The Duke's Masked Wife

"Alfred, wake up. Alfred," Edgar tapped the sleeping man who was no doubt waiting for him to return home. "A maid broke your special plates for when Tobias has-"

"What!" Alfred's eyes flew open. "How many were broken? Edgar, did you return just now? What time is it?"

"Too late for you to still be awake and shouldn't it be my wife who is patiently waiting to see me return?" Edgar looked up the stairs expecting to see Alessandra magically coming down as if she sensed his presence.

"The Duchess has retired to her bed. I assured her I would stay awake until you returned home. Shall I have your dinner warmed up?" Alfred sat up from his chair.

"There's no need to bother the cook now-"

"Nonsense! I have never let you go to bed with an empty stomach and I'm not starting now. I will prepare something light myself. Before I was a butler, I was once an excellent cook for a little cozy place in my hometown. When I got the job to be a butler the people there cried because they would miss my food," Alfred reminisced on the past.

"That's interesting considering the only good thing you have ever fed me was something on a piece of bread like jam that was made by someone else. I mean sure, you're an excellent cook," Edgar changed his words after Alfred glared at him. "You should have gone to bed, Alfred. You work too hard. How about a vacation?"

"Well that sounds lovely but I have too much work to do here. While you are away, the Duchess seeks my help with all kinds of matters. It is too early for me to leave her side," Alfred rejected the offer.

"Alessandra and I would be going along with you. I'm thinking of taking her to see my grandmother. I have a house out there that I rarely use. Would you like to tag along? Of course, you wouldn't be working as our butler during that time. You can do whatever you want."

"Are you trying to run away from what is being said about the Duchess? She mentioned it to me during dinner. It's awful how lies spread faster than the truth. Take her out of town to get away from these people," said Alfred. "As fast as possible. We should leave as soon as the sun kisses the land tomorrow."

"Hmm. Inform Caleb and Sally to prepare for a four-day trip and then get some rest, Alfred. I will need a messenger in the morning to send a notice to Tobias that I would not be here to aid him if I am needed. Send up the bread and jam you plan for me to eat in a couple of minutes. I am going to take a bath. Goodbye Alfred," Edgar left his side and walked towards the stairs.

"I was going to prepare bread and cheese. It would pair nicely with a little bit of wine," Alfred muttered. Now that Edgar had returned safely he could ease up. Each time Edgar went to deal with someone, Alfred was worried Edgar might return home hurt or not return at all. "I worry for nothing."

Edgar started to unbutton his shirt as he walked toward his bedroom. After dealing with Katrina, he was bombarded with questions from Clark wanting to know how he could take everything belonging to Desmond and put it in his name. Edgar's response was for Clark to figure it out on his own.

After leaving the Barrett's home, he went somewhere quiet to clear his mind and that was how he ended up wanting to take Alessandra on a trip tomorrow.

Edgar pushed open their bedroom door and to his surprise, Alessandra sat on the bed with a book in her hands. He had to bite his lip to stop himself from laughing when her eyes desperately wanted to close but she fought against sleep. He closed the door hard enough for it to make a loud noise and watched Alessandra jump out of fear.

"Edgar? I didn't hear the door open," Alessandra said, surprised to see him standing there. She placed her book down and rubbed her eye before looking again to make sure she was not imagining him being home.

"You're too tired to be aware of your surroundings. You are obviously tired so why haven't you gone to sleep yet? I told you not to wake up," Edgar took off his shirt and placed it on a table while Alessandra moved to sit at the edge of the bed.

"I wasn't tired," Alessandra lied.

"Really? So maybe I am the sleepy one and I have been imagining  your head nodding off to the side while your eyes keep opening and closing."

"It's called blinking."

Edgar ran his tongue over the tip of his teeth. Since when was she like this with her replies? "Sure," he decided to drop the issue for now. They both knew she was sleepy and it wouldn't be long before she couldn't resist falling asleep.

"What happened with Katrina? You didn't harm her, did you?" Alessandra could hardly wait to hear what happened.

"Just a tiny bit. A simple mark on her cheek to torture her," Edgar stated, completely ignoring the fact he threatened to toss her out a window. "She will clear up the rumor by tomorrow night if she does not wish to have another mark. For a little while, she might not interfere with you."

"She certainly won't sit still if you have given her a permanent mark on her face. Katrina loves her face. Still," Alessandra smiled, imagining how much Katrina was losing her mind right now. "It is funny that after she teased me for years, she now has something done to her face. I don't feel the slightest bit sorry for her. I only wish that it was Kate."

"Hmm. Tomorrow we will be taking a trip with Alfred, Sally, and Caleb to visit my grandmother. You wanted to meet some of the family members I get along with. We'll stay there for four days," said Edgar.

"Are we running away from what's being said about Mario and I?"

"No, we're using a carriage," Edgar grinned, using the same sarcastic tone Alessandra used earlier.

"Haha," Alessandra faked a laugh. All the tiredness she felt suddenly vanished now that they were going on a trip. "I can hardly wait for morning to come and start packing. I hope none of the ridiculous rumors about me have spread to where we are going," she subconsciously touched her mask.

"Even if it has, not everywhere thrives on ridiculous rumors like Lockwood does. Perhaps one day we should consider moving to another town. The only downside is how long it would take for Tobias to reach me if there is an urgent matter. I am going to bathe," Edgar started to unbutton his pants. "Go to sleep, Alessandra."

"You seem so annoyed when Tobias is around yet you have not left Lockwood since you must be near him. I'm sure the king would love to know this," Alessandra said.

"Don't. He'll make it a bigger deal than it needs to be."