Chapter 201: Elliot returns.

During dinner that night, Lita happened to be the most unsettled resident in the Kaelion main house. Her heart hammered against her ribs like a trapped beast every single time Derek raised a fork to his lips.

Earlier that evening, when no one was looking, she had sprayed his food with the mysterious liquid from the little bottle the Divine Maiden gave her. Her gut told her it was poison, but she didn’t want to bring herself to think it was true.

Why would Trinity want to hurt Derek? Lita wondered frantically her hands trembling under the tablecloth. Derek is literally the only nice person in this entire cursed mansion! He welcomed me into this house yesterday and gave me an expensive painting. He told me to be patient with Eliot and Sabrina. He doesn’t like them, but he is not malicious. How could the divine maiden want him dead!

She hadn’t wanted to do it, but disobeying the Divine Maiden meant falling out of favor or worse. Survival was a personal battle at the end of the day. If she had to choose between herself and Derek, she would choose herself.

Lita kept waiting for him to slump over, yet, Derek chewed, swallowed, wiped his mouth with a silk napkin, and_ nothing happened. She had been counting and this was his tenth bite of food. He didn’t turn blue. He didn’t cough up black blood. He just reached for another piece of roast duck. Lita let out a silent, dizzy breath.

Sitting at the head of the long wooden table, the Old Patriarch slowly stroked his long gray beard. His sharp eyes darted toward Lita. He knew exactly where she had been all day and what kind of shady business she and Jimmy were doing in that car. He felt a wave of disgust, but he just sneered inwardly.

The woman was a bomb that he would detonate at the right time. Sabrina brought this little snake into the family, the old man thought. She can deal with the venom.

He set his fork down with a loud clack.

"Lita," the Old Patriarch grunted, his voice rumbling like heavy thunder. "Why are you just staring at your plate? Are you waiting for the chicken to stand up and cluck?"

Lita flinched, quickly massaging her belly. "Ah, Patriarch_ my stomach hurts a little bit tonight."

"A stomachache? Again?" The Old Patriarch snorted, rolling his eyes so hard it looked painful. "This is the second time this week! You ladies of the younger generation are as fragile as wet paper. How are you supposed to carry strong babies for our family if your health is so fragile? I will make an appointment for you with the family doctor."

Across the table, Sabrina’s eyes narrowed into sharp slits. She glared at Lita like a hawk eyeing a troublesome mouse. The family doctors had already run three different medical checkups on Lita, and every single one came back completely clear. These random "illnesses" were making her look bad in front of the elders! Like she had not done a good job in picking a wife for Elliot.

"Father, please," Sabrina interrupted, fanning herself aggressively. "She is plenty strong! She will give me big, healthy grandchildren. Who knows? Maybe she’ll even give birth to a Soul Maiden!"

Andrea snorted, and her mother glared at her.

"I_ I just drank some lavender herbal tea to cleanse my body, that’s all!" Lita blurted out, trying to cover her tracks. "It makes my stomach feel a bit light."

The Old Patriarch’s ears perked up. He clapped his hands together once_ "Lavender tea? Excellent!" the old man grinned, completely changing his tone. "I will not wait for the evening tea. I would love a fresh cup. Go brew some for the whole table!"

Lita shot up from her chair like a startled cat. "Right away! I’ll go brew it immediately!" She bolted toward the kitchen before anyone could ask her another question, practically tripping over her own feet.

Hardly had Lita left the room, when Maverick’s loud, booming voice echoed through the grand dining hall: "Announcing the return of Young Master Elliot!"

The reaction across the table was instant. Half the family groaned out loud, slapping their foreheads. A few cousins rolled their eyes so far back into their heads they nearly saw their own brains. Great, their faces said, more trouble has arrived.

But Sabrina? Sabrina squealed like a young girl at a festival.

"My son!" she shrieked, bouncing out of her chair and rushing over with open arms.

Elliot awkwardly dodged the full impact, giving his mother a quick, half-hearted side hug. He stepped past her and bowed deeply toward the head of the table. "Greetings, Grand Patriarch."

The Old Patriarch’s face remained as cold and rigid as a stone statue. "Mm," he grunted softly, not even bothering to look up from his plate.

Elliot pressed his lips together in a tight, bitter line. Unbelievable, he thought. If this had been Hunter walking through that door, the old man’s teeth would be fully exposed from smiling so hard he’d look like a smiling skull.

Sabrina caught the icy atmosphere and scoffed loudly, crossing her arms. "Father! Are you really not even a little happy to see your own grandson after all this time?"

"Happy?" The Old Patriarch slammed his hand onto his chair’s wooden armrest. "How do you expect me to be happy?! This foolish boy embarrassed our entire lineage by ditching his own wedding! Do you have any idea how much face our family lost?" He turned his sharp, scolding gaze straight onto Elliot. "Nobody forced that bride on you! You agreed to the union, so you had better treat her right!"

Elliot swallowed his pride, lowering his head again. "This grand son acknowledges his mistake and apologizes to the Grand Patriarch. I promise to behave from now on."

A wave of annoyed muttering swept through the room. "Tsk, apologizing after the damage is done_ " someone whispered behind a silk sleeve.

Sitting near the end of the table, Fourth Aunt Grace suddenly cleared her throat and smirked. "Speaking of his bride_ Lita has been sleeping over in the servant’s quarters, you know. Poor thing."

The Old Patriarch slammed both palms onto the table so hard the heavy soup bowls jumped two inches into the air. "WHAT?!" he roared, his white beard trembling with rage_ yet he knew of this already. "In the servant’s quarters?! Nonsense! Move her into her husband’s quarters immediately! Tonight!"

Just as the echo of his shout died down, the doors creaked open. Lita walked back into the hall carrying a heavy tray with a steaming pot of lavender tea and tiny porcelain cups. She had heard every single word from outside the door. The sneaky, mischievous smile she’d worn was completely gone, replaced by a drooping, miserable pout.

Thank you, grand patriarch, she’d thought to herself. The old man had ruined her plans to mingle with the servants, learning their secrets and using them to her advantage. She could not help wondering if it was a deliberate move. Did the old mad truly not know that she had been sleeping in the servant’s quarters all along?