-Oh, my sister is not here?

The Duchess of Gladia's butler shook his head apologetically.

She would have liked to see Vera, to tell her about what had happened the day before. But it had been impossible to get in touch with her since. Why had the mention of the troubled trail put her in such a state? She had always had exemplary control of her temper. What could have caused her to leave this meeting so hastily, without a word? Why did Lev know about it? No, in truth, all the Protectors and the King knew. Then the situation must have been serious.

-Since you left, the butler lamented with a sorry look, it's been a mess with the duchy papers. Your sister is incapable of doing this kind of thing alone.

This must have been a common trait between her and Lev. He wasn't very good with administration either. Flavia winced, annoyed.

- Should I take a look at the current cases?

Hope shone in the butler's eyes.

-Do you have the time?

-Or... Yes...

Given the state of the office in two weeks of absence, she thought she would have to hire a personal secretary for her sister. Otherwise, the duchy would burn down in less than a month. Nevertheless, there was something unexpected among the pile of letters to be processed. She saw a purple envelope.

One of those she looked forward to every week. Her heart racing, she grabbed this one, alone in the safety of the office where she had worked for years.

A letter from Lev.

Addressed to Vera, as always.

Divided between a pain in her chest and the joy of still having letters, she blew the seal of the Clypeus. Her husband's smooth, applied handwriting jumped out at her. She couldn't help but smile at the content. Before freezing.

Madam Duchess,

Thank you for your concern about my neck. Nevertheless, I have had the benefit of some extensive care due to a bad fight, so everything has been forced back into place.

Tell me, you mentioned giving me orange roses... Do you know the language of flowers? Roses all have a meaning depending on their color. The pink roses speak of tenderness, the red ones of love, the white ones of innocence, and the orange ones of desire... But I can only accept such a thing from my wife.

By the way, did you know that I got married? Ah, well, I guess it's your sister... Unless the person I'm writing to decides to sign her real name.

If that is the case, I will accept all the armfuls of orange roses you offer me, my Duchess. But I would offer you red ones in return. For if desire is powerful, only the passion of love can explain why I want you so much.

It seems to me that your previous letter was sent before you even knew we were getting married. If you knew the language of flowers, my Duchess, then I must admit that you are a little rascal to send me a message like that. But since I was only in the fantasy category, I guess you didn't think I knew anything about roses.

I look forward to your response, my Duchess.

Your Duke, tender and passionate

Lev Clypeus.

PS: By the way, Flavia, I know it's you behind these letters since the first one, five years ago. Vera would never have answered me so nicely.

She could not hold back her laughter.

This man... He was going to drive her crazy!

So he knew all along? She couldn't help but smile. Then reality suddenly hit her.

Was that why he had agreed to the wedding? Because that day he knew who she was? That they had been corresponding for five years together!?

Red-faced, she stared at the letter, not believing her deductions. If that was it, then it was... It made sense, but... still... To agree to marry him, to... to... She reread one line of the letter.

"...only the passion of love can explain why I want you so much."

If that were true, then...

*

Sitting on the table in front of the gaols, his feet on the chair, Lev thought. The glow of the torches played on the white walls, reverberating a light that was anything but gloomy. The white stone fortress was nice, but it rarely made the prisoners anxious.

Although.

It wasn't the walls we had to be afraid of.

It was from him.

The one who was kneeling in front of him, his face bleeding, would not say otherwise. Neither would the guards on duty. Although Lev didn't need protection, he didn't want any rumors circulating about what was going on here.

The truth was good enough.

-Well, he said, crossing his legs. Let me get this straight, a third party asked you to push my wife through the gate?

Silent, the traitor nodded. Tears rolled down his cheeks, mixing with his blood.

- Do you realize, Emmanuel, that you have been living here for fifteen years? That you have been housed, fed, laundered, protected, paid, at my expense, for fifteen years?

The man let out a sob.

-Last time I checked, I didn't harm you in any way either. So why did you betray me?

The guards all around looked with hostility at the man who had been one of them. In service for years, he had never complained about the Duke's treatment. They, who had blind trust and absolute loyalty in their master, hated the one who was on his knees on the floor of the white underground passages of the fortress. That this floor was still so white was a miracle. Generations of Clypeus had tortured people here.

But he was rambling.

- I... stammered Emmanuel. I... The money... I... I'm sorry... God, I'm so sorry...

Lev clenched his jaws, before saying in an almost playful tone.

-It's a shame. For anything, I might have accepted a proper apology. But here, you tried to kill my wife, Emmanuel. The only thing that keeps you alive, for now, is on the one hand because I forbade your former colleagues to execute you, and on the other hand because I need to know exactly who paid you.

