# CHAPTER 4: A Garden of Secrets, a Missing Ruby, and the Queen of St. Rosetta’s
Hello everyone, it’s me again! How are you all doing? Today I will continue to walk with you and review CHAPTER 4 of "Of Curses And Kisses free digital audiobook". So settle in, take a deep breath, and let’s step back into St. Rosetta’s, where the gardens whisper secrets, the rubies go missing, and every smile might be hiding a knife.
This chapter opens with Jaya Rao still waiting on her sister, Isha, to text her back. Since Isha is silent, Jaya decides to explore the gardens she spotted from her dorm window. And honestly, it is the perfect place for her. Nature has always calmed her, and she needs a clear head to plan her first meeting with Grey Emerson on Thursday. She remembers how, back home, Appa had the palace groundskeepers set up a little bench by the roses just for her—a private sanctuary where she could read in peace, away from Isha’s mischief. That memory makes her smile, but it also sharpens her resolve.
Because Jaya has a plan. A dangerous, delicious, carefully calculated plan. She is going to get close to Grey Emerson, flirt with him, banter with him, stroke his ego, and smile sweetly at him—all while carrying a poisoned arrow in her heart. The Emersons ruined Isha. They humiliated the Rao family. And Jaya intends to make Grey fall for her, then break his heart so thoroughly that his family finally tastes their own medicine. There is even a running joke in her family: what zodiac sign do the Emersons share? Gemini—because they are all so incredibly two-faced. Jaya is determined to play that game too.
But as she sits beneath the pine trees, something terrible happens. She glances down at her rose pendant and discovers that one of its eighteen rubies is missing. The empty socket stares back at her, and her stomach drops. This necklace is a gift from Appa, and Appa cannot abide irresponsibility. Jaya immediately kneels and searches the ground, panic rising. Five minutes pass. Nothing. Then she hears hurried footsteps crunching down the path.
Before she can reveal herself, she catches a flash of red through the hedge and hears heavy breathing. A voice—full, round, familiar—says, “No, stop. I told you, Alaric, it was a summer-only, messed-up thing. We shouldn’t even be out here talking.” It is Daphne Elizabeth McKinley. And Alaric? The same Alaric from the library? Yes. Jaya recognizes his smiling, husky voice. His accent is a mixture of American and something else—maybe German. All she can see are his polished black shoes.
Then the shoes move closer together. Oh, fantastic. Jaya is trapped in the middle of a secret romantic confrontation. She considers clearing her throat or sneezing, but it is too late. Daphne Elizabeth tells Alaric she cannot be his booty call when Caterina is not around. Alaric tries to argue, but Daphne’s voice wobbles even as she tells him to leave her alone. He retreats. Jaya counts to ten, sighs in relief, and stands.
And comes face-to-chin with the willowy Daphne Elizabeth herself.
Daphne’s freckled face burns with shock and anger. “You! Were you... spying on me?” Jaya hurriedly explains she was sitting there first and did not want to embarrass her. Daphne smiles a ghost of a smile, her eyes green fire, and tells Jaya that she has stumbled onto primo gossip on her very first day. She jokes that Jaya could rise in the social ranks by telling everyone—then mumbles that Caterina La Valle will destroy her. Jaya straightens her shirt, tilts her head back, and looks Daphne right in the eye. “I don’t know about the other people at this school, but I am a Rao. I would never stoop to that level.” Daphne studies her, then relaxes. She admits she never thought she would be the kind of person to get involved with someone who already has a girlfriend. Alaric and Caterina are an institution at St. Rosetta’s. Everyone wants to be them.
Jaya tells her honestly that she does not judge her. She knows what it is like to have a secret she hopes no one discovers—and she knows what happens when people do. They walk back together, and Daphne invites Jaya to sit with them at breakfast tomorrow. It is the second invitation Jaya has received from Grey Emerson’s social group. She wonders how Grey managed to fool them all.
Jaya searches for the ruby for another fifteen minutes, but it is gone. Rubies do not simply disappear. She will have to replace it before she sees Appa again. Later, back in her room, she debates putting the necklace away for safekeeping, but she cannot bear to part with it yet. It is a reminder of home, of happier times. She will just have to be more careful.
Then Penelope Grant appears at her door. She is Jaya’s neighbor in 303, Australian, with peach-pink cheeks and long blond hair in a braid. She asks if Jaya is really a princess, and Jaya gives a modest smile. Penelope admires the pendant, especially the rubies. But before Jaya can say much, a piercing squeal rings out down the hallway. They rush to follow it.
Room 315 is wide open. Inside, a beautiful dark-haired girl in a stunning emerald-green ball gown is twirling while two friends watch with slack-jawed admiration. It is Caterina La Valle—Queen Cat—the only daughter of Italian American multimillionaire Matteo La Valle. She is posing for a picture to send to Alaric, wanting to make him drool. Penelope whispers that Caterina kind of rules the school.
