Violet_167

Isabella Beaumont figured she was making a smart, if desperate, trade: her freedom in exchange for marrying the dreaded Duke Alaric Thorne. 
Sure, the guy had a reputation darker than a moonless night, whispered about in every corner of the kingdom, but it was just a contract, right? A way to escape a brutal past that had literally left its mark on her face. 
She wasn’t expecting warmth, and definitely not passion. But then Alaric, this formidable, feared man, starts acting… protective. His unexpected kindness will make her want to throw away her protective mask and actually fall for the man who was supposed to be just her ticket to freedom. 
Just as Isabella starts believing she might actually deserve happiness, everything begins falling apart around them.
With the villains on the loose, old wounds being ripped open, and everyone’s true colors showing, is this sudden, fierce love strong enough to survive the storm? Or will the darkness from their pasts and the deadly games shatter everything they’re starting to build?

The Masked Duchess

The glass vial caught the lamplight as I turned it in my fingers, tiny droplets of dark liquid clinging to its interior. Jasper's revelation hung heavy in the study where I'd taken him for our private conversation. His hands hadn't stopped shaking since he'd handed me this damning evidence.


"Tell me everything again, from the beginning," I commanded, keeping my voice even despite the anger building inside me. "Leave nothing out."


Jasper swallowed hard, his weathered face pale with fear. "As I said, Your Grace, Lady Beatrix approached me the night you took Lady Isabella away. She was... different. Calm but determined."


"She said, 'Reginald has become a liability we can no longer afford. His gambling will destroy us all.'" Jasper's voice quavered. "She handed me that vial and instructed me to add it to the Baron's nightcap. When I hesitated, she—" He broke off, shoulders hunching forward.


Chapter 85 - The Unraveling of a Wicked Web