Chapter 49
The staff gathered in the reception area were all too familiar. Adrina recognized each of them from her time at the family estate. In the past, they had treated her as if she were invisible, only to replace that neglect with open scorn once she assumed Adrian’s identity. Even though their expressions had settled into a mask of cold neutrality over time, she could sense their lingering unease. It was a tension she shared.
The Count arrived shortly thereafter. He shed his damp coat, handing it to an attendant before donning a fresh garment and claiming a spot on the sofa. With a sharp nod, he signaled for Adi to stop standing and sit across from him.
“Adrian.”
“I am listening, Father.”
“You are coming back to our lands with me once the celebration concludes.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Your task in this place has reached its end.”
Adi remained silent. A task? She struggled to find the meaning in that word. Her tenure with the 3rd Knights Order had been nothing but a string of petty brawls. Since joining the 2nd Knights Order, her only notable deed was preventing a single attempt on the Duke’s life.
“I haven’t achieved anything of note here.”
“On the contrary, you made things messy. You tied Roy Gallardo to the Duke’s side.”
“The strategy has shifted.”
“Is this reaction because I introduced Roy to Duke Woodpecker?”
A spark of genuine curiosity flickered in Spencer Grimaldi’s eyes for a brief moment.
“If that isn’t the cause, have you discovered a different path to reconcile with the King, my lord?”
“You think there is another way.”
“The Crown Prince hardly seems like the type to meet your requirements.”
“You have a talent for speculating without any facts. However, you are mistaken.”
Spencer leaned back. “When the two of you were born…”
Adi’s face became a map of conflicting emotions. The Count had never spoken of their childhood; their very birth was treated like a shameful secret.
“I used to think that if I had been blessed with two sons instead of twins of different genders, it would have been simpler. I could have just picked the stronger one.”
“If things had been different, I likely would have picked you.”
The thought of being born a man was a ghost that had haunted Adi many times before.
“The other child was far too fragile. That is why I wished you had been the boy.”
It was shocking to realize that Spencer Grimaldi harbored the same dark fantasies she once had. Regardless, such a revelation would have devastated Adrian. It seemed her brother had never truly known a father’s love either. For his sake—
“It is time for the name Adrian Grimaldi to be buried in the earth as well.”
Adi had resolved to live a full life in her brother’s stead, but the Count’s vision for the future was far more grim.
“Are you saying you want me dead?”
“The Grimaldi legacy requires a true heir to carry the bloodline, not a liability who creates friction and blocks my path.”
Spencer’s eyes locked onto hers, scanning her features.
“A legitimate…”
His gaze drifted downward before slowly returning to her face.
“A child truly of my own making.”
His eyes lingered on her long, golden waves, showing a hint of agitation. It was likely a reaction to her refusal to crop her hair as he had demanded.
“The implications are clear to you, I assume?”
Everything would change once she returned to the manor.
“Lev mentioned that a formal betrothal isn’t required. We won’t be making a public announcement.”
Adrian would truly cease to exist.
“We will tell the world we took in a child from a minor branch of the family.”
And Adrina would spend the rest of her days as a shadow.
“Tell me,” Adi said, her voice steady.
“If the Crown Prince wasn’t an option, how did you plan to employ me?”
“You must have had a backup plan for the possibility that His Highness wouldn’t invite you to Pallesa Palace.”
Spencer let out a dry chuckle. “True, at that time…”
“I considered the possibility of crowning a different king entirely.”
The reigning monarch, the heir apparent, Woodpecker, and the rest of the royal line flashed through Adi’s mind.
“Seatng a new king is a simple matter. One just needs a candidate with enough blood right who is willing to follow orders.”
It was obvious that Spencer valued compliance over legitimacy. The Crown Prince was far from submissive, and Duke Woodpecker was hardly the type to take direction. This realization sparked a new doubt. Why had the Count insisted she protect the Duke’s life?
What was his ultimate endgame, and who was the real pawn?
Thunder shook the sky once more. A flash of lightning illuminated the room, catching the Count in a momentary, knowing grin. It felt as though he was reading every frantic thought in her head.
Adi forced herself to pivot. She couldn’t afford to get lost in his schemes or worry about the distant future.
“I understand.”
