EVELINA
The rain had faded by afternoon, leaving the gardens of Everleigh Hall silvered with dew. Every leaf glittered beneath the pale light, and the gravel paths shone like glass. Evelina walked among the rose hedges slowly, her hands clasped before her and her thoughts scattered as the droplets that fell from the trees.
It should have been peaceful. The scent of wet earth and wild jasmine usually calmed her, but her father's words lingered from that morning. They pressed against her mind, heavy and unrelenting.
When men like Montclair and the Crown Prince begin their war, hearts become casualties before swords ever do.
She could not forget it. Every whisper that had found her name, every look at court, every breath of scandal surrounding her and Lucian Ravenscroft now felt like a weight she carried in plain view.
The fountain at the center of the garden rippled softly as she stopped before it. Her reflection trembled in the water, pale and uncertain. The roses behind her swayed in the wind, their petals still jeweled with rain.
She heard footsteps along the path and did not need to turn to know who it was.
"Father said I would find you here," Nathan said as he came to her side.
Evelina smiled faintly. "He told me to walk the gardens. He thought the air might clear my head."
"Has it?"
"Not in the slightest."
Nathan gave a short laugh, though there was little mirth in it. He looked out across the hedges, his hands folded behind his back. His coat was still damp at the shoulders from earlier patrols, the scent of rain clinging to him.
"You're thinking about him again," he said quietly.
Evelina glanced up at him. "I suppose I am. It feels impossible not to."
He studied her for a moment, then nodded. "I understand."
"Do you?" she asked
"Not entirely," Nathan admitted. "But I know what it's like to want something you should probably leave alone."
Evelina gave a small smile. "You sound like Father."
"Father speaks for reasons. I speak in regrets."
She tilted her head. "You have regrets?"
He laughed softly. "Several. Though most of them are less poetic than yours."
They both fell silent for a while. The sound of the fountain filled the space between them. The afternoon light slipped through the drifting clouds, washing the garden in silver.
"Father thinks I should forget him," Evelina said.
Thomas's expression softened. "He thinks you should stay safe."
"There is a difference."
"There is," he agreed. "Father has seen what this court can do. He knows that sometimes survival costs more than honesty."
Evelina turned toward him, her voice low. "Do you think Lucian is as dangerous as everyone says?"
Thomas sighed. "I think Lucian Ravenscroft was born into a dangerous world, and he learned to survive in it better than most. But that does not mean he is safe to love."
She frowned. "I am not a child, Nathan. I do not need protection from my own heart."
He looked at her then, his gaze full of something she could not quite name. "You will always have my protection," he said simply. "That is what brothers do. Even when we are not wanted."
She smiled in spite of herself. "You never stop trying to rescue me."
"I never will."
He moved a little closer, his tone gentler now. "Evee, you have always seen the best in people. You saw it in Father when others called him cold. You saw it in me when I was nothing but reckless. But you must be careful about the men you believe in. Lucian Ravenscroft walks a path filled with shadows, and those shadows follow him. You may not see them now, but they will find you."
Evelina drew a breath. "He would never hurt me."
"I don't think he would mean to," Nathan said. "But meaning is not the same as consequence. The Grand Duke has begun to move against him. The whispers about the two of you are spreading, and Montclair will use them if it weakens his enemy. You know how this game is played."
"I am not a pawn in their game."
Nathan gave her a sad smile. "No one ever thinks they are until they are moved."
Evelina lowered her gaze. "You sound like a man who has already lost."
He hesitated, then reached out and brushed a strand of damp hair from her face. "I just do not want to lose you," he said softly. "If this ends badly, promise me you will come home. Promise me you will let me keep you safe."
She nodded, her voice barely audible. "I promise."
He kissed her forehead, the same way he had when she was small. "Good. Then remember that I am on your side, no matter what happens."
With that, he turned back toward the house, his figure tall and steady against the light. She watched him until the doors closed behind him and the garden fell quiet again.
