“Prepare to leave for Croyso Castle immediately.”
Maxi froze at the unexpected words.
The duke fixed his gaze on the window as though he could no longer bear to look at her. “I am in the process of securing Rosetta’s marriage to the royal family. I cannot allow you to remain here. Be prepared to leave today.”
“B-B-But…” Maxi was so flustered that she was at a loss for words.
A look of sheer contempt suddenly flashed across her father’s face. “What on earth made you think you could crawl into the capital in the first place? You should have remained quietly in that hinterland…. How dare you come here and shame me?” he snarled, his voice growing more and more vicious with each word.
Trembling, Maxi clasped her hands. Her father no longer had the right to order her around. The only person who had authority over her actions now was her husband; therefore, she had no reason to shake in fear. Repeatedly reminding herself of this fact, Maxi spoke as calmly as possible.
“I have…n-no intentions of impeding the marriage talks. My husband…will be here to t-take me home in a few days. I will quietly remain in the p-princess’s residence…until then.”
“Are you disobeying my command?” the duke asked, his voice growing lower ever so slightly.
Against her will, Maxi’s reply turned into a plea. “I c-cannot leave…wh-when Riftan will be here any day now. Was it not your wish…th-that I…preserve this marriage?”
“That is exactly why I’m taking you away from here!”
The duke shot to his feet and strode over to her. Maxi went to clutch the door handle, but her father was faster.
He yanked her back and hissed in her ear, “What man would keep a woman who can’t bear him any heirs? Did you think that he would take you back to his estate when he returns to the capital? You wretched fool! Will you not be satisfied until you’ve shamed our family in front of all the nobility?”
Amid her terror, Maxi was utterly confused. “I-I don’t understand….”
“Practically everyone in Drachium Palace is gossiping about your miscarriage. What kind of fool must you be to not know that you’ve lost a child?!”
The words refused to sink in. All Maxi could do was look up at her father with a blank expression. A miscarriage? What on earth did he mean? Her hearing became muffled, and her face turned white.
As if his anger grew hotter by the minute, the duke violently shook his half-dazed daughter. “King Reuben raised concerns about Rosetta’s ability to conceive by mentioning you. He blatantly mocked me, saying that it worried him that Rosetta might be infertile just like her sister! Tell me, how does it feel now that you’ve managed to damage your sister’s prospects as well? How do you intend to take responsibility if this marriage talk falls apart?!”
“I-I…I’ve…n-never had a…m-miscarriage!” Maxi cried. “There must be a…m-misunderstanding….”
His face contorting with rage, the duke raised his hand. Maxi squeezed her eyes shut, but the blow never came. When she slowly opened her eyes, she saw her father breathingheavily in an effort to restrain himself.
Lowering his hand, he turned away from her and picked up the ivory cane propped against the chair. He straightened himself as though tired of arguing with her. “There is no need for more words. You are to leave this place before that filthy lowborn arrives. We must avoid a divorce until Rosetta’s marriage is finalized. I will not condone both a divorce and a broken engagement…. I will not allow you to dishonor the Croyso name and turn me into a laughingstock!”
Maxi’s heart fluttered with panic. “I…c-cannot leave. I will talk to Riftan…o-once he arrives! H-He has told me th-that he has no intention of d-divorcing me. I-It’s true!”
Maxi desperately clung to her father’s cloak. Despite his face twisting viciously in response, she could not stop herself. It felt like the ground was shaking, and she found it difficult to steady herself. Her head swam with a jumble of thoughts.
“I-I am certain…th-that my miscarriage is a m-misunderstanding as well. No one…h-has told me of it. I am m-merely unwell…because of magic—”
“Must I have you dragged home?” snarled the duke, cruelly slapping her hand away.
Maxi gazed up at him in utter disbelief. Then her eyes began to burn, and she shook with violent sobs. Spinning on her heels, she opened the door with trembling hands and fled the room.
Having heard the raised voices, Ursuline, Elliot, and Princess Agnes rushed out of the door at the opposite end of the corridor. Running over to them, Maxi pleaded like asupplicant begging for an answer from heaven.
“D-Did I really lose a child? T-Tell me it isn’t true. M-My father is mistaken, i-isn’t he?”
“Maximilian…” Princess Agnes’s face crumpled in anguish.
Seeing the answer on the princess’s face, Maxi lost all the strength in her legs. She staggered, and Elliot caught her just before she collapsed. Maxi scrubbed at her face and stared at the floor with unseeing eyes. One by one, flashes of once baffling words and behaviors came rushing back to her addled mind.
The fact that she had been unconscious for a week. The pitiful gazes. The way everyone had been treating her so delicately. Riftan’s pained expression…
Some invisible force had her locked in a stranglehold. Maxi struggled for breath.
