Chapter 27

Merdi stared blankly out the window. Once she was alone in the carriage, the life she’d shown Vincent drained from her face. She found herself wishing the carriage would simply roll on forever, that it would never have to stop. But she knew it was a foolish wish. By sunset, the carriage would inevitably arrive at Count Melvitch’s estate. Merdi watched the last rays of sunlight disappear below the mountain ridge, then glanced at her reflection in the glass. The scar on her cheek, though concealed by makeup, was faintly visible. The wound might be covered, but the memory of Margaret’s overbearing presence that day was etched into her mind, along with the pathetic futility of her own resistance.