The Poison Plot (Legacy of the Lost Empire Book 1) by Hannah Silver

Author:Hannah Silver [Silver, Hannah]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: court intrigue, strong female protagonist, coming of age fantasy
Publisher: Hannah Silver
Published: 2023-10-26T16:00:00+00:00

18TH DAY, MONTH OF STARS

1422 A. F. L. E.

Scaramuzza townhouse, Donia City

Over the next few days, Marguerite withdrew into herself. She listlessly followed Etienna, who had invited her friends to celebrate the Yule holiday at the Scaramuzza townhouse, onto the barge for Donia City. Her friends buzzed with excitement around her as they chattered about their plans for the next week. Even meeting her Aunt Ismini and being given her mother’s old bedroom didn’t cheer Marguerite up. She retreated behind the bedroom doors, only emerging for meals or when summoned. After three days of this behavior, her friends had had enough. It was time for a change.

Marguerite was sitting in an armchair next to her window, looking out at the rain on the gardens below, when Etienna slipped into her room, followed closely by Ceridwen and Jessamyne. Inwardly, Marguerite groaned. She wanted to be left to her thoughts. But she couldn’t be rude to her friends, so she stood up. “What can I do for you?”

“Great-grandfather had an obsession with hiding his wealth. He made his servants put little hidden cubbyholes and secret storage areas throughout the house. We found most of them, but there are still ones we don’t know about.” Etienna grinned slyly. “We’ve looked all over the house, but not in here. Want to help?”

Marguerite gave a little sigh. “I suppose I could. Am I looking for anything in particular?”

Etienna shrugged. “Hidden switches, trapdoors, anything that sounds hollow when it shouldn’t... He thought of everything.”

“Very well.” Marguerite turned to inspect the walls for hidden panels. Ceridwen copied her movements on the far side of the room. Etienna and Jessamyne hunted along the floorboards. Each girl worked quietly by herself until Etienna cried out, “I found one!”

Marguerite turned to see her cousin on her hands and knees by the fireplace. A space three bricks high by two bricks wide had swung outward as though on hinges. Etienna carefully reached in and pulled out a book.

“What is this?” Her cousin dusted off the cover before holding it up for the rest of the girls to see.

Marguerite looked up and studied the object in her cousin’s hand. It looked suspiciously familiar to... “Mother’s diary!” she cried, bolting to the foot of the bed. She threw her trunk open and rummaged around until she found the diary.

Bringing it over to Etienna, she compared the two books, her friends looking on over her shoulder. The book from the compartment matched the one Marguerite had found in her desk. It had the same red leather cover. The same creamy paper. In fact, that only two differences that Marguerite could find were that the book from the compartment looked much better cared for than the one from home. It wasn’t charred and half-burned. That, and that the initials on the new book didn’t include her mother’s married name.

“Perhaps they were part of a set?” Jessamyne mused.

“They must have been,” replied Marguerite. “Or someone intended them to be. See, the burned copy has her married initials, but they must have given this one to her before she married Papa.

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