Chapter 1
I was the eldest daughter of the Duke of Ashbourne, yet I threw it all away to elope with a lowly gamekeeper.
I bled my mother's dowry dry, paving his way from the rural woods to a commissioned officer in the Royal Army.
But the moment he achieved glory, he publicly forced me to sign divorce papers so his pregnant mistress could take my place.
"You threw away your own reputation to follow me," he had sneered. "What gives you the right to put on airs as a Duke's daughter now?"
"You couldn't even give me an heir. Did you really think you could occupy the position of my wife forever?"
When I opened my eyes again, I was back in my bedroom, standing before my packed bags on the night I was supposed to ruin my life.
I slowly set down my travel bag and turned to my lady's maid.
"There's a man harassing me at the back gate. Have the estate guards throw him out. The further, the better."
~~~~~
My lady's maid, Amy, blinked, her face washing over with sheer panic.
"My Lady, w-what did you just say? That's Rowan. Didn't you say we were leaving with him tonight?"
Rowan Hale.
Just hearing that name sent a tidal wave of humiliating memories crashing into my mind.
After I abandoned everything to live in squalor with him for seven years, his gratitude had curdled into utter disgust.
"You're hysterical, Evelyn, and you couldn't even give me an heir. This marriage has dragged on for seven years. I'm done."
I had laughed then—a sound born of pure, venomous rage.
"Did you forget why I can't have children?" I demanded.
He cut me off sharply, his eyes brimming with revulsion.
"Shut up! You were the one who disregarded all propriety to follow me. Stop playing the victim!"
"You can't give me a son, so what good is your precious Duke's blood now?"
I had screamed, lunging forward to claw at his face. He stumbled backward, dragging me with him.
When the freezing water of the lake swallowed us both, I saw the absolute shock on his face.
"Evelyn Ashbourne! You crazy bitch!"
I had closed my eyes, letting the icy depths pull me under.
Jerking back from the memory, I stared blankly at my hands.
They were soft, unblemished. There wasn't a single callus from years of grueling labor. Amy took a step closer, her worry deepening.
"My Lady, what's wrong? You look terribly pale. Please don't frighten me."
"Everything is packed just as you ordered, and he's waiting at the back gate. Why do you suddenly want him thrown out...?"
I didn't answer. I walked straight to the vanity mirror.
A young, beautiful face stared back at me.
It was me at eighteen. Exquisite features, flawless skin, and thick, raven hair.
I was wearing a robe of the finest silk, the collar and cuffs embroidered with delicate silver thread.
I hadn't eloped yet. I hadn't yet tasted every bitter hardship the world had to offer.
I was still the eldest daughter of the Duke of Ashbourne, a noble lady cherished by her parents.
In my past life, I had actually thrown this all away to run off with a woodland gamekeeper.
Pathetic.
Staring at that foolish, naive version of myself in the mirror, I enunciated every word with absolute clarity.
"I am perfectly lucid, Amy. Go tell the estate guards that a vagrant is harassing the Duke's daughter at the back gate. Have them intercept him."
"If he refuses to leave, send for the magistrate and hand him over. He is never to be allowed near this estate again."
Amy was stunned speechless.
She couldn't fathom how I—someone who had been so obsessively infatuated with Rowan Hale just hours ago—could speak with such freezing finality.
I walked to the window and pushed the wooden shutters open.
In my past life, this was the exact window I had climbed out of, genuinely believing I was leaping toward freedom and true love.
It was only now I understood I had been jumping into a meat grinder.
"Well? What are you standing there for?"
Amy finally snapped out of her daze and hurried out of the room.