Chapter 2
I stared at him, and in that moment, the past three years hit me like a punch to the gut.
I had gone from the daughter of the wealthiest merchant in the south to the Duchess of the North. I had spent every penny to push him higher, to help him achieve greatness.
I thought I'd married for love.
But I was just a placeholder. A pawn. A convenient resource to fill the gaps while his true love was out of reach.
Now, his true love had returned.
And me? I was nothing more than an empty vessel to be discarded.
That night, I moved into the west wing.
The cold seeped through the walls as the wind howled outside. I wrapped myself in blankets, but it didn't help. My coughing kept coming.
From far away, I could hear the sounds of laughter, music, and clinking glasses.
Cedric was hosting a feast for Eliza, welcoming her home.
Life in the west wing was harsher than I had ever imagined.
The firewood was cheap and damp. When it burned, the smoke filled the room and clawed at my lungs.
The meals were always cold. By the time they reached me, a skin of grease had already formed on the soup.
Even the servants had learned where they stood. To a fallen duchess, they no longer bothered with even the thinnest mask of respect.
Lydia cried in fury and wanted to confront them. I stopped her.
"It won't change anything," I said weakly, resting against the headboard. "This house belongs to Eliza now."
And Cedric allowed it. Who would dare say otherwise?
My illness worsened. Most days blurred together.
I drifted in and out of sleep, awake less and less. In those fevered dreams, I always returned to the past.
Three years ago, in the southern provinces, where rain softened the stone roads and spring hung heavy in the air.
Back then, Cedric was barely acknowledged by his family. A lesser son, sent away under the pretense of duty, given a position with no future and no favor. A polite exile.
At a banquet, he was drugged and set up to fall. I was the one who pulled him from that ruin.
He wore a faded scholar's coat, clean but threadbare. His posture was straight, his expression restrained, but his eyes burned with ambition and resentment he could not hide.
He told me, "Lady Helena, I will never forget this. If I ever rise, I swear I will repay you."
I believed him.
I married him against my father's wishes.
I brought with me half my family's fortune, my dowry converted into land, gold, and influence.
It became the foundation of his power. I opened doors, called in favors, gathered allies.
When he was sent north and his forces went unpaid, I sold my mother's jewels and sent the money after him.
He won battles, yet the credit was swallowed by greater houses at court. It was my family's influence that spread his name through every noble circle, until even the capital could no longer ignore him.
When the royal decree arrived and Cedric was named Duke of the North, he held me close and whispered again and again, "Without you, I would be nothing. In this lifetime, you are my only wife."
The sweeter the memory, the sharper the pain.
The door creaked open, jerking me back to reality.
Eliza stepped inside. She was wearing a crimson cloak of heavy brocade. I recognized every stitch. I had sewn it myself for Cedric the year before.
He had never worn it.
"Helena," she said lightly, settling beside my bed, "being alone must be terribly dull. I thought I'd come keep you company."
Her eyes lingered on my face. "Goodness. You look dreadful. This wing really does drain the life from a person."
She lifted the bowl of medicine and wrinkled her nose. "That smells awful. Cedric can't bear to see me suffer.
"He summoned the finest physicians in the capital for me. My medicine is brewed with the rarest ingredients. It barely tastes bitter at all."
The satisfaction in her voice was unmistakable.
I looked at the cloak around her shoulders. "That cloak was bought with my money. I chose the fabric and sewed it myself. Try not to stain it. Cleaning it costs a fortune."
Eliza's smile froze on her face.
She glanced down, then laughed again, brighter than before. "Is that so? Cedric says this shade of red suits only me. Not you.
"You have the look of trade in your blood. Even dressed like a queen, you would never resemble one."
She leaned closer, lowering her voice. "Oh, I nearly forgot. Wasn't your fortune already drained to fund Cedric's rise?"
Her lips curved. "You really are admirable. Spending your wealth to clear his path, only to deliver him straight into my hands. Shouldn't I be thanking you?"
Rage surged through me. I shoved her away.
"Get out!" I snapped.
She stumbled. The bowl slipped from her grasp and shattered on the stone floor, dark liquid splashing everywhere.
Instead of anger, a glint of triumph flashed in her eyes.
She fell to the ground, clutching her face, sobbing. "Helena , I didn't mean to. I only wanted to see you. Why would you push me?"
At that moment, Cedric appeared in the doorway, still dressed in his court attire.
He took in the broken bowl and Eliza on the floor. His face darkened instantly.
Eliza threw herself into his arms. "I only came to check on her. She hates me. She said I took what belongs to her and knocked over her medicine."
Cedric soothed her gently. When he looked at me again, there was nothing left but cold disappointment.