“I LOVE HER!” Evryn burst out. “Do neither of you understand that?” He turned his desperate gaze toward Lady Rivenna. “Grandmother,I love her. She and Iwillhave a future together, and we would very much like it if both our families could be part of that future.”
Silence descended. Mariselle’s heart thrummed as Evryn’s words rang in her ears.
I love her.
She and Iwillhave a future together.
But the two grandmothers stood rigid, their gazes fixed on anything but each other, the weight of decades pressing down upon all of them like a physical force.
“You were friends,” Mariselle said quietly, and the look that shot instantly between her grandmother and Lady Rivenna told her that her guess was right. “Close friends,” she added. “That’s why there is so much hurt here. The deepest wounds can only be inflicted by those we hold dear.”
Another silence fell as the two grandmothers regarded each other, something unspoken passing between them.
“Perhaps,” Lady Nirella said carefully, “it is time certain truths were told.”
Lady Rivenna’s expression remained impassive, but she gave a single, terse nod. “Very well.”
Chapter Thirty
Mariselle watchedas Rivenna moved toward the window seat, her hands clasped tightly in front of her, while her own grandmother settled on the edge of the sofa, arms crossed defensively over her chest. The tension between them was almost tangible, a delicate spiderweb stretching across the room, decades of hurt and anger woven into its threads.
Mariselle looked at Evryn, her heart suddenly pounding oddly in her chest. He inclined his head toward the armchairs, and she moved to sit beside him.
“Where do we begin?” Rivenna asked quietly.
“With Seravine,” Nirella replied, her voice sharp with old pain. “It all began with her.”
“Sera,” Mariselle murmured. “The teacup labels,” she added in a whisper to Evryn. He nodded.
“Lady Seravine Bluebell,” Rivenna said without turning from the window. “She was a childhood friend of mine. The Bloom Season had just begun and I … I invited her to Bloomhaven. Her first Season here.” Her shoulders sagged slightly, and there was something in that small gesture that spoke of decades of guilt.
“Krenshaw and your Great-Uncle Thaelan had built Dreamland into something magnificent,” Nirella continued, nodding at Evryn when shementioned Thaelan. “It all began in this little cottage, and even though it had grown into so much more, we still met here regularly. Krenshaw and I, Rivenna and Valenrik—newly married—and Thaelan. We were close.”
“And then … Seravine,” Rivenna sighed. She turned away from the window and joined them in the sitting area, settling into a seat across from Nirella.
“Thaelan was immediately captivated by her,” Nirella continued. “Do you remember how he would craft tiny lumyrite sculptures of whatever caught her eye during their walks?”
Rivenna nodded, a ghost of a smile crossing her lips before it disappeared. Mariselle’s mind immediately conjured an image of the tiny lumyrite pegasus Evryn had fashioned for her. The realization that he had unknowingly echoed his great-uncle’s romantic gesture sent a strange shiver through her, as though their present was somehow echoing the past.
“He courted her earnestly,” Nirella continued. “Showed her all of Dreamland’s wonders. He was so hopeful. But Krenshaw … myhusband…”
Mariselle watched as her grandmother bit her lip, a sheen of tears forming across her eyes. The sight was so foreign, so utterly at odds with the composed, formidable figure Mariselle knew, that she felt momentarily unmoored.
“Krenshaw and Nirella were married,” Rivenna continued, her tone careful, as if she were treading on glass that might splinter. “They had two children. From the outside their life appeared perfect. But …”
Rivenna trailed off, her eyes on Nirella, and it seemed to Mariselle that she was giving Nirella the space to continue. This was her part of the story, after all. Nirella inhaled deeply before continuing. “Our marriage had grown distant,” she said stiffly, “and Seravine began a dangerous game.”
Mariselle felt her heart begin to race faster. She could sense where this was leading, and it filled her with dread.
“She encouraged Thaelan’s affections while secretly … pursuing Krenshaw.”
“She manipulated them both,” Rivenna said, bitterness evident in her tone. “Using their friendship against them.”
Evryn leaned forward. “What happened?”
“Thaelan discovered them,” Nirella said simply. “He followed Seravineone evening and witnessed … an intimate exchange between her and Krenshaw in a private corner of Dreamland.”
Mariselle’s breath caught. “Oh.”
