The Dowager pursed her lips.“You know the rules of society. It is not the same for her.”
“Well, those rules are ridiculous, and they need to change,” the Duke replied. “One person should not be paying such a big price.”
“I know that you feel sympathetic, my son. You have always had a great sense of duty, but it is not something that you should be worried about.”
“What is the point of duty then?” he questioned. “I do not want her to take the blame for something she did not even do.”
“Then she should have thought about it before talking to you. She is a lady and should know these things. The consequences are for her to bear alone.”
Duncan felt unsettled by his mother’s words. They felt unfairly harsh, but he knew that there was no use speaking to her about the subject any longer. He decided he no longer wished to have this conversation with her.
“It appears that I have gotten a headache,” he said. “I must retire to bed now.”
“But we must…”
“Good night, mother..”
He returned to his chambers without waiting for a response from her.
That night, Duncan could not get himself to fall asleep. He could not help but feel a burden of responsibility on his shoulders.
Had he not intervened when the women were speaking to Sophia, he would not have been caught alone with her. But now, her reputation had been put into jeopardy.
It felt unfair that one of them was going to suffer much worse consequences.
“Poor Lady Sophia,” he muttered to himself. The fact that she was at a ball signaled that she must want a husband for herself. As his mother had already noted, her already bleak prospects must have dwindled down to nothing after this.
“I must do something,” he said, tightening his fingers into a fist. All his life, he had promised himself that he was not going to grow up to become anything like this father.
He knew that if his father was in a situation like this, he would take the easy way out and let the lady suffer the consequences of something that he was responsible for. It filled up him with disgust when he imagined himself doing the same thing.
He had to be better than that. Even though he and his father shared the same blood, he would do everything in his power to make his choices different than his father’s.
“Good morning, my son,” Anna greeted him the next morning at the breakfast table. “I must say, I feel much better than I did last night. A night full of sleep and a steaming cup of tea does wonders.”
“I am happy to hear it, mother,” Duncan said as he took his place on the table in front of her. “I have to tell you that I did some thinking last night.”
“Oh?” Anna raised her eyebrow, setting down her porcelain cup of tea. “Please tell me. You know I am always interested in knowing your thoughts.”
“About the scandal…” he said, leaning over, “I think it is quite unfortunate that everyone will be talking about it.”
“Of course. I agree with you,” Anna noted. “Alas, people have nothing better to do; I cannot blame them, really.”
“I have made a decision that will make the whole scandal go away,” he announced. “I have decided to ask for Sophia’s hand in marriage.”
His mother nearly jumped up at the announcement, causing the cup of tea to knock over from the table and smash itself into smithereens into the floor. Hearing the noise, one of the maids rushed over to clean it, but Anna dismissed her immediately.
“Not now,” she said, waving her hand at her. “Give us a moment alone.”
Duncan waited as the maid left the dining room. All the while, his mother stared back at him with an expression of absolute horror.
“What?” he questioned. “Were you not the one urging me to find a wife for myself just yesterday?”
“Not like this! Duncan, I understand that you are free to make your own choices, but as your mother who cares about you the most in the world, I urge you to please reconsider.”
Duncan’s father’s face flashed into his mind, and he shook his head.
“I have already made up my mind.”
