𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐇 𝐎𝐑 𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐓 𝐘𝐎𝐔 ▸ After his restoration, the unthinkable happens - Dimitri tells Rose that loves fades and his has. To add insult to injury, Queen Tatiana ends up murdered with Rose's stake. Dimitri had asked Rose to give him tim...
"Liss? I've been watching the way Tasha has been behaving around Rose and Dimitri..."
"And?"
"She's my aunt, and I hate to think this way, but it occurred to me she would have been happier if Rose had not reappeared." Lissa did not reply, giving Christian the time to find the words to express his next thought. "Then I thought maybe she might have been the reason Rose disappeared in the first place."
"What are you trying to say?"
"I'm wondering if maybe Tasha had something to do with Tatiana's murder," Christian whispered, hoping Lissa would immediately refute the idea. That her facial expression morphed into a look of sympathy quickly dispelled that wish. It was immediate confirmation that his fears were fact.
"Tasha murdered Her Majesty? Do you know for sure, and how long have you known?!"
"Yes, I am sure. I had suspicions from seeing Tasha's aura, same with Adrian. Since we've come to stay, I've learned more. There is no doubt about it. Your aunt murdered our former Queen."
Christian sat on the side of the bed they shared, looking more lost than Lissa had ever seen him. They were alone in their suite, getting ready for bed after spending the evening making charms for Rose. Now Christian had voiced his suspicions, bits and pieces were mentally falling into place. Tasha's odd looks and actions made sense after this revelation. However, suspecting something was one thing, knowing it to be the truth, was quite another. His aunt—his only remaining immediate family member—had killed their Queen, then presumably framed Rose for her murder. It was a difficult thing to wrap his head around.
"What's going to happen?"
"I'm not entirely sure. All I know is Rose's dad is taking care of it," the Dragomir Princess said, wrapping her arms around her boyfriend as he cried.
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"Pavel? It seems like ages since we've caught up. My office after breakfast?" Abe said while sipping on his habitually strong Turkish coffee while seated at the head of the table between Adrian and his guardian. They were a motley and dispirited bunch breakfasting together. Lissa and Christian were both subdued, neither saying much nor interacting more than necessary with the others. Eddie, Grigor, and Celeste could feel the latent tension, so likewise, concentrated on their meals. Adrian was blithely chatting with Rose, much to Dimitri's irritation, while Tasha repeatedly tried to engage Dimitri in conversation, with limited success.
"As you wish, Mr. Mazur," Pavel replied, his voice glacial, without even looking up from the sports section of the newspaper.
"So, what's everyone got planned for the day?" Adrian asked, attempting to smooth over Pavel's rudeness. "There's a biathlon occurring today in Toksovo I thought I might attend if anyone would like to join me?"
"A biathlon?" Lissa asked.
"Cross-country skiing and rifle shooting," Grigor explained. "It's a popular winter sport, here."
