Chapter 10

CHAPTER 10

" B reakfast?" Samantha's father asked. "Why on earth would you think you would be having that?"

The Earl was all too excited to return home all of a sudden. It was a change in his behavior, given how much importance he had held over the event, but Samantha realized quite quickly that there were things for him to put in motion and a wedding to plan whether she wished to do it or not.

"I promised the Duke," she explained. "I told him that I would see him at breakfast this morning. I cannot simply disappear now, can I?"

"You already have him. There is no need to appease him now."

"He could always take back the proposal, you know that."

"He is clearly a man of honor," her father explained, "and so I doubt that he would do that to you now. You ought to simply be grateful that I am taking you home. That is what you wanted, is it not? Truly, I cannot do right by you, can I? One moment, you wish to go home rather than attend a party; the next, you wish to stay!"

"I — I simply did not know the Duke before, Father. Now that I do, I am more than happy to stay."

"Then you should have considered that beforehand. Now come along; we must make haste if I am to arrange your wedding."

"Will the Duke not want some sort of input in it all?"

"I have already spoken with him. He does not care what I arrange so long as it is in keeping with his status. He is also funding it, so there shall be no expense spared either."

"Father, you cannot spend another man's money like this!"

"I am doing this for you, Samantha. Truly is it impossible for you to show even the faintest hint of gratitude?"

Samantha was not grateful. She was not happy about anything that was happening, but at least, her father was happy. He was at least bearable when he was happy.

She did not know entirely why she was so desperate to stay. She would have to spend the rest of her life with the Duke, and so what was the use in seeing him at breakfast? Perhaps it was the fact that she had given him her word or even that it meant that nobody would receive a goodbye from her, not to mention the fact that she would not see Penelope again for a long time.

"My apologies, Father," she sighed. "I am grateful; of course, I am. Any young lady in my position would feel the same."

"There. That was not so difficult, was it?"

It was, but Samantha could not tell him that.

Once in the carriage, her father seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, and then, all that he could do was smile. Samantha was not surprised by this; he had successfully shipped off both of his daughters, and now, he was ready for the only child of his that had ever truly mattered to him. All of his time and energy could be showered upon this wonderful heir, and Samantha somehow knew that there would magically be more of both to go around now that it was for a son.

"Now," he continued, "Diana and her husband are permitted to attend as that is the proper thing to do, but I expect the two of you to be on your best behavior. I cannot have the two of you embarrassing me."

Ah yes, Samantha thought . Because it was Diana and I that brought shame upon our family name.

"Of course. Perhaps we might also keep the two of you separated throughout the event?"

She had asked this hopefully because it was well known that they could not stand each other, and it had only grown worse after Diana had married her husband. She was no longer afraid of him and was therefore more willing to speak her mind. She couldn't have known, however, that even though his anger never impacted herself or her husband, it always impacted Samantha.

"We cannot do that — as much as I would like it. We must give a good showing to the ton , and you know that. We are a happy family — even happier now that you are to be married. Truly, I have outdone myself this time."

Samantha had to fight not to roll her eyes in indignation. She had assumed that he would credit himself with his ‘triumph', but she also knew that he was completely unaware of the reality of the situation. He had simply decided that his threat had worked, and she had cowered. Samantha wondered which scenario he would prefer, but she did not dare reveal the truth to him.

It was more than likely that he would congratulate her for doing something to entrap a husband, but there was also a chance that he would berate her, and worse, for being so improper. That was not a risk that she wished to take.

"Have you and the Duke discussed the date?" she asked, "I believe it would be prudent to wait a while."

"I hate that idea, and fortunately, the Duke agreed with me. Whatever you did to him seems to have made him eager, I shall give you that."

"I did not do anything, Father."

"Come now, you and I both know that gentlemen like him do not marry girls like you. I am not angry with you for it. The ends have clearly justified the means of whatever it was that you did. In fact, I am proud of you."

