The Duchess's Secret Heir

one walls, twisting and curling like ghosts of the past. Lady Isabella Thorncroft clutched her infant son, Edward, to her chest, his soft br

one of Adrian's guards caught her scent? She shook her head and pushed forward, her slippered feet barely making a sound on the cobbl

towering iron gates. But preparation didn't ease the terror gripping her. She glanced down at Edward, his tiny fingers curled into fi

ehind a hedge, her breathing ragged but silent. Her fingers tightened around the small satchel slung acros

ss, and panic surged through her. Had they been discovered? She pressed herself lower, the rough edges of the shrubbery scratching her

ing?" one of them as

t that blasted dog again. It hea

the vial, but she resisted. A confrontation now would spell disaster. She waited, her muscles taut an

gainst the cold, rusted metal. The small key she'd taken from the head steward jingled softly in her trembling hand. "Please work," s

g in the night breeze. She had arranged for a carriage to meet her at the edge of the estate, but the path was long

bella. She swayed gently, murmuring soft reassurances, her voice a lullaby of desperation. "Shh, my love. We're almo

a run, her skirts tangling around her legs as the grasses slapped at her. Her lungs burned, but she didn

riend and only ally in this perilous escape. "Over here, my lady!" he called softly, his voice urgen

sed into the driver's arms, clutching Edward tightly.

horses surged forward, the wheels jolting against the uneven road. Isabella held Edward

iage sped away, Isabella couldn't shake the sense of foreboding that clung to her like a shadow. The journey ahead