It was happening because of her. She was to blame. She had gotten up convinced that she could allow herself to go to him, and she’d done it, and now she was paying the price. It was no more than she deserved if she did lose him.
But he doesn’t deserve it!
She would do whatever had to be done. She would leave Westcourt and never come back if that was what it took. But he had to be spared. She found herself praying—please, please, let him be all right. I’ll leave tonight. Just please let him be spared.
She was hardly aware of the physician entering the room and moving to Thomas’s side, but when he spoke, she realized he had been there for some time. “What did he have to drink?”
“What?” Henrietta sounded startled.
“To drink. Did he drink something before he collapsed?”
“The tea,” Madeleine whispered. “We were having tea…”
A footman pushed past her and hurried down the stairs, presumably to retrieve the teacups.
“I think he’s been poisoned,” the physician said.
Madeleine felt dizzy. “What?”
“The symptoms are consistent with poisoning. There’s a rare herb that would have done this. But if I examine the drinks, I’ll know for certain. Did anyone else have any of what he was having?”
Madeleine shook her head, remembering Rachel pushing away her cup.Thank goodness. She herself hadn’t taken a sip of the tea yet, and Henrietta, of course, had turned it down.
The physician examined the tea, sniffed the cup, and nodded. “It’s as I suspected,” he said. “This is a common toxin. Just how much of it did he have?”
“Not much,” Henrietta said, her voice shaking slightly. “Just a sip.”
“Then he will recover,” the physician said.
Everyone around the room exhaled. Madeleine felt light-headed.
He’s going to live.
But the tea had been hers.
It had only been in everyone’s cup because it had been sent toher. Because she had offered it to them.
This was the form the curse was taking. She saw it all so clearly.
And she knew what she had to do.
She got up, hurried out of the room, and went into the hall, where she nearly tripped over Rachel, kneeling by the door with her ear pressed up to it.
“Is he all right?” Rachel demanded.
“He will be.” Madeleine couldn’t bear to explain what had happened. It was too dreadful.
“Where are you going?”
“I’m going back to Kellet,” Madeleine said, her eyes filling with tears. “I’m going back to my uncle.”
“Back to your uncle? I don’t understand.”
“I can’t stay here. This is all my fault, Rachel.”
“Of course it isn’t!”
“That poison would never have been in his cup if not for me.”
