Page 73 of Sincerely, Secretary of Doom

He did not expect to have to watch his mother walk away from the palace with a straw basket of her belongings and a black rose wreath upon her head.

But what Luc did not expect the most was to be trapped with Prince Reval forever. To forever be cruel, instead of liked.

33

Violet Miller and the Present

Violet awoke in a comfortable bed surrounded by the smells of fresh coffee and sugary baking. Her chest ached and she brought up a slow hand, pressing it over her heart. Her first thought was of Mor—the look on his face before she’d passed out. The wideness of his eyes, the surprise, the fear. It was the last thing she’d seen. Something had happened to Mor when he’d tried to find her memories.

Her second thought was of the bizarre dream she’d just had. She was sure it was a dream because none of it made sense. She’d dreamt of a place with strange, vivid sights; potent, syrupy smells; and sweet, unfamiliar foods.

Violet pressed her hand harder into her chest, fighting to take in full breaths.

A young woman walked by the open bedroom door, and Violet sat up too quickly. Her head spun, and she moaned, making the woman stop and come back to the door.

“Finally,” the woman said and folded a set of tattoo-covered arms.

Violet blinked up at her, trying to place where she’d seen her before. It hit her as soon as she pictured the blonde woman in a fitted police uniform. “You’re that cop!” Lily Baker—that was her name.

“Save it,” Lily Baker said. “There are weirder things to worry about right now. Trust me.”

The officer disappeared from the doorway and came back a second later with a steaming mug of coffee. She extended it to Violet. Violet stared at the drink for a moment. Then she glanced around at her immediate surroundings to see if Mor had left a note to tell her what had happened.

She realized she was in a small apartment with pink bedsheets over her legs. A window was cracked open to let a breeze in. She spotted her phone resting on the nightstand, but there was no note anywhere. Not even a clue Mor had been here.

Violet wasn’t prepared for hot, angry tears to fill her eyes, or for her hands to start shaking.

“Take your time. What you’ve been through so far is pretty unreal,” Lily said, holding the coffee steady. “Getting preyed upon by that Shadow Fairy and everything.”

Violet inhaled sharply. “Officer…” Her voice came out raw. She swallowed.

Lily gave up and set the coffee down on the nightstand. “Yeah?”

“You’re friends with Mor, right?” Violet dragged her watery eyes up to the policewoman.

Mor.

No, Violet could not think about him right now. She had to push him far out of her mind. He’d cut ties with her, then dropped her off to wake up without him, and he hadn’t left a note. But still, she wanted to ask. “Did he say anything when he left me here?”

Lily folded her arms and tapped a finger against her bicep. “He said a few things,” she admitted, though it didn’t seem like she was planning to spill thosethings.

“You need to leave me alone.”

It seemed Mor had said everything he needed to say to Violet.

“He’s really done with me,” she realized. “I didn’t think he’d actually go through with it.” How cruel of him. He could have at least left a note after the way he’d looked at her the second before she’d fainted.

Lily sighed. “Mor said you might ask me some strange questions.” She dragged a chair over from the corner of the bedroom and sat down, then she pulled out a notebook, flipped to a new page, and clicked the back of a pen. “Tell me everything that’s happened so far with that Shadow Fairy. I promise I’ll believe you.”

Violet swallowed the lump in her throat and shook her head. “I can’t.”

Lily tapped her foot against the floor. After a moment, she nodded. “You don’t know me yet. I get it.” She tucked the notebook away, slid the coffee off the nightstand, and tried handing it to Violet again. “Drink this. It’ll make you feel better. Though, I should warn you that it’s totally enchanted, so you’ll desperately want to come back here for more over the next few days.”

Violet reluctantly took the coffee, and Lily stood to leave.

“My aunt,” Violet blurted after her. “Her name is Zorah Miller. Please keep an eye on her.”

Lily paused by a bathroom door, a sympathetic look crossing her face. “I know your story. It’s seriously the worst that you’ve had to go through all this. If you need any help, you can always find me here or at the station,” she said. “I’ll sit outside your aunt’s house in the squad car today if that’ll make you feel better.”

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