I Married My Sister's Father-In-Law

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On the eve of my older sister's grand wedding, I was found sleeping in the same bed as her future husband.

My parents were so ashamed they wanted me to end my own life.

However, my sister, Victoria, stepped in and saved me, claiming she harbored no resentment.

I truly believed she was being kind.

But when we were alone, her smile turned cold and cruel.

"I added a little something extra to your tea during the family banquet that night," she whispered.

"Don't blame me, little sister. My body is no longer capable of bearing a child. To keep my position as the Duchess, I need your womb."

"Your reputation is already in the dirt. You either die or marry into the estate with me."

It turned out she had ruined her own health by keeping a dozen secret lovers.

She couldn't conceive, so she planned to make me her husband's plaything to produce an heir for her.

She expected me to cry and beg for mercy.

Instead, I quietly put on the maid's uniform and followed her into the Duke's estate.

On the wedding night, I didn't go to her husband's room to do her dirty work.

Instead, I climbed into the bed of his father, the Great Duke of the North.

I agreed to be part of the dowry, but I get to choose my own man.

The fifth of May was the perfect day for a wedding.

The Duke's carriage arrived at the Sterling Estate with a grand procession of flutes and drums.

Every noble lady in the capital watched with envy.

Inside the Sterling manor, however, the bridal suite was filled with a suffocating silence.

I knelt on the floor in my thin underclothes, pinned down by two heavy-handed servants.

Victoria stood over me in her gold-stitched crimson gown.

She squeezed my chin with her sharp, manicured nails.

"Seraphina, you are nothing but an insignificant bastard of this house," she sneered.

"If not for what happened last month, you'd be lucky to marry a commoner or be some minor lord's fifth mistress."

"Taking you with me to the Duchy is the greatest blessing you'll ever receive. How dare you act high and dry with me!"

Her maid, Phoebe, spat at my feet.

"My Lady, she's just ungrateful," Phoebe barked.

"Are you sure you want this little fox around you? Look at her. She looks like she walked straight out of a brothel."

If I weren't there, Phoebe would have been the primary maid.

She clearly hated that I was taking her place.

Victoria's eyes roamed over my face and my figure, a flash of pure jealousy crossing her features.

She quickly masked it and stroked my cheek with fake tenderness.

"Don't say that, Phoebe. Seraphina is my dearest sister. She would never hurt me."

"Sister, you might start as a maid, but once you give the young Lord a son, I'll make you a formal concubine."

"Your mother was a common dancer, and you certainly inherited her charms. But we are sisters, aren't we?"

"Would I ever truly harm you?"

Her words felt like venomous stings.

My mother was of low birth and died after a long, disfiguring illness.

My father had discarded her the moment she lost her beauty.

He hated me just as much as he eventually hated her.

The Duchess had spent years taking her spite out on my skin.

In this house, I was treated worse than the stable boys.

A month ago, at a family dinner, I was found in a bed with Victoria's fianc, Arthur.

Even though we were fully clothed and it was an obvious setup, no one cared.

They wanted to beat me to death to wash away the shame.

Victoria's "mercy" was the only reason I was still breathing.

For years, I thought she was my only light because she gave me her leftovers.

Yesterday, I realized the truth.

She wasn't my savior.

She was a predator who needed my body to secure her throne.

The wedding bells began to chime, and Victoria's patience snapped.

She ordered the servants to force me into a peach-colored robe.

I finally looked her in the eye.

"Are you absolutely certain you want me in that house with you?" I asked.

Her response was a stinging slap across my face.

Phoebe stepped forward, her hands on her hips.

"Stop talking and move! If you try any tricks at the estate, I'll make sure you regret ever being born!"

Red candles flickered in the bridal chamber as Arthur lifted Victoria's veil.

They had met a few times before, but she always wore a veil to seem mysterious.

Arthur had expected a goddess hidden beneath the silk.

When the veil fell, his face dropped.

Even with heavy makeup, Victoria's features were plain and uninspiring to a man like him.

He looked like he wanted to put the veil back on immediately.

However, because our father was a high-ranking official, he forced a fake smile.

Then, his eyes drifted toward me.

I was standing in the corner in my thin red silk dress.

His gaze lingered on my chest, turning heavy and hungry.

Victoria saw the shift in his expression instantly.

Her grip tightened on her silk handkerchief until her knuckles turned white.

Still, she forced herself to play the part of the generous wife.

"My Lord, this is my younger sister. She has come to serve our household."

"I am feeling a bit unwell tonight. Why don't you let her attend to you instead?"

Arthur's mood brightened instantly.

He gave Victoria a look of genuine appreciation for the first time.

"I am truly lucky to have such a wise and understanding wife."

He turned back to me, his eyes devouring me.

"Wait! You're the little maid who climbed into my bed at the Sterling banquet!"

"So you're my sister-in-law? Even better. Much better!"

He laughed and went to the washroom to prepare.

As he passed, he leaned in and blew a hot breath against my ear.

"Wait for me, little thing."

A shiver of disgust ran down my spine.

Before I could move, Victoria grabbed a handful of my hair and yanked.

The mask of the kind sister was gone.

"My mother was right. You're a born seductress. Flirting with your brother-in-law right in front of me!"

She pulled harder, making my eyes water.

"I didn't do anything," I whispered. "You're the one who forced me here."

Victoria's face twisted with rage.

"How dare you talk back!"

She ordered the servants to strip me down to my thinnest lace slip.

"Since you're so desperate for a man, I'll give you what you want."

"If you can keep his attention, you might survive. If not, I'll sell you to the filthiest docks in the city."

She shoved me out into the cold courtyard to wait for Arthur's summons.

I could feel the lecherous stares of the guards and the mockery of the maids.

I wrapped my arms around myself, trying to cover my skin.

Was this my fate? To be a tool for a woman who hated me?

I remembered my mother's miserable death and my father's cold eyes.

If I accepted this, I would end up just like her.

No. I wouldn't let them win.

As I searched for a way out, I heard a servant's voice from the distance.

"The Duke is back from the feast. He's had a lot to drink, so be careful."

My heart skipped a beat.

Duke Silas Northwood. The master of the house.

He was the only person with more power than Arthur.

I didn't hesitate. I ran toward the main wing.

I slipped into Duke Silas's chambers while the servants were busy fetching water.

The room was dark, lit only by the faint glow of the fireplace.

A massive shadow lay on the bed.

My heart hammered against my ribs as I remembered the rumors about him.

Silas Northwood was a legend who had dominated the battlefields since he was eighteen.

He should have been the most sought-after bachelor in the country.

But years ago, he was gravely injured in an ambush.

The doctors saved his life, but he immediately adopted a nephew to be his heir.

Soon, rumors spread that the Great Duke was no longer a man in the bedroom.

He never denied the gossip.

The noble ladies who once dreamed of him quickly turned away.

They respected the hero, but no one wanted a marriage without passion.

Everyone thought Arthur was lucky to inherit everything from a broken man.

But I knew the rumors were false.

A month ago at the banquet, I had accidentally tripped into Silas's arms.

For a brief second, our bodies were pressed together.

I had felt the heat and the undeniable strength of a man who was very much functional.

He had looked at me with an intensity that suggested he wasn't indifferent.

This was my only gamble.

I crept toward the bed, my breath hitching.

Suddenly, a cold flash of steel pressed against my throat.

"Speak. Who sent you?"

His voice was like grinding stones, cold and sober.

There was no trace of alcohol in his tone.

I knew that one wrong word would mean my head rolling on the floor.

My teeth chattered from the cold and fear.

"My Lord I am the Duchess's sister. I came to serve you tonight."

Even in the dark, I felt his heavy, suffocating gaze on me.

The silence stretched on until I felt like I would break.

"My daughter-in-law is certainly attentive," he said with a dark chuckle.

"She's enjoying her wedding night and still finds time to send a gift to her father-in-law."

"But does she really think I'll take just any trash she throws my way?"

The blade nicked my skin, leaving a thin trail of blood.

"Get out before I lose my patience."

My heart sank. He thought I was just a spy or a cheap bribe.

Before I could explain, he shoved me away with immense strength.

I tumbled back, and my thin lace slip tore, leaving me exposed in the moonlight.

Silas's breath hitched. I heard him swallow hard.

This was it. Life or death.

I ignored the pain and crawled forward, grabbing his knees.

"My Lord, I am her sister, but I am not her ally. I am just a girl trying to survive."

"Please, show me mercy."

But his eyes remained icy.

"Many people want to survive. Go pray to a saint."

"I am a soldier. I deal in death, not salvation."

He raised his sword again, ready to strike.

I closed my eyes, waiting for the end.

But then, the moonlight caught the jade pendant hanging from my neck.

His hand froze mid-air.

He snatched the pendant from my throat, his eyes wide.

"Where did you get this? Who are you really?"

That night, I didn't sleep in Arthur's bed.

I slept on a small sofa in Silas's room, wrapped in his heavy fur cloak.

My hair was damp with cold sweat, and my heart refused to slow down.

But I knew I had won. Victoria could no longer touch me.

I expected to stay awake all night, but the scent of cedar and leather on the cloak was strangely comforting.

I fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.

When I woke up, the sun was streaming through the windows.

Silas was standing over me, his expression unreadable.

"You were having a nightmare," he said softly.

I touched my forehead and realized I was covered in sweat.

I scrambled up and bowed my head low.

"I'm sorry, My Lord. I should have been up to assist you."

He let out a short, dry laugh.

"You are late. Any later and we'd miss breakfast."

"Get dressed. Our son and daughter-in-law are waiting for us to join them for tea."

Hearing him say "our" made my face burn with heat.

By the time I finished dressing, Silas was gone.

I asked a servant for directions to the dining hall and walked there alone.

On the way, I ran into Phoebe.

She was walking with a strange, pained limp, her eyes glowing with a smug satisfaction.

It seemed Victoria had pushed her into Arthur's bed last night after I disappeared.

But Victoria was likely still furious about my disappearance.

She had sent Phoebe to find me and take out her frustrations.

Phoebe pointed a finger at my nose and started screaming.

"You little tramp! Do you have any idea how long I've been looking for you?"

"Did you run off to find a man last night? You can't live without it, can you?"

"The young Lord is furious because of you. Come back and crawl on your knees to the Mistress!"

She reached out to grab my arm.

I stepped back and looked her in the eye.

"Phoebe, you are just a maid. How dare you speak to me like that?"

Phoebe laughed, her face twisting with disdain.

"Don't play the lady with me, Seraphina. You were lower than me at the Sterling house."

"And now I've shared the young Lord's bed. I'll be his official mistress soon."

"I could crush you like an ant. But I won't have to. The Mistress told me to sell you to the brothels once I found you."

"You're just a bastard daughter of a dancer. Go back to the gutters where your mother belonged!"

Fury boiled in my chest at the mention of my mother.

Before I could react, several large servants appeared behind her.

"Muffle her," Phoebe ordered. "Don't let her screams disturb the Duke."

I backed away and raised my right hand.

The sunlight hit the massive ruby ring Silas had placed on my finger last night.

"I belong to the Duke now," I shouted. "Touch me and you answer to him!"