Chapter 5: The End of Illusions
Isabella’s POV
I sat behind my desk, early sunlight streaming through the shutters, illuminating the meticulous rows of figures in the ledger. Outside, I could hear Emma supervising the servants, ensuring everything remained orderly despite the silent chaos lurking beneath the household’s surface.
A servant slipped in, head bowed, announcing that William and Beatrice were at the door. I closed the ledger. “Show them in,” I said quietly, and Emma left with a worried look, but I shook my head, signaling I wanted no one else present.
They entered together, and I allowed myself a brief, silent observation before meeting their eyes.
William’s posture was stiff, his features set in strained determination. He carried himself like a lord who believed he had everything under control. Beatrice Blackwood, however, looked like a warrior poised to face an adversary. She stood straight and tall, feet set firmly, arms never far from her hips as if expecting to reach for a weapon. Dressed in a tailored riding jacket and breeches beneath a polished belt buckle. She gave the impression of someone more accustomed to holding a sword than attending a tea. I even noticed faint scars on her knuckles and a subtle, rigid tension in her shoulders that spoke of countless drills, marches, and battles.
They didn’t bother with pleasantries. Beatrice took the lead, her voice sharp as drawn steel. “We understand you’ve been to the palace,” she said, pronouncing each word crisply, as if issuing an order. “We know you must’ve tried to convince the King to withdraw permission for our marriage. Don’t deny it.”
I studied her for a moment. Her confidence was absolute, like a seasoned officer confronting a supposed spy. She spoke to me not as if I were a lady of the house, but an enemy combatant. “You presume a great deal,” I answered, keeping my tone unhurried, steady. “If I did speak to the King, what makes you think I pleaded to preserve anything between me and William?”
William’s eyes narrowed. He stepped forward, but Beatrice lifted a hand slightly—perhaps a silent signal she was still leading this charge. He hesitated, and I couldn’t help a flicker of amusement at the reversal. William Beauchamp, who once commanded my attention and insisted on his authority, now looked to his new partner for cues.
Beatrice’s lips curved into a humorless smile. “You see, Isabella,” she used my name without titles, “I’ve dealt with plenty like you. Women who cling desperately to their standing, who manipulate from behind curtains while men are on the battlefield. I don’t have time for that kind of deceit. If you have something to say, say it plainly.”
I arched a brow. “You assume I’m desperate,” I said softly. “But what if I’m simply acknowledging reality? You two have made your choice clear. There’s no place for me in the future you’re planning—at least not as an equal.”
William cleared his throat, impatience leaking into his voice. “We are trying to be fair, Isabella.” He exchanged a glance with Beatrice, then continued, “There’s no reason this can’t work. You can remain here, respected and provided for. You could raise our children when the time comes. I’d even consider giving you a child of your own first, if it makes you feel more… secure. You wouldn’t be cast aside.”
Her confidence was unwavering—Perhaps she believed that, as a woman who’d earned a name on the battlefield, she deserved whatever she wanted in civilian life as well. And William, I realized, likely thought he was being generous. In his mind, he was offering me a compromise to keep the peace.
I stepped forward, trying to keep my voice steady. “So, your big plan is for me to stay at home, look after the kids, run the household, and wait for you to protect me? That’s it?” I looked from William to Beatrice. “And you, Beatrice? You’ve won more battles than I can count, facing enemies in dirt and blood. Do you really think this is honorable? Is that what your ‘valor’ means—turning another woman into a pretty decoration and a handy babysitter? So I do all the hard work in the background while you two get all the praise and comfort? Is that really okay with you?”