Still, he wasn’t going to allow his mother to lower herself in front of the servants. He waved a hand, and the footmen cleared the room, Morton closing the door, until it was only the four of them. His mother gave him a grateful look.

“I was wrong, Embry,” she said haltingly. “About all of it. What you said there at the end about my reign made me think. You were right about me and the silly things I valued, and I asked myself, for a woman who has lost so much, would I be willing to lose the family I have left to preserve the status quo? To care for those who would cut my family down for sport without blinking? I’m ashamed to even think I put them first.” She drew a shattered breath. “Because the answer is no. I don’t wish to lose you.” Her gaze slid to Ravenna. “Or you. You’re all I have left, now that Elodie has remarried and taken my granddaughters to Northumberland.” She walked to the table where Rhystan sat, calmly picked up the newssheets, and ripped them in half. “And no-goddamned-body vilifies my family and gets away with it.”

Ravenna gasped, staring at their mother like she’d grown wings and a tail, her mouth ajar. Even he was shocked speechless.

The duchess sent them an arch glance. “What? You thought your straitlaced mother didn’t know how to swear?”

Sarani, for her part, held her composure, though something like shock flashed in her eyes. She tensed when the duchess turned her gaze toward her as though uncertain of what to expect. “I was wrong to judge you so harshly. What you did for Ravenna when that man had her in his grasp…” She choked up, a hand coming to her throat. “I made a horrible mistake. I was so afraid for her, so afraid I’d lose her, too, and I admit my reaction was cowardly in the extreme.”

“Your Grace,” Sarani began, but his mother held up a palm.

“Please, before you say anything, I have something more to say. I know it’s asking quite a bit, but I hope you have it in your heart to forgive me. My very smart son has the right of it. A person should be judged by their conduct and character, not by the color of their skin or their place of birth. I was wrong.”