---- 306.
DINNER WITH THE DUKE KATHERINE Night had already fallen.
I was drenched in water, covered in the dust from the road, and utterly exhaustedmore mentally than physically.
I stepped into a small sitting room, adorned withvish furniture anda tea service table.
The décor was exquisite: paintings, heavy drapes, finely crafted hardwood furnitureeven the ceiling had intricate detailing.
Everything was beautiful, but if you looked closely, certain details stood outthe cobwebs half-hidden in the corners, the dust poorly wiped away.
When I opened the bedroom door, the stale, damp smell hit my nose, despite the clean sheets.
Whoever was in charge of cleaning this room did everything but clean properly.
At least they had left the firece burning in the cold room.
When I opened the enormous wooden wardrobe, I almost expected bats toe flying out like from a cave.
That thing hadnt taken a single breath of air in all this time.
Well, what a pathetic excuse for a Duchess you were, dear sister, I murmured with a sigh.
I grabbed the simplest dress with the least musty smell, though to me who had spent ten years in a cell smaller than that closet, dressed in nothing but a filthy shiftit felt exquisite.
---- Alright, following this hallway, I should find the suits of armor...
ah, there they are.
Then the tapestry of the man on horseback and the staircase to the first floor." Theyout yed out in my mind.
Ihad memorized it every day, so I arrived at the massive dining hall,rge enough to amodate about fifty people.
It was imposing, and that never-ending table, set just for the two of us, looked deste.
Madam, this way, a footman guided me to a chair ced almost in the middle of the table.
Here? I asked, instantly regretting it when he gave me a look that screamed obviously.
This is where you always dine, Your Ladyship.
Is there a problem? he asked, and I nced at the head of the table.
At the very least, I had assumed Id be seated beside the Duke, but I was ced more than five chairs away from him.
No, this is fine, I replied, gathering the voluminous skirt of my turquoise dress and sitting with elegance.
Drawing from all the etiquette I had learned and refined, built upon the little I had known before.
Tupied myself by examining the tablewarethe white porcin decorated with blue flowers.
Time passed; I slowly raised my head, watching for the Dukes arrival, the food, or anything at all...
My stomach churned worse than lice in a greasy scalp, and my ass had already gone numb from sitting so long.
---- When I stepped into the bathroom, it was the same as the bedroom barely cleaned after months of neglect.
And to think you betrayed me for this life of hypocrisy...
You were truly pathetic, Rosse, I scoffed while sinking into the so-called rose bath, which was more cold water than anything else, inside the yellowed tub.
As thedy of the house, I should have had a maid or more trailing after me, attending to my every need, even washing my...
feet if necessary, but there was no one.
Why did the servants dare to treat me this way? It was obviousthe Duke allowed it.
Still, for me, it was an advantage now.
Once I was dressed and drying my hair, a maid knocked on the door.
Come in, I called out, and I heard her walk from the antechamber to the open doorway.
Your Ladyship, dinner is ready, she informed me, and I nodded.
Lady Lavinia requested to dine in her room.
Very well, I replied with a sigh.
Thedy who arrived with mesee that she is well attended as part of my personal staff, I instructed, firm but not harsh.
Yes, maam.
I will inform the housekeeper, she answered before leaving without much ceremony.
Irecalled what Rosse had told me about her duties, one of which was dining with the Duke whenever he was at the castle.
With little time to freshen up and my stomach growling from hunger, I headed toward the dining hall.