The Duke came down from his perch to crouch in front of the traitor. He grabbed him by the hair to force him to look at him. He didn't know it, but at that moment, in the light of the torches, his violet eyes were shining in a cruel way, while his silver hair was turning into flames.

Emmanuel sobbed a little more.

-Speak. If I am satisfied, I will offer you a short death. If not... You will meet for the first and last time the demons of the wasteland.

An hour later, Lev was coming up from the underground, particularly annoyed. Fortunately for him, he ran into his wife. A bundle of papers in her arms, she was smiling to herself as she climbed the stairs. Her smile widened when she saw him at the top of the stairs. He didn't know what had happened, but she seemed in a particularly good mood.

-Isn't it a little heavy for you? he worried as he came to retrieve the papers from her arms.

-It's okay, but I'm not against letting you carry everything, she said with a mischievous look.

-What are all these papers for?

-Mmh, I stopped by to see if Vera was there, but I couldn't find her. And the butler was desperate because she's as bad as you are at all the administrative stuff. So... I'm bringing in some work until I find a secretary for her.

- Oh, I see... Don't kill yourself, though. Are there any urgent things to deal with?

While listening to her, Lev walked towards the office. But mostly, he was thinking. Had his letter arrived? He couldn't remember when he had sent it. Well. His visit to his sister's house, even if she hadn't been there, had made her happy. That was the main thing. Even if he wondered how she would react. Maybe he should have mailed her from Rainier's house and had her sent here.

Yes, but in any case, he wouldn't have been sure if he would have been there when he received it. Mmh...

-Lev...

Surprised by his wife's tone, Lev put the papers on the already overloaded desk, before turning to her.

-Did you learn anything?

Ah.

The day before, when the traitor had been delivered to them, he had regretted that she was by his side. He would have preferred to settle this without her knowing. Nevertheless, she was the Duchess now. This kind of thing was her business too. Even if he had refused to let her attend the interrogation, she wanted to know what happened next.

-Emmanuel didn't know much, Lev sighed. But he was supposed to receive his payment this afternoon, in a village nearby.

-Oh...

-I'm going to go and find the person who was supposed to give him the money. It won't be the sponsor, but one thing leading to another, we should be able to find the person responsible. It's a job of patience.

-Are you going?

Seeing her so disappointed made him realize one thing. Shit! He had forgotten!

-I'll be there in time for the ball! I promise you, Flavia!

-Don't worry, she smiled hesitantly. The most important thing is this case.

-The most important thing is you.

-Lev... Don't worry. It's just a bunch of gossips. A few nasty comments aren't going to hurt me. Okay?

Yes, finally... Standing in front of the buffet, alone behind her veil, Flavia was quite alone, that evening.

Most of the guests had arrived a while ago. As a good hostess, she had decided to welcome each of them. She knew that Lev's absence was already feeding the gossip of the ball. Nevertheless, he was absent for a good reason, she could neither blame him nor tell anyone else about it. Given the content of the affair, discussing it with all the gossipers at the ball would be highly inappropriate.

Looking around at all these people, Flavia wondered if there were enough rooms to accommodate everyone tonight. For the wedding, Lev had ordered that each of the guests go home, because... he just didn't want to see their ugly faces when they woke up. Nevertheless, the wedding was not planned by either of them. The ball, on the other hand, was being organized by them. Doing things right was important.

But watching all these people watching her without deigning to come and talk to her made her reconsider her judgment. She didn't want to see them in the morning either. Besides, it gave the employees of the house a lot of work, for not much.

The sunshine of the evening appeared in five entities. No, not the Protectors.

But rather four dynamic children and a very annoyed nanny.

Rainier's two sons and Cara's son arrived like cannonballs in the ballroom. If all the attentions turned immediately towards them, they ran so quickly towards Flavia that the conversations started again of more beautiful.

- Auntie! shouted Eorum, Rainier's youngest child. We couldn't wait to see you again!

She smiled as she welcomed the child into her arms, while her brother Autem greeted her with a laugh. Tamir, with his brown hair and red eyes, gave her a big warm smile. These two were the same age, yet the second was already older. Cara's son promised to be a colossus. But for now, he was only ten years old.

-I heard that tonight we're going to eat a lot of good things from the north!

-And that there will be music!

-And that we can play all night long!

-And that we'll sleep here!

The liveliness of the children forced a smile. With a playful laugh, Flavia said yes to everything, except playing all night. They grumbled a little, before leaving like devils on the terrace. These three had energy to spare.

