Page 16 of Duke of Chaos

“My darlings, I promise you I will explain everything soon,” she assured them, “But for now let us put this evening to rest while it is still on a good note. Juliet and I need to be heading home.”

CHAPTER FIVE

“You did what?” Juliet’s whispered voice narrowed into a high-pitched shriek as Lydia told her the full truth of her deal with Ezra.

“Hush!” Lydia hissed, her eyes darting toward the door.

Her father would find out about the duke’s change of heart soon enough, but he did not need to find out like this. When she was sure no one was coming into Juliet’s room, Lydia looked sternly back at Juliet. Her sister gave her an apologetic glance and blinked as her eyes filled with tears.

“This is not what I wanted,” Juliet sobbed quietly, reaching for Lydia’s hands. “Sister, your freedom is everything to you! You cannot trade it for me!”

Love and sadness poured from Lydia’s heart at her sister’s kind words. It was not what she wanted for herself either. In fact, it made her heart race and her mind reel with anxious thoughts, somuch so that she was not sure if she needed to cry or be sick. But, despite her own terrors, Lydia gave Juliet a hesitant smile and pushed her own feelings aside. She would deal with them later. Muchlater when she was certain that no one would need her or search for her.

“My dearest, my freedom is mine to trade,” Lydia replied warmly, then placed a quick kiss on Juliet’s fisted knuckles before patting them. “And if it earned you your happiness, then it was a trade most worth making,” Lydia let out a little laugh as she stood up and busied herself with getting Juliet’s hair undone. Normally a maid would do such a thing but since Lydia would soon be leaving she wanted to do it as much as possible.

“The Duke of Frampton is a brute among men, to be sure,” Lydia went on, “But in the years that I have had to interact with him at parties, I have noticed that he can collar that brutality when he wants to. I shall simply have to find a way to entice him to do so.”

Juliet turned toward her with an incredulous look as Lydia began to brush her hair.

“Do not underestimate such a task, sister,” Juliet warned, “He may be “collared” by his friends, but that took them years. They are also men.”

“And all of them would tie him up to a horse and whip its flanks if he ever laid a cruel hand on me,” Lydia replied, hoping to soothe the tense conversation with a dash of humor and truth.

She felt relieved when she heard a soft laugh leave Juliet’s mouth as she shook her head.

“Duncan and Alice will not be living with you,” Juliet insisted, her voice again quiet and worried, “They will not always be there to protect you.”

Unable to assuage the fear and worry in her sister’s voice, Lydia quickly finished the simple braid in Juliet’s hair and let out a deep sigh as she walked around the bed to smile at Juliet.

“Do not do this, Juliet,” she commanded softly as she knelt before her and held her gently by her shoulders. “What is done is done. You now have another chance to wait for your darling baron. This was the one and only chance I could give you to wait for him. Use it wisely.”

Juliet’s eyes filled with tears again, making her appear even more childish and innocent.

“You speak as if you are saying goodbye,” she rasped. “Are you going to be leaving so soon?”

Lydia swallowed a sudden, hard lump in her throat and forced a nod.

“The duke had wanted a swift wedding with you. I am assuming that will not change. He only made his decision tonight, but I suspect that he will be alerting Father as soon as tomorrow.”

“The duke will never let me see you again,” Juliet sobbed, then put her hands to her face.

Lydia’s heart broke for her little sister as she wrapped her arms around her and put her down on her bed.

“That is not true,” she soothed, “That is simply not true.”

As she did for her when she was little, Lydia gently stroked her fingernails down Juliet’s back and sang her one of their mother’s lullabies. Eventually, Juliet’s sobs slowed, then so did her sad little hiccups, and by the time Lydia finished the final lyrics to the third lullaby she was sleeping deeply. Gently, so as not to wake her, Lydia slid out from around her sister’s smaller frame and positioned her head comfortably on the pillow. Lydia caught the drying tracks of tears still visible on Juliet’s cheeks and she felt her heart hurt again. She had done the only thing she could to save her sister from heartache, and yet she had somehow broken her heart anyway.

“Lydia,” Owen called as Lydia was gently closing the door to her sister’s room.

Lydia felt her stomach clench as she heard her father’s deep, slightly slurred voice.Why?She pleaded silently, drawing what little strength she had left into her with a breath.Why now?

“Good evening, Papa,” she greeted him cheerily. “Did your engagement go well?”

Owen glared at her, his ruddy cheeks ruddier from the alcohol.

“Mind your business. I ask the questions not you. Now tell me. How did your sister perform this evening? Has she won back the duke’s attentions?”

“I believe the duke will be gracing us with a visit to our house as early as the morrow,” Lydia replied, choosing her words carefully.

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