The Duke's Unwanted Second Wife

”So, it is decided,” Eilika began, her voice calm but firm. ”Prince August, you will not look into this matter alone. Since Damian has already been investigating it for some time, you ought to wait for his return and coordinate with him. It is by far the safer, more strategic path.”

August reached up and rubbed the bridge of his brow, letting out a heavy sigh.

”Fine. I will wait for Damian’s return and proceed accordingly,” he conceded, though his expression remained troubled. ”However, by then, those nobles may very well sweep every trace of their illicit trade under the rug. They could destroy documents and burn evidence. What will we do then? I appreciate your concern for my safety, Eilika, but the longer we delay, the more time and leverage we grant those culprits to wipe away everything.”

”That is true,” Eilika conceded. ”Then deploy more men to shadow Xenia when you send her on this mission. We spoke earlier today, and I learned she has a family and a younger sister to care for. I cannot fathom why you would choose her for such a perilous task knowing her responsibilities, but you must keep her safe.”

”I told you I would not let anything happen to her,” August countered. ”However, deploying a heavy tail of spies would be a grave mistake. It will only draw suspicion and compromise the entire operation before we can secure the evidence.”

”May I speak, Your Highness?” Louis asked, interrupting gently.

”You may,” August permitted.

”I believe you ought to wait for the Duke’s return,” Louis stated plainly. ”It does not matter if a few pieces of evidence are lost. What matters is that no innocent life is compromised. We have already witnessed how aggressive the nobles are toward you, and His Grace would certainly not wish for another volatile situation to unfold in his absence.”

August sighed, leaning back slightly. ”I should never have let you find out about this, Eilika.”

He turned his attention back to Louis and continued, ”I received these orders directly from the King himself, so I have no reason to hesitate. If I allowed fear of backlash to dictate my actions, half the cases in this realm would still remain unsolved.”

”You do not understand the full sensitivity of this matter, Your Highness,” Louis stated firmly. ”This time, you must listen to reason. If you refuse, I will have no choice but to write directly to the King to halt this operation.”

August’s brow arched in surprise, a dry, incredulous chuckle escaping his lips. ”You dare threaten me?”

”Your Highness, I would never presume to threaten you. I know my place,” Louis asserted, bowing his head respectfully. ”I say this only to protect you, and to safeguard the Duke’s household while His Grace is away from Varos.”

”Prince August, let us approach this strategically and face it together,” Eilika urged, stepping into the conversation.

Left with little room to argue against their combined resolve, August exhaled a defeated breath and reluctantly nodded.

”Very well,” he conceded.

”Thank you,” Eilika said softly.

She rose to her feet, and Louis followed suit, offering a final bow. Together, they turned and left the chamber, their footsteps fading quietly down the corridor.

”Your Grace, thank you for calling me here. Prince August is rather impatient in matters like these. And he hardly listens,” Louis said.

”True. I do not think Prince August will attempt anything until Damian returns,” Eilika answered softly.

”Indeed.” Louis paused, looking out through the grand, arching window of the hallway toward the darkened sky. ”Rain is coming tomorrow. Tell me, how was your time in the North with the Duke? I am certain he must be missing you dearly.”

They both stopped walking, and Louis turned to face her.

”It was wonderful in the North,” Eilika admitted, a subtle warmth in her voice. ”Though I must say I missed home constantly, Roman especially. And Damian... he is indeed missing me. But I have heard it said that distance only deepens the bond between true, fated souls. I want Damian to feel that profound yearning for me while he is away.”

Louis could not help but smile warmly. ”That is very true. Damian has rarely been separated from you for long.” Dropping his usual formal tone, his expression softened. ”I am certain that when he returns, he will be burning with yearning for his wife. You possess a unique ability to ignite that fire in him. Maurice and I often speak of it. It brings us genuine joy to see you both so happy. Because through everything, you stayed by his side. Truth be told, Damian was not the sort of man any woman could endure for long. That’s what we thought.”

”Hmm. Now, he’s another added worry in life,” Eilika said, the smile slowly fading from her lips.

”I am sure Damian will find a way as well,” Louis answered. ”I take my leave, Your Grace.” He bowed and went ahead.

Eilika sighed and went back to her chamber to rest for some time.

~~~~~

Louis arrived at his residence. However, the moment he stepped into the drawing room, he was surprised to find Elodie waiting for him.

Elodie promptly stood up and offered a polite bow. Louis returned her greeting with a respectful nod.

”I—I have come to return your overcoat, my lord,” she said softly, gesturing toward the neatly folded garment resting on the center of the sofa. ”I had it dry-cleaned at a local shop.”

”You did not need to go to such trouble,” Louis stated, stepping further into the room.

Noticing a house servant approaching with a tray bearing a glass of water, he subtly dismissed her. He then gestured toward the sofa and took a seat, inviting Elodie to sit as well.

”Thank you,” Louis said, looking at her attentively. ”Though I suspect you are here for another matter as well.”

”Yes,” Elodie replied with a small nod. ”I did not know who else to approach, but I believed it was vital to inform you, given your closeness to the Duke.”

Louis’s brow furrowed slightly, his curiosity piqued. ”What is it?”

”To earn extra income, I have been working at a coffee house,” she explained. ”Yesterday, while at the coffee house, I happened to stumble upon something strange concerning the Duke’s late first wife.”

”What did you find?” Louis asked, leaning forward.

Elodie reached inside her woolen coat, withdrew a thin, worn ledger, and carefully set it on the table between them.

”The coffee house is owned by her distant cousin, whom she helped establish the business,” Elodie said. ”The manager asked me to clean out the old storage room in the basement, and that is where I found this. I have not had much formal schooling, but I know basic bookkeeping. The entries in this ledger seem... peculiar. There are strange notations written throughout that I simply could not make sense of.”

Louis quickly picked up the worn ledger and flipped through the yellowed pages. Several leaves had been torn out entirely, but the remaining entries were intact.

As his eyes scanned the columns of numbers, names, and coded letters, he felt his heart race. It was a record of systematic fund embezzlement.

”Were there more ledgers like this?” Louis asked immediately, his voice dropping to a tense whisper.

”Yes,” Elodie answered, wringing her hands slightly. ”Though they are not from very long ago, they mostly cover transactions from the past year. But this one... this was the oldest I could find.”

Louis leaned back against the plush cushions of the sofa, his eyes scanning the faded ink of the ledger once more.

”It seems to have been left behind and forgotten among the dust,” he murmured, his mind racing to calculate the implications. ”Did you speak of this discovery to anyone else?”

”No,” Elodie answered without hesitation.

”I must ask Lady Elodie to keep this matter strictly between us. I trust I can rely on your discretion,” Louis said with a steady gaze.

”You have my word, my lord,” Elodie replied firmly.

”Thank you,” Louis said, closing the worn ledger. ”I will visit the coffee house myself soon to look into the matter further.”

Elodie offered a soft hum of acknowledgment, then rose to her feet and offered a polite bow. ”I must take my leave now, my lord.”

”Stay for tea, Miss,” Louis stated, standing up to face her. He stepped forward, halting just a short distance away. A sharp instinct of caution prickled beneath his calm exterior. ”Tell me... how did you discover where I live?”

Elodie did not flinch under his scrutinizing gaze. ”My lord, I arrived in this district a week ago accompanying a noble lady to assist with her estate. She is a regular patron of the coffee house and asked me to help transport some of her delicate belongings. While returning from her residence, I happened to see your carriage arriving here,” she explained. ”If you have any doubts, you may verify my account with the lady herself.”