PENELOPE

I didn’t expect Jace to pass out. After drinking the tea, he’d gotten out of the tub. He grabbed a towel to dry off, but started to sway. Stumble. He shook his head. "Why am I so dizzy?"

"You haven’t eaten anything," I said as I helped him to the bed. "You just need a snack. I’ll get you some soup."

"I don’t want any---" He fell back on the bed. Eyes closed. Body limp.

Panic roared through me. Had the dose killed him? I crawled on the bed and put my finger under his nose. I felt breath against my skin. I put my head to his chest and heard the steady, slow beat of his heart.

I breathed a sigh of relief. I wrestled him under the covers. He was still damp from the bath, so the sheets stuck to him, and he was naked. He hadn’t even put on any underwear.

It couldn’t be helped. Getting him out of his clothes was far easier than putting him into them.

He looked pale, and his lips seemed to be tinged blue. I checked for his breath again, and found that, yes, he was alive. But he didn’t move. I could pick up his arm and it would flop back down.

He was like a rag doll.

I sat next to him and chewed on my thumbnail. What should I do? I needed him to be awake so we could make a baby together. I had to be the one to birth the Willowmarch heir. It was the only way to truly secure my position.

That, and killing Sophia.

"Bitch," I muttered. "What to do? What to do?"

I’d spent enough time in the Capital over the last year to develop some contacts. Courtesan Lila had frozen me out of the brothel, and my attempts to seek help from other establishments met with a solid wall of silence and non-compliance. Losing that network stung. No one had better information than the courtesans, who knew how to use pillow talk to gain all sorts of advantages.

I couldn’t use any military resources, either. I couldn’t risk one of Jace’s underlings getting wind of what I’d done.

That left the servant network. I’d put several of my own people into household positions. Nothing too grand or obvious. Rats who stayed in dark corners were far more helpful than those who lived in the light. If you were seen, you were dead.

I patted Jace’s cheek. "Jace? Jace!"

Nothing. He didn’t move a centimeter. I didn’t know how long he would be like this. Hopefully long enough for me to get the intelligence I needed to further my goals. But short enough that I could sleep with while he was too loopy to do anything except what I told him.

I pulled on a robe and slippers and then headed downstairs to the kitchen. The girl who stocked the larder and ran errands for the cooks was standing outside eating a sandwich. I’d put her into the house a few months ago. She was fairly reliable snitch.

When she saw me, she hid the food in her front apron pocket. I said nothing. What did I care if servants stole from the Willowmarches? Until this house was mine to run, they could take whatever they wanted.

"Have you heard anything interesting lately?" I asked her.

She nodded eagerly. In a low voice, she said, "The Duke of Stonehart is alive."

"He survived the airship crash? But that was nearly two weeks ago." But they’d been looking for his body, right? How was he alive?

The girl shrugged. "No one has said a word about him since he disappeared that day. But last night, he moved into the Stoneheart estate here in the Capital." She lowered her voice even more. "He brought a woman with him."

"Who?"

"No idea. But he’s keeping her under lock and key. Although..." She paused, as though considering whether or not to give me the information. I knew a shakedown when I saw one. In other circumstances, I would slap her stupid so she knew who was the boss. However, with Jace unconscious upstairs and my usual avenues of help closed down, I let her be greedy. I pulled out the silver note I’d stuffed into my pocket earlier.

"Tell me everything, and this is yours."

"My aunt works for Alara. You know, the designer? She said Alara went to the Duke’s house and measured a woman for new outfits. Including a gown for the Governor’s Ball tomorrow night. She also said this woman was in the Duke’s bedroom. It seems the Duke has a mistress."

"A noblewoman wouldn’t be hanging out in his bedroom," I mused. "It would have to be a mistress." Doubt plagued me. "The Duke is well known for not liking women. Anytime a woman tries to get close to him, they’re ousted immediately."

Except for one.

Sophia.

Cold shock turned my veins to ice. Had Sophia moved into the Duke’s residence? Who gave her the courage? She was the Willowmarch matriarch. Why wasn’t she in Amaranth Manor? Had she gotten her memories back?

But wait.

If she had her memories again, why didn’t she tell Jace?

"Where’s the post for today?" I asked. What if she sent a letter?

What if she didn’t?

I wonder what Jace would do if he knew his precious Sophia was holed up with Duke Stonehart. In his bedroom.

"How reliable is your information?"

"My aunt saw the girl with her own eyes. Brown hair. Blue eyes. Said she looked like a fairy princess. And she was sitting in the Duke’s bed as pretty as you please."

I gave the girl the silver note. "More where that came from if you keep an eye on the situation. I want to know if she goes out of the house."

The kitchenmaid took the money and tucked into the top of her dress. "I’ll do my best, Miss Shire."

Killing Sophia would be ideal, but if I couldn’t get to her, then perhaps ruining her reputation would work, too. Although the Duke was a powerful backer. More powerful than the Willowmarches. Even if I outed Sophia as his lover, how much damage would it actually do?

Would anyone dare drown her in a pig cage for adultery?

Probably not.

But wouldn’t that be grand?

Just the idea of watching Sophia tossed into a lake to drown brought a smile to my lips.

The kitchenmaid took the money and tucked it into the top of her dress. "I’ll do my best, Miss Shire."