"Give a minute," Alina said.
Lady Talbot nodded and left.
Alina slowly turned back to Austin. He looked calm but she knew him well enoughl to notice his tight jaw and clenched fists.
"Explain," he said.
Alina swallowed.
"I’m...I’m in contact with Rosilyn through the Blood Ink Pact," she confessed. "I t her during my first eting with the pact numbers. Honesty, even I was surprised to see her there," she explained calmly.
"And you didn’t bother to tell ?"
"I wanted to," she replied imdiately. "But I never got the chance. When you found about the pact, you were already so angry. At the sa ti, we had to visit the king. Then Aracsedia happened....There was so much going on already."
Austin looked away from her with an unreadable expression.
"Moreover, I didn’t think anything about it. To she is just another woman who is victim of the system."
Austin closed his eyes and rubbed his hand on his face. He suddenly looked exhausted rather than angry.
"Go et her," he said finally.
Alina frowned.
"Austin..."
"Go. I need a minute,"
His voice sounded strained, as if trying his best to stay calm. Alina wanted to force him to talk to her properly instead of bottling everything inside. But she also knew pushing him right now would only make things worse.
"Fine," she said. "But we’ll talk about this in when I co back. Stay here."
She then left and walked towards Lady Talbot’s room. Alina stepped inside and couldn’t recognize Rosilyn. She was sitting on the edge of the bed looking broken. Her dress was wrinkled and dusty, one sleeve torn from the shoulder. Her face and hand were covered with dirt. Her hair was tangled and there were dark circles under her eyes. She was breathing heavily as if running for a long ti.
But what scared Alina the most was fear in her eyes.
"What happened?" Alina asked, walking towards her.
Rosilyn turned, relief flashing across her face on seeing Alina. She opened her mouth to answer but her breathing was still uneven.
"My ex- husband...he couldn’t accept the divorce."
"What do you an?" Alina asked, sitting beside her.
"He sent...n after ...to bring back to him. He doesn’t believe I have the right to leave him," Rosilyn’s voice cracked. "He thinks I belong to him."
The words made Alina sick.
"But... didn’t you say your husband was a good man and really cared about you and agreed to the divorce without any problem."
Rosilyn shivered.
"He was... but I don’t know what happened later. Suddenly, I started recieving letters from him," she told her. "At first he begged to co back. Then he started threatening ."
Lady Talbot who was standing by the door with her arms crossed finally spoke.
"n are like that only," she said. "They are nice and kind to you as long as you stay in their control. The mont you step away from them, they show you their real colours."
Rosilyn quickly wiped her face as she continued speaking.
"When I ignored the letters, he sent n after ," she said. "They tried to take by force outside one of pact’s safe houses."
Alin’s eyes widened in horror.
"They tried to kidnap you?"
Rosilyn nodded.
"If Eleanor’s people hadn’t arrived in ti..." she couldn’t finish.
"Don’t worry. You’re safe here," Alina said as she took her trembling hands.
"The pact is still small," Lady Talbot said grimly. "It isn’t strong enough yet to fight powerful noblen openly."
Rosilyn nodded and lowered her head.
"He already knows about several safe houses now," she whispered. "I couldn’t stay there anymore."
She lifted her eyes and looked atAlina desperately.
"I didn’t know where else to go."
Alina gently rubbed her back while she tried to calm her breathing.
"Can I stay here?" Rosilyn asked, after a few seconds. "Just until I figure out what to do next."
Alina hesitated. She would have said yes imdiately had she been so another wowan. But Rosilyn was Austin’s forr bed warr. Her living in the castle, even temporarily could complicate everything. The nobles and servants would have sothing to talk again and Audrey would sohow use it to her own advantage.
But when she looked at Rosilyn and her terrible state, the complications faded into the background.
"Please," Rosilyn almost begged. "I don’t want to be alone. I’m really scared."
"Have you filed a report against him?" Alina asked.
Roailyn shook her head.
"I haven’t yet but I will. I’ll go to the duke myself and explain everything. I just..." she paused to catch a breath. "I just wanted to be sowhere safe first."
Alina looked at Lady Talbot for advice but her expression stayed neutral. She wanted Alina to make the decision herself.
"Rest for now," Alina finally said. "I’ll talk to Austin."
Rosilyn’s shoulders imdiately sagged with relief.
"Thank you so much," she whispered.
Alina squeezed her hand before standing up, and then left without any other word.
When she returned to her room, she found Austin standing near the fireplace.
"So?" he asked, turning to her.
"She needs help," Alina said, walking towards him. "Her husband sent n after her. They are divorced but he still wants to force her back. She needs a place to stay."
"And she ca here?"
"She ca to because of the Pact. Her husband’s n already know about the safe houses. She doesn’t have anywhere else to go."
Austin nodded, acknowledging the situation.
"So...you want her to stay?" he asked.
Alina nodded.
"What about Audrey? What about the people who will use this against us?"
"Right now, I only care about her safety."
"You know it would complicate things for us, right?"
"I know," she replied. "But she isn’t asking to stay here forever. Once her husband is caught, she can go back."
"Fine," Austin replied after a minute. "But tomorrow she needs to file an official report. I’ll ask Harrington to investigate her husband."
"Thank you," Alina smiled and threw her arms
around him, hugging him tightly.
Austin finally smiled as he held her back instinctively.
"You are always making our lives complicated," he murmured in her hair.
"And yet you still love ."
His grip tightened even more.
"That’s probably my greatest weakness."
Alina pulled back and kissed him softly.
"No," she whispered. "I think it’s your greatest strength."
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