It was expected of a woman from the Collins family to have a man like the prince fighting her battles.
Warren glanced at Penelope, annoyed by the resemblance she shared with her mother. "If it weren’t for your mother, my mother would be able to walk," he said.
Penelope knew that wasn’t true, but she wasn’t going to fight it here for the ball to have something to gossip about. No matter what she would say to defend her mother, Lockwood would always twist gossip, using it to ruin someone just like it did to her mother a long time ago.
Penelope touched Tyrion’s arm. "You should let go of him," she softly spoke.
It wasn’t a good look for Tyrion to fight anyone here.
No one would care that he was protecting her.
Tyrion kept his hold on Warren for a moment but soon let go. He would have his time to deal with Warren when the town wasn’t watching.
Warren glared at Penelope as he fixed his shirt. "You’ll get what is coming to you. All of you will. Mark my words," he looked at Tyrion.
Tyrion reached to grab Warren again since his threat could put him in the palace dungeon, but Penelope held his hand before he could.
"He’s not worth it," Penelope replied, allowing Warren to slip away. "You should go be with the king or acknowledge the women wanting to dance with you. Your queen awaits you."
"Unless you are the one accepting my hand to dance, I won’t be entertaining anyone else," Tyrion replied.
"Don’t joke," Penelope looked away.
"You should stop assuming that I am joking," Tyrion said.
Penelope already knew he was serious, but she pretended not to since the palace was no place for her to be. Besides, she didn’t want to marry Tyrion simply so he could get away from the other women.
Elijah Collins, the future heir of her father’s estate, stormed toward her, sparking new chatter since, like the crown prince, her brother was said to be looking for a wife.
"What did that bastard do?" Elijah asked, inspecting Penelope. "I should kill him."
"I’m fine," Penelope promised. "We should do as our mother says and ignore him. He’s taking his anger out on us since his mother is bound to a chair."
Elijah looked in the direction he saw Warren slip into the crowd. "Like hell I will let him blame us. His mother went mad by herself."
Behind Elijah, Penelope saw her sisters approaching, but the murmuring guests drew her attention.
"A lady fell," Penelope overheard.
Penelope pushed through the gathering crowd with Tyrion and her siblings close on her heels.
Penelope froze when she reached the front of the crowd. A woman lay lifeless, her dress and hair turning Penelope cold.
"Mother!" Penelope cried out, rushing to the woman’s side.
"Is it the Duchess Alessandra?" Whispers rippled through the air.
Elijah was right by Penelope’s turning the woman to see her face. He sighed in relief. "It’s not her," he informed his younger sisters.
"What is this?" Penelope questioned, puzzled by the mask the woman wore.
The mask resembled one Penelope’s mother used to wear when her face was scarred.
"She’s dressed up like mother," Penelope whispered so her younger sister Isabelle Collins wouldn’t hear.
From the green dress, the black mask, and dark hair, everything about this woman screamed Penelope’s mother.
Penelope looked up to where the woman fell from and noticed a shadow as someone moved.
’She might have been pushed,’ she realised.
Penelope thought this was more likely since whoever was up there wasn’t leaning over, checking to see if the woman was still alive.
"You shouldn’t look at this," Elijah said, taking Penelope’s hand to lead her away. "We should find father and leave."
Lily, Penelope’s twin, covered her younger sister Isabelle’s eyes. Though it wasn’t their mother, it was scary to see someone dressed as their mother lying on the ground.
A gentleman from the crowd blocked Elijah’s path and asked, "Are you certain it is not the duchess?"
"Move out of my way," Elijah replied, pushing the stranger to the side.
Elijah didn’t have time to entertain any questions when he needed to get his sisters out of there.
Elijah’s response did nothing to send the nosey man away.
"We want to know if it is the duchess-"
Elijah grabbed the stranger to the point his feet barely grazed the ground. "If I were so short and insignificant, I wouldn’t be so loud."
"Go," Elijah said, releasing the stranger with a shove.
Penelope looked back at where the lady laid once more, her eyes meeting with Tyrion’s for a moment.
This would certainly put an end to the ball and ruin the time others prepared to court each other. An incident was also going to spread quickly throughout the town.
It had been some time since something happened.
Penelope and her siblings were soon reunited with their parents.
"We’re leaving," Edgar informed the group. He had enough of all the guests bothering his family.
"What is it?" Alessandra Collins, the duchess, offered her hand to Isabelle.
Isabelle relaxed after feeling her mother’s warmth. "That woman was dressed like you. She’s dead."
Edgar wanted to know more, but as for right now, getting his family home safe was more important.
Penelope held onto Elijah’s hands as she thought of the chances of someone who dressed up like her mother being the one to fall and die. How was it that a woman had died from that height?
Penelope first thought of Warren, who not long ago said they were going to get what was coming to them. Fortunately for Warren, he couldn’t have gotten there in time to harm that woman.
’Something doesn’t feel right,’ Penelope thought.
"Edgar," Penelope heard the familiar voice of the king, Tobias Castro.
"Get out of my way," Edgar replied, brushing past the king to head for the door. He avoided the king’s touch as he walked by.
Edgar had unfortunately attended plenty of balls where his family was caught in drama or a death, but not tonight. His wife and children wouldn’t be tangled up in this.