Evil Duke, Please Be Gentle!

"Why are there so many people in the palace?" Hazel looked around with surprise when she noticed all of them were wearing black. A dreaded feeling filled her heart when she felt her body turning further heavier.

Just when she felt she was going to vomit again, she felt his hands on her shoulder.

"You are drenched. It would be better if you take the secret passage again to your room. I will see what has happened and will inform you later." she could see how worried he was for her.

Giving her permission to live at her old place was already proof that he was noticing the changes in her health and was concerned about it.

But if they all were wearing black then it only meant that something big had happened. As they only wear black when.. But who?

"No! I need to see or I would not be able to relax." only Duke was out when she left the palace. What if something had happened to his carriage?

But what if Eli and Eve had gone out too?

"I have told them not to threaten the royal family like that!" she muttered under her breath as she started running, she even forgot that she was denied to run or take too much stress as her heart started to thump like crazy.

She just could not imagine anything happened to them when she had found them after so much trouble. She remembered once she had come back from the festival only to see her mother laying on the ground lifeless.

The feeling of helplessness and pain started to return when she saw everyone looking at her with strange looks yet she did not stop running.

Just as she reached the entrance, she saw the crowd only increasing.

Hearing the sound of her footsteps many turned to stare at her with surprise, shock and frown. A few of them even have a mocking look on their face but she did not care about it as she entered.

Suddenly, she felt that her feet turned heavier and it was difficult to take a single more step.

But as she continued to move slowly, her body finally felt a strange relief as if a rock that had been placed on her chest was finally lifted up.

William was standing there on the other side while talking to a few nobles. Eli and Eve were sitting in the room surrounded by other females and Ethan was standing in a corner alone while others just stared at him with confusion.

All of them were safe! She closed her eyes and thanked God for his blessing but then frowned.

If all of them were fine, why was such a crowd collected and why did everyone have a grave face? Who had died?

She took a few more steps only to notice the count. She was seeing him for the first time since the man was missing in his marriage too.

Since aunt did not have any kids, he was standing there alone. Did the aunt decide not to come since she still did not want to meet her?

But then she finally realized!

"Evangeline. Come here and sit with us." called Eve and many eyes turned to look at her.

She was wearing a red seductive dress completely opposite to the dark and conservative dress of everyone.

"No, I think you should go up and change first. The storm was too heavy. You can catch a cold later." she nodded as she felt uneasiness while standing there between all of them.

She turned and climbed the stairs when she noticed that Leo did not follow her but attended a few guests. His face had already turned grim.

He talked with a few more people before walking towards his uncle and patting his shoulders like an adult. The man turned with a grim look and that's when she noticed that he had a few tears in his eyes.

"That.. that!" The maid who was following her to assist her in the bathroom followed her trembling finger and nodded her head.

"Yes, my lady. Matriarch Gabriella is no more. But the most surprising thing was.. She had died a week ago in her room but no one knew about it till now.

Today when the count knocked her room a few times and still she did not reply. He called the servants and asked them to break the door.

They found her body sleeping in her bed. It took a long time for the count to realize that she was not sleeping but dead.

Even if a week had passed, her face was looking so rozy. Even i was even surprised when I went to her funeral.`` The news came like a shock to her and she held the railing to tightly to stabilize her body.

One week ago! Wasn't it the day she had visited Gabriella to request her to help them in the case.

The lady was completely fine and it did not look like she was suffering from any illness.

If she was in her room that meant she did not suffer any incident then how did she die suddenly?

And was that the reason that she did not come to the royal palace and give her statement?

The thoughts stirred so many strange thoughts in her mind that she started to wobble.

"My lady, are you okay? Your face looks ashen. Shall I call the physician?" Though the maid did not know what kind, she had seen the lady taking a lot of medicines these days.

She might be sick and now this kind of news. What if her health deteriorated later. With worry, she moved to support Evan who raised her head suddenly.

"That is right! If she would have died that day, why did her servants not notice that for so long?" it just did not make any sense.

"Oh, that.. The lady dismissed all the staff that night in anger telling them not to come back unless she called for them."