Chapter 826

Will was certain he had seen Caitlin walk this way, but she had vanished in the blink of an eye. Will even began to wonder if he had imagined it.
“My Lord,” a Vance family servant said, approaching him respectfully. “Is there anything I can help you with?”
Will first shook his head, then asked, “Did you see anyone walk past here a moment ago?”
“No, I haven’t,” the servant replied.
No one? The answer only deepened Will’s confusion. Where could she have gone? It wasn’t as if she could just disappear into thin air. It was very strange. Had she gone back to the ballroom?
With that thought, Will turned and headed back.
Returning to the party, Will made a beeline for Celia, who was looking bored and scrolling through her phone. But Caitlin was nowhere to be seen.
Will frowned. Caitlin wasn’t in the ballroom, and he couldn’t find her outside either. Where was she?
Just as he was about to say something, Miriam appeared at his side. “Lord Will, care to join me for a drink?”
Will was always a gentleman with beautiful women, but this was Miriam. He had his three rules: no taking the initiative, no taking responsibility, and no getting involved with anyone in their social circle.
He shook his head. “My apologies, but I’m not drinking tonight.”
A flicker of sadness crossed Miriam’s face. Everyone knew she was in love with Will, but he always kept her at arm’s length.
“My Lord,” Rosemary said, seizing the opportunity as Miriam was rebuffed. She stepped forward with a triumphant air. “Thank you for the thoughtfully prepared birthday gift. I love it.”
“I was the one Will wanted to see,” Rosemary thought, “yet this clueless Miriam was still lingering. Did she plan to stand between us, ruining our moment How utterly disgusting. With Miriam here, Will wouldn’t have a chance to whisper sweet nothings to me.”
—
Caitlin, now that she had successfully shaken Will, made her way toward Flavia Cartwright’s residence.
She had studied a hand-drawn map of Vance Castle before the party, giving her a general layout of the estate. Though she moved quickly, she was cautious, avoiding the patrol routes of the security guards.
Thankfully, the lack of surveillance
cameras made her task much easier. All she had to do was avoid the patrols, without worrying about hidden cameras capturing her movements. Moreover, most of the security staff had been reassigned to the front hall to maintain order, leaving the vast castle feeling somewhat empty.
When she reached a fork in the path, Caitlin paused, picturing the map in her mind. If she remembered correctly, east led to Dowager Vance’s quarters, south to
vel
Rosemary’s, and the northernmost ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ (.)net
Wing was where Flavia Cartwright resided. She needed to head north.
The distance from the ballroom to Flavia’s residence wasn’t far. About ten minutes later, Caitlin arrived.
As she neared the building, she noticed several servants standing guard at the entrance.
It was suspicious enough that the Vances wouldn’t allow Flavia to attend the banquet in the front hall in the first place.