Ivan, who noticed the sudden shift in her demeanour, was reminded exactly why he hadn't wanted to tell her any of this before. He rubbed her back in a gentle, calming motion as he replied,
"Drake is free only because I've been gathering enough evidence to raze his entire family to the ground. Marquees Lester had a strong foothold in the royal court, and if his son was implicated without any concrete evidence, there would have been a revolt against my father. So I have been collecting enough filth of Lester Viremont himself so that he and his son are able to escape the weight of their crimes. When I deal with things, I don't like to leave any loose ends. It's better to uproot the entire diseased tree before it spreads its rot to the others."
"Because of what happened yesterday, we were able to catch a couple of nobles who had been colluding with dark forces to gain more powers. Marquess Lester was one of them, and it was his castle where you were kept captive."
