The presence of Lady Celestine Harrowmont created the perfect distraction Alora needed.
Celestine had positioned herself beside Valdrian with practiced ease, her scarlet gown flowing like liquid fire beneath the candlelight of the ballroom. Her laughter rang out brightly as she leaned toward him, her hand resting just a little too comfortably on his arm.
Alora watched the scene from across the dance floor.
Finally someone to keep the nosy Valdrian occupied, she thought with quiet satisfaction.
Celestine was many things—vain, ambitious, and painfully obvious in her determination to become the future Duchess of Balmount—but tonight she was useful.
Very useful.
After exchanging the necessary pleasantries and introductions with a few nearby guests, Alora slowly began to drift away from the center of the ballroom.
She moved carefully, deliberately blending into the sea of shimmering gowns and dark coats.
A servant carrying a silver tray of champagne glasses passed by.
Alora took one casually and lifted it to her lips.
The sparkling liquid bubbled against the rim as she took a small sip.
Then she turned slightly.
Just as she suspected.
Valdrian's eyes were still on her.
Even across the crowded ballroom, she could feel the weight of his gaze.
For a moment neither of them looked away.
Alora lifted her glass in a distant, playful toast.
His brow raised slightly in response.
Then she smiled sweetly and turned away, pretending to admire the decorations while slipping deeper into the crowd.
The orchestra swelled into another waltz.
Couples spun across the polished marble floor.
The perfect cover.
After she had covered a considerable distance, Alora glanced back over her shoulder.
From the far end of the hall she could see Valdrian again.
He was now fully engaged in conversation with Lady Celestine.
Celestine leaned toward him, her lips moving animatedly as she spoke.
Her hand still rested on his arm.
A strange, sharp sensation twisted briefly in Alora's chest.
A flicker of jealousy.
She frowned at herself immediately.
Alora, you have no time for that right now.
She turned away firmly.
This is your chance.
Without hesitation she slipped through a side corridor that branched away from the ballroom.
The music faded slightly behind her.
The hallway was quieter, lit only by occasional wall lanterns.
Her pulse quickened.
She moved quickly but carefully.
A servant appeared around the corner carrying a tray of empty glasses.
Alora flattened herself behind one of the tall decorative pillars until the woman passed.
Then she continued.
Another servant came rushing down the hallway moments later with a stack of folded linens.
Alora slipped behind a curtain and held her breath until he hurried past.
The farther she went, the quieter the castle became.
Soon the distant music was little more than a soft echo.
She was approaching the far end of the estate now.
Just as she turned another corner—
She heard giggling.
Alora froze.
Soft, breathless laughter echoed down the corridor.
She quickly pressed herself against the wall and peered around the edge of a marble column.
The corridor ahead appeared empty.
But the sound came again.
Then suddenly—
A panel in the wall shifted.
Alora's eyes widened slightly.
From a narrow hidden passage stepped Lady Seraphina Balmount.
Valdrian's younger sister looked flushed and breathless, her golden gown slightly rumpled as she smoothed the fabric hurriedly.
She glanced both ways down the corridor.
Alora quickly ducked behind the column.
Through a narrow gap she watched as Seraphina straightened her hair, took a steadying breath, and then hurried off toward the ballroom with a bright, excited smile.
A moment later—
The panel opened again.
And Thomas the footman stepped out.
He looked far less composed.
His hair was disheveled and his uniform slightly crooked as he peered nervously down the corridor.
Alora clamped a hand over her mouth to stop herself from laughing aloud.
Thomas quickly adjusted his collar before hurrying in the opposite direction.
When the corridor fell silent again, Alora finally stepped out from hiding.
"Well, well, well…" she whispered softly.
Her eyes sparkled with amusement.
A secret romance between a noble lady and a house servant.
If such a scandal were discovered by the wrong people, it would mean ruin.
Possibly worse.
But Alora only smiled faintly.
She understood secrets better than most.
And tonight, she was about to uncover one of her own.
She continued down the dim corridor.
Her destination lay just ahead.
The West Wing.
The abandoned portion of the Balmount estate that few servants dared to enter.
Soon she stood before the massive wooden doors.
The hallway here was completely dark.
Even the lanterns had been left unlit.
Alora carefully reached into the alcove where she had hidden a small lantern earlier that evening.
She pulled it free but did not light it yet.
Too risky.
Instead she felt her way along the heavy door until her fingers brushed the cold iron handle.
Slowly…
Carefully…
She turned it.
The door creaked open.
She slipped inside and closed it quietly behind her.
To her surprise, a faint lantern already burned inside the room.
Its weak glow revealed rows upon rows of tall bookshelves stretching across the walls.
Alora blinked.
An old library.
Dust hung thick in the air.
Cobwebs draped between the shelves.
The place smelled of old paper and neglect.
Her shoulders sagged slightly with disappointment.
"Surely the men did not come here in secret just to read books," she murmured to herself.
Still, she lit her own lantern and began examining the shelves.
Every book was covered in dust.
Some had not been touched in years.
Perhaps decades.
She ran a finger along one of the spines.
The dust left a clear trail.
"No one has been reading here," she whispered.
Her lantern light moved slowly across the shelves.
Then she stopped.
Near the back wall stood a small stack of books that looked… different.
Clean.
Free of cobwebs.
Her pulse quickened.
Someone had been handling these.
Recently.
She stepped closer.
Carefully she reached for one of the books.
But the moment she pulled it—
A hidden mechanism snapped loudly inside the wall.
Crack.
Alora jumped backward in alarm.
The bookshelf trembled slightly.
Then slowly…
The entire section of wall shifted inward.
Dust rained down as the shelves slid aside.
Alora stared in stunned silence.
Behind the moving shelves was a dark opening.
A narrow stone staircase spiraled downward into darkness.
A cold draft of air rushed upward from the hidden passage.
The lantern flame flickered wildly.
Alora's heart began pounding.
She stepped closer to the opening.
The stairs disappeared deep beneath the castle.
Fear crept slowly up her spine.
Whatever lay below this staircase had been hidden very deliberately.
And the Duke's secret midnight meeting had taken place somewhere within this very wing.
Which meant…
Whatever waited down there was no ordinary secret.
Her mind raced with possibilities.
Smuggling?
Political conspiracies?
Hidden prisoners?
Her hand tightened around the lantern handle.
Whatever lies beneath here…
It is powerful enough to remain buried.
A cold realization settled over her.
If discovered in this place, she would not be able to explain her presence.
And people who discovered secrets like this rarely lived long afterward.
Still…
She had come too far to turn back now.
She lifted the lantern slightly.
The golden light spilled down the spiral staircase.
Alora swallowed.
Then she stepped onto the first stone step.
The staircase creaked softly beneath her weight.
The darkness below seemed endless.
And somewhere deep in her heart she knew one thing with chilling certainty.
Whatever secret waited beneath the Balmount estate…
Had the power to change the fate of the entire kingdom.
And perhaps destroy her along with it.