Chapter 4: Parading Through Enemy Gates

I picked a hundred ‘boyfriends’ to enter the city with me. Lucas still looked uneasy, thinking I’d chosen too many. But he was smart enough not to say anything more.

So I rode brazenly through the city with my entourage. Passersby stared in shock, some even commenting on me.

The city’s old brick buildings and cobblestone streets were a far cry from my estate’s open fields. People craned their necks, some whispering behind gloved hands, others openly gawking. I kept my chin up, refusing to let them see me flinch.

Some muttered, "What a disgrace."

Me: "…"

My eldest sister had founded a women’s college—how had the city’s attitudes gotten so backward again? She must really be having a hard time.

I wanted to go to the Grand Matriarch’s residence.

Lucas said, "Evelyn’s been moved to the mansion to recover. The Dowager is personally caring for her."

I looked at him with a half-smile. He seemed to have forgotten he’d just said she was at home.

Lucas forced a smile. "Sister, don’t you trust me?"

I thought, even if it’s a trap, I have to walk into it for Evelyn’s sake.

So I turned and ordered my young officer Bailey, "Go bring Chris Chandler and Savannah here."

Bailey was sharp-eyed, his uniform crisp. He nodded and slipped away without a word. The others watched him go, tension thick in the air.

Lucas stared at me in shock. "Lila!"

I looked back. "What, aren’t they the ones who harmed Evelyn?"

That’s the story they told me, isn’t it?

Lucas was so anxious he broke out in a sweat. "They’re both highborn. Isn’t this a bit undignified…?"

I smacked him across the face with my riding crop, splitting his baby-smooth skin.

The crack echoed in the chilly air, and Lucas’s eyes went wide. He touched his cheek, disbelief written all over his face.

"Lila!" He stared at me, shocked—maybe a little hurt, a little incredulous?

How ridiculous. There was never any real sibling affection, yet he insisted on acting it out. Only Evelyn would ever be fooled by such clumsy performances.

I sneered. "Highborn? Without Evelyn, they’d all be exiles."

The shock and hurt faded from Lucas’s eyes. He lowered his head, looking pitiful.

"Savannah’s at home… but Chris left the city half a month ago. You’ll be wasting your time."

I turned and ordered, "Then bring Savannah first."

Bailey replied, "Yes, Miss."

Lucas shoved aside the servant tending his wound. "I thought Lila was just playing around on her estate, but now you act like a real general."

I turned my head. "Well, let’s go see what crime the family plans to charge me with."

He covered his face, his eyes curdling with resentment. "Don’t worry, I’ll go with you."

Entering the mansion required us to dismount and remove our jackets, and we couldn’t bring our followers. He probably thought I was finished.

The Whitlock mansion was all marble floors and gilded banisters, the kind of place that swallowed you whole if you weren’t careful. Before entering, all my ‘one hundred boyfriends’ were stopped at the gates of the estate. I followed the rules—dismounted, removed my jacket, and only brought two female riders, Ginny and Pearl, into the mansion.