The next morning, Blaise and I decided to come down for breakfast. There was nothing we could do inside our rooms, trapped as we were by our circumstances. If I had to stay there and stew in my worry, I would be liable to claw at the walls soon.

Instead, Blaise and I decided that I would have to confront my mother about her actions. This was what my mother expected from me, and if I didn’t do it, that would just cause her to be more suspicious.

Besides, who wouldn’t be anxious and angry at the thought of their lover being sick?

I tucked the pistol into my waist, purposely wearing a slightly looser outfit to hide it. Hopefully, I would not need to use it now.

My goal was to pretend to be nothing more than a worried, anxious, slightly angry daughter who wanted answers. Meanwhile, Blaise was going to be nothing more than a sickly werewolf who wanted a meal after such a shocking encounter the night before. He was going to pretend to be severely weakened― something my mother wanted after making him eat so much wolfsbane.

It would have been better for him to stay in bed to sell the lie, but truthfully, I wanted him with me at all times. Who knew what misfortune could befall him if I left him alone? Gus was still wandering around the tower, and I didn’t trust my mother’s words to stay his hand.

My mother was already at breakfast, sitting at the head of the table with small plates of food in front of her. There was a platter of fruits, and she had pancakes with eggs and juice. The smell would have made my mouth water as a child, but now it only made my stomach retch.

How much of it was laced with wolfsbane?

She raised an eyebrow when she caught sight of Blaise and I walking into the room, hand in hand. Just the very sight of her face made my blood boil. I hated her.

Blaise discreetly squeezed my hand, a wordless reminder for me to calm down.

"Did you get a good night’s sleep? I must say, I wasn’t expecting you or Blaise to show up to breakfast," my mother said, a beautiful smile on her face as she gazed at me, amusement in her eyes. "I would have thought you would want to sleep in."

"Yes, I would like that too, if not for the fact blood began to leak out from Blaise’s orifices," I said bitingly, and Blaise sighed.

"My my, I didn’t think you guys were this adventurous in bed," my mother said in surprise. "Did you not find the lube in the drawers?"

"Mom!" My face colored as I realized what she was assuming.

Blaise choked on air, and I made sure to rub his back, allowing him to lean on me for support. All in front of my mother. Blaise was now a delicate maiden and had to be treated as such to sell this lie. I pulled out his chair for him and hurriedly got him to sit down.

A faint sense of amusement permeated the bond, but there was only weary fondness on his face. My mate was a stellar actor.

"Harper, I’m fine, I’m not that much of an invalid. What will your mother think about me?"

"No, you shouldn’t be moving," I insisted, before turning to my mother.

"Mom, what did you put in his dinner? Blaise had a severe nosebleed and he had diarrhea the entire night!"

"Oh, that explains his paleness. I thought he was a vampire for a moment there," my mother said, sounding remarkably unbothered. I gnashed my teeth at her cavalier attitude.

"What did you give him?" I demanded.

"Nothing that would harm him, don’t worry about it," my mother insisted.

My eyebrow twitched at the utter dishonesty.

"Your lover just has remarkable spice intolerance, but that’s alright. No one is perfect. Oh― if you’re so worried, I’ll get a doctor to look at him later," she added when she caught sight of my upset face.

"There’s no need for the fuss," Blaise insisted, his voice warm but frail. "I’ll just need time to rest. And maybe some breakfast. Madame Veronica, is there anything that isn’t spicy around here? I don’t think my intestines can handle another round."

"Of course!" My mother beamed at Blaise’s conciliatory manner. "We have some plain bread for you. It’s my fault for giving you something so spicy to begin with."

Bullshit. She wanted to poison him on purpose. I gave her a suspicious glance, but lo and behold, the servants did hand Blaise a single plain piece of white bread on a plate, as though Blaise was a beggar.

I narrowed my eyes at it― was it truly a slice of ordinary white bread? I couldn’t even trust my mother not to sprinkle some lovely wolfsbane into the lining of the crust.

Blaise merely smiled and took a cautious sniff, before putting it into his mouth.

"How is it? Is it too plain?" I asked.

"It tastes like normal bread." Blaise shrugged, but he reassured me through the bond. "It’s just what I need. Thanks, Madame Veronica."

"Such a polite boy," my mother beamed.

As he ate, there was the slightest change in Blaise’s expression. It would have been undetectable to anyone else, but I was right next to him, connected via the mate bond. There was a sense of expectation, longing, and relief coursing through it.

How strange. Did Damon contact Blaise via the pack link?

Blaise looked up and smiled. "Harper, are you not going to eat? You’ll be hungry later."

"I don’t have an appetite. I was too worried about you," I said, wondering how I should play along with Blaise’s plans. Did he want me to eat the wolfbane-laced food anyway?

"Isn’t that sweet?" My mother commented, resting her chin on her hands as she stared at me adoringly, but there was a sharp glint in her eye. "I’m glad you’re not like your brother at all, despite sharing a face. My dear Harper deserves a gentleman, not a brute. After a few more meals here, you’ll be the perfect match for her."

"...What? Mother, what are you saying?" I demanded.

"Madame Veronica, the tower is under attack!"