52 Chapter 52 The Ball (2/2)

”Bring him forth.”

Everyone watched as the slave was grabbed and brought forth, but he didn't struggle, and came willingly.

”What is the meaning of this? That man a.s.saulted me!” She sneezed out, through her sobs.

Joseph lost it. He strode over to her and reaching as high as he could, he slapped her in the face. Apparently, the sword training was paying off, because she collapsed to the ground in shock, dropping her handkerchief as she fell.

”Victoria Croft, niece of Duke Winston, I find rapists to be sc.u.m.” His voice was cold and he had to focus to keep his mana from spilling out, he was so p.i.s.sed. ”They should all be dealt with in ways that are not appropriate to speak of in front of a lady, but I find cheap women who claim they have been raped, just to frame n.o.ble and good men, to be just as abhorrent!”

Duke Winston stepped forward as his name was spoke. ”Now, see here, you little…”

”No, you see here! There are things **** victims do, and things they don't. If she had been forced, she would have bruises from trying to fight off her attacker. If she had been forced, she would not come to this dance party two days later. If she had been forced, she would not have worn a low-cut dress and have been flirting with men this whole evening. If she had been forced, she would not have had her hair up and exposed her neck like that. If she had been forced, she would not have applied a layer of wax to her makeup so that it wouldn't run when she started crying.”

Joseph reached down and grabbed the handkerchief as she suddenly remembered it and started to reach for it as well, and threw it at the duke.

”She also would NOT have needed crimson pepper flakes to start crying!”

The dukes face instantly turned red and teared up from the flakes as the handkerchief broke open and scattered the flakes everywhere.

”She would have avoided people, probably blamed herself for the attack, and may have gone to the grave before admitting, as a n.o.ble lady, that she had intimate relations with a slave.”

He turned and glared at her, with all of the anger his little body could hold.

”So, what is it, some commoner boyfriend that you love, that your uncle promised you could be with, if you did this for him?”

Her mouth fell open, ”How did you…”

Her red-rimmed eyes caught the look the duke was making at her, and she snapped her mouth shut.

”That's a terrible excuse to ruin a man's life. What's more, if you had succeeded with your little theatrics, you may have even managed to void the contract with the king. My father is on that contract, and I will not let a little twit like you cause a breech. I have seen women abused. I have seen innocent little girls tricked into giving up something precious and have seen that light in their eyes fade. I know children who grew up living in terror of that possibility in their lives. You insult them all.”

He turned to the king, before he said more.

”I apologize for my behavior this evening, your grace, but I find that I am not feeling well. May I leave with my servants?”

The king nodded without another word, and the slave was let go. Joseph left with Stella on his arm, barely able to contain himself. The entire room was deathly silent.

x.x.xxX

Back in his room, he was finally able to calm down. He didn't enjoy that. He was triggered far too easily. He used it to his advantage this time, but if he had done something more following that slap, it could have been very bad. His past memories were influencing him far too much. Learning from them was one thing, but losing himself to the past was worrying.

Settling down to sleep, he decided he needed to take thirty minutes each evening to sift through the memories and file them away. They needed to go to their s.p.a.ce and be there when called on, but not out in the open, where he would be affected so strongly by them in the future.

For the first time in months, he slept without any dreams. He decided when he woke, that this way of dealing with them, was probