The Bequest of Betrayal Chapter 2

"Miss?"

The captain's voice brought me back. I asked how far the Dakotas were.

Julian's list was long; it would take weeks to fulfill.

But maybe because he rushed me, or maybe the fever had addled my brain, I had boarded the wrong boat.

"This boat is going to New Orleans," the captain repeated.

Panic flared for a second.

The captain saw my pale face and assumed I was in trouble. "Don't worry, miss. With the current, we're making good time. I can drop you off, and you'll only be delayed five or six days."

I watched a seagull skim the water and disappear into the gray sky. My hand tightened around the letter.

I stared blankly until my eyes focused on the very last line of the letter.

Thank you for your hard work, sister. Julian.

That was the only line addressed to me.

Julian always called me "sister" when he needed something.

I pulled the marriage contract from my bag and ran my finger over the signatures.

Two hearts united, a vow for eternity... Signed, Julian Blackwood - Sarah.

He wrote this after passing the Bar exam with top honors.

Back then, he was radiant. "Sarah," he said, eyes shining, "I will never let you down."

The Blackwoods were once wealthy merchants, and I was a servant girl bought by Mrs. Blackwood. My gambling father had planned to sell me to a brothel. Mrs. Blackwood saved me and assigned me to eight-year-old Julian.

But tragedy struck. Mr. Blackwood was killed by bandits during a trade run, and the family fortune was lost.

Mrs. Blackwood fell ill, and the servants were dismissed. I stayed. She had saved my life; I owed her mine.

For years, it was just the three of us. I took in washing, did embroidery, my hands raw and cracked from the cold water. Later, a kind bakery owner taught me to make pastries, and I opened a small stall. That’s how I supported Julian through school.

When Mrs. Blackwood died, she made Julian kneel and swear he would never abandon me.

From then on, it was just us. He started calling me "sister," terrified I would leave him.

"Sister, I'll become a great man," he promised, tears in his eyes. "I'll marry you properly and you'll never suffer again."

I thought it was just a child's promise. But the day he passed the Bar, he rode home on a high horse, holding the marriage contract. "I'm here to marry you, Sarah."

My heart surrendered then and there.

But then Lillian appeared.

The first time we met her, she was reading under a peach tree at the Senator's estate. A breeze blew petals onto her book. She brushed them away and smiled at us.

That smile stole Julian's heart.

He started visiting the Vale estate constantly. He forgot to bring me chestnut cakes. He forgot to teach me to read. He forgot my birthday. He forgot the marriage contract.

When Lillian asked who I was, he said casually, "She's a maid my mother left me."