Glaring at her, the duke muttered menacingly, “That filthy lowborn has undone twenty years of efforts in educating you.” Clutching his cane with both hands, the duke gritted his teeth. “I suppose it is to be expected. The company of an ignorant commoner who knows nothing of the social order is bound to be a corrupt influence.”
Maxi had been staring at the floor up until then, her face ashen. She jerked her head up in anger at her father’s words. How could he speak so negatively of Riftan?
“Riftan…f-fought in a dangerous campaign in your stead, a-and suffered all the hardships that entailed,” she said through gritted teeth. “Y-You of all people…shouldn’t s-speak of him so—”
The cane struck her before she could finish. Maxi sawstars as she collapsed onto the floor. The sharp blow was so painful that she could not even scream. Her head pulsed as though her skull had been cracked open, and her temples burned as if on fire.
The room was spinning. Clutching her head, Maxi peered up at the duke in terror.
The duke’s chest heaved as he spat, “You dare speak to me in such a manner?”
As if the first blow had not been enough to appease him, the duke swung his cane again and struck her shoulder. The bone-splitting pain made Maxi twist away, struggling for breath. In just two blows, the Duke of Croyso had managed to crush all her defiance.
Her whole body shook as she tried to steady herself with both palms on the floor. The duke grabbed her by the hair and yanked her headup.
“State your complaints clearly. Stop stammering like a fool. Speak so I can understand!”
Maxi’s lips trembled. Clutching her chin, he savagely urged heron.
“Come now, speak. You have my permission to say whatever you want. What I would give for you to complete a single sentence without stuttering like an imbecile!”
“P-P-Please—”
Maxi desperately tried to loosen her rigid tongue through her chattering teeth. She unwittingly bit it in the process, and blood trickled down the side of her mouth. Pure contempt flashed in her father’s eyes as he glared down at her. He shoved her away and strode over to the wall to select a riding crop.
Maxi watched helplessly as he took one down. Although there was nothing restraining her, Maxi found that she could not move.
“Turn around and undress,” the duke commanded coldly.
Quaking in fear, Maxi did not respond.
“The lashing you’ll receive will only worsen the longer you delay,” the duke snapped.
Maxi took off her robe with trembling hands and pulled her bodice down. The duke took his place behind her, facing her bare back. Maxi bit down on the front of her dress as she clutched it over her chest.
The cruel lashing soon began. The leather crop sliced into her skin like a knife. Every blow made her feel like a wretched beast, and every time the pain of a hacking ax landed on her back, she wanted to abandon all her pride and beg for forgiveness.
Although she tried to endure it on her knees, she soon curled into a ball on the cold stone floor and instinctively tried to crawl away. Her father’s furious bellows reverberated around her, but Maxi could not comprehend any of it, overcome by agony. Cowering with her arms over her head, she burst into sobs.
The lashings abruptly stopped. It did not occur to Maxi to look up as she whimpered in pain while struggling to breathe.
An icy voice pierced the room. “What in the devil are you doing?”
Maxi’s neck stiffened before she slowly looked up. Riftan had one hand clamped around the duke’s wrist, his face full of incomprehension as he took in the sight before him.
It was impossible to tell who was more stunned. Growingas rigid as a statue, Maxi waited for Riftan to dissolve like a mirage. She would have preferred to crumble to dust than allow him to see her in such a wretched state.
As always, fate cruelly turned its back on her. Riftan remained standing, wearing a stupefied expression she had never seen on him before.
The Duke of Croyso came to his senses first. He wrenched his hand away and looked back and forth between the wide-open door and the unexpected intruder. His face slowly twisted in outrage.
“How did you get in here? You dare break into my castle?!” he shrieked. “Do not think I will overlook this transgression! If you do not leave this instant—”
“I asked…”
Riftan’s voice was toneless and calm, yet somehow chilling enough to make the imperious duke pause. Finally pulling his gaze away from Maxi, Riftan menacingly turned to the duke.
“…what in the devil are you doing?”
