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The girl giggled and smiled. The future queen had curtsied to her. Despite what the papers had said, it was not customary for the future queen once engaged to curtsy to anyone who was not among the royal family. They could if the lord or lady was of some great importance or held some reverence for them, but that was not protocol.
“She has just made that little girl’s whole year.”
Once more, my shoulders went up slightly as the same voice came up behind me. I thought he had left, but once again, he was right back at my side.
“But we know what tomorrow’s story will be,” he went on. “Odette Wyntor breaks protocol by curtsying to a lower-court lady, even though it’s not against protocol, and she was being kind.”
His voice held apparent anger. Childish anger like someone had called his mother fat, and he wished to jump them in the schoolyard.
“Look at their faces,” he still went on, even though I was not adding to his conversation. “Half of them want to get closer to her, and the other half wish she would screw up in some way so they can laugh and talk about it for years to come.”
I could see the two groups, men and women alike.
“She really pushed herself for this, Iskandar, over and over again, practicing, working, studying,” he whispered, and I swear to God it looked as if he was getting emotional. “I truly just want this to go well for her.”
“It—” It will was what I was going to say. However, I stopped as my attention was drawn toward the figure dressed in black coming down the staircase.
“But why? Bloody hell, why? Isn’t she in mourning?” Wolfgang muttered, his shoulders dropping.
The announcer, who I thought was done for the day, called out, “Sophia De Loutherbergh, the Dowager Duchess of Elmburgh.”
They all parted for her as if she were Moses, and they were the red sea, and she nodded once to their curtsies. Everything about her, the way she looked, the way they regarded her, and the way she acted around them, you would have thought she was the queen. The prime minister, who did not look like a supporter of mine, stopped to kiss her hand and speak to her about how great Arthur was. Sophia listened with poise and grace, and every other great adjective, before excusing herself from their conversation and walking directly toward me. The long, black gown she wore made it look as if she was gliding on the ground. I tried to prepare myself, but I was not sure exactly what I was preparing myself for. I tried to keep my face as pleasant as possible, waiting, when all of a sudden, I felt a hand on my back. The body attached to that now closer than what was considered decent according to my classes here.
I knew it was Gale from the smell of him. I had thought he had moved to talk to someone from parliament. But apparently, he had not gone far. When Sophia finally came close enough, I immediately curtsied to her much longer than I needed to.
“Adelaar.” She turned and did the same to Gale before looking at me. “Miss Wyntor.”
I nodded.
And just like that, she moved on. It was eerie. She was like the walking dead, a ghost haunting us, chilling everywhere she entered with her beautiful and dead eyes.
“I will not be far when you need me,” Gale whispered quickly before putting the correct distance between us.
When I looked up to him, he was tense, his jaw pinched, and I was not sure why until a tall yet round man with short, blond hair, wearing a top hat came over, and on his arm was a woman who had to be a Brazilian supermodel. She had slightly tanned skin, bright-green eyes, and very large breasts when considering the rest of her size.
“Lord Belway. Lady Belway,” Gale replied coldly as they approached
“Adelaar. How stunning you are, Miss Wyntor,” Lord Belway stated before looking over to Gale with amusement.
I was not sure why since it was clear Gale was not his friend. But by looking at him, I also noticed him glance to the Lady of Belway. I was not exactly sure what I was seeing until Lord Belway leaned in and whispered, “I always knew our tastes were similar.”
Gale’s nostrils flared, and before I could speak, the Lady of Belway did so herself. However, I had no idea what language she spoke. She shot me a cold glare before her husband nearly yanked her along with him.
“Old friend of yours?” I asked gently as they left.
“Can we please talk about all of this later?”
I did not answer that question. “I cannot stick beside you throughout the whole event. I am going to walk a bit.”
“Odette.”
Because I had stepped so far from him, he could no longer whisper, and he could not call out my name in front of everyone. So, we just shared a glance. In his eyes, I could tell he was asking me to come back by his side. But I did not want to. It did not feel the way I wanted it to feel. I knew that it didn’t make much sense.
I carefully walked farther from the palace. Luckily, now, with the queen and Sophia here, more people had shifted their attention to them. This was my only small chance of freedom. Yes, I was sure people were watching me, and yes, Thelma was still walking at a slight distance behind me, but it was still a tiny hint of freedom. Walking on my own and watching the white and black swans swim in the lake made me feel slightly better. It reminded me of my mother, who loved swans. Hence my name. I wished she were here. To see all of this, at least. I knew I shouldn’t, but I brought out my phone. I wanted her to see what I saw at this moment, at least. But I did not hold up the phone. I tucked it against my purse.
I could hear Wolfgang’s tour information repeating in my head. The Victory Garden, created in 1917 after the first world war, comprises 861 different species of flowers. It is also home to two different species of swans, among three different pounds—
“I always love seeing these ducks swim next to swans.”
