Chapter 56 - Fifty Six
Lyra was curled up on a plush sofa, absorbed in a book of poetry, a glass of cool water resting on the table beside her. The peaceful atmosphere was abruptly shattered when the doors were flung open and her mother-in-law, Dowager Duchess Elena, barged into the room like a storm front.
Before Lyra could even register her presence, Elena swept over to the table and snatched the glass of water from her hand. Lyra flinched at the sudden movement, her book nearly falling from her lap. She relaxed when she saw the furious, flustered face of the Dowager Duchess.
Elena, her chest heaving with annoyance, gulped down the entire glass of water in one long, desperate go. She slammed the empty glass back down on the table with a clatter that made Lyra jump.
Lyra carefully closed her book and placed it on the table. "Mother," she began, her voice a mixture of surprise and concern. "Where have you been? Did you get hit by a pack of hungry wolves on your way home?"
"Hit?" Elena retorted, pacing back and forth in front of the fireplace. "Yes, a pack of wolves did hit me. First a wicked, scheming stepmother, now a shameless old grandfather. This family... honestly." She threw her hands up in the air. "But it’s nothing new. I have seen far worse in my time."
Lyra listened patiently as the Dowager Duchess began to rant about her day, her words a series of complaints about pushy old men, public humiliation, and the general decline of aristocratic decorum.
"Maybe it’s a good thing she’s an illegitimate child," Elena fumed, continuing her rant. "At least that way she won’t have to officially share in the disgrace the Ellington family name has accumulated over the years!"
Lyra was now completely confused. "What are you talking about, Mother?"
Elena didn’t answer her directly. She seemed to be speaking more to herself now, her anger beginning to cool into a new, sharp resolve. She stopped her pacing and sank into the sofa opposite Lyra. "I need to write a letter," she declared. "I need to write a letter to that girl."