The carriage that had taken two of the ladies of House de Lanark to the adjacent state returned with both of them, along with the Archduchess, who kept looking out of the window with the expression of a person who had suffered great injustice.
"Friendship!" Grace scoffed for the third time in a row.
"Mother, please," came Larissa's composed voice as the carriage neared its parking place at the Archduke's estate.
Grace's expression softened upon hearing Larissa's heartfelt plea, and Adela could empathize with her mother as she sensed Grace's inner struggle.
Without her knowledge of Andreas's true identity as a vampire, his ability to form a mate bond, and the fact that he had a mate before Larissa who was his second mate, the Archduchess's reservations about Andreas were firmly grounded.
"Where were you, really, Larissa?" Grace finally asked, her tone soft but still guarded.
