Hugging in front of Emma was terribly awkward, but Adaline still managed to restrain herself.
Emma, who was sincerely happy about their wedding, suddenly threw Shane out the door with a gloomy look.
[Empress Viola, on the other hand, was stunned by what she saw, but seemed determined to meet her daughter-in-law before the onset of winter.]
But this did not last long. Shane actually showed up to see her...and then disappeared.
[He seemed to return to the bedroom every night, but Adaline never saw his face. All that remains in my memory are vague sensations: how he strokes her hair or hugs her tightly when she is almost asleep.]
[Ah, she needed to see his eyes. Face to face. Only then could she decide to tell everything.]
[Now I understand why he didn't want to take on this job...]
[Edwin didn't let Shane just disappear. The assassination attempt on Saint Genevieve could not be resolved in a couple of days.]
[If the criminal had turned out to be a foreigner, it would have been easier. But everything was complicated by the fact that the assassination attempt was carried out within the country, and, moreover, it concerned a key figure in the church. The situation was only getting worse every day.]
[Fortunately, the case did not receive publicity, the press was silent, but in a narrow circle everyone knew about it.]
Dad was reported to be dying and would not get out of bed. And foreign powers accused the Empire of failing to protect the Holy One.
Shane Blanchard, the one who first discovered and rescued Genevieve, now finds himself at the center of the storm. He was overwhelmed with business.
Adaline, who had persuaded him to accept this task, had no right to complain.
[Recognition Day had to be postponed.]
But she decided to speak differently, through touch. [Instead of pushing him away, she hugged him first. I wanted to show that I’m nearby. I'm not hiding.]
She hoped he would understand.
[But Shane only grew gloomier. His gaze became colder and colder. He had no time for tenderness.]
[Oh, yesterday...he didn't even come.]
[How to fix everything now? What if I ran away again just a few days after I decided to be honest with him?]
“No matter what you do, he still won’t believe you.” - Lucian's voice rang out.
"Don't speak with such confidence." - she sighed tiredly. “This just makes me more discouraged.”
Lucian laughed.
“When it becomes completely unbearable, write it down as a loan. I’ll make an exception only for your sake.”
“You know how to turn curses into honeyed speeches...”
[He meant: if everything goes wrong, if it gets really bad, tell him and he will take her away. Again. Just like then.]
“Thanks to you, the Crown Prince can’t take his eyes off me now.” - he continued. “Perhaps it’s time to change location.”
Adaline gasped and looked at him with sympathy.
“He can’t kill us. So he tries to absorb it. But if I have to, I’ll take you and we’ll run away.”
[Without him, it would have been impossible to get out of the palace.]
She understood that Lucian had risked himself to help her. And I felt relieved that everything worked out. [That his supposed “revenge” is just a whim, and not real retribution.]
"Then wait for me."
“Just don’t delay.”
Her only hope is to return as quickly as possible.
[As Lucian said, she won’t be able to get into the palace alone. She didn't even have a copper.]
[Should I say that I was kidnapped and then I ran away?]
[This would simplify a lot. But that would be unfair to Lucian. He didn't betray her. His "kidnapping" is just payment of a debt.]
[The best thing is to return quietly, without getting noticed by anyone, and immediately explain everything. Tell the whole truth.]
[About a past life. About the book. About the roles they were all forced into. About the future, which seems to have already been written.]
[Even about the nightmares that haunted her every night.]
[Shane will decide what happens next.]
[Even if he gets tired of her. Even if he leaves.]
[She was ready for this.]
Adaline approached the table. Snacks were laid out on it, but no one paid attention to the food. She decided to have a snack while waiting for Luciana.
The half-mask, matching Lusianova's, had a raven's beak and left the mouth open, which is convenient if you want to eat.
[The off-the-shoulder, black, tight-fitting dress would reveal any movement of her stomach, but she didn’t care. She didn't need to impress anyone.]
[Like a buffet, she began to empty the plates until she heard a slight commotion around her.]
[Has Lucian really done something?] - she frowned, chewing a shrimp canapé. [I could have just quietly taken my money...]
She turned to the crowd and saw what she least expected.
The face instantly turned pale.
[Is...here?]
Wearing a mask, but she wouldn’t be confused with anyone.
It was Shane.
And Adaline, without hesitation, ducked under the table.