Chapter 352: Where’s Jean Goliath
"Where’s Jean?" Salviana asked suddenly, her voice slicing through the uneasy silence like a blade.
Alaric drew a slow breath, his jaw tight, before exhaling through his nose. "You shouldn’t be worrying about Miss Goliath right now," he said softly but firmly. "You need to focus on yourself first."
Salviana blinked, tilting her head as if she hadn’t heard him correctly. "Miss Goliath?" she repeated, the title foreign on her tongue. Since when did they start calling Jeanie that? It felt distant, impersonal — like the woman she considered a friend had somehow become a stranger. "I’m fine now," she added, her tone sharpening. "And not seeing her for this long is unsettling. Where is she?"
Alaric shifted uncomfortably. "She wasn’t with you when that whacko took you," he muttered.
"Alaric!" Salviana snapped, a frown darkening her face. She turned swiftly to Lucius. "Where’s Jeanie?"
Lucius, ever composed but with a flicker of concern behind his eyes, resisted the urge to sigh. "I have no idea," he replied evenly. "I’ve been too busy following your husband—trying to stop him from committing murder with so many eyes watching."
"God, the two of you," Salviana muttered, shaking her head. Their bickering felt like a steady thrum in the background of her life, but this was not the time for it. Without another word, she strode past them, the hem of her dress snapping at her heels like an angry whip.
"Dearest!" Alaric’s voice chased her down the corridor, his concern mingling with a tinge of exasperation.
She didn’t slow.
A guard, Heappal, kept pace beside her, his armor clinking softly with each step. "Your Grace?" he asked, a flicker of worry in his voice.
"I’m going to Jean’s quarters," Salviana said curtly.