Three uniformed guards were struggling with La Voisin, who was screaming like a banshee that she was falsely accused while clinging to the doorframe with one hand. Two of the young men struggling with her were strangers to me. One of them was not.

“Frédéric de Troyes,” I snarled, “I daresay, if our father saw you allowing a woman to be treated this way, he’d disown you and never look back.”

My brother twisted around to stare at me, his eyes wide with shock. “Cécile? Stones and sky, why are you here?”

“For tea.” I shot black glares at the two other men, and while they didn’t let go of the woman, they ceased their attempts to drag her off the door.

“Tea?” Fred’s voice was strangled. “In Pigalle? After dark?”

“A special tea,” I clarified. “That only she makes. And I’m here after dark because it was the only time Chris could bring me.”

Fred’s eyes flicked over my shoulder and latched onto Chris. “You better have a good explanation for this, Girard.”

I rolled my eyes and walked closer. “Oh, stop that and let the poor woman go. Mother will thrash me if I don’t bring back the tea to soothe her throat, and half a dozen of the dancers begged me to retrieve some ointment for their poor heels.”

“Go home, Cécile.” My brother’s cheeks were flushed red with anger. “Pigalle is no place for a girl like you. This woman has been accused of witchcraft and…”

“God in heaven,” I swore, cutting him off. “If she could fix all the ailments troubling the girls at the opera house with witchcraft, she’d be the richest woman in Trianon for it. But clearly not.” I gestured at the ramshackle buildings. “Let her go, Fred. This is nonsensical.”

“Who’s she?” one of the guards asked.

“My sister.”

A lascivious grin split the other man’s face. “Oh, the opera girl.”

I didn’t like the way he said it. Neither, apparently, did my brother. Snatching a fistful of the guard’s uniform, Fred dragged him forward until they were face to face. “Watch your mouth when you’re talking about my sister, you hear?” Then he shoved him away, and looked back at me.

He knew I was lying. He knew I wasn’t here for tea. But he wasn’t a fool, and there was no way he’d blunder forward without first discovering why I’d chosen to defend this woman. Trust me, I silently pleaded. Trust me this one time.

A scowl imprinted on his face, he jabbed a finger at La Voisin. “Last warning, woman. I hear another whisper that you’re dabbling in things you shouldn’t be, and your feet will be dangling above the fire. Understand?”

“Yes.” She gave me a long look before hurrying back into the shop.

“Meet me back at the barracks,” Fred ordered the other two men. Both drifted toward their horses, their brows furrowed and eyes full of questions. But they obeyed, and for the moment, nothing else mattered.

Fred stood stock-still, head lowered and eyes fixed on the muddy street. The muscles in his jaw were clenched tight, his hands balled up into fists. When the sound of hooves faded into the distance, he lifted his head. “You better have a good explanation for this.”

It was an effort to look him in the eye. “I need her help.”

He barked out a laugh. “Her help? Need a love potion? Your fortune read?” Taking hold of my shoulders, he shook me hard enough that my teeth rattled together. “Curses, Cécile, what’s wrong with you?”

“Let her go, Fred.”

“Piss off, Girard.” Fred shoved Chris hard, and my heart skipped at the thought that he might do worse. But it was me he was angry at. “Not only did you make a fool of me in front of my men, you forced me to ignore orders. Orders that came from the very top. Do you have any idea how much trouble I might end up in if I can’t talk my way out of this? Do you even care?”

I bit my lip, my throat burning. “I’m sorry. I wouldn’t have done it if I hadn’t thought it was absolutely necessary.”

“Absolutely necessary?” His shoulders shook with silent hysterical laughter. “Absolutely necessary in this fantastical world you’ve created for yourself?”

“It isn’t a fantasy. You know that.”

“Wrong!” he shouted, flecks of spit hitting me in the face. “I know what you’ve told me. But there isn’t any proof!”

“She isn’t lying,” Chris said, the tension in his shoulders mirroring my own as he eyed those still watching us. “I’ve been there myself.”

“Shut up!” Fred was shaking now, his eyes wild with anger. “You were gone for months. Months with no word from you, and everyone thought you were in a shallow grave somewhere. And then you return half-dead and spouting this impossible tale for your family and countless lies for everyone else. I don’t even know who you are anymore.”

“Fred…” I needed to fix this, to make him understand that everything I’d told him was true. That what I’d done tonight was necessary. But only soundless air came out, because I didn’t know what to say. My chest burned with the hurt of his disbelief. He was my older brother, my defender – my lifelong threat against anyone who gave me trouble. The only person I’d thought capable of rescuing me in those dark early days of my captivity in Trollus. And he was turning on me.

He held up a hand. “I don’t want to hear any more of your delusions.” His finger twisted out, jabbing at the shop next to us. “This. This is real. And far more dangerous than you seem to realize.”