Chapter 76: Behind the Bar
Lyria's POV
I shook my head.
"I-I c-cannot," I whispered, my voice almost drowned beneath the quiet bustle of the room.
Helen pushed it further into my hands.
"Ye'll take it," she said. "And ye'll use it."
"Helen—"
"I can't take ye away from yer family." Her voice was flat and final. "Ye won't let me. So I'll do what I can do. And what I can do is make sure ye use this."
I stared down at the ointment, my fingers brushing the smooth metal of the tin. No amount of refusal had ever worked with Helen. She always got what she wanted, and it was not worth trying to resist.
I swallowed and finally nodded, taking it from her. "T-thank you."
Her eyes flicked to the shelves behind the bar, narrowing. "There's more patrons than usual tonight," she said. "Especially with all this talk o' suitor candidates. Makes people fret, ye know. Makes 'em think on things that ain't proper."
I nodded again, gripping the tin carefully. "I-I understand."
