The Duke's Masked Wife

The next day in Lockwood.

"My lady. Mrs. Collins is here," a maid informed Priscilla.

"Send her away," Priscilla quickly replied, not in the mood to deal with Rose. It was already hard enough to kick her son out of her house. If Edmund would be quicker with packing his things, she would not have had to deal with Rose now.

"Don't you dare," Edmund spoke up, approaching the table where Priscilla sat with a glass of wine in her hand already. "You don't drink. What is happening to you?"

"I do now," Priscilla replied, looking at the remaining wine in her glass. "I should have started the day we married so I might have put up with you better. It is quite calming," she smiled, holding the glass up to him.

Edmund couldn't understand what was happening to Priscilla. Since she returned from Edgar's home, she was acting like a different person. "Bring my mother in," he told the maid.

"Do you really want to see me kick your mother out along with you? Hurry up and get packed, Edmund. You do not want to be here when my father arrives," Priscilla sipped her wine.

"You are going to start a feud between two families who have been friends for years. I don't know what you and Edgar discussed but this is not a smart move. I don't know what Edgar promised you-"

Priscilla's laughter interrupted his speech she did not care to hear. "At least I can say I know Edgar better than you do. Edgar promised me something," she chuckled, covering her mouth with her hand as she did so.  It was the funniest thing she heard all morning.  "That boy would never promise me anything. Except to take me back into his dungeon or die if I touch his little family."

Edmund frowned, shaking his head at the drunk sight of his wife. "You need to stop drinking," he said out of concern for where this new habit would take her.

"And you need to get the hell out of my house. Why do you think I am drinking? I need something to calm my anger from the sight of you. I want you out and I want our divorce to happen as soon as possible," Priscilla said, standing firm on her decision to divorce him.

"What took so long for me to be let in?" Rose asked, entering the dining room where Priscilla and Edmund were talking.

"Oh great," Priscilla rolled her eyes, drowning the last of the wine in the glass to put up with Rose. "Another," she ordered the maid who stood behind Rose.

Rose scrunched up her nose at the disheveled sight of Priscilla with a glass holding out for more wine. "What is happening here?" She looked at Edmund for an explanation. She came here to learn why Edgar had released Priscilla but she stumbled across something questionable. "Are you two leaving town? There is a lot of luggage outside."

"Do not pay that any mind, mother. They will all be brought back inside shortly. Priscilla and I are not seeing eye to eye so now is not a good time for a visit," Edmund said, moving to usher his mother out of the house.

"That is a surprisingly new way to announce we are getting a divorce. I know your mother would love a drink to celebrate with me. I don't mind that she is here now. She can help you pack your things and get out of my house," Priscilla said, standing up from the table but almost falling over because of how much wine she had drank already.

"Divorce? No one in this family gets a divorce. Do you want the town to be talking about you for the rest of your lives? Whose idea was this? Edmund?" Rose questioned her son first. She warned him not to go anywhere near that woman again.

"It is not me who wants to get divorced now. It is Priscilla. It seems Edgar convinced her," said Edmund.

Priscilla shook her head because of Edmund's lies. "I never said that. I said Edgar and I came to a mutual understanding we would not care about each other's lives. I am planning to divorce you on my own. You should be happy, Edmund. You get to be in the arms of that whore and your mother no longer has to be bothered with me. Our divorce won't affect Edgar. Not like you ever cared what affected him."

"How has he never cared for Edgar-"

"Shut up!" Priscilla silenced Rose. "I no longer need to put up with your crap. What I discuss with Edmund or Edgar has nothing to do with you. You always criticize me when it is your son who ruined this family first.  It won't be long before Edgar and his wife want nothing to do with your controlling ways. You can only pretend to be sweet for so long."

"Edgar should have never released you," Rose said, even more disappointed by Edgar releasing her so early. Priscilla got off easy for what she did to Alfred but Rose would take matters into her own hands.

"Of course, you wouldn't want him to release me. You liked visiting me in that pitiful state. Take your son and get out of my house Rose. I want nothing to do with either of you for the rest of my life," Priscilla stated, pushing her chair back to leave the dining room. "Be quiet while you help him out of here. I'd like to enjoy the sight of him leaving but I want to see how much space I will have for new dresses."

"Edmund, do not pack your things to leave this house. Half of it rightfully belongs to you and this house is near your peers. If she wants a divorce, she needs to pack her things and leave," Rose said, refusing to let anyone see Edmund be tossed out of this house by the likes of Priscilla. Collins should never face such shame.

"This house is also near my peers. Besides, Edmund never wanted to come back to Lockwood. He should go back to White town just like he did years ago. Dragging me with him to that boring town," Priscilla muttered, rolling her eyes once more.  "Let the court send a letter for when I need to come to split everything we own."

"Do you think I'll let you embarrass my son like this and get away with this? You won't walk out of this marriage untouched," Rose warned.

"That threat won't work on me.  I came into this marriage with my own money and status. Just like he is your precious only son, I am the precious only daughter of my father. I would watch my words if I were you. I learned to get rid of the people I hate by watching my father. He won't be pleased when he finally learns what I endured in this marriage," Priscilla said, no longer hiding the truth of her awful marriage.

Rose could hold back her need to slap Priscilla. Not only for what she did to Alfred but for the years of disrespect. "You!" She exclaimed, walking toward her target.

Priscilla remained where she stood, welcoming the opportunity for her to also release the anger she built up over the years from her encounters with Rose.