Sienna's ankle chain rattled as she settled her bare feet on the floor. The aftereffects of Volkov's elixir left her somber, and the loss of blood left her fragile. Her body and spirit sagged under the weight of his attack and the unknown that was yet to come.
"Do you know what their plans are for me?" whispered Sienna, her voice broken.
"No, my lady," said the maid, walking over to retrieve the thin white slip she'd brought in with her. "Come. Stand if you can."
Miranda hauled her up gently to a standing position.
Sienna's knees threatened to buckle, but she kept herself steady.
Miranda removed the torn and bloodied chemise from Sienna's body, then slipped on the sleeveless, gauzy nightgown which dropped to her calves. It fitted snug at the torso, somewhat more substantial than a shift, but not by much. Her arms were bare, and the bodice scooped low on her back and breasts, tied with a white satin bow at the center of her bosom.
"What happened to Volkov?" she asked.
The maid's lips pressed into a thin line. She feared betraying her master.
"Did he die?" Sienna asked, hoping the fire she'd given him would do him in.
Miranda shook her head. "No. But he is very sick."
The lock on the door sounded. Miranda hopped away and stood next to Sienna with her head bowed. In stepped a parade of Legionnaires in arms who lined the far wall followed by well-dressed gentlemen with their winter coats and top hats still on their heads. They brought with them the winter chill. Then Sienna's gaze landed on the tallest of them at the center, wearing a white silk vest and silver cuff links that twinkled in the dim torchlight.
"Lord Barker."
Her formerly betrothed had not changed very much. The wrinkles around his mouth had deepened and the cruelty in his eyes was sharper. But other than that, he was the same man she had left behind for a solitary life outside society so many years ago.
"Lady Sienna." He dipped his head in a slight bow as if they were meeting at a ball or in a parlor. His gaze roved over her body down to her bare feet then back up again, stopping at the bite mark on her breast before he met her eyes. "I am here on official business for the town of Dale's Peak. As the senior lord of the town, I am acting on behalf of the bailiff to bring you forward for crimes committed."
Sienna huffed out a small laugh. "And what crimes have I committed, seeing as I haven't been in Dale's Peak for over five years now?"
He puffed up his chest and sauntered closer. "Witchcraft."
"Witchcraft? You must be joking."
"I am not." He pulled from under his coat a scroll of parchment tied with a black ribbon. "Bentley."
A scrawny man in gentleman's attire stepped forward, took the scroll, opened it, and read aloud. While he did so, Lord Barker walked a slow circle around Sienna.
"The province of Dale's Peak does hereby accuse and convict Lady Sienna, formerly of Worley House, of practicing witchcraft abroad. From her home in Silvane Forest, which is dubbed a residence solely for paranormal creatures, she has practiced numerous nefarious spells upon the locals of Sylus. Many of her spells ended in mutilation and bloody death for her victims which have been found within the bordering forest of her home, Larkin Wood."
"Lies," said Sienna. They were trying to pin the victims of sanguine furorem on her.
Lord Barker touched her right shoulder. She flinched away. Then he circled back around as Bentley returned to finish reading the decree. "Upon witnessed accounts corroborated by the good people of Sylus, Lady Sienna is hereby sentenced to death by order of Queen Morgrid of the Glass Tower."
Bentley finished by flourishing the scroll toward Sienna so that she could see the queen's signature and the crown's seal in a scripted V. He then marched back behind Lord Barker who edged toward her in an intimate way.
Lord Barker fingered the silk bow above her cleavage and said, "You could've avoided all of this had you simply married me when you had the chance. Even now, I could still save you." His dark eyes flicked to hers, his forefinger trailing a line along her breast just above the cut of the fabric. "I would not marry you now. You're too soiled for that. But perhaps if you were my mistress, I could keep you alive. Protect you."
"And who would protect me from you?" she asked with a sneer. Sienna batted his hand away and injected as much venom as she could into her voice. "I would rather burn at the stake than lie with a cruel, loathsome man like you."
His mouth slanted into a brutal smile. "Then so you shall." He took a large step back and pronounced, "Escort Lady Sienna to the carriage."