She had originally intended to betray him, but survival had to come first. She needed to find an opening to flee.
The Count’s lack of trust and his inability to bend her to his will would eventually become his greatest weakness.
“I will follow your instructions.”
In this moment, there was only one person she could turn to for help.
“Make sure you incinerate those garments as soon as the task is finished.”
It was either the Crown Prince or Duke Woodpecker.
*
The walk from the Count’s quarters to the Duke’s drawing room was short. Adi spent every step agonizing over a way out. The Duke had promised her a favor. If she managed to lift his curse, would that be her ticket to freedom? Could she finally leave the Grimaldi shadow behind?
The attendants at the door recoiled when they saw the grim set of her jaw as she approached.
They knew she had just come from the Count and clearly suspected a disaster. Although her shift hadn’t officially started, Adi made a beeline for the Duke’s private room. Bert was exiting just as she arrived. “You’re back already?” he noted. Adi gave a sharp nod.
“Is the Duke available?”
“He is. Is there a problem?”
“I need to speak with him. Is he entertaining anyone?”
“He’s alone. Go on in.”
Adi didn’t wait. She knocked once, stepped inside, and slammed the door shut. Bert watched the door for a second, baffled by her intensity, before continuing on his way.
Inside, Yuls was startled. He was enjoying a rare moment of quiet after a hectic day. He hadn’t expected visitors, and his staff were supposed to be resting. He had sent Bert on a task and was wondering who was crashing into his sanctuary, only to see it was Adi Grimaldi.
She was early for her shift. Yuls opened his mouth to ask what was happening, but the word died in his throat.
Adi lunged forward, seized his cravat, and jerked him upward. The movement was a blur. Had the Count just ordered her to assassinate him?
Even though she was smaller, the sheer force of her presence felt dangerous. Yuls still felt uncoordinated in his rapidly shifting body; his new height made him clumsy, and he wasn’t sure he could physically restrain her in this state.
Then, his train of thought shattered. Adi’s mouth crashed against his.
He was paralyzed by confusion. What was Adrian Grimaldi doing?
After several frantic kisses, Adi broke away, her breath hitching. Yuls stared down at her, his expression a mix of shock and total incomprehension. Adi reached up to touch his face. His skin was smooth, devoid of any shadow of a beard. He hadn’t aged a day.
“I expect an explanation for this, Adrian Grimaldi.”
“My Lord, how did you manage to grow older before?”
“What are you talking about?”
“I have to break this curse.”
“I agree. But the process is a mystery to us both, and you are the only one who can trigger the change, Guard.”
“But you doubted me.”
“I watched it happen with my own eyes. I am a believer now.”
Adi recalled that day clearly—watching the Duke transform while he slept. It hadn’t looked like a spell. It was as if the natural progression of time, which usually moves too slowly for the eye to catch, had suddenly accelerated. There were no magical sparks, just the visible flow of his life moving forward.
“I have my reasons for needing the curse gone, but what is your motivation?”
“Because you promised to grant me a wish.”
“You’re doing all this for a favor? What could you possibly want that badly?”
“I want to stay alive.”
“Is someone threatening you?”
“Yes.”
“Who would have the nerve?”
“Count Grimaldi.”
“Your father?” Yuls sounded skeptical. Would a man really go that far against his own son?
“My life ends when the festival does.”
Her tone was so chillingly certain that Yuls’s eyes sharpened. He wondered if the Count had found a replacement heir.
“Very well.”
Regardless of the family drama, Adrian Grimaldi was far too skilled to lose. He was an asset that needed to be preserved.
“It would be a pity if you died before completing your task.”
At those words, Adi felt a cold realization sink in. It was her second major miscalculation. Perhaps she simply didn’t understand how these powerful men operated.
The Duke wasn’t helping her out of the goodness of his heart, any more than the Count was. He was using her. He spoke of wishes only because their goals happened to align for the moment.
If she broke the curse now—before she could escape the Grimaldi reach—she might be handing him exactly what he wanted.
“Tell me what I must do.”
If she was dead, he wouldn’t have to fulfill his end of the bargain.
The Duke likely wanted the curse lifted immediately so he could be done with her. Adi took a cautious step back.
She had been a fool.
“What is the matter?”
Trusting the Duke was a luxury she couldn’t afford.
