As Asher and Ivy shared what they thought would be their final moments together, Liloth was engaged in her own private war—a mission to uncover who the Duke truly was, and more importantly, who he was working with.
For the past several days, she'd played the obedient pawn, moving when told, speaking only when spoken to, doing everything he asked—all while carefully hiding her wrists beneath long sleeves. If he ever noticed that the curse binding her had vanished, the illusion would shatter. When he demanded to sleep with her, she'd offered the excuse that she was on her periods. It worked for now but the lie was running out of time.
Since breaking free of his control, it was as if her mind had finally woken from a long sleep. Details she'd brushed aside before now rushed back with terrifying clarity—like the memory of Hillary Martinsville, the Duke's favorite son, who had once lived in the manor… and whom the Duke now claimed not to know.