Caterina notices them and flashes a brilliant smile. She shows off her custom Valentino, a surprise from her daddy for the Homegoing dance. Jaya admits it is beautiful and means it. But she also feels a twist of pity and guilt. Alaric chose someone exactly the opposite of Daphne Elizabeth for his summer dalliance, and Caterina has no idea. Jaya tries to leave, but Caterina stops her. She compliments the pendant, mentions visiting Kerala and spending time with Sri Devi Nair, a royal family daughter. Then she leans against the doorframe and says, “I always take care of my friends.” The message is clear: Caterina deals in favors, alliances, and secrets. She could be a powerful ally—or a formidable enemy. Jaya smiles her most royal smile and says any friend of Sri Devi’s is a friend of hers. They air-kiss. “Excellent,” Caterina says. “I know we’ll get on famously.”
Back in Jaya’s room, Penelope is in awe. Caterina is not usually so welcoming, she says. Jaya stays vague and quietly celebrates. Grey Emerson attending St. Rosetta’s, Daphne Elizabeth and the others inviting her to breakfast—these feel like good omens. The universe is conspiring to help her bring Grey to justice. She dismisses the missing ruby. She cannot afford negativity now.
Then Isha arrives. She greets Penelope warmly, charmed by the Australian accent. Penelope asks where they are going, and Isha begins to invite her to dinner at A-caf-demy Bistro. But Jaya cuts in. She needs to speak with Isha privately. Penelope looks like a droopy bloodhound but leaves. Jaya promises herself she will apologize later.
As they walk to dinner in the fading dusk, Jaya notices Isha is wearing a T-shirt she promised to throw away. It is white, tight-fitting, and printed with bold black letters: NO GODS, NO MASTERS. Jaya’s worry clouds her brow. Isha is a social butterfly, the one everyone loved and watched. When she fell, she fell in full view of her audience. Jaya had spent countless moments wishing the Emersons had targeted her instead. Isha had farther to fall.
Jaya puts her arm around Isha and gently reminds her that they came for a clean start. Isha sighs and says she knows—keep her head down, do what is expected. Then she apologizes. She knows Jaya had to leave everything behind because of her. Jaya turns her sister toward her and says, “No.” It is not because of who Isha is. It is because of who they are. They are royals. The rules are different. That is why the Emersons came after Isha, and why they must keep a low profile. One of them goes to their school. They cannot afford to let their guard down again.
They walk in silence. Then Isha asks if she can take robotics engineering. Jaya is stunned. St. Rosetta’s has electives from French Cooking to Russian Ballet to Global Finance, but robotics engineering? Not advisable for a royal. Isha argues that plenty of Indian women are engineers. Jaya tries to be patient, but her temper crackles. She reminds Isha of the scandal—the photos of her with mechanics in a motorcycle shop, covered in oil and dirt, kissing one and drinking alcohol. The T-shirt with anarchy and extreme feminism slogans. Isha defends herself: they were boys her own age, she was helping them earn money so they did not have to close their shop, she is an excellent mechanic. She was doing a good thing. Jaya fires back that it did not matter. The news turned it into a scandal. Amma was alienated from her boards. Isha could not even leave the palace grounds. “You sound just like Appa,” Isha says angrily. “I just want to be me.”
Jaya takes a deep breath and lets it go for now. Isha has a short fuse; Jaya is a slow burn. A minute later, Isha smiles slightly and says she thinks she will like it here. She has already made friends, including Raina, who might have best friend potential. Jaya squeezes her hand. They walk the rest of the way in relative silence, huddled against the cold, Lake Rosetta hidden somewhere off to their right like a glassy jewel in the woods. This place is different from home in almost every way. But with her sister beside her, Jaya does not feel so alone.
Reader’s Impressions & Star Rating: This chapter is a gorgeous web of setup. Jaya’s revenge plan is chilling because it is wrapped in royal poise and genuine sisterly love. The missing ruby feels like a bad omen she refuses to read, and the garden eavesdropping scene is both awkward and hilarious. Daphne Elizabeth becomes instantly interesting, Caterina La Valle arrives like a queen with a hidden blade, and Isha’s rebellious spark gives the story real emotional heat. The tension between duty and identity is handled beautifully. I loved how the chapter balances romance, rivalry, and family loyalty without losing its light, addictive voice. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Rating: 4.8 / 5 Stars
Next Chapter Prediction: The first day of school is about to explode. Jaya will sit with Grey Emerson’s social circle at breakfast, which means she will be closer to him than ever—and closer to danger. I predict she will finally meet Grey face-to-face in a scene full of sharp banter and hidden motives. Caterina may begin testing Jaya’s loyalty, Daphne Elizabeth may send warning glances, and Alaric will probably hover like a storm cloud. Meanwhile, the missing ruby may not be a simple accident. It could be a sign that someone at St. Rosetta’s knows more about Jaya than she realizes. And when Jaya starts phase one of her plan, Grey may prove far harder to manipulate than she expects.
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