Three Years of Devotion, All for His Lie

Chapter 8

"You flatter me, esteemed in-law," the Dowager Princess said, approaching slowly. She shot a venomous glare at Aurora before taking Isabella's hand.

"Isabella is the daughter-in-law I have chosen. Dorian, what do you think you are doing? Even if this wench were a proper concubine, let alone just a bed servant, you should not defend her so!"

Dorian had always been rebellious. Though he cared for Isabella, their marriage was his mother's arrangement.

He resented this feeling of being controlled, which was why he had deliberately rigged the lot for Isabella to draw the "childless" sign to defy his mother.

Yet he could not bear the thought of Isabella marrying another, so he had flouted convention and wed her anyway. But now Isabella could not tolerate Aurora; she wanted to control him just like his mother!

Seeing his silence, the Dowager Princess cast a sharp glance at Aurora. "This girl thinks too highly of herself and has too great an appetite, disturbing the peace of the manor. Guards! Kill her!"

Aurora collapsed in terror, wailing, "My lord, save me!"

Dorian immediately blocked the servants who were about to drag Aurora away, compromising, "Mother, no!"

"Isabella caused her child's death. I am the one who decided to give her a title!"

The Dowager Princess shook her head. "You are too naive, unaware of the intrigues in the inner quarters. If I do not have her killed, how can I face our in-laws?"

Theodore cupped his hands in refusal. "Your Highness, I only wish to take my daughter home. Rosie grew up with Isabella; we need to take her back for a proper burial."

The Dowager Princess nodded. "Very well, I will ensure you receive justice."

Isabella, however, refused to leave. She arranged for servants to bring a stretcher and sent Rosie and her father ahead. Then she knelt before the Dowager Princess. "Your Highness, I request a divorce by mutual consent. If that is not possible, a letter of divorce will do. If even that fails, then I will divorce my husband myself."

Dorian interrupted incredulously, "Divorce me? Have you lost your mind, Isabella? There is no precedent for this in our dynasty!"

Isabella looked at Dorian with a cold smile. "You see, the oracle said you are destined to be childless. A woman can be divorced for bearing no children, so why not a man?"

Dorian panicked and quickly tried to explain, "That was."

Before he could finish, Aurora, as if stung, collapsed to the ground, sobbing bitterly. "My child."

Dorian hastily scooped Aurora into his arms. Before leaving, he shot a harsh glare at Isabella. "Think carefully about what you are saying!"

The Dowager Princess roared, "Dorian! Do not end up like your father, unable to see people's true faces even on his deathbed!"

Dorian paused mid-step, his eyes blazing with fury. "I am not like him. I see clearly!" With that, he strode away swiftly.

Isabella knelt before the Dowager Princess. "Your Highness, in these three years, I have never begged you for anything. Now, you have seen the situation yourself. There are two lives between us. Please help me leave."

The Dowager Princess sighed. "I can deal with that bed servant for you, but the feelings between you and Dorian."

In these three years, she had witnessed Isabella's devotion.

"There are no feelings left," Isabella looked up, her eyes swollen from crying. "Because he saved me from drowning when I was a child, I spent these three years willingly giving him everything."

The Dowager Princess frowned in confusion. "Drowning?"

"Since when did Dorian know how to swim? Does he not hate getting wet?" She paused, realization dawning. "I did not know you shared such a history. Since that is the case."

She was about to suggest they talk it through, not to waste this destiny.

Isabella, however, felt as if struck by lightning. Dorian could not swim?

She distinctly remembered her rescuer wearing the pale blue robe he often wore. When she woke up and asked him about it, he had not denied it. She asked, "Your Highness, you say he cannot swim?"

"Yes, it is true. He has been afraid of water since childhood, never playing near the river. When he was eight, Maximilian climbed a tree in our manor, tore his clothes, and borrowed Dorian's outfit to wear home. But before he even reached home, he came back soaking wet, saying he had fallen into the water. The clothes were drenched, and Dorian refused to even touch them."

A thunderclap rang in her ears.

Something inside Isabella's mind snapped in that instant. He had not only tricked her into three years of a hollow marriage, but he had also stolen her gratitude for saving her life for twelve entire years!

Looking back now, she had overlooked too many things. He never went out on rainy days, afraid of the hem of his robes getting wet.

When brewing tea, he never allowed anyone to bring water in, adding it only by the small cup.

Even when bathing, he used only half a bucket of water at a time, preferring to constantly change the basin rather than soak in the tub.

His fear of water was so extreme, how could he have possibly saved her from drowning?

Dorian, it was not that we were now even; it was that you owed me. She closed her eyes tightly, gathering her thoughts, and spoke slowly. "Please relay my message, Your Highness. Within three days, if he does not give me a divorce agreement, I will divorce him myself."

She did not want to stay in this mire of a manor for another second. She did not want any of its belongings either.

She kowtowed deeply to the Dowager Princess and turned to leave without another word.

Three days later, the Dowager Princess sent someone to return all of Isabella's original dowry, untouched. Tucked within the dowry was a letter of divorce. Hot on the heels of the dowry's arrival came news of the Dowager Princess's death.