She hated her father, but what she hated even more was the fact that that praise, the first bit of good he had ever said to her in her life, made her feel even the tiniest bit happy. She did not rely on him to make her content — she could not — but even so she had to admit that it was nice to have a father that was proud of her.

The Duke was clearly afraid of what his brother would do. That was the only reason Samantha could think of for him to want to have the wedding as soon as possible. It would be a terrible process, including applying for a special license, not to mention going before the queen if it were rejected, and she was terrified. They would have to prove their true and undying love, professing it before judgment could be passed, and it was clear to anyone that saw them together that there was simply no love there. The Duke had made a good showing when he proposed, but Samantha was not so sure that she would be so believable nor that the Duke could do it a second time.

"When will he arrive?" she dared to ask.

"Who?"

"Him."

"Ah, my boy! Well, it is not confirmed as yet. He seems to be missing some of his things, but once all of his affairs are in order, I cannot see it being too long at all."

"In which case, might the wedding be put on hold until he arrives? It would be a good way for him to meet some members of the ton ."

"I suggested that, but the Duke seemed to want the ceremony to be held urgently. That is why I shall be arranging it; he is undergoing the process for the license. Then again, I suppose it might urge Adam along if he knows that his sister will be married soon."

"Half-sister," she muttered.

"There will be no talk of that. You are siblings, and so you shall refer to each other as such. There is no need for you to keep yourself so separate from him when he has done nothing to you."

Samantha hated to admit it, but her father was right. Adam had never done anything to her, and it did not matter that he had been handed everything as the heir whilst she and Diana had fought for the very little that they had. He was family to her now, and she could not hate him simply because she hated their father. He had to have a fair chance, just as she was sure Diana would be giving him.

"Very well," she sighed. "But it will be strange for a while. Surely you understand that."

"Of course. It shall be an adjustment for all of us, myself more than anyone. If you ever have a son, you shall understand. All must be done for them at any cost."

Samantha regretted ever mentioning Adam. This is what her life was destined to be as far as her father was concerned — talk of his son and nothing more.

The carriage ride home seemed to take even longer than the one on the way there, and Samantha was almost grateful to see her house as she exited the carriage. There had been so much work undergone that it was unrecognizable, and she assumed that was all part of her father's plan. Reinvention. He was no longer Johnathon Winston, the father of two terrible and useless daughters. He was the Earl of Colton with an heir and a lovely home that events could be held in.

A facade, but that did not seem to matter to him any more than his two eldest children did.

With all that had happened, Samantha saw that a letter had been delivered for her and almost did not open it at all. She wanted to leave it there, to not give any satisfaction to whoever had sent it, but then she recognized the handwriting and could not resist. The handwriting, that was, and the seal of the Duke and Duchess of Abaddon.

My Dear Sister,

By the time you receive this, you shall have returned from that wretched party. I hope that it was not truly the most awful and terrible thing to happen to you ever, as you thought it might be. I hope, at the very least, that you found something enjoyable about it, even if it were the smallest and most insignificant thing.

Colin and I, as well as our children, have taken residency at our London estate for the season. We had not planned to, but Colin has some matters to tend to here. Perhaps you might wish to join us for tea? Perhaps even stay a few weeks, but you and I both know that Father would be furious if you did that.

I hope to see you soon,

Diana

Samantha could not believe her luck. The London estate that they had purchased was a mere twenty-minute walk away, and suddenly, she felt herself become much more awake and alert than she had been. A walk was precisely what she needed, and if she just so happened to stumble upon her sister's home, well, that would simply be a lovely coincidence.

That was the excuse she gave her father, at least, when she told him she required the presence of a maid for the afternoon.

"Come in," Diana said briskly as soon as she saw her. "You must tell me everything."

"Well, the household was nice," she began, "There were plenty of flowers. You would have liked it, I think, and —"

"Not the household, the people," she smirked. "Otherwise, the next thing I know, you shall be telling me all about the books you read there."

