Summer was almost over when the second part of the story I started found an end. A twisted, confusing end.

Lyana had adapted to live in Stoneyard, and she worked hard to learn how to be of help. I assigned her an apartment in the southern wing of the castle.

Everything was proceeding well, and no one even thought about sending her back to those people. She was happier with us, with her composed and shy manner of showing her emotions.

She didn't smile or laugh often, but her shoulders didn't tremble, and her fingers were stable. Her hair regained its initial colour, and her eyes started to shine with life.

I wondered if what I had done was enough to save her life. I couldn't envision such a healthy woman dying suddenly in her twentieth year of life.

Her world crumbled up when we received the first letter where her brother in law asked for her presence at the family residence. He wanted the dowager Marchioness to support his claim to the title. Needless to say, we didn't consider that letter for more than a second.

I just crumbled it up and threw it in the fire with an annoyed look. Lyana observed my face, wondering if I would send her away.

She sighed in relief when she understood that those people couldn't threaten an ant, let alone an Archduke.

«Don't worry, they won't contact us again.»

I didn't think they would have found the courage to send a second letter. In it, they even dared to express their unhappiness about the status quo. They hinted at a scandal that would break out if people were to know about Lyana living at Stoneyard.

«There won't be any scandal,» I reassured the poor girl, and she just nodded in silence.

After the second missive, there was a period of peace. So much that we all relaxed. We didn't think that someone as insignificant from the south would dare to infiltrate Kyre.

I was riding out of Stoneyard, returning from a tour of the nearby villages. The wind was chilly, and I was looking forward to being back home, to rest next to a chimney. Dark clouds were forming at the horizon, promising a hell of a storm.

I was almost home when an arrow hit me from the front. I just caught a glimpse and tried to evade it, but I got hit. I fell from the horse and rolled in the mud.

Every time my shoulder hit the ground, acute twinges crossed my whole arm and chest. The first drops of rain started falling from the sky, while the dark figure that attacked me disappeared in the night.

The horse I was riding returned to me a moment after feeling that I wasn't on the saddle anymore. I thanked luck for the attentive training of the horses on which my father spent so much money.

I jumped on the saddle, ignoring the pain, and I slowly directed the horse towards the castle. I could see it in the distance, but it seemed never getting closer.

I tried not to move the arrow that was still stuck in my chest, remembering how it would only get worse if I touched it myself. I had seen many injuries during the wars, which made me realise that I was in a delicate position but still not in danger.

When the gates opened, I waited for the guards to walk to me before sliding off.

«Call a doctor,» I ordered before tripping.

One of the closest soldiers caught me before I touched the ground, and I closed my eyes to forget about the arrow. It stopped hurting after getting on the horse, but once I crossed the gates of my home, all the pain, fear, and confusion returned to me altogether.

I was brought to my room half-conscious, and I fell asleep before the doctor arrived. Probably, it had been my luck.

Disinfection of injuries is painful; taking out an arrow from a wound is even worse. At least, I didn't have to feel that.

After the first day, where pain covered everything else, I started feeling less hurt. By the evening, the pain was finally gone.

I didn't know it was a bad sign, so I didn't tell anyone about it. Only when my nanny sensed my forehead, her fresh hand rubbing my burning skin, I realised I had a fever.

She started to panic and ran out in search of help while I wondered how bad infections could be.

I fell asleep soon, and I had confusing dreams about my past. I called for my Queen so many times, but the only one listening was my nanny.

With Martia in the capital, I was almost alone.

For the first time in two lives, I feared death. It would have meant that I wouldn't see my Queen again. I was wasting my second chance.

When morning came, the fever left, one degree at a time. My body was aching everywhere, but I was happy to be alive.

«I was so scared that I wouldn't see her again,» I whispered. My nanny's calm hand caressed my hair. She had been with me the whole time.

Years were heavy on her shoulders, and her legs couldn't keep her up anymore. She used a stick to walk, yet she didn't think twice before sitting on the edge of the bed for the whole night.

She smiled at me in her usual, calm way.

«I'll find out who's the culprit.»

My nanny just nodded, and she walked to an armchair with slow steps.

The culprit was soon found. It was a young guard that worked for Lyana's in-laws. It was such a shock for everybody, including me. I should have expected it, but who could predict that those people were as crazy as attacking me. And failing.

The guard confessed that he had been ordered to get rid of me and bring the Marchioness back.

Lyana ran to her lodgings and started packing soon after hearing those words. Her eyes were filled with tears, and her hands returned to that insistent trembling.

Her soul turned as dark as before, and she didn't raise her head until I grabbed her shoulders.

«What are you doing?» I inquired, shaking her lightly to wake her up from the panic. «Where are you going?»

«I don't want to cause any more harm. I'll return to the place I was never meant to leave.»

«Rumours have already started spreading,» the Countess pointed out.

Lyana winced and almost turned towards the door to run away.

It wasn't such a coincidence that Martia had the same habit of saying half of what was on her mind. She had taken that from her grandmother.

«Countess de Ruis means that there is no point in going back now. The damage has been done.»

«You won't be able to find another husband, but you can stay here and live a free life. You're not required to wed a noble. One is enough for a life, isn't it?» Anne de Ruis continued. She walked to us and made me release the trembling girl. «You can form your own family in Stoneyard or live alone if you prefer. I can't see a reason to go back to that place.»

«But his highness was hurt because of me,» Lyana replied. «I can't stay here.»

«He was hurt because he wasn't on alert. He's an Archduke, the second man in the Empire. He should have predicted that enemies could be lurking in the dark.»

Also, the Countess's way of blaming the victim for something that happened to her was akin to how my sister claimed that it wasn't her fault if I was distracted and she stole my meat from the plate.

«You don't have to worry. His majesty won't even notice the disappearance of a house of Marquises,» I said. «Anyone who dares to hurt someone his majesty approves of needs to be taught a lesson. We'll set an example.»

«I agree,» the Countess nodded. «We already did it once with the bureaucrats. This time, hitting a noble will show them that Kyre is a land full of ruthless people. It will keep small flies away.»

«What about the big fishes?» I inquired. The Empire was full of large monsters waiting to eat us alive at the first chance.

«Big fishes use small flies to accomplish their goals. If no flies accept to take the risk, there isn't any danger for us. It's better to show them what happens when they turn against Kyre.»

«It's decided, then.»

Just like that, I sent my guards to the south. They came back a couple of weeks later with the report and some of Lyana's stuff. She had instructed them where to find her things and what was valuable to take.

She tried to give me all of those riches, telling me that they didn't belong to her. But it wasn't true.

All those jewels and paintings, clothes, and money were hers, to begin with. Even though they weren't nearly enough as compensation for what Lyana had gone through.