The wind stirred, carrying the faint scent of rain and roses. Evelina sank onto the stone bench beside the fountain. Her heart ached, but there was something steady in her brother's words. She knew he would always protect her, but there were things even he could not fight.
She looked up toward the sky, where a break in the clouds revealed a thin line of sunlight. For the first time in days, she let herself breathe.
If Lucian still thought of her, if he still believed in what they shared, then maybe the world was not yet lost to whispers and deceit.
LUCIAN
The study smelled faintly of smoke and ink. Lucian sat beside the wide window, watching the city breathe beneath the fading afternoon. The palace spires rose in the distance, gilded and cold.
He had not slept. The messages from his informants had arrived one after another since dawn. Each one confirmed what he had already suspected.
Montclair had begun to move.
The Grand Duke's allies met in secret chambers, their letters passing through unseen hands, their influence stretching like a shadow across the court. The whispers had begun in the ballroom, but now they reached every noble's ear. They spoke of ambition, of betrayal, of a scandal that tied Ravenscroft's name to a woman he was never meant to touch.
Lucian sat very still, his expression calm but his jaw tight.
When the door opened, one of his shadows entered, cloaked in gray. The man bowed low before speaking. "My lord. The reports are confirmed. Montclair's faction is spreading word that you have compromised Lady Everleigh. They suggest she's using you to gain influence on the court."
Lucian's eyes lifted slowly. "They turn affection into weaponry. It is the oldest trick in the court."
"There is more," the shadow continued. "Lady Selina Marlowe is being positioned by the Crown Princess. Her name is already on the lips of the council. They call her the future Duchess of Ravenscroft."
Lucian's gaze hardened. "That's the Queen's work."
"She believes it will protect you." the shadow continued.
"They believe that aligning me to Selina will tie me more tightly to the royal family. It may protect the throne, but it will destroy what little truth remains in my life."
The shadow hesitated. "What will you do?"
Lucian stood and crossed to the window. The afternoon light caught his reflection, the faint trace of exhaustion beneath his eyes. He had built his life on careful restraint, but today it felt like a chain.
"Montclair's whispers will grow," he said. "He will reach for every thread until the court is tangled beyond repair. And when he fails to find weakness in me, he will reach for her."
"The Lady Everleigh."
"Yes."
Lucian turned from the window, his decision made before he even spoke it. "I need to see her. Tonight."
"That may not be wise," the shadow said. "The Everleigh guards watch every road leading to the manor. Any meeting between you would only add to the rumors."
"I do not care about the rumors," Lucian replied. "I care about her safety."
He reached for the desk, taking up a sheet of parchment and dipping his pen into the ink. His hand moved quickly, the words precise.
Evee,
There are things you must hear from me, not from those who wish to twist them. Do not be afraid. Come after nightfall, to the back alley behind the candle shop by the South Wall. The one owned by Whitcombe. You will be safe there. I swear it.
— Lucian
He folded the letter and pressed the Ravenscroft seal into the wax, the black crest glinting as it cooled.
He handed it to the shadow. "Take this to her. You must not be seen. Deliver it to her hand alone. If anyone asks who you are, you were never here."
The man bowed again. "It will be done."
Lucian waited until the door closed and the room fell silent once more. He moved back to the window, staring out at the city below. The clouds had returned, faint and gray against the evening light.
He thought of Evelina walking through her garden, unaware of how quickly the world around her was darkening. The thought of her name whispered by Montclair's courtiers twisted something inside him.
He would not allow it.
The shadow of war was already upon them, and love was a dangerous thing to guard, but he would not abandon it. Not now.
Lucian poured the last of the wine from the decanter and drank slowly. The taste was bitter, but it steadied him.
"Hold fast, Evelina," he said softly into the stillness. "We will face them together."
Outside, the first drops of rain began to fall again, light and uncertain, like the beginning of something neither could yet name.
And somewhere beyond the walls of the manor, a silent messenger rode into the night, carrying a single letter sealed in black.