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Nessia’s head gave a slight shake. “No.” The one word burst out of her mouth, her voice suddenly sharp and strong, madness in her eyes. “You need to get out of this place.”
Juliet’s head snapped back. “Your room?” She pointed over her shoulder toward the door. “I can go and retrieve your maid.”
“No, not my room. You need to leave this place.”
“Whetland Castle?”
Her amber eyes, part gold, part brown, bored into Juliet, though Juliet wasn’t even sure Nessia truly saw her.
“Yes. You need to leave. Leave for your own safety.”
“My safety?” Juliet frowned. “But I am here with Evan.”
Nessia’s voice cracked, her words dipping into a whisper as though all the energy of speaking the earlier words had sapped what little strength she had. “You need to leave. He will know about you. You need to leave.”
“Who will know what?”
“He—he will know. Leave.”
“I am afraid I cannot.”
Her stare left Juliet, shifting to the peach canopy above once more.
Nessia fell back to silence. Back to the dark world that had snaked up from Hades to engulf her.
Juliet shifted backward on the chair, settling her body as comfortably as she could onto the cushion. Gertie was right, madness was afoot with her mistress, and someone needed to stay in the room with Nessia.
It was going to be a long night.
~~~
Juliet jerked awake with a gasp of a breath at the door slamming behind her.
Instantly on alert, she spun around in her chair.
Gilroy strode across the room, his boots crossing the rays of morning sunlight streaming onto the floor through the crack in the draperies.
She glanced back at Nessia. His wife hadn’t woken with the slam of the door—small favor for how she’d been in and out of consciousness, rambling, for most of the night.
Juliet stood, moving away from the chair and trying to block his approach to the bed. Nessia was finally asleep—the best one could hope for.
Both of Gilroy’s hands were drawn into fists at his sides as he pulled to stop in front of Juliet. “Who said you could be in here?” Still drunk, his words slurred. Had he been awake the whole night?
Her brow furrowed. “Last night—I said I would stay with her. Her maid needed to rest. You heard me say I would visit her in the library. You agreed.”
Red splotches started to dot his pale face, his words spitting out in raging chunks. “I heard no such thing.” His arm swung wide and if she hadn’t jerked backward, the back of his hand would have been across her face. “Get out. Leave this blasted place, ye little witch.”
More anger directed at her than the night before. Something about Evan’s brother was truly off.
With a quick glance over her shoulder to Nessia, Juliet stepped in a wide arc around Gilroy and exited the room.
She moved out into the hallway, trying to shake free the rage Gilroy spewed at her that made her skin crawl. It wasn’t until she heard footsteps that she realized she’d stopped, staring at the floor as she’d tried to rationalize Gilroy’s fury at her.
He was clearly the worst kind of drunk—an ass to begin with that became a vicious, belligerent sot two drinks in. She shook her head. Where was Jasper when she needed him?
She looked toward the end of the corridor where it turned and Gertie appeared around the corner. She hustled forth. “How is my mistress?”
“She rested a little.”
