The Dukes Secret

I jolted at the sound of a man’s voice yelling. I peeked my eyes open and realized he was yelling at me. The room had no light coming through the small window. It must be night still. A dim light was coming from the man’s torch which he was holding to see where he was. Father. Panic rushed over me. Had I done something wrong? Had I forgotten to do something last night? No, I remember finishing my chores late right before going to bed. Why is he yelling? Was he drunk already? It isn’t even morning yet.

“Wake up you ugly girl. I told you to have breakfast ready before I woke up!” he stepped closer.

I quickly sat up and grabbed my robe to wrap around me. It was so cold. The fire must have gone out in the night. This part of the house was always too cold or too hot. There were holes between the stones which allowed the cold winter air to rush in.

“Maybe I should just kill you or even worse I could send you to that horrible man and you can be his servant. I am sure he will toss you away once he realizes how worthless you are.” He laughed as if what he said was humorous. “That man is known for doing horrible things to people that disobey him. He once beat a servant boy half to death for not getting his horse ready fast enough.” He turned and started walking away but stopped and faced me again, “If you cross me one more time you know where you’ll be going.” He left the room while I tried to hold back my tears. I never wanted him to see me weak; he would use that against me. I quickly dressed and went to make his breakfasts.

“Elisabeth come here now!″ He yelled from the dining room table. “You filthy girl. Get in here!”

As I entered the room, he glared at me, but smiled. This couldn’t be good. Whenever he smiled, I was sure to be punished whether I had done something wrong or not.

“You burned my food!” He threw his plate at me. The food splattered on my dress. “Get your things, you’re leaving.

“Mother would never let you get away with this if she were here!” I yelled.

“Oh yes, your dear mother. She was a raggedy, poor woman when we met. I felt pity on her and convinced her to marry me but when she couldn’t have another child after you, I poisoned her drink every evening until she became ill and died. She was as worthless as you are! She wouldn’t give me a son!” He smiled dangerously as I stood there astonished at how wicked he really was. I was no longer afraid of going to the castle to be a servant. The horrible man could never hurt me as much as my own father had. My father was truly evil.

I walked to the castle carrying a small bag with all the belongings I had. The castle towered over any building I had ever seen. I walked to the servant entrance and knocked on the grim, haunted castle door. A short woman opened the door and asked, “Are you the new servant?”

“Yes, I am.”

“Alright, I’ll show you to your bed chamber. My name is Agnes. You will be sharing with the younger girls and as a maid. Ivy will be your teacher. She will show you your duties and tell you the rules.” We walked to where I was to stay, and I placed my bag on the bed then turned to Agnes; “Ivy is in the Duke’s room cleaning. Which is on the second floor.

As I made it to the second floor, I turned to walk around the corner and almost ran into a man. He was tall with broad shoulders. His emerald green eyes were intensely staring at me.

“Who are you? I haven’t seen you here before.” His voice was deep and smooth.

“I just arrived here today. I’m sorry that I ran into you. I was trying to find the Duke’s room.”

“Why are you going to his room?” he stood with no expression staring at me.

“I am to meet the maid cleaning his room to learn my duties.”

“Third door on the left.” He turned and walked away.

Once I found the room, I saw Ivy making the bed. I introduced myself and she helped me learn what I was expected to do.

“Have you met the Duke Edward, the owner of the castle?” Ivy asked while we finished cleaning the room and moved on the next. “He leaves today for the next couple of weeks.”

“No. Are the rumors about him true?” I asked.

“Most of the rumors are not true. He is a decent man. He can be harsh with his punishment. If you don’t disobey him, you will be fine.”

Many weeks passed and I settled into my routine. I walked down the hall to the Duke’s room when I noticed the door at the end of the hall was open. That door was never open. I walked to the door and slipped past it into a dark hallway. There was a dim, flickering light at the end of the hall. I walked toward the end and found another door. I reached for the handle and it wasn’t locked. I started to open the door when, ...

“What are you doing?” A loud deep voice asked.

I jumped and turned, almost hitting the man behind me. I tripped, trying to avoid hitting him and fell against the door pushing it closed. He reached down and grabbed my arm pulling me back to my feet.

“What are you doing down here?” His green eyes pierces through the dim lit hall.

“The door was open.”

“So, you thought you would just walk in?” Annoyance crept into his voice. “I could have you killed for coming down here.”

A questioning look crossed my face. Who was this man? He saw the look on my face and answered the unasked question.

“I am Duke Edward,” he barked.

Shock and fear crossed my face as I stood there facing him. My hands started shaking. He was going to punish or kill me! I pulled my hands behind my back so he wouldn’t see how scared I was.

“I won’t kill you but if a door is closed normally don’t go through it when it’s open.” He turned and walked briskly to the door that led out of the dark hallway.

Through the rest of the week I hardly saw the Duke. I kept wondering what was so important that the Duke never let anyone else into the locked room. The butler was the only other person that had a key to the room. I had once seen him put it in his coat pocket before he finished for the day. While the laundry woman was hanging the clothes on the line, I checked the butler’s coat pocket and took the key. I needed to know what was behind that door. Once everyone had gone to bed, I quickly walked down the second floor and opened the first door. I walked in as quietly as I could. I had already slipped my shoes off to prevent them from clicking on the floor. I ran to the other door and turned the handle. I heard a sound and turned to see if anyone was there, but no one was. I quickly opened the door to find boxes. The large dark room was full of boxes. Why was the Duke hiding them? I walked to one and opened it to find dresses. The next box had women’s shoes. What was so important about these clothes and shoes that they were hidden?

As I turned to walk out of the room a man was standing in the doorway. I flinched and took a step back hoping he hadn’t noticed me yet. If I could hide until he left, I could get out. As I slowly moved further away from him to the corner, he shifted enough to see the side of his face in the dim light. It was the Duke.

“I already saw you.” His voice was gruff and sounded sad. “I knew you would come back here. When I heard you walk by my door, I knew what you were doing.”

“Why are these boxes hidden behind locked doors?” I asked, moving out of my hiding spot. I wasn’t sure if I would be punished because he had guessed I would come back.

“These are my deceased wife’s clothes. She died from the plague.” His face showed the hurt that her death caused. “I won’t punish you, but when I tell you something, obey my command.”

“I’m sorry for your loss and I understand.” I said as I walked out. We both returned to our bedchambers for the night.