The maid by the wall began to sob. Madeleine turned her head slowly. "Do stop making that sound."
The maid choked, then clapped her hands tighter over her mouth.
Now, everyone would start asking questions. That was the worst part. Why had the princess's maid done this? Was she unwell? Was she frightened? Had she known something? Had she seen something? Had Princess Madeleine noticed anything strange?
Of course she had noticed something strange. Sophie had spent an entire day shaking like a sinner in church.
Madeleine's jaw tightened. This was inconvenient. Deeply inconvenient. She turned and walked out of the room before anyone could mistake her presence for sympathy. "Well," she muttered under her breath, "good riddance to bad rubbish."
Guards rushed down the hallway moments later, boots striking hard against the floor. They poured into Sophie's room, followed by more servants, then whispers, then panic.
