Rose carefully gathered her words as she replied Dumpheries.
"I..." she started haltingly. "That is to say, my comfort and care are being attended to as best they can be under the circumstances."
It was a half-truth, but she didn't wish to burden the kind blacksmith with the unsavory details of her outcast status within these walls. Dumphries seemed to pick up on her reticence, however.
"Begging your pardon, milady," he said gruffly. "But you'll forgive me if I don't fully believe that silver-tongued line."
Rose's eyebrows rose in surprise at his forthrightness. The older man's expression was etched with paternal concern.
"I may just be a simple craftsman," Dumphries went on. "But I've eyes and ears in this palace like you wouldn't believe. I know your relations with the staff and Lady Gladys have been... strained, as of late."
The words hung heavy in the air between them. Rose felt her throat tighten as she processed the unexpected insight. Her pregnancy would likely only become whispered gossip and scandal before too long.
Sudden panic lanced through Rose at the prospect. If her condition became common knowledge too soon, it could put everything at risk - her safety, her future, her very life, as well as that of her unborn child's. She couldn't allow that to happen, not until she better understood the ramifications they could potentially face from various sectors.
Before she could spiral too far down that line of worried thought, Dumphries spoke again in a gruff, reassuring tone.
"But you needn't fear, milady. You have my solemn vow that not a breath of your condition will pass these lips to any soul." He tapped the side of his bulbous nose knowingly. "And I'll keep my ears to the ground for any ugly rumors that need... stamping out before they fester, as it were."
Rose felt an immense swell of gratitude and relief towards this unpretentious man who seemed so determined to be in her corner. Unexpected allies were a balm in times of such uncertainty.
"You have my deepest thanks, Dumphries," she replied, injecting as much warmth and sincerity into her words as she could muster. "Your discretion and offer of... judicious deterrence means more to me than I can properly express."
Chewing her lip worriedly, Rose moved back over to the narrow window, staring out across the expansive palace grounds as if she could somehow sense where her knights were in their ongoing search for Blake. She pushed outwards with her telepathic powers once more, but again encountered only dense psychic interference.
Just what larger forces could possibly be dampening her abilities in such a way? Rose felt tendrils of dread uncurling within her over what other shadowy schemes might be unfolding behind the scenes in this place. If she could just make contact with her allies, maybe some insight could be shed on the situation.
Closing her eyes in meditative focus, Rose turned the full intensity of her vampiric mind inwards, delving deep into the nexus of her supernatural senses. She visualized Reggie's steadfast face, Randall's sardonic grin, Gunther's wild determination, and wove their impressions together into a singular, amplified psychic call.
Abruptly, Rose's eyes flew open wide, irises burning crimson with vampiric power. A feral snarl curled her lips as the amplified telepathic probe echoed off the inexplicable barrier sealing her in. The potent psychic backlash slammed into her awareness like a physical blow, staggering her backwards as her mind reeled.
Through a haze of psychic static, Rose registered a sudden, frantic knock at her chamber door. Jerking her head up, she felt an unfamiliar presence hovering in the hallway just outside.
Even as Rose's psychic defenses instinctively slammed into place, the door burst open to reveal Gladys standing in the corridor. The older woman's nostrils flared as she drank in the vestiges of vampiric energy still crackling in the air.
"Something powerful stirs in your chambers," Gladys murmured, fixing Rose with her piercing maternal gaze. "What forbidden forces do you tamper with in your isolation, girl?"
A strange expression flickered across the woman's features then, almost like fear. Whatever reaction Rose's unleashed powers had caused, it was not one Gladys had expected to encounter from her ostracized daughter.
The two vampires stared at each other in taut silence, unspeakable questions and implications hanging oppressively between them. Finally, Gladys seemed to marshal her resolve.
"See that you tread carefully on whatever perilous path you now walk, Rose," she said in a low, warning tone. "For there are eyes and powers in this place that may not look so kindly on your... activities."
With that awfully vague admonition hanging in the air, Gladys pursed her lips and stepped back, allowing the door to swing shut once more. Rose was left alone, shaken to her core with disquiet over what had just transpired.
As ominous possibilities swirled in her mind, Rose instinctively cradled her abdomen, steeling her resolve to get answers and protect her family at all costs. Whatever unseen forces were unfolding around her, she would remain steadfast against them.
Her and her unborn child's future might just depend on it.