Married To The Cruel Duke

Elena’s POV “Where is that unwanted daughter of this household?!” The loud voice of my mother filled my ears, forcing me out of my slumber. It was just two hours ago I went to bed and now, I have to wake up. This was always the occurrence. In my father's house, I barely slept and barely went to bed early. My bedtime was until every corner of the house was clean ahead of the following day. “Elena?!” The shrill voice of the woman I called my mother filled my room. I forced my eyes open and ignored the deep ache in my head. I sat up, rubbing my eyes and waiting for her to barge into my room as always. As usual, the wooden door was forced open unceremoniously, startling me and forcing me out of the bed and on my feet. Before I could even speak, a heavy weight landed on my head and some parts of my body. I took a whiff and smelt the pungent smell of sweat then pushed off whatever was on my face. I looked down and saw multiple clothes. There were gowns, pants, shirts and coats. “We will be taking a trip to West Zerland,” my mother announced, looking at me with disgust. “Those are your sister's clothes and also mine and your father's. Hand wash them and make sure they are clean for the trip.” Why were they going to the west side of the country and without me? Asking them if I could come along was a stretch because I was never invited to such events. I was practically a maid for my family. Even if I were to go with them, I barely had any good clothes to wear on the trip with them. I was only going to embarrass myself if I did. “Okay, mom,” I replied and packed up the clothes into my arms then dumped them on my bed. “Before you begin, I need you to head to the farmer's market and get some produce. There are some guests we are expecting tonight. You will prepare some meals for them this evening. Also, you will go to the…” I sighed inside of me as she started to drone on about the list of chores I had to do for the day. It saddened me how I was treated like a commoner in my own home. I was never acknowledged as a daughter of the Halden family. My family were rich due to the several businesses they had and invested in, yet I was treated like a maid in my own household. My mother, who was known as Lady Willow was the cruelest mother in existence, as well as my father, Lord Alaric. They had millions yet I appeared like someone who could paint my family as poor if I represented them. “... after that, you need to clean the pigs' den. That will be all.” Without another word, she huffed and left my room. I sighed and sat on the bed, then began to picture how my day was going to start and how it would end. For someone who was living in the 21st century, I felt like I was living in the medieval times when poverty was high. I didn't have beautiful gowns and other outfits like my sister did. I didn't own good shoes and gadgets like she did. As the oldest daughter, I always wondered why it was so. It made me think of if I was related to them or not. It hurt each time I thought about my way of living. I glanced at the wall clock in my room and saw it was barely seven. I wanted to sleep back but I had to finish work early so I could rest early. I already knew I wasn't going to be part of the dinner tonight. ☆☆☆ After I was done with washing the clothes and lining them up on the clothing line, I went to the farmer's market. It was bustling with people and traders. The voices of the traders calling out to people to come buy their produce mixed with the hums of background voices. Today, I had a lot of things to buy so I had to start with the smallest items. I got some vegetables, beef, chickens and fruits then started on the large items. Some bags of rice, flour, corn and more. By the time I was done, an hour had gone by, and I was exhausted. Luckily, I had come with the old family pick-up truck, so I knew I didn't have to wheel everything up the slope leading home. Once I had crosschecked everything, I loaded them into the back of the truck and got into the vehicle. I started the car and drove off. After ten minutes, the truck started to thrust forward and then I heard a loud popping sound from the engine followed by smoke. My heart dropped at the sound— This was not happening. “No,” I said. “This can't be happening!” I opened the door and rushed over to the hood of the car. I popped it open and waved my hand in front of my face. Smoke wafted out of the engine, hitting my face. “Come on,” I said, groaning. “Seriously… Why now.” I looked around me. I was in the middle of the muddy road leading to the house, still far away from home. Bushes and trees were on each side of the lonely road, making it hard for me to find a house to seek for help. There were barely any houses or people around to help me. “Damnit!” I kicked the car. “Tsk… I still have a lot of things to do. Come on! Why is the world against me?!” I was starting to feel agitated. This was not what I expected to happen. I worked with time, and this was only going to push me backward. I stepped away from the truck and stood on the side of the road to look out for help. I waited for some minutes, hoping to get help and just when I thought it would be impossible, I saw a car in the distance. Hope filled me, and I started to wave my hands for help. Maybe the driver could help toll my car home. The car was getting closer, and my hopes were getting high. When the car was close enough for me to see its make, I dropped my hand in fear. The car was an SUV and from the license plate, I could see it belonged to the Draconhart family, the cruelest, most powerful and dangerous family in the country. I slowly backed away, pressing my back against the side of the truck when the car got close. It was speeding and as it drove by, muddy water splashed on me— hard. I flinched and gasped at the impact of the cold, dirty water. I blinked away the dirt that had gotten into my eyes and glared at the car. Through my blurry vision, I saw the car stop and the window in the backseat started to wind down. My heart stopped beating for a second and my breath seized. Right in the side mirror was a reflection of the silhouetted face of a man. A wave of fear washed over me when I saw red, glowing eyes through the side mirror. The eyes were a crimson red, shining bright through the darkness of the car. It looked unreal. How could one's eyes glow that way or was I hallucinating? Something about it pulled me in, drawing me and filling my body with a warmth that crept through my body. It made my lungs tighten and left me almost breathless. Those eyes. They were dangerous yet that danger drew me into something I needed, something primal and powerful.