Page 33 of A Rose Among Snakes (Gardens of Ruin and Revival)

Chapter Thirty-Two

Mihrra

I was settling into my new role as a housemaid. Every morning, Mrs. Shulling assigned me new duties such as sweeping, mopping, or dusting every surface. One day she had nothing for me, and I really did muck out the stalls, but I didn’t mind. I needed to stay busy and keep my head down. Focusing on my work was the best way to knit together my shattered heart. All my hopes of a developing relationship with Velian disintegrated the moment I found the ring in his pocket. I was trying not to let my imagination run wild, but I was dying for an opportunity to snoop in his study.

It had been three weeks since our night at the beach, and I had found every possible way to avoid Velian since. He tried apologizing the following morning, but I brushed it off and went back to sweeping the floor. I couldn’t look him in the eyes. If I did, I would forgive him, and I had to hold onto that mistrust. Whenever I started to miss him, I repeated Regalla’s warning to me: Not everyone is as they seem. It was only a dream that I missed.

My unease increased every day I didn’t receive a letter from Kezara. I believed her when she told me she would write to me the night of the ball. That afternoon, I was in a particularly bad mood, polishing the handrail of the staircase with more force than necessary when a voice cried out in frustration.

Velian walked out of his study holding his hands out, a sprawling ink stain spread over his shirt and pants. He glanced around and we made eye contact before I could scurry away. I ignored the way my heart jumped when he looked at me, reminding myself to be wary.

“Mihrra, I spilled ink all over my study. Will you please clean it up as best as possible? I have a meeting I need to go to town for.”

I pressed my lips together, pushing back my excitement. It was the opportunity I had been waiting for.

“Of course. Let me get the proper supplies.”

“Thank you,” he said, wiping his hands on his pants. I kept my gaze straight forward as we walked toward each other, heading in opposite directions, his eyes boring a hole into me.

As I passed him, he said, “Mihrra, is something wrong?”

I paused, locking eyes with him over my shoulder. “Not at all.”

He hesitated, then threw his hands up in the air and shook his head as he continued up the stairs.

Triumph glowed in my chest as I grabbed a handful of rags and cleaning solution from the storage closet and stepped into Velian’s study. I was struck by the scent of parchment and leather from the hundreds of books that sat on the shelves lining the walls. His familiar aroma of cedar and spice filled me with fluttering, but I squashed the feeling and closed the door behind me .

Though I had been in there twice, I had yet to fully take in the room. On the wall beside the window was a large portrait of a regal woman. I walked closer and read the engraved tag at the bottom of the wooden frame.

Faedria Blaise.

She bore an uncanny resemblance to Kezara with her hazel eyes and curly brown hair, but her smile was Velian’s, from the way it lit up her entire face to the matching dimples. I ran my finger along the frame, taking another moment to admire the beautiful woman, lamenting the fact I would never get to meet her.

Turning away, I walked over to the desk where a spilled ink bottle still dripped onto the cream-colored rug. I turned the bottle upright and dipped the rag in the cleaning solution and dabbed at the stain. I poured the solution directly on the ink-soaked rug and let it sit.

I stood and used a second rag to wipe up the spill from the desk. A drenched piece of parchment sat next to the bottle, the beginning of a letter blotched out with ink. I crumpled it up and threw it into the wastebasket next to his desk. As I was wiping up more of the ink, a note caught my eye.

Velian,

You are behind on your shipments. An expedited delivery is expected, and you will need to double the amount next month. Do whatever it takes to make it happen. Remember, I could have you replaced in an instant, but doing so would bring great harm to those you love .

There was no signature, and I had no guesses as to who it was from. I chewed on my lip, disconcerted by the vagueness. I wondered what kind of shipments it was referring to, and my mind brought back the image of the hidden case that had come with us to the castle.

Guilt prickled inside me for invading his privacy, but I assured myself I was doing what was best for my family. If he had been involved in my father’s death, then I wouldn’t feel an ounce of remorse. The note did nothing to assuage my concerns regarding Velian’s honesty. I set it to the side and continued wiping up the desk. I worked on the rug a little more, then found other spots that had dripped off his hands as he walked. While those soaked, I checked the cabinet next to his desk.

A gentle squeak sounded as I opened the door, and I paused to make sure I didn’t hear footsteps. When I was confident, I skimmed through the documents which were all kinds of business logs. I found one labeled ‘Employees’ and opened it immediately. Finding that ring in Velian’s pocket made me wonder if my father received it as some kind of compensation or gift from the Blaise family.

The log went back sixty-four years, and my heart pounded as I thumbed through the pages looking for dates that would have been when my father could have worked here. I found the page showing dates from twenty years prior and slowed down, scanning every name for my father’s. My eyes stumbled on the name ‘Goranos Novenna.’ My father’s name was Gorham Nowen, but would he have used a fake name? I couldn’t think of a reason why. The title beside the name said, ‘Enforcer.’

I never knew what my father did for work, but if he was an ‘Enforcer’—whatever that was—I didn’t like the sound of it. It sounded violent, and that was the opposite of who my father was. Swallowing down my anxiety, I continued flipping through the pages, but I didn’t see anything closer to my father’s name. I did see Corman and Denzen were both hired within the last four years, while Paolef was hired nine years ago, also with the title of Enforcer. My father died nine years ago. If my father was Goranos Novenna, then was Paolef hired to replace him?

I slammed the book shut, clenching my jaw and groaning through my teeth. Heavy footsteps sounded in the hallway, and I scrambled to replace the ledger and close the cabinet, coughing to muffle the squeak as it shut. I dropped to my hands and knees to scrub the nearest ink splotch on the floor just as Velian poked his head through the door.

"Any progress?" he asked.

"Yes, some," I answered, keeping my head down and hoping my breathlessness came across as exertion and not fear.

"I'll leave you to it then. Thank you, Mihrra." He paused like he was waiting for my reply, and when I continued scrubbing instead, he closed the door as he left. I sat back on my heels and blew out a deep breath, my body still tingling with alarm. What would have happened if he'd caught me?

I shut my eyes and lifted my face to the ceiling. I had hoped to find answers, but I ended up with more questions. A hare-brained thought hopped around my mind, and as I got back to work on the stains, I decided to follow it.