The Duke's Bed Warmer

The trade negotiations had gone well. The great hall was busy with farewells, handshakes, and promises of the future. Lord Prescott’s family was leaving. Servants carried luggage through the corridors, and outside, horses stamped in the courtyard.

Alina was in her usual seat, finishing her breakfast. She had spent the entire night thinking about Audrey’s words. She didn’t know what that meant. She wasn’t even sure whether she wanted to find out.

She was pushing a piece of bread across her plate when a shadow fell over her.

"Miss Ashworth."

She looked up.

"Lord Prescott."

"May I?"

She gestured to the chair beside her and he sat. He was quiet for a moment while the great hall buzzed around them.

"I wanted to say goodbye," he said. "But I wanted to tell you that I hope we meet again. I genuinely enjoy spending time with you."

His words were sincere.

"Thank you," she replied. "But... I see you as a friend and nothing more. I enjoy your company as well but I can’t offer you anything beyond friendship."

He smile sadly.

"It’s alright. At least you’re honest with me," he said. "I hope you find what you’re looking for, Miss Ashworth."

He stood and headed towards the corridor.

Outside, the courtyard felt alive. Horses were saddled and carriages were loaded. The delegation was ready to depart. Austin stood at the front with Audrey beside him. Lord Prescott walked through the crowd, shaking hands, and exchanging pleasantries. When he reached Austin, they shook hands.

"Thank you for your hospitality, Your Grace," Lord Prescott said. "The negotiations were productive."

Austin just nodded in response. Prescott smiled and put his hand on Austin’s shoulder.

"Don’t wait too long," he whispered, leaning in. "Feelings don’t stay buried forever."

"I don’t know what you’re talking about."

"Stop lying."

Prescott stepped back and bowed to Audrey.

"Your Highness. Thank you for a wonderful visit."

"The pleasure was ours, Lord Prescott."

Then he mounted his horse and rode through the gates, following his father.

"What feelings?" Audrey asked, having heard Lord Prescott.

Instead of answering, Austin went back inside the castle.

Alina, on the other hand, decided to focus on M. Voss. She wanted to distance herself from Austin and Audrey before the situation could become even more complicated and messy.

She went to the library and found Lord Ashby sitting in his usual chair.

"I need your help," she said.

He set down his book, took off his spectacles, and looked at her.

"M. Voss?" he asked.

"Yes."

"It’s dangerous," he said.

"I don’t care."

"You should. People have died because of that name."

"Then help me find out why."

He sighed and stood. Then he walked to the far corner of the library, to a shelf she had never noticed before, hidden behind a pillar and took out a heavy ledger.

"These are trade registries," he said. "His name appears in these."

"Thank you."

"Don’t thank me yet," He sat back down and picked up his book. "You may not like what you find."

"But I still need to know."

She carried the ledger to her table and began to read. She spent the entire day making notes, cross-referencing names and establishing connections.

Her back ached from hunching, her eyes burned because of the messy handwriting and her fingers were stained with ink but she didn’t stop.

She found nothing important but that didn’t make her give up. She kept on reading more.

Soon, the night fell. She stretched and carried the registries to Austin’s desk. She spread them out and continued working.

And finally she found a pattern. M.Voss’s name appeared in only three documents spanning a decade: a grain contract, a shipping manifest date, and a debt transfer.

All were connected to different families. The grain contract belonged to a family in the eastern territories which went bankrupt within eighteen months.

The shipping manifest belonged to a merchant house in the southern ports. She found a record of their collapse within one year.

The debt transfer belonged to a minor lord in the northern hills. He was deceased with no surviving heirs.

Her family was apparently the fourth.

Her hands began to tremble as she established the pattern.

"This can’t be coincidence," she whispered.

"What are you doing?"

She jumped at the sudden voice and turned. Austin was standing beside her. She hadn’t noticed and took a deep breath before replying.

"I found something about M.Voss," she said. "I’ve been studying the trade registries."

He looked at her notes, reading them carefully.

"Alina..."

"Someone is following a particular pattern. Engineer a debt, make them collapse, acquire their assets, and then disappear. My father was the fourth. There may be more. I need to find them."

"You don’t need to involve yourself in this mess," he said.

"It’s my mess," she replied. "I was sold to you because of him. I have every right to know who he is and why my family was destroyed."

"It’s dangerous."

"I don’t care," she said.

He stared at her, then pulled a chair and sat beside her. He added three more names in her notes that weren’t in the ledger.

"You missed these," he said.

"How did you..."

"I’ve been tracking Voss also."

"Are these three families connected to Voss?" She asked.

"They’re connected to each other through Voss." He drew a line.

They worked together for an hour. Their conversation was limited to their research only. Their hands and elbows touched occasionally but neither of them acknowledged it.

When they were done, he stared at the final map. The network was complete now with the connections, the timeline, and the pattern.

"You’re good at this," he said suddenly. "You have intelligence instincts."

"I have a father who was destroyed by this network," she replied while still writing. "Motivation sharpens the mind...I guess."

He nodded and watched her.

"I want you at a meeting tomorrow with my spymaster."

She stared at him in shock.

He is inviting me to an intelligence briefing?

"Is this a test?" she asked.

"Acknowledgement."

Then he stood up and moved away to change. She remained sitting there, her heart pounding.

She had decided to distance herself from him but he just made that difficult...almost impossible for her. He was inviting her into his world not as a bed warmer, but as someone who could stand beside him...someone he trusted.