Chapter 165

[Evelyn’s POV]

Fucking what?!!

I almost spat my tea clear across the patio. I snapped my hand over my mouth and proceeded to fall into a manic coughing fit. Henry’s eyes widened in concern.

He sat up in his chair and reached across the table to rest a worried hand on my shoulder.

“Are you alright?” he asked.

I fought to gain better control of my breathing by taking in several deep, slow breaths. I ignored the sudden tears that prickled the corners of my eyes and forced out the words I’d been trying to say.

“Did you just say Hemlock?” I gasped.

Henry begrudgingly nodded his head.

“I didn’t believe it myself at first,” he commented. “I must have the tests at least half a dozen times and each time, they came back the same.”

I gently shook my head, still struggling to grasp the situation. While I had personally battled against the nasty effects of Belladonna, it was hardly anything compared to Hemlock. When it came to distribution, Belladonna was naturally administered to medical professionals under the guise of medicinal use.

Hemlock, on the other hand, was simply illegal to either sell or possess.

Its properties were known to be far too lethal, more so than Belladonna.

“It’s mainly why I needed to talk to you,” Henry explained. “I needed to know what you did because there is no known cure for Hemlock poisoning.”

Oh my God. I knew Isabella had done something to sabotage Edward’s treatments, but I would never have guessed it would be Hemlock. Honestly, it shouldn’t have surprised me in the slightest.

Isabella was evil on all accounts and I was going to make sure that she paid for her various crimes and wrongdoings.

“I had no idea that it was Hemlock. I knew that there was something wrong but I would never have guessed that.”

Henry gave me a wary look as though he were afraid of the words that were planning to come out next.

“You know who was tampering with your brother’s treatments, don’t you?”

“Yes,” I answered. “I just don't have the proof that I need.”

He nodded his head in understanding. “I think I might be able to help you find it.”

I glanced up with wide eyes. “How?”

“In order for the Hemlock to be properly administered in Edward’s IV bags, it would have had to have been liquified and distilled. Meaning, they took the Hemlock leaves and likely boiled them down in water,” he explained. “Using Hemlock in that particular state slightly weakens it. Not by much, mind you, but it’s far better than if he were to have ingested it directly.”

“So that’s the reason why it took longer to take effect on him?” I asked.

“Most likely. Don’t get me wrong, it’s highly lethal no matter what form it’s taken in. What I’m getting at is that this person, whom you believe to be responsible, knew how to make it all appear as though it was Edward who was responding negatively to the treatments. They’re clever and highly dangerous.”

I clenched my jaw. “I know. Edward isn’t the only person they have tried to get rid of,” I remarked.

Henry squared his shoulders. He raised his brows in question, prompting me to continue.

“I...I’m sure you're, at the very least, curious about why I’m wearing a mask over half of my face...” I lead on. Henry nodded once. “The person who is responsible for trying to kill my brother is also the one who led to my injuries, as well as my own death.”

His mouth fell open. “I’m—Oh my God,” he gaped. “I don’t know what to say.”

“You don’t need to say anything. I’ve proven myself to be a constant thorn in their side and they were determined to get rid of me.”

There was an unexpected glint in his eyes and the corners of his mouth curved.

“Yet, here you are,” Henry said softly. “My whole reason for bringing up the distilling process is because it takes up a substantial amount of space. It’s not something that can easily be done in a kitchen. The fumes that become released while the leaves are boiling, can be toxic which means the process requires open air and space. This person that you suspect, is there any possible place that you could think of that would allow them to have access to that kind of space?”

The Silverwood Estate was consideringly smaller than Kingston Hall. However, much like my home here, I also had a decently sized outdoor space that allowed me to work with my plants and flowers when I still lived there. The greenhouse that was there was much smaller but it held a large wooden flat-top workspace.

“Would a greenhouse be an ideal place for such a project?” I asked mindlessly.

“That...Sounds like the perfect place,” Henry confirmed. His voice grew low. “Evelyn.”

I pulled myself from my thoughts to find his imploring gaze.

“Would you be horribly offended if I asked you to remove the mask for a moment?” he questioned. “I’m going to lie, you’ve piqued my interest since the moment you walked out here. Consider it my medical curiosity.”

I let out a long breath and tilted my head. “I really wasn’t intending on removing the mask until I managed to get the first variation down of the serum I’m working on.”

“What kind of serum?”

“One that could help ease and alleviate scars,” I explained. “What I’ve noticed in a lot of my readings, is whenever sutures are removed, it’s important for the patient to treat the affected area the way you would with burns—with a constant cooling element that helps rejuvenate and allows the skin to restore itself. I’m using Aloe as a base to help with the inflammation and I plan to use lavender oil to support healing as well as Rosehip oil to reduce appearance.”

Henry looked positively astounded by my intentions. “That's incredible! I had no idea you were so well-versed in plants and their properties.”

“I’ve been studying them for a very long time,” I confessed. “It’s just one of those topics that’s always come easy to me.

“That truly is amazing,” he said. “Have you ever considered taking up a profession in the medical field?”

“Not really,” I confessed sheepishly. “Don’t get me wrong, I hold a tremendous amount of respect for those who dedicate their lives to it, but I have my responsibilities here as Luna. Plus, if I find that the serum works, I will be more than happy to ship it out to whoever needs it.”

Henry nodded his head. “Fair enough, I suppose. Well, I should be heading back to the office.”

He and I stood up from the table. I helped gather up his files and handed them over.

“Thank you for taking the time to come here and speak with me,” I said.

Henry graced me with another picture-perfect smile. “The pleasure was all mine. You are not quite what I had expected.”

My brows lifted. “I hope that’s a good thing,” I said lightly.

He chuckled and nodded his head in assurance. “It is. Your Alpha is a very lucky man. I hope he knows that.”

“He does.”

My stomach flipped from the low voice that reverberated off the walls. I hesitated to turn my head, knowing that I was set to find a very pissed-off Alexander. And sure enough, I was right.