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The day the Faulkner name was cleared, the king handed their old estate back to Edmund, along with a pile of fortune to make amends.
But the Faulkners were down to just him now. All that treasure was his, so few shiny trinkets wouldn’t tie him down.
“I broke your stuff, Princess Luciana,” Edmund said, standing tall like he was the last of the Faulkner line. “But don’t think you can trap me with it. I’ll sign an IOU, and when I’ve got the cash, I’ll pay you back, fair and square.”
Luciana smirked. “Big talker, huh? Camille, tally up everything Lord Faulkner’s eaten, drunk, worn, or smashed. Let’s see what he’s racked up.”
Edmund had wrecked plenty, and the bill wasn’t going to be chump change.
But he wasn’t worried–he’d cover it.
Still, Luciana remained as vile as ever in his heart. He could still see that day, after the Faulkner family’s name was cleared.
He’d called her out in front of the whole crowd, accusing her of taking him in with some underhanded scheme. And Luciana just stood there, bold as brass, denying it and snapping back.
He could picture her now, acting heartbroken, swearing she’d spent years fighting for the Faulkner name out of pure kindness.
‘She sure sounded sweet back then!‘ he thought, a bitter edge to his musings. ‘Now she’s counting every cent like it’s her last.
Juliette called it–Luciana never cared to help me. She just swooped in for the glory once my family’s name was cleared!‘
Soon, Camille handed over the list. From meals and clothes to the chairs and knickknacks he’d smashed, it was all there.
The total? A whopping t 1.7 million dollars. Half a month in the princess’s estate, and he’d burned through nearly two million.
Luciana glanced at the bill, half–sure Camille had flubbed the numbers. But no–five goblets of fine crystal at 45 thousand dollars, two cushions of exquisite damask at 140 thousand dollars, and those tattered tapestries cost 230 thousand dollars a yard.
Good grief. She’d treated him like royalty, and he didn’t even notice. No wonder he got comfy here later–a single cup cost dozens of crowns, and those plates and crystal bowls he broke? Worth a fortune.
He had to go. Time to show him the door.
Edmund snatched the bill, sure Luciana was scamming him. “This ain’t right, Princess Luciana!” he snapped, slapping the paper on the table.
He’d have money someday, and he could pay, but he wasn’t letting her pull one over on him.
Camille didn’t flinch. “What’s wrong, Lord Faulkner? You saying you didn’t smash five tea sets in three days? Or flip the table this morning? And that crystal vase–eight hundred crowns. That wasn’t you?”
Luciana grinned, her voice dripping with sass. “What’s that, Edmund? Trying to skip out on the tab? Guess you’re stuck here then. How about you work it off? Scrub a few chamber pots. Might take a century or two, but who’s counting?”
Keep him around for grunt work? Perfect.
Edmund’s blood boiled. ‘So that’s her plan–trap me here. She’s not even hiding it anymore, tossing out that line about me “selling myself”
to her. Bold as brass.‘
“Fine, I’ll sign your stupid IOU,” he growled, grabbing a quill and scrawling his name with a flourish.
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18 Thu Aud
Chapter 2
Luciana nodded to Camille, who stashed the note. That money was coming back, no doubt about it.
Edmund gave a sharp bow, ready to bolt, but Luciana’s voice stopped him. “Hold up, cowboy, Where’re you off to?”
“What, you chickening out now?” Edmund’s heart raced. He had to get out–Luciana couldn’t go back on her word.
“Nope,” she said, holding out her hand. “Just need those fancy clothes and that brooch you’re wearing. They’re worth a pretty penny, and i
didn’t add ‘em to the bill. Hand ‘em over.”
She was set on sending him off with nothing. Every stitch, every pin–he wasn’t taking anything she could sell. And those weren’t cheap.
Edmund sneered, yanking out the brooch and tossing it aside. “Fine. Where’s the stuff I came in?”
Camille hesitated, whispering to Luciana. “Uh, those clothes? They were so rank we burned ‘em.”
“That bad, huh?” Luciana waved a hand, like the stench still hung in the air.
Edmund’s face went red. He’d begged his way to Elarion City–course his clothes weren’t fresh.
Luciana shrugged. “Alright, find him something plain. My treat. But nothing fancy, just something basic.”
Edmund had been dressed like a lord here, every outfit worth a small fortune. Finding something “basic” in the princess’s estate was tricky.
Camille had to ask around, finally grabbing a rough set of clothes from a coachman.
Luciana pointed to a screen. “Go change. And listen while I talk.”
Changing in front of everyone, even behind a screen, stung Edmund’s pride. But to get out, he’d swallow it.
As he wrestled with the clothes, Luciana didn’t glance his way. “When you got to the city, you went to my granddad first, right? He served with your pa and agreed to look into your family’s case–but only if you stayed clear of him. True?”
“Yeah,” Edmund called back. “I won’t bother Lord Norman again, Princess. Don’t worry.”
Luciana’s tone stayed cool. “I told Granddad I’d take you in. Now you’re leaving, and I need it in writing that I didn’t kick you out–you’re
choosing to go. I want proof.”
Luciana and Juliette were twin sisters, both princesses, born to the queen. Their mother was from the powerful Ingram family, and their granddad, Norman Ingram, was the king’s chancellor.
He’d had doubts about the Faulkner treason charge but didn’t want to get mixed up with Edmund if it was true. Nobody close to the
Faulkners wanted him.
Luciana had stepped up, worried Edmund might get himself killed if left on his own, leaving the Faulkner name in the dirt.
Now that he was leaving, she needed it on paper that he was walking out by choice, not that she’d tossed him out.
Edmund’s jaw clenched. Juliette had told him that Luciana had all but stolen him from their granddad. If she hadn’t, Juliette would’ve taken him in. Luciana had lied, saying nobody else wanted him.
He wasn’t buying her act anymore. Proof? Fine. He’d write it.
He was leaving today because he wanted to–not because he owed her anything.
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