When the carriage finally came to a stop in front of the Adair city house, it was closer to dawn than dusk.  Delaney and Ms. Bird climbed down from the carriage, nearly as exhausted as the men around them.  All of them staggered towards the front doors while the guards took the horses towards the stables.

A messenger had been sent out from Edgewood first thing that morning to warn the servants that lived at the city house that their mistress would be arriving soon.  Even so, Delaney knew they had probably only had a few hours notice before she and the others had arrived.  There were only a few servants left there so they had likely had to scramble to prepare things.

Stepping inside the dimly lit foyer with her maid and her friends, Delaney looked around, wondering if any of the servants were still awake.  She imagined they were but they were likely using every minute until her arrival to prepare everything they could.

Proving her right, a moment later, the housekeeper came hurrying down the steps, looking quite exhausted herself.  She nervously greeted Delaney and the others, apologizing for not having more ready.  Delaney assured her whatever she had managed to get done was good enough and they wouldn\'t be staying long.

Their things were carried in by the men from the stables and the housekeeper showed Duncan and Bernard to their rooms.  Saying good night, Delaney headed to her room with Ms. Bird as soon as she could.

Even though they were both completely exhausted, Ms. Bird still insisted on helping Delaney out of her clothes and into a fresh nightgown.  She fetched her some tea and water before her mistress insisted she go on and take care of herself and go to bed.  Ms. Bird agreed but only because she was just that tired.

Delaney curled up in the bed she should be sharing with her husband and felt a stab of loneliness and sadness again.  She reached across the bed to the place he would normally have slept.  She wondered if he was sleeping soundly at Edgewood now or awake missing her.

After a long day on the road though she didn\'t have much time to wonder about anything at all.  The next thing she knew she was fast asleep.

-

The next morning the sunlight drifted in through the windows, bringing Delaney awake with a start.  She bolted upright and looked around wildly, momentarily forgetting where she was.

When it slowly came back to her that she was at the city house, she scrambled quickly to the side of the bed so she could see what time it was, hoping it wasn\'t late.  There was no set time she needed to be at the castle to see the witches but the longer she took, the longer Vincent was back at Edgewood suffering and waiting for her.

It was still fairly early.  She hadn\'t slept more than a handful of hours and her body knew it, protesting as she climbed out of bed.  She tried to ignore it.  She could sleep in her husband\'s arms when she was back at Edgewood.

She rang for Ms. Bird and began to slowly dress on her own.  Pausing in front of the mirror, she couldn\'t help but smile as she let her hand drift down to rest against her belly.  Having her baby there felt like having a little bit of Vincent with her wherever she went.

Ms. Bird wasn\'t the one to arrive to help her, but another one of the servant girls that helped keep the house clean.  The girl was clearly very nervous and told Delaney that Ms. Bird had left a bit ago to go and pick up some things.  No one had expected her to be awake so early.  Delaney said it would be fine and the younger girl could just help her the best she could.

The maid fumbled around as she tried to help Delaney dress.  When she realized the duchess was pregnant she stopped and gasped, pouring out her congratulations.  Trying to stay patient, Delaney forced herself to smile and thank the girl.

Just as she was about to give up and send the girl away, the door opened and Ms. Bird swept in, carrying a parcel in her arms.  Delaney visibly relaxed, relieved to see someone that knew what she was doing.

"Where have you been?"

Ms. Bird smiled, "I went out early to get you this."

She untied the parcel and revealed a beautiful rose-colored gown, elegant and perfect to wear to court to see the King and Queen.  The maid smiled proudly and told her how she had sent an extra note with the messenger to take to the dressmaker when he arrived in the city.  They had managed to prepare this dress for Delaney just in time.

"Oh thank you so much," Delaney said to her maid with happy tears in her eyes.

Ms. Bird smiled fondly at the younger woman and helped her finish getting ready.

Without the Duke there to be at her side, Ms. Bird had insisted they do all they could to make Delaney look rich and powerful.  She said it was important to remind the nobles and royals alike who she was and who her husband was.

Delaney was eager to leave but she sat still and let her maid twist her hair into a difficult but impressive design.  She pinned diamonds and pearls into her hair before clasping a pearl choker around the duchess\'s slim, pale, throat.  Finally satisfied, she stepped back and let Delaney see her reflection.

Looking in the mirror Delaney smiled.  She looked perfect.  The Queen of the land herself would envy this beauty.

-

Relief filled Delaney when she entered the dining room and found Bernard and Duncan already there.  They both looked only slightly better than they had looked the night before but, like Delaney, they were dressed in their most impressive attire, ready to visit the royal court.

None of them were very hungry so they mostly just picked at the little breakfast that had been scraped together for them.  The carriage was being prepared so they were really just wasting time until they could leave.  Delaney\'s stomach was upset and she knew she probably needed more time in bed.  She would have to deal with it for now though.

As soon as the man came and told them the carriage was ready, they all nearly jumped out of their seats.  Duncan took Delaney on his arm, afraid she might trip or fall in her haste.  She appreciated him there, using the feeling of him solid against her to anchor her as her mind and heart began racing.

The three nobles climbed into the carriage and the footman closed the door behind them.  They had taken the quickest of the Adair carriages which wasn\'t the roomiest so now Delaney was almost uncomfortably close to Bernard.  It barely registered with her though.  She was much too scared and anxious.

"It\'s going to be alright Delaney," Duncan said from his place across from her, seeing the fear plain on her face, "We won\'t let anything happen to you."

"Thank you," she said quietly, "But what if... what if Daniel won\'t let me speak to Helena?  Or what if he\'s sent the witch away and we can\'t even find her?"

"Daniel\'s too cautious to send away his witches," Bernard answered, "And even if he did, we\'ll find her."

Delaney nodded and bit her lip, dropping her gaze.  After a moment she looked back up at them with tears in her eyes.

"What if Miles is right?  What if she doesn\'t even have a way to save him?"

"Don\'t think like that," Bernard shook his head.

"This witch we\'re going to visit has very strong magic doesn\'t she?" Duncan asked.

"She does."

"Then I\'m sure she\'ll know a way to fix him."

Delaney was quiet after that but she hoped with her whole heart that he was right.  They had to have something that could stop dragon poison.  Her husband\'s life depended on it.

The carriage came to a stop in front of the castle and Delaney took a deep breath as she waited while Bernard and Duncan both climbed out.  She could hardly believe they were here.

The castle guards recognized the Adair carriage and the beautiful duchess as she got out.  They were going to ask her about her guests given her history of bringing dangerous pirates to the castle, but one look at the icy gaze she shot them made them change their minds.

Bernard and Duncan both looked at her and she knew they wanted her to take one of their arms.  With a slight shake of her head though she walked past them.

Holding her head high, she strolled into the castle, the place of such horrible memories for her.  The place her life and the life of the man she loved had been put in danger over and over.  She couldn\'t let herself be scared though.  Vincent needed her.  He needed something that could save his life and it was down to her to get it.

Delaney didn\'t flinch as she strolled down the hall filled with nobles, Duncan, and Bernard at her heels.  The crowd took one look at her and parted as they would have if she was a royal.  There were few other people they were afraid of enough to move back like that and Delaney smirked as she thought of one of them.

Maybe she had now replaced Violet as the imposing and powerful Duchess of Edgewood.