watch out, My Lady!"

Without a second thought, he shoved me toward the carriage, wrapped his arm around Melanie's waist, and leaped clear to safety.

I was thrown two meters by the impact and coughed up blood. Only then did Julius realize it had been me all along, and he rushed over in a panic to help me up.

I grabbed the hairpin off the ground and pressed it to his chest, driving it in slowly. "I hate you..."

As my consciousness slipped away, I thought I saw him go white as a sheet, gathering me into his arms and frantically flagging down a carriage.

When I woke again, he was standing at my bedside, his face full of guilt.

"This was my failure to protect you. I'll go to the punishment hall and take my penalty right now..."

"Don't bother."

I laughed bitterly inside, tears soaking into the collar of my robe.

"If you feel you owe me for all of this, go to Ashwell Abbey and pray for a blessed charm on my behalf instead."

Julius frowned, clearly unhappy. "Ashwell Abbey is a long way off. The round trip alone would take at least seven days."

"Melanie likes that kind of charm too," I said, cutting him off.

Sure enough, at the mention of her name, his frown smoothed away, and the tips of his ears went faintly red.

"Fine. I'll be quick."

Before he left, he turned back and added, "I'll bring you your favorite honey cake when I get back."

I watched him hurry off and murmured under my breath, "Don't bother..."

Because in seven days, it would be my wedding day.

'Julius, I never want to see you again.'

Seven days later, the Crown Prince was married, and the whole capital was draped in celebratory decorations. Even the lanterns at the city gates had been strung up in bright, festive colors.

Julius rode back into the city with his charm in hand just as a group of soldiers were handing out wedding tips outside the gates.

Curious, he asked, "What's the occasion today?"

"Our Crown Prince is getting married!"

Julius smirked, amused. So even a sickly invalid like the Crown Prince could find someone willing to marry him?

"Who's the bride?"

The soldier grinned. "The Knight family's young lady, from the capital."

At that, Julius's face went pale, and his voice shook. "What?"