The Rejected True Heiress (Liora and Callum) novel Chapter 437

Liora’s POV

“Princess? Are you down here?”

I stayed quiet, pressing myself further into the shadows. Outside the small closet, I could hear Belinda’s shoes clicking across the tiles, her voice calling my name. Marcus pressed closer to me, one arm stretched out in front of me and the other reaching for the knife at his hip as if prepared to fight back.

A shadow moved under the door. Paused there.

I held my breath and listened to the sound of the witch turning back and forth.

Then, finally, she moved on.

Once the sound of her voice had faded, Marcus relaxed, dropping both hands back to his sides. I exhaled and moved away from the wall.

“Marcus, what’s going on?” I whispered.

The Delta turned to me. In the dim light, I could just barely make out his features. His face was set in that usual hard, no-nonsense expression of his, but there was a particular tightness to his features that took me by surprise. The two parallel lines between his eyes and the grooves in his forehead had deepened since the last time I had seen him, as if he’d been perpetually furrowing his brow.

“I’ll explain. But first, are you alright?” he asked.

I laughed wryly. “Well, my father is marrying me off to a rapist and my mother is currently melting into her mattress, so… Not really.”

Marcus’s face crumpled a little. “Oh, Liora…” He took a breath. “I’m going to help you.”

“How?” I asked. “My father won’t listen to reason. He’s acting strange.”

“Strange indeed.” His brows drew together, deepening the lines further. “This has been going on for weeks now.”

“So it’s not just me?” I asked.

“I don’t think he is planning anything.” Marcus gave me a meaningful look.

“What are you saying?”

“I’m saying…” Marcus glanced over his shoulders as if checking to make sure we weren’t being watched. Then, leaning close, he dropped his voice and said, “I think she’s put some kind of spell on him.”

I blinked. I supposed it wasn’t entirely outside the realm of possibility. That witch had installed herself by my father’s side very quickly in a way that very few people ever had. I recalled the first time I had met her, when she’d already been acting as his personal advisor, even meddling in my affairs, like she’d been working alongside my father for years.

“I wonder if she has anything to do with this… engagement to Ambrose,” I muttered.

Marcus’s lips pursed. “Highly likely.”

“So what are we going to do?”