My Disfigured Duke Husband Helps Me Plot My Revenge
Chapter 280: Gone

Chapter 280: Gone

The men left early the following morning without fuss over their departure. If the King or duchess made a big show of it, their plans would be foiled.

While Duchess and Duke de Montclair didn’t want to separate from one another, they had a firm understanding and could only move forward with that.

Desmond got rid of all signs that he was a duke by wearing commoner clothing that lacked color and putting on leather-covered metal shoulder armor to look more like a mercenary than anything else. The final thing to do was remove his sapphire wedding ring.

Leonor waited for him at the door and, she held his hand tightly, her sapphire eyes that matched the ring so perfectly began to water.

"I don’t want to do this," she whispered.

Desmond knew she was still tired. It was well before the sun would rise because they needed to leave with as little eyes on them as possible.

He kissed her forehead in silent understanding of her plight and sorrow that he was the one who created it. He could have stopped himself from volunteering but the conflict with Eirenguard was unbelievably close to his heart.

With a deep breath, she held his left hand higher and gently slid the ring off of his unscathed finger that signified their marriage. She already had a chain prepared for it so she could wear it every single day until her husband returned for it himself.

"I will be back for it shortly," he promised Leonor.

"If you don’t, I will hunt you down," she swore. "My father’s county is not all that far from the Eirenguardian border."

Desmond smiled at her but soon his lips tightened and his chin wrinkled. He wasn’t one to cry but the past couple of days had taken a toll on him.

"Please be safe, Leonor," he whispered. "Please send Eve for me occasionally just so I know you’re thinking of me nearly as much as I’m thinking of you."

Tears had already fallen from her eyes and all she could do was lean into Desmond and grip his clothing. He wore fur much cheaper than usual and a brown cloak that was nothing as impressive as he deserved to be wearing.

"You have no idea," she uttered. "My love for you is the strongest thing I’ve ever felt in my life and that will never change for as long as I live."

"I love you so much," he said. "We can get through anything."

All she could do by that point was nod. Her emotions gripped her throat and made it impossible to speak.

Instead of speaking, Desmond pulled away enough to kiss her and she fervently returned it with her arms around him, unfairly clinging to him.

"Something we will finish later," he whispered when the kiss was broken.

Again, all she could do was nod and he knew it was time to get out or he would stay there forever and leave at a dangerously late hour that would compromise their traveling.

When he was finally out the door and it was shut firmly behind him, Leonor collapsed to the floor and cried into her knees like a small child with the dress she wore splayed around her. She looked like a melted candle in the way she had fallen.

That morning, she had gotten up even earlier than she was supposed to so she could see her husband off looking her best. She wanted his last image of her to be beautiful and carry him for a long time.

Surprisingly, someone came back through the main door to the Queen’s Palace and, soon Leonor felt arms around her shoulders and a fine white fur cloak over her shoulders.

Stephano had come to see how she was doing and found her exactly where he expected her, although it didn’t make it any less painful to witness.

"I’m sorry," the King said. "I have no excuses."

Leonor knew it wasn’t his fault but it was hard to say anything then. While she knew they wouldn’t be separated for years as before, it hurt all the same. Since she couldn’t respond, she simply turned to him and wrapped her arms around him as well.

It seemed that all she could do with those closest to her was pathetically cry to all of them while she was facing a reality check in the worst way.

Since she didn’t have a proper moment to say farewell to Quinn, all she was able to do was pass Desmond a letter to give to him and hope that her words at least gave him comfort while he went on the undoubtedly tumultuous path ahead.

She had no idea about what had happened between him and Stephano–no clues that the two of them were feeling hopeful for once and more settled than they had been in a long time. Once she was out of her own head, perhaps then she would be able to see that something had changed.

Finally able to get a grip on herself, Stephano and Leonor went to the main palace and spent quality time with one another for the first time in a long time. Things felt heavy and strange. They hadn’t spent time like that together since she was a teenager.

They spent days pretending that things weren’t as hard as they were, both adorning themselves as usual and going on about their business as if nothing had happened. However, for both of their lives, it felt quiet waiting for even a clue that their loved ones were doing okay.

Leonor had been sleeping badly without Desmond’s muscular arms and masculine scent comforting her every nerve. She asked the maids to keep the room hot so she would at least not miss out on his warmth.

However, she quickly found his warmth was something that couldn’t be replicated. Even sweating to the point she had to remove her blankets, it still wasn’t enough to match the feeling she was missing when her husband was there.

Regardless, she was starting to spend her time helping Stephano as a personal assistant of sorts. Occasionally she would go to the mage’s quarter to check on the students, but Quinn left behind a well-oiled machine that didn’t need a lot of outside help.

It had been two weeks since the men departed. They received one letter from Quinn’s familiar stating that they had crossed into the Eirenguardian border.

During a particularly lackluster day, Leonor and Stephano had tea with one another in a sitting room overlooking the back of the palace’s grounds which boasted a small pond and forest that made someone believe that they were in the wilderness rather than in the center of Couervalle.

There was something Leonor was starting to realize the more time they spent.

"Rumors are going to start spreading about us again, aren’t they?" Leonor asked her dear friend before sipping on her tea.

"I expect that will happen," Stephano admitted. "Although it’s a welcome distraction from the truth."

"It won’t be the first time," Leonor uttered. "We’ve handled it once and we’ll handle it again."

"At least word is unlikely to make it to the men while they’re away," Stephano admitted.

Leonor sipped her tea slowly but her sapphire eyes were pinned to Stephano, sending him an accusatory look. When she was done, she silently placed her teacup on its saucer and smirked.

"Even if he is here, you would gloat about our relationship with him," Leonor revealed. "He tells me everything after all."

Stephano’s smirk became wolfish, thinking of the day he went to their duchy and Desmond came into his room with nearly unfounded accusations.

"It isn’t my fault the jealous bastard is too easy to sway," Stephano responded sharply with a laugh. "I’m almost surprised he allowed you to stay in the palace with me while he’s away."

Leonor’s smile became shy.

"He knows I will go where I please," she admitted. "I also know that your heart is in a locked case that no one has found a key to."

"Well..."

Stephano became restless as he shifted in the chair he sat in and reached for his tea which had gotten cold so he poured more to heat it and top it off.

However, before Leonor could react further, palace guards came to where they sat with a letter.

She thought she could simply stand by and wait for Stephano to receive it but they went directly to her.

"A messenger hawk came in with an important letter for Duchess Montclair," the guard explained.

While Leonor managed to remain composed in most cases, she received the letter with trembling hands and had to drop the letter on the table until the guard left and she was okay trusting Stephano with her true response.

For a moment, her eyes went over the page and, by the end, her fingers were over her lips while her other hand splayed over the page to keep it unrolled.

"My father," she uttered. "He’s sick. After finding him wandering around Burien township without any shoes on and tattered clothing, asking for help, he fell into a deep sleep."

"You ought to go to him," Stephano said, without hesitation.

"I suppose our sitting around and waiting couldn’t last forever," Leonor uttered with a small smile even though it was difficult with the new weighing on her.