He put his hand on my arm to drag me away. “Hurry, Duchess.”
I heard footsteps in the hallway behind us. The young guard I’d seen earlier must have woken up and resumed his duties. We did need to leave quickly.
My mother’s carriage was waiting for us outside the chapel gate.
“Hurry!” the grand duke shouted to the driver as he ushered me inside and climbed in after me. We sat across from my mother and my cousin.
Dariya had told Maman that I had received a message to meet Petya at Vorontsov Palace and had hurried ahead of them to find out if he was in danger.
“Katiya!” Maman cried. “You should not have done anything so foolish! You were fortunate the grand duke was there to look out for you. Where is Petya?”
“He received orders from the general and had to leave,” the grand duke said, catching on quickly.
Maman seemed surprised and a little nervous to have the tsar’s son in the carriage with her, and she spoke the whole ride home about our planned trip. “We will probably be in Biarritz for the rest of Lent, and most of spring,” she said, fanning herself with a paper fan made with pressed lilacs. “I hope we will see your mother at the ball tomorrow night so we may say our goodbyes.”
Grand Duke George nodded politely. “Of course, Your Highness. And what takes you away to France this early in the season?”
Maman looked at me. “Katerina has not told you? Our Katiya has argued with her fiancé and broken off the engagement. We must leave St. Petersburg to ignore the scandal.”
Dariya snorted in a most unladylike fashion.
I wanted to vanish like the ghostly tsar right then and there. The grand duke had no business knowing about my engagement—or ending of the engagement. But he seemed very interested.
“You shall not be marrying the crown prince,” the grand duke said thoughtfully. Our carriage was drawing nearer to Anichkov Palace. As the carriage slowed, he told the driver he wished to accompany us to Betskoi House, as he wanted to see us home safely. The carriage driver nodded and drove on.
“Your Imperial Highness, that is not necessary,” I said.
“I have given a promise. And so have you, Duchess.”
I sighed. Maman was staring out the window into the darkness, and Dariya had fallen asleep against her. “Why did the tsar call you Koldun?” I asked in a low voice.
“I cannot tell you. It is a secret only for the members of the Order to know.”
“But I thought a koldun was a sorcerer. Why would he think that you were—”
“Do not ask me again.” His voice was soft, but firm.
I kept my voice low, even though Maman seemed to be dozing off now as well. “You are to be the Grand Master, then, when your brother becomes the tsar,” I said softly. Although much of the inner workings of the Order was secret, Grand Duchess Miechen had once said that the Grand Master of the Order was a sorcerer, who performed the arcane rituals that protected the knight-commanders. If she knew who the current Grand Master was, she kept that secret to herself.
“Yes,” the grand duke said, closing his eyes. He looked tired, and I had the urge to comfort him.
I wished there were something I could do to help him. “I promise I will never tell another soul.”
The grand duke merely nodded.
The carriage approached Betskoi House, all dark except for the lamps at the entrance. The grand duke helped my mother and cousin out of the carriage. “Thank you, Your Imperial Highness,” Maman said. “We are so grateful for your escort. Our carriage will see you home.”
The grand duke turned to take my hand. It was awkward, for just a moment, and then he was the tsar’s son again, regal and overbearing. “I must ask that you not return to Smolny in the morning,” he said. “When do you leave for Biarritz?”
“In a few days, Your Imperial Highness.”
“Will you stay here at Betskoi House until then?”
“I cannot promise that. Maman and I have provisions to deliver to the hospital, and we must say our goodbyes to Princess Cantacuzene and the grand duchess Maria Pavlovna.”
His eyes narrowed. “You know that the grand duchess Miechen is a very dangerous woman. As is her friend, Cantacuzene.”
“They are friends of my mother.”
“Cantacuzene is a descendant of the House of Bessaraba.”
That stopped my blood cold. “What?” I whispered.
“Katerina!” Maman was standing inside the front door. “Hurry along! It is freezing outside!”
I ignored her. “Her family is the enemy of the Order?” I asked the grand duke.
His smile was grim. “You truly should pay more attention to the ancestry of your friends. Cantacuzene, the Montenegrins. You and your mother travel in some rather nasty social circles, Duchess.” He closed the door of the carriage, and our driver headed back to Anichkov Palace.
I stood in the snow, chilled from the inside out. There was something ominous about the darkness now that the grand duke had left. The night seemed to be pressing in on me. I raised my hand and examined the obsidian ring more closely. Exactly what kind of black magic did it contain?
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
Of course I didn’t stay home as the grand duke had instructed. Of course I went to see the grand duchess Miechen—without Maman. I wanted to ask her more about the princess Cantacuzene.
Dr. Kruglevski was leaving the Vladimirichi Palace. He smiled when he saw me. “Duchess Katerina Alexandrovna!” he said in greeting. “What a pleasure!”
“Good morning, Doctor,” I said, alarmed to see him. “Is the grand duchess ill?”
He shook his head. “Not at all. But I shall let her tell you the news. How are your parents?”
“They are well. Papa is excited about his plans for his new medical institute. And we shall travel to Switzerland this summer to look at the medical schools there.”
“Excellent! Good day to you, Duchess.”
I hurried inside and up the stairs to the grand duchess’s parlor. I waited as her servants announced me.
“Katerina Alexandrovna, what a delight.” The grand duchess did not exactly look pleased to see me. Her voice dripped with sarcasm. “How is your mother?”
“She is well, thank you. And you are well? I saw Dr. Kruglevski leaving.”
“Yes, I am fine, my dear. As are the babies.”
“Babies?”
She smiled slightly, though the smile did not reach her eyes. “They are due in the fall.”
“Congratulations, Your Imperial Highness. I did not know. Twins? That is wonderful.”
The dark faerie’s youngest child, Helena, was already seven years old. Her oldest, Kyril, was thirteen. It must have been a surprise to find herself expecting again. She sat down in the velvet chair opposite me. “And what has brought you here today?”
“I need to ask you about Princess Cantacuzene,” I whispered. I was never sure when the princess would be at Miechen’s palace. This would not be a good day to run into her.
“Yes?” the grand duchess said, turning to pour herself some tea. From the side, I spotted a slight swelling in her belly that I had not noticed before. “What can I tell you about the princess?”
“Her lineage,” I said, holding my breath. “Is she a descendant of the House of Bessaraba?”
“Of course, dear.”
I felt cold and slightly nauseated. I grabbed the chair in front of me as the room tilted slightly.
“Do you know the history of the House of Bessaraba?” Miechen asked.
“Only that its descendant is the person responsible for killing the members of the Order of St. John.”