Fortunately, a guard on duty followed them. It was best to keep an eye on them, before they got hurt.

- I'm sorry, said their nanny as she joined them, holding little Ena. They were so excited about coming that they were unbearable.

-Don't apologize, smiled Flavia. They're in great shape, it's nice to see. You're Dana, aren't you?

-Oh, sorry, I forgot to introduce myself.

The nanny curtsied a little awkwardly, the little one in her arms. A fiery redhead, that was the most accurate description of Dana. She had a long curly hair, in the bright color attracted all the eyes. Even though she tried to hide it under a wise headdress, her unruly locks were hanging down over her forehead. Dressed simply and soberly, she exuded softness and kindness. She understood why Rainier and the others spoke of her with affection. There was not an ounce of malice in this woman.

-My name is Dana Cunarius. I am the nanny for the children of the Duke of Hastam. And the son of the Duchess of Malleus, intermittently. Nice to meet you, Duchess of Clypeus.

From under her veil, Flavia raised her eyebrows.

- You don't have to be so formal with me, she laughed. My husband told me you were sick, on Cara's birthday. Are you feeling better?

-Yes, Dana blushed. To tell you the truth, I was... I mean, I had lady problems.

-Oh. Good thing you got some rest, then. Four kids to manage on top of slightly immature adults is not possible under these conditions.

Her reflection made the nanny chuckle. She could see exactly who she was talking about. Despite their position, reputation and strength, there were one or two who knew how to regress very well in quiet times.

- Auntie! exclaimed Tamir as he came running. Come and see!

Under the gaze of all the nobles in the audience, the only son of the Duchess of Malleus grabbed her by the hand, to lead her towards the terrace. While shouting to his nanny to follow them. Flavia thus followed him, to discover what it was about.

There was a dog.

Obviously, it was worth the effort to get everyone together.

When the kids started to get hungry, Dana offered to get them some snacks. Flavia, lost in the three boys' game, nodded. Ena was happily crawling around on the terrace, with delighted "gahs" on the cold stone. Nevertheless, this moment of relative calm, which had cut her off for a moment from the ball and the meditative nobility, quickly broke down.

Straightening up at the first burst of voices, Flavia asked the children to keep an eye on Ena. Quick for their age, the three of them stopped playing and took up protective positions around the youngest. Tamir, taller than the others, took her in his arms, allowing them to follow her.

She wished they hadn't.

Three noblewomen had cornered Dana in front of the buffet. With a full plate in her hands, she had her eyes downcast, and was obviously waiting for it to pass. What the...

-What a rudeness! made a countess.

-A nanny should not be at a ball of this magnitude, added another, from behind her fan.

-Common people have nothing to do here, said a marquise.

This was the last straw.

-Personally, I wonder who you are to judge my guests.

Flavia's gentle tone startled the three vipers. They turned to her, and then looked condescending. Dana stared at her with round eyes.

- Let's see, you are not used to it, Flavia, but...

-Flavia? she repeated, a smile on her lips. For you, it will be Duchess, Madam.

Disconcerted, the Marquise, richly dressed and adorned with jewels, widened her eyes.

-You've been married for barely two weeks and you're already claiming this title?

-I don't claim it. I am the Duchess of Clypeus. But you ladies, I don't know your names. I am curious. What house are you from that is unable to educate its daughters properly?

As they declined their identity, Flavia sighed theatrically. With her veil, she knew that no one could see her expression.

-Good. I take it that your families feel they have the right to judge my choice of guests, she declared. Because, you see, Dana Cunarius is not here as a nanny, but as a family friend. Which you are not, by the way. I'll make it easy for us: I'll ask you to leave the ball, so my friend won't have to suffer your presence.

And neither do I, Flavia thought.

The noble ladies lost their color. Almost immediately, she saw the bride and groom break through the crowd, to come and bow to her. They apologized on their behalf. She knew them. As Duchess, she reassured them. She knew the difference between their husbands' exemplary service record and them. They seemed relieved. But the ladies took it all the harder.

-You won't be so smart when you lose your title!

Flavia raised an eyebrow.

-Lose my title?

-The Duke will soon divorce you, ugly!

Ah, the personal attack. Against all odds, it hurt more than expected. This time, she was happy to have her veil to hide her expression. Especially when a male voice rose.

-Really, I'm going to divorce my wife soon?

All the complexions, in front of Flavia, turned to livid.

Standing behind husbands and wives, Lev smiled evilly, his violet eyes nailing them to the spot.