---- Iwas stunned when he passed me the documents.
Even Mr.
Philips eyebrows lifted in surprise, though he quickly masked his disdain.
It was clear he looked down on me simply for being a woman.
I followed the Duke along the stone path, golden wheat fields stretching in the distance, harvesters finishing up the last few hectares.
Amassive wooden and metal silo stood ahead, towering beside a giant mill where grain was ground into flour.
Some field workers lingered nervously at the sight of the Duke.
They bowed respectfully as we approached, though they clearly eyed me with curiosity.
They probably wondered what I was even doing here.
"Dont wander off.
Stay by my side," came a commanding voice near my ear.
The Dukes hand gripped my waist and pulled me closer, forcing me to match his pace.
For some reason, my heart started beating faster, and my cheeks grew warm.
We entered the annexed structure next to the massive storage facility the mill, where a donkey turned the mechanism to grind the grain.
The evening sunlight filtered through the high wooden windows and the slats between the boards.
Immediately, I looked around for any false ceilings or elevated platforms used for extra storage.
The Duke listened to the administrators explanations.
---- I slipped out of his grasp and walked around a bit, scanning the most suspicious areas.
I remembered the hiding places workers often used my father always checked them.
Nothing stood out.
Outside, I could hear the murmuring of the laborers and the steady creaking of the mill at work.
I stood still, running out of ideas.
Opening the ledger, I skimmed through the numbers from the past month and the current one.
According to the report, the figures had dropped due to an alleged plague Thad never heard of.
There was no record of such a thing affecting the crops before.
Then, something caught my attention.
There were two separate pens for the donkeys, yet I only saw one animal.
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Ipushed open the door of the first pen, immediately hit by the stench of fresh manure.
A man was refilling the water trough and laying out food for the donkey.
He gave me a brief nod before continuing his task.
Ithen turned to inspect the other pen, located in the farthest corner.
The scent of manure filled my nose again, but this time, the droppings were piled in one corner, and several bales of dry hay were stacked against the back wall, almost covering it completely.
Iwas about to turn away when something unusual caught my eye.
Footprints.
Strange ones.
They seemed fresh.
The muddy shoe prints stood out.
I crouched down to examine them.
---- They came from a very specific type of bootfar too luxurious fora simple laborer but quite fitting for the administrator.
It was clear that someone had walked this path many times, and the tracks led straight to the hay-covered wall.
Suspicious.
Why would the administrator walk all the way to the back of a donkey pen? I stood up immediately and tried pushing the hay bales aside.
The dry grass tumbled down, scattering across the wooden floor, but the bales were heavy, and I struggled to move them properly.
My instincts screamed at me to keep digging.
I was almost certainthere was something hidden here.
"Mmm," I groaned, sweating and breathing hard as I tried to drag one of them.
I was definitely going to need help.
"May I assist you with something?" Adeep voice came from the narrow entrance.
"you shouldnt be here.
You might...
dirty your clothes."" Iturned to see a very tall, muscular man staring at me with unfriendly eyes.
He stepped forward, his movements slow but intimidating, and I instinctively took a step back, my pulse quickening as I glanced anxiously behind him.
He was blocking the only way out of this trap.
How far would they be willing to go to keep the Duke from discovering they were stealing from him? ---- Would they do anything to save their necks?
!!!
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