Page 105 of Poison Vows

“Yes, Young Miss.”

“Why?”

“I’m not sure, Young Miss.”

“Can I decline?”

“No, Young Miss.”

Urgh!

CHAPTER 17

Ivy

I haveno idea where Ripley is taking me, but I follow silently with Ty right behind me.

My mind is abuzz with so many questions, chief among them is Emmett’s whereabouts but for some reason, I don’t think I can ask now. Not with Ripley present.

That is until an opportunity appears.

When we get to a crossroads of sorts in a large foyer, Ripley turns to look at me and bows again.

“Young Miss, please proceed. I have other matters to take care of.”

“Uh, thank you, sir.”

“Oh, no need to call me that. Just Ripley will do.”

“I… I don’t feel comfortable with that,” I hesitate. Grammy will pinch me for being disrespectful to an elder like that. “How about Sir Ripley?”

At this, Ripley’s stoic face transforms into some sort of smile, then he looks at me with a fond gaze.

“The young mistress used to call me that,” he says in a soft tone. “I never thought I’d hear that again.”

The glint of melancholy in his eyes is so sincere and sad, I feel it in my heart.

“Do you mean Emmett’s mother, by any chance?” I ask quietly.

Ripley smiles genuinely this time, the corner of his eyes crinkling. “You’ve met her before, yes?”

“A long, long time ago,” I whisper. “I’m afraid I’ve forgotten what she looked like.”

“Oh, I believe you’ve been seeing her eyes all your life,” Ripley says gently, then he bows his head one more time before he leaves.

While I’m in a buzz of curiosity over what Ripley just said, Ty comes forward and gestures for me to follow him.

I nod and then walk behind him, thinking.

If Ty is here, could it be that Emmett is here somewhere, likely watching me?

The flutter of excitement I always feel whenever I know I’m about to see Emmett is all but nonexistent.

In its place is an entirely different feeling…and intention.

Determination, after all, is its own form of power.

Ty leads me up two flights of stairs, then down a long hallway before we go down another flight of stairs, like a long march to hell.

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