Braelyn’s POV
"I don’t know how to put it but there is sothing I want to tell you. I couldn’t bring it up at the table.."
I frowned slightly, confused by the sudden seriousness in Charlotte’s voice. My brows furrowed as I tried to understand what she ant. Charlotte leaned forward and gently took my hand in hers, her grip was warm yet firm. The expression on her face was unlike the playful woman from the dining table.
Her eyes looked strangely focused, almost troubled.."This might sound absurd," Charlotte began quietly. "But I co from a family of seers. Or rather fortune tellers. My family does not run psychic booths or ridiculous things like that, but it is a gift that ca from my mother."
Her voice carried a strange weight that made it impossible to dismiss her words completely. I stared at her, unsure how to react. Part of wanted to laugh at the absurdity of what she was saying, but the look in Charlotte’s eyes stopped the reaction before it could form.
She was not joking.
"You might doubt ," she continued softly, tightening her hold on my hand, "but I still need to say it. "My visions rarely appear, but they are always true and my heart would not be at rest if I stayed silent," she said seriously.
A knot slowly ford in my stomach. Sothing about the way she spoke made my chest tighten with unease.
Charlotte inhaled slowly before continuing. "When you walked into the room earlier, I saw a glimpse of your fate." Her voice trailed as she started to narrate, and a cold sensation crept down my spine.
"You are currently standing at a crossroad, Braelyn," she said. "I know you have already experienced a lot of pain, but worse things are still coming."
My fingers stiffened in her grasp. "The past will continue haunting the future until the truth is revealed."
The words echoed in my mind like a distant warning.
I felt my face drain of colour as a chill travelled through my body. I pulled my hand away instinctively, my heart beginning to pound against my ribs.
Charlotte suddenly looked unfamiliar to . The warmth she carried before had vanished, replaced by sothing unsettling.
"What do you an?" I blurted out, my voice trembling more than I wanted it to.
Charlotte’s expression softened slightly, though the seriousness remained in her eyes.
"Visions are never clear," she said quietly. "They co in fragnts. I cannot see everything, but I saw enough to know that more pain is waiting for you."
My pulse began roaring in my ears.
"A final test will co," she continued slowly. "Sothing that might break you completely. But if you survive it, there might still be hope. She paused then added, "That is if you are strong enough to survive it."
Her gaze sharpened as she finished the sentence. "And that hope of survival depends on who you choose to trust."
I swallowed hard. "The devil is hiding in plain sight."
My heart began racing uncontrollably. A thousand questions flooded my mind all at once. My instincts told Charlotte was not lying, yet her words were so cryptic that they only left feeling more unsettled.
Was running away all for nothing?
Had I really escaped the nightmare I left behind, or was it simply waiting for sowhere further down the road?
My breathing beca shallow as the tension built inside my chest. Charlotte’s warning pressed heavily on my thoughts until it felt suffocating.
Before I could ask another question, a bright and excited voice suddenly broke through the heavy atmosphere.
"There you are!" an excited voice bead.
Both Charlotte and I turned toward the door at the sa ti.
Francesca stood there with a wide grin on her face as if she had just discovered sothing amusing. Without waiting for an invitation, she walked into the room and plopped herself down on the bed between us as if she had every right to be there. She acted nothing like an elegant lady of 50s, her deanour was more of a free spirit.
Her eyes shifted between Charlotte and , narrowing slightly as she studied our faces. "You two look like you just saw a ghost," she muttered suspiciously.
Francesca had always seed like an easygoing and cheerful person, but at that mont her expression carried a hint of curiosity. Charlotte rolled her eyes dramatically.
"You are imagining things," she said dismissively. "Lynn is perfectly fine. Why are you here anyway?"
Francesca looked unconvinced for a mont, but eventually shrugged and decided not to press further. Instead, the friendly smile on her face slowly shifted into sothing far more serious. The change reminded of a mother preparing to scold a misbehaving child.
Her attention turned solely on . Francesca said bluntly, "Margaret told everything about your affair with your husband’s uncle."
My stomach dropped so suddenly it felt like the air had been knocked out of my lungs. Francesca raised a hand quickly when she saw my reaction.
"Relax," she said calmly. "I am not here to judge you. I do not know what happened in your marriage and I am sure you had your reasons."
Her expression beca more thoughtful as she continued. "But you and Lucien cannot work."
The words hit harder than I expected. It was a truth I knew, my first eting with Yelena only made it more obvious.
"That was the price Margaret negotiated when she decided to help you," Francesca explained. "Originally, the plan was to use you as leverage to force Lucien to behave. You would have been a bargaining chip." My chest tightened as I absorbed her words.
" Yelena changed her mind after Margaret spoke to her," Francesca stated a fact I was already well aware of..Charlotte quietly watched the conversation without interrupting.
Francesca folded her hands in her lap before delivering the final piece of news. "To make sure that arrangent holds, Margaret asked to organise sothing for you."
A strange sense of dread crept over . "I have arranged a series of blind dates," Francesca announced.
My eyes widened in disbelief. "You do not have to fall in love with anyone," she quickly clarified. "You only need to show effort. Let Yelena see that you are ready to move on and leave Lucien behind. I know that Lucien is handso, but there are plenty of other n in the world. It would be better if you cut him off until the dust settles."
My mind imdiately flashed to Lucien’s face and the intensity in his eyes. Francesca sighed softly before continuing.
"The Voss family is powerful enough to stand against the Orlovs if it cos to that," she said calmly. "But no one wants to see two elephants fighting."
She looked at seriously. "So for everyone’s sake, it is better if this situation disappears quietly."
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