CHAPTER 238: DOUBTED EVERYTHING.

Rosalind looked at her sisters and sighed. She was used to them being unreasonable.

"You didn’t even ask if I was available to meet guests," she replied in a flat voice, not wanting to argue.

Beatrice and Bridget exchanged a glance. They hadn’t told her because they knew she would refuse to meet their guests. But now that she had gone out, their plan to pressure her had failed.

"Then, would you be available to meet them tomorrow? They are our good friends. You don’t have any close friends anyway," Bridget said, a bit impatient. She hated that such a good marriage had fallen into the hand of Rosalind.

"No," Rosalind said. She didn’t want to meet anyone; especially her sisters’ friends. They had never cared to meet her before, so she wasn’t ready to entertain fair-weather friends.

"What do you mean no? It’s just tea," Bridget asked, feeling offended. If they couldn’t get Rosalind to join for even a simple tea gathering, how would they continue benefiting from her engagement to the king?

"I don’t have time for a cup of tea. They are your friends, not mine," Rosalind said and began to leave.

"Oh, just because you’re about to get engaged to the king, you think you’re better than us?" Bridget snapped, her tone filled with accusations. Why should a motherless child be so smug.

Rosalind wasn’t surprised to hear it. Her relationship with her stepsisters had always been lukewarm. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to be close to them; she was, after all, two years older and would’ve liked to play the role of an older sister. But from a young age, she had realized these sisters only cared about what they could gain.

Perhaps their mother had raised them to believe they weren’t truly sisters. Old Lady William never approved of Lord William’s choice of a second wife, so the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law had never gotten along.

On the other hand, Rosalind had been deeply loved by her grandmother. Her stepsisters had tried to win their grandmother’s affection too.

Rosalind knew that although her grandmother disliked Lady William, she had never taken it out on the children. After all, they were her grandchildren too. But the sisters didn’t see it that way. They believed their grandmother always reserved the best for Rosalind—and in truth, she had. But only because Rosalind had no mother.

In her grandmother’s eyes, the sisters had a mother to plan for them, while she only had her as a grandmother.

Because of that, the twins had always been jealous. They often excluded her from their games and activities. When Old Lady William noticed this, she took Rosalind under her wing even more. Everything was arranged for her by her grandmother, which only deepened the mother and daughters’ dislike for her.

Though they had never harmed her outright, Rosalind understood that it was only because her grandmother had protected her closely. This experience also made it difficult for her to make friends; until she met Anastasia at that party. They had bonded over shared experiences and a love for music.

Rosalind felt a pang of sadness. Though Anastasia still treated her kindly, she knew her engagement to King Edward had changed everything.

Those other ladies only wanted a place in the queen’s court. But the person Rosalind truly wanted by her side was Anastasia. Still, she didn’t dare invite her. It would feel like mockery.

Rosalind took a deep breath. There was no need to argue with her sisters.

"That’s enough," Beatrice said, stopping her sister. "We’re here to make friends, not worsen things."

"Why?" Bridget asked sharply. "We’re all Lord William’s daughters. Who gave Rosalind the right to act as if she’s more important?" Bridget said they’d words she has been hiding in her heart.

"We’re here to make friends. Did you not hear how Lady Elizabeth of Duke Thompson’s household was mocked when her sister didn’t pick her to join her queen’s court?" Beatrice reminded her sister, hoping she’d think of the bigger picture and be quiet. Although she also hates Rosalind behavior, she had to think of benefits.

"Ah! If she dares not to let us join—let her try! I heard the former queen was just like her. After becoming queen, she thought she was above everyone. Look at her now," Bridget snapped. She was uncomfortable. First it had been their grandmother—always giving Rosalind the best. Now their father was doing the same. Rosalind hadn’t even wanted the marriage, yet their father had given it to her.

"That’s enough," Beatrice warned again, but Bridget wouldn’t stop.

"Rosalind, a piece of advice: Father is not like Grandmother, who always gave you the best. Your marriage to the king isn’t the blessing you think it is. You’re going into the palace to walk on thin ice. You’d better make more friends, or you might end up like your dear friend."

Rosalind was about to close her door when those words struck her. She couldn’t help but recall Anastasia’s account of her wedding night; how the king had left her for his mistress. If that happens to her, could she cry about it to her father?

"What do you mean by that?" Rosalind asked. Her sister must have heard something to speak so boldly.

"I’m just saying." Bridget saw the uneasiness on Rosalind’s face and felt pleased with herself. "Mother told Father to let me or Beatrice marry the king since you weren’t interested. Do you know what Father said?"

Beatrice glanced at her sister, wanting to stop her—but when she saw the look on Rosalind’s face, she also found satisfaction in it.

"What did he say?" Rosalind asked, trying to hide the panic rising in her chest.

"He said this marriage wasn’t a good thing. That there was no way he would let me or Beatrice go into the lion’s den. So he’s sending you instead. That way, the family can still gain something," Bridget said. Although those weren’t Lord William’s exact words, it was how she had interpreted them.

Rosalind felt her heart sink. She tried to believe her father wouldn’t knowingly send her into danger—but the thought wouldn’t go away. He had never been very close to her. Though he treated her well, there’s a saying: with a stepmother comes a stepfather. What if she had always been the easiest to sacrifice?

"You’re lying," Rosalind said, clinging to hope.

"Lying? Why would I lie? Father said it—God bears me witness. So take my advice and make more friends to protect yourself. You were close to the former queen. Don’t tell me you believe those baseless rumors going around," Bridget said, enjoying the disbelief and fear in Rosalind’s eyes.

"Remember to join us for the tea party tomorrow," she added before walking off with Beatrice. Her back was straight and her face full of smiles, one could tell she was in a good mood.

Beatrice cast a smug look at Rosalind before following her sister.

Rosalind stood frozen as her personal maid gently shut the door.

"My lady mustn’t listen to them. I’m sure they’re lying," the maid said, seeing tears stream down Rosalind’s cheeks.

Rosalind said nothing. She walked quietly into her room and shut the door. The maid standing outside took a deep breath. She knew that Rosalind hated to let others see her cry, so she did not enter the room.

Rosalind Walk to her dressing table and sat down looking at herself in the mirror and thinking of Bridget’s words. Though she had never been close to her sisters, she knew they weren’t lying. Bridget wouldn’t have the nerve to lie about their father.

He really was sending her into the lion’s den.

Rosalind couldn’t stop crying. Though she’d never been close to her father, she’d always believed he loved her. She never imagined he would sacrifice her.

All her life, she thought she was lucky. Despite having a stepmother, she’d grown up with the best things. Only now did she realize what it felt like to be the least favored.

She had never envied Bridget and Beatrice. But now, she did.

She wished her grandmother were still alive. She was convinced her grandmother would’ve protected her. She could not help curse death for beeb so unfair to her.

"What should I do?" Rosalind whispered as tears ran down her cheeks.

Her father had said the king promised to treat her well. But Anastasia had told her how he had broken his promises—to her and even to his mother.

The king was a man who didn’t listen to anyone. He had spread false rumors about the former queen just to protect himself.

Thinking of everything, it seemed Anastasia was right. For now, the king needed her father to stabilize the royal court, so he might treat her well. But once that was settled, he might return to pampering his mistress. She had thought her father did not know this side of the king but hearing Bridget words she was unsure what to believe.

"Can my fate in the palace truly be different from Anastasia’s?" Rosalind asked herself.

Before Bridget’s words, she had believed her father would protect her.

Now, she doubted everything.