The Fairest Beauty

If that were true, they wouldn’t have to break her betrothal to Valten. Because if she wasn’t Duke Baldewin’s daughter, she wouldn’t be betrothed to Valten. Gabe would only need to find a way to break his betrothal to Brittola. And Brittola might not even want to marry him anymore. He hadn’t heard from her in months.

 

His spirits lifted considerably as he continued the monotonous task of cutting candlewicks. He began planning what he needed to do. He would have to go talk to this man at Gemeinhart Monastery and determine if he truly was Duke Baldewin. If Sophie found out about him, she would want to go too. But that wouldn’t be wise.

 

He remembered how much she had enjoyed hearing about Gabe’s family. She’d wanted to hear story after story about what it was like to belong to a loving family. He didn’t want her to be disappointed if this man at Gemeinhart turned out to not be her father, or if he had died or didn’t care about her. Gabe didn’t want her heart to be broken.

 

“Don’t tell Sophie about this.”

 

“Don’t even think about riding out yet. Your shoulder isn’t healed enough.”

 

Bartel had read his thoughts again. But Gabe would only wait a day or two, no matter what Bartel said. Then he’d go find Duke Baldewin himself.

 

Duchess Ermengard paid her new huntsman and watched out of the window as he left the castle and headed toward the stable — and reminded herself to tell him to shave that bushy beard. Then she stepped to her mirror to gaze at herself.

 

Sometimes it seemed as if the mirror was her only friend. It always told her the truth, comforting her by showing her that her nose was still perfect and straight, her teeth were still pearly white, and her lips were still plump and red.

 

But Sophie was still alive and living with Gabe and seven men — seven misshapen and abnormal men. At the thought of these seven, the duchess shuddered delicately, then smiled at her reflection. The men were misfits who needed to hide away in order to keep the superstitious rabble from persecuting them as men accursed and afflicted by the devil. And now they were harboring Sophie, as well as that foolish boy, Gabe, who appeared to be injured.

 

If her guards had done their job, he’d be dead.

 

Her lip curled as she thought about how she would make those seven men sorry for helping the little twit and her foolish savior. But she corrected the scowl and turned it into a smile. There, that’s better. The mirror smiled back at her, revealing the demure expression of an enchanting duchess, beautiful and desirable.

 

She could contemplate her revenge without ruining the fairness of her face or creating scowl lines on her lovely skin, couldn’t she?

 

She could not have Sophie and Gabe running around telling people that she had mistreated the lovely daughter of Duke Baldewin, that she, the duchess of Hohendorf, had faked the poor girl’s death. They would speculate that she had murdered Duke Baldewin. Sophie and Gabe must die — keep smiling — and so must their new friends, the seven who lived in the cottage in the woods. Yes, once she disposed of Sophie, she would have them all killed. And she would have to accomplish the task herself, naturally. If a beautiful duchess wanted something done, especially revenge, then that clever, beautiful duchess must do it herself.

 

Yes, she still had a lovely smile. Much fairer than the smile of a dead girl. Much fairer than the grinning skull of a poisoned … rotting … miserable dead girl.

 

Keep smiling.

 

Sophie kept busy cooking and cleaning for the Seven and enjoyed the sense of family around her.

 

But Sophie thought about Gabe almost every moment, wondering where he was and what he was doing. It seemed that Dominyk and Bartel had conspired to keep him busy. For two days she and Gabe hadn’t spent any time alone, and she had only seen him at meals and after supper, when he played with Siggy and Dominyk. Sophie found herself looking forward to that time when she could sit in the corner and watch Gabe play and listen to him sing. She loved music, but she loved his voice even more.

 

Gabe’s skin seemed to glow tonight. He had worked outdoors quite a bit in the garden lately, giving him a healthy complexion, and he seemed at ease and happy with the other men. They all seemed to like him too. Sophie sighed happily as she settled into her corner, Gabe’s gaze frequently finding her there.

 

Gabe didn’t pick up his lute. Instead, he walked over and whispered something to Siggy, who winked at him and started playing. Then he turned and strode purposefully toward Sophie.

 

She held her sewing in her lap, her heart thumping hard against her chest. He looked so handsome, with the cocky half grin. Yet there was a vulnerability in his warm brown eyes that twisted her stomach. She longed to throw her arms around him and be embraced by his warmth and his scent, but she was much too aware of the seven pairs of eyes watching them.

 

Gabe held his hand out to her as he approached. “Dance with me.”

 

Sophie shook her head. “I don’t know how.” It would have been embarrassing in itself if she hadn’t been afraid of embarrassing herself worse by being in Gabe’s arms in front of the seven men.

 

Dickerson, Melanie's books