Chapter 59
“You want to defend Ploria in your brother’s place?” Damian asked.
Damian scoffed as if she’d just told the funniest joke in history. His eyes brimmed with disdain. “Do you really think war is child’s play? Do you have any idea that on the battlefield, blood flows and men die every single moment?”
“I do,” Deborah replied evenly. She wasn’t naive; she knew all too well the horrors of war.
But the general’s estate was now at a crossroads—if no one stepped up, their fate would be sealed by death.
“Your Highness, I know that even Suensonland has its share of female generals. The king wouldn’t dismiss my worth just because I’m a woman.
“Consider Kaitlin, for instance–she came to see you tonight. I’ve learned that her sister, Mollie Hodges, is one of Suensonland’s leading female commanders.”
“Your Highness, please…”
“Why should I help you?” he replied coolly, shooting her a dismissive glance.
Deborah raised her eyes to meet his. “Because…I’m Simon’s wife. Your Highness, can you do it for his sake—”
“And if I refuse?” he interjected.
“Your Highness…” she pleaded.
“There’s no such thing as a free lunch in this world,” he said, his long, pale fingers tapping on his knee as his eyes locked onto hers. “What are you willing to pay?”
“Pay?” Deborah stared at him, a chill of unease creeping in. “Your Highness, I’m Si—”
“What?” Damian narrowed his eyes. “Come again?”
Biting her lip, Deborah hesitated before gathering her resolve. “Your Highness…what is it you want from me?”
“You have no power, no influence. What do you think I want?” he asked.
“Then give me a reason. I’m a married woman–what is it that you see in me?”
If she still believed his gaze was pure and kind, she was either being naive or foolish. But she thought, ‘What exactly does he see in me?‘
He fixed her with an unreadable stare–cold, like that first time in the carriage, yet burning with an intensity that made her skin prickle.
“Your Highness, even if you don’t want to hear it, I am Simon’s wife. If you really have feelings for me…how do you plan on facing him later?”
She wondered, ‘Does he feel absolutely no burden of guilt?‘
Damian’s expression remained impenetrable–one moment his gaze chilled her to the core, the next it burned like a furnace. ‘What kind of man is he? How can he so easily disregard the bonds between brothers?‘
After what felt like an eternity, he finally spoke, his tone devoid of emotion, “What if I told you that Simon is willing to share everything he owns
with me?”
At that, Deborah sprang to her feet, anger flashing in her eyes. “I’m not some object!” she cried, glaring at him with fire in her eyes and clenching
her fists.
“Do you really think that, to me–or even to Simon–you’re nothing more than a plaything?” he retorted, the faint smile draining from his face.
In that moment, Deborah wasn’t sure if she was imagining it, but his expression suddenly turned shockingly earnest. “Simon wouldn’t treat me that way. But you–Your Highness, you would!” she insisted, her voice shaking. “In your eyes, I’m nothing more than a toy!”
All hope seemed to vanish at once. She bit her lip, then turned abruptly to leave.
Behind her came his chilling voice, “You really believe that Henry is merely under house arrest in the palace? That he isn’t languishing in the dungeons? Do you honestly think His Majesty’s leniency towards the general’s estate is a blessing?”
Deborah’s heart lurched as she spun around, staring at him. “What… what do you mean?” she managed to ask.
9:26 AM
