Page 45 of Her Cursed Duke
“And to be chattering away like some common vendor in the market! He is undignified and unruly, much like a beast.”
“It is a wonder the Dowager Marchioness hadn’t abandoned him already. He is no better than a demon. Living on, hale and hearty, unconcerned with the grief he has caused people.”
“He should have done us a great favor and died with the rest of his family.”
Aiden stood up abruptly, and for a moment, Prudence thought he was going to challenge them to say what they thought of him to his face. But he merely turned to his godmother and said,“This room is far too stuffy for me. I am going to retire early for the night. Please, excuse me.”
And before either Prudence or the Dowager Marchioness could speak to him, he turned on his heel and walked away.
Chapter Seventeen
“Goodness, I hope he’s all right.” Beatrice sighed before addressing Prudence. “Did he say anything to you, dear? Perhaps about not feeling well?”
Prudence felt anger boil in her veins at the sight of the smug expressions of some of the guests and shook her head slowly. “I’m sorry, my lady, it was difficult to hear him over the filthy, disdainful things some of your guests were spewing about him.”
The Dowager Marchioness blinked, a little confused. “Whatever do you mean, dear?”
Prudence turned and leveled the table with a disappointed frown. “It is remarkable, really, how old some of you are, and yet you choose to behave immaturely without a shred of thought or consideration. How dare you sit there, in his home, and judge him? When none of you can be bothered to even exchange a few civil words with him? You ignore him, but your greed will not letyou turn down an invitation to party at his home and feast at his table.
“Your behavior is disgusting, and you ought to be ashamed of going out of your way to hurt a kind, thoughtful man who has never done anything to hurt any of you. You claim to be intelligent and well-learned, yet you accuse him without proof. It is a wonder how any of you have managed to survive this long with your childish behaviors. You are no better than bullies, and you ought to be ashamed of yourselves.”
She started to rise out of her seat when one of the men at the table said gruffly, “Listen here, girl—”
“I dare you to finish that sentence.” Prudence narrowed her eyes at him, nodding with satisfaction when he wisely kept his mouth shut. She curtsied to the Dowager Marchioness and said, “I am sorry to do this during your lovely dinner, but I—”
“Goodness, child, it is quite all right. You may go.” Beatrice waved a hand in the air with a little smile. “Let me finish what you started.”
Prudence smiled at her, gathered her skirts as she shot one look at her family, and then left the dining room. Beatrice’s smile immediately turned into a scowl as soon as the door closed after the lady who seemed to have captured her godson’s heart.
She stared down at the table. “Do you take me for a fool? Do you think that because I do not speak about it, I do not know how you feel about my godson, and me, by extension? Do you believethat I am blind and deaf to your obvious hatred and scorn for a man who has never done anything to any of you?”
She stood then, her hands braced against the table as she continued.
“The only reason I have not taken action against this dreadful behavior is because the Duke asked me not to. He has personally requested that I overlook your transgressions and simply go on living as though I do not hear or see any of it. But you have come into our home with the intention of dragging his good name further through the mud, before the girl he is courting and her family?
“Lady Prudence was right, you should be ashamed of yourselves. My godson has never hurt anyone. If there was any harm done around him, it was by your needless hatred and criticism of a soul whose only sin was to exist. And I will not tolerate such behavior under my roof or during a night I had painstakingly planned out for enjoyment. If you so strongly dislike him, then perhaps you should not be eating the meals he has provided. You may see yourselves out.”
The table was silent for a moment, then a few people stood up and began to make their way to the door, some of them hanging their heads with shame and the others scoffing in disbelief.
Once they were gone, Beatrice sat back in her chair and gestured to the remaining guests. “Let us behave properly, please. Like the distinguished adults that we are.”
“And if I hear another slur or insult about my granddaughter, I will not hesitate to destroy the livelihood of the culprit responsible. You do not want to test an old woman’s patience,” Martha added, waving a butter knife around.
“Well said, friend,” Beatrice said with a smile.
“Thank you, friend.” Martha nodded, holding up her wine glass.
Prudence had put enough distance between herself and the dining room before she realized that she had no idea where she was going.
Her feet came to an abrupt stop as she began to ponder over where Aiden could have gone and which direction his potential hiding spot could be in. The moment reminded her of her second meeting with him, how he had scolded her for wandering about the castle of a cursed man without caution.
After what had just happened in the dining room, she now understood that he likely wasn’t attempting to scare her for his own amusement but was merely reinforcing the moniker he had been labeled with his whole life. It was no surprise why he had chosen to do that, his reasons as clear as the guests’ vivid shamelessness to talk badly about him within his presence.
It disappointed and saddened her how they thought nothing of ridiculing and hurting him, as though he were not made of fleshand bone, just like the rest of them. She had never believed the rumors or whispers, and the fact that she had not encountered a single misfortune after all the time she had spent with him was enough proof for her that the tales of his curse were nothing but stories woven by spiteful people with nothing better to do than to bully a child all the way into his adulthood.
“I need to find him,” she mumbled worriedly as she recalled how empty his eyes looked as he excused himself from the table.
She spotted a maid walking by and approached her, quickly asking if she knew the whereabouts of the Duke.
