It was so early that it was dark when Danetta arrived at her father's house. She had secretly rented a carriage instead of using her husband's. She knocked on the door several times. She rung a little bell near the door at least three times. By the time her father had finally answered the door, Danetta was reconsidering her decision.
Oh well, she was there. Might as well go through with it.
Her father was bleary eyed and red in the face when he answered. Danetta smiled and nodded her head. "Good morning, Father. I came to inspect your health."
He stepped aside but sneered as he did it. "Why come so early, eh?"
She didn't want to tell him that her husband had forbidden her from associating with him. Lines of discomfort formed around her eyes as she entered the poorly lit building. Her fingers tightened around her silken reticule hanging around her waist. "I'm afraid I have an abounding schedule. I could only come at this time." She cautiously noted the random, old food encrusted, pots and pans littered about the place. Everything was dusty and reeking of something foul.
"Why, Dear Father!" She honestly was worried over the situation. "You haven't been able to hire any servants since your debt was paid?"
His hand flung into the air. "Such a conceited, ungrateful little whelp! Who are you to judge your father so heartlessly?!"
Danetta took a step back. "I'm terribly sorry! It was not my intention to insult you!" She even gave him a little curtsy as she apologized. "I came here to help you!"
"Oh! The mighty Duchess has come to patronize me!" His body was off-kilter as he paced around the room, giving her bitter looks. "The elegant Duchess walks on a road of diamonds and dines with the gods of Henrisk, while her poor father suffers in near poverty!"
"I don't understand!" Danetta was shaking her head. The looping braids of her coiffure drummed against her cheeks. Her father should be happy! He should be experiencing less stress. He shouldn't need any alcohol or gambling or anything of the sort. He shouldn't have any costs draining him. Life should be completely endurable for him.
She untied the cord of her reticule and held it out to him. It was a favored object, a gift from her beloved Erdgar, given soon after the first time she had been bound on a bed for him. The silk wasn't decorated with colored wooden or glass beads, as an average reticule would be. It had little gemstones and silver threads. In Danetta's mind, her father would take the pouch, pour the contents into his palm, and then return the pouch. That was his preferred method of taking cash.
"I wanted to give you a pinch of money," Danetta said lowering her head. His business must not have been doing as well as he had hoped. "You seemed to want some the last time we spoke."
"Are you offering me your pocket change?!" His hands were shaking. Veins were pulsing in his wrists.
"Pocket change? There's gold in here! Take the money, please!"
He snatched the bag away, but he didn't empty it. He simply put the actual bag into a pocket of his. "I'll take this, then. It should be worth something, not enough to atone for the stress of your upbringing, but it's something."
No. No way.
Danetta shook her head again and approached him, her palm extended. "Please, return my reticule. You were meant to have the money inside."
A crack of a sound rang in the air.
Danetta's cheek burned. Her fingers clutched her face. She fled the building. The rented carriage was still waiting on her.
***
Like a silent creature of the morning waiting for its prey to come to it, Erdgar was patiently standing outside the entrance of the townhouse when his wife returned home. As the rented carriage left, Danetta stood before him with stiff limbs. Her eyes were heavy. They were pulled to the hem of her walking dress, which seemed to brighten under the gentle light of the rising sun.
His voice was so quiet ... so horribly quiet.
"Why did you tiptoe out of the house like a thief?"
Danetta's breath seemed to freeze in her throat.
"Are you hiding something from me?"
She nodded. He'd find out eventually. Why bother with a lie?
"Are you going to stop hiding it?"
Danetta's nose heated up. She nodded again.
"Very well." The joints of his fingers popped; the leather gloves scrunched. "First, why is your cheek so pink? I know you've always used rouge with appropriate balance."
Tears were coming. She could see them, feel them, and she soon tasted them. The colors of the pathway, her dress, her shoes, they all blended in her vision like paints.
"I've disrespected my husband."
"You have?"
She wanted to perish.
"I went to see to my father's needs, despite my husband's forbiddance."
A brief sequence of heavy footsteps rang in her ears as the man moved closer.
And then, out in public, she was being embraced by soft clothes and firm muscles.
"Come inside, Danetta. Have a rest before breakfast."
The couple went inside the townhouse.
Tiny gasps were puffing out of her all the way through the rooms, stairways, and hallways. Her husband led her to her bedroom and sat her down on the comfortable mattress. He seated himself beside her and leisurely ran his sheathed hand up and down her spine. Even through the layers of her clothing, even through his glove, Danetta felt him, adored him, and her feet cooled as more disgrace crept into her consciousness.
She found her voice again. "I'm terribly, terribly sorry, Dear Master. I hope you can forgive me."
"Hush about that, Danetta." His hand patted her shoulder. "After breakfast, I want you to walk with me to your favorite book store. Fetch that pretty little sack you love so well."
Her brain seemed to drop into her stomach. She pulled a soft handkerchief from a hidden pocket and blotted her eyes. "I ... I don't have it anymore."
"You hesitated, Danetta. I'm concerned." Erdgar's fingers went to her upper arms, and he tugged her to him. She felt cloth and warmth against her brow. Something behind the fabric moved. Danetta figured out that he was kissing her through his mask.
"If I tell you the truth, you might commit a murder."
He leaned back and said, "I promise I won't."
Her fingers pressed her handkerchief into her lap. "I offered money to my father. He took the money and the reticule. I tried to explain that he was only meant to have the money, but he slapped me, and I left."
