Ryan gave a flat, approving hum. “Then put her in the family chapel.”
Two men stepped up and hauled the nearly unconscious Scarlett to her feet. As she passed Rowena, the woman’s triumphant smile stabbed at her like a blade. They threw Scarlett into the cold stone of the chapel and left her there, collapsing against the floor. Footsteps announced Rowena’s entrance; she stalked in heels, deliberate and poised.
“Do you know why the chapel?” Rowena purred as she crouched to cup Scarlett’s chin with two nails of ice. “Ryan said you should be made to think about your sins in front of your ancestors.”
Rowena circled like a viper, then crouched and tilted Scarlett’s chin with a fingertip that was all ice. “Do you really think he ever loved you?”
Her words came slow, designed to wound. “He took you in, trained you, showed kindness now and then—but only because you were useful. Because you reminded him of a stray dog he had once as a child.”
Scarlett opened her mouth to protest, but the sound died in her throat.