"Oh! Yes, the people. Well, there was Lady Penelope, who I truly did enjoy the company of. She was a lot like you. Then there was Lord Drowshire, who I believe you have met before."

"Yes, Oliver," Colin nodded as he entered the room. "A charming man. He would have made a good husband for you, had you been willing."

"Dear, you and I both know that Samantha has no interest in such things. She has her own mind."

Samantha laughed along nervously, and the second she did so, her sister shot her a look.

"Samantha, please do not tell me you are engaged to Lord Drowshire."

"No! No, of course, I am not. He is a perfectly lovely gentleman, but no."

"You see?" Diana smiled triumphantly at her husband. "There is nobody in the world that I know better than my sister."

"Diana —" Samantha began, but Diana did not seem to hear her.

"If my sister were to become engaged, or to even be courted by some gentleman or other —"

"Diana —"

"I would surely be the first to know about it."

"Diana, I am engaged," Samantha said quickly, and both of them turned to her.

Colin seemed to be smirking at his wife, but Diana looked wildly at her.

"Whose fault is it?" she asked, "Who has done this to you?"

"Nobody, Sister. It is my own fault, truly."

"Samantha, you would never choose to be married. Someone has caused this because you are not even reckless enough to bring it upon yourself."

"Di," Colin said gently, "perhaps Samantha has simply changed her mind?"

"Colin, you do not understand. It has always been this way. Samantha has never ever wished to marry. This is out of her control, I assure you."

She hated that her sister was right.

"You see…" Samantha said slowly. "Oh, I do not even know where to start. Diana, do you remember when we were girls, and there was a thunderstorm, or father was particularly… like himself?"

"And you would come to see me, yes," she nodded. "It happened at least twice a week."

"Well, I may or may not have had my fill of alcohol and assumed the room across from mine was yours."

Diana covered her mouth with her hand, her eyes wide.

"Please tell me that is not true."

"I am no happier about it than you are!"

"Oh, Samantha, you compromised yourself? Has your reputation truly been destroyed?"

"Not at all. The worst that has happened is that I received two threatening notes. That is all."

"But you… you are engaged."

"Yes, to the Duke of Gloryfield. He believes the culprit to be his brother, and so to mitigate the issue, we shall marry before word can spread. That is all there is to it, and I am perfectly happy to go along with it."

"But you should not be. You should be angry, angrier even than I feel right this moment. You seem so content with it."

"Believe me, I am anything but happy, but it is not all too terrible, you know. The Duke says that he will try to get me accepted into university once we are married."

"That is practically impossible, you know that."

"Yes, and so if a Duke tries, and they refuse to listen even to him, then I shall take it as a loss and give it up once and for all. It is, if anything, the best chance that I could possibly have to know whether or not I truly am good enough, and so I have to try."

"So, you are marrying this man simply to attend university?"

"I am marrying him because I will be ruined if I do not. Make no mistakes, I do not want this, but if it means I might finally be able to do something that I have always dreamed of, then that makes it a little easier to come to terms with."

"Samantha, there are other ways around this. Do not forget that you are the sister of a duchess, and so there is no need to be the wife of a duke. Colin and I can try to arrange something for you, and we can make it so that whoever has been blackmailing you receives punishment."

"Diana, you are a duchess, but you are not all powerful. If I am married, my chances are far greater. Besides, the Duke is a good man and does not expect a great deal from me. It is in my best interests to do this."

"But —"

"Diana," Colin said gently, resting his arm around his wife's waist, "if Samantha has decided that this is what is best for her, you cannot force her to change her mind. All that we can do is support her which I believe is exactly what she wants from us. Am I right in saying that, Samantha?"

Samantha nodded, and at last her sister seemed to quieten. It was evident to all three of them that Samantha was not happy, but she did indeed need their support.

She needed someone, amongst it all, to understand.