Exposed and vulnerable, Adela pulled the bed sheets up and covered her naked heart, unprotected by a ribcage and bleeding out.
"How could you have let this happen? That bird is a part of you!"
She gazed back at the Archduchess with no expression and struggled to keep her breathing even.
Larissa who stood on the left side of the bed right next to her mother eyed her sister with sympathy, she knew her well enough to guess what seethed beneath her calm surface.
"Mother is right, Adela… Won't you please give it a second thought?"
"Just remembering how your father reacted to the news…" Grace shuddered. "I am truly concerned for his health,"
Adela tensed when Larissa nodded.
"I heard the maids talking, father wreaked havoc in his study upon receiving the signeted agreement for Kannen's exchange. He yelled about his stolen pride… And his stolen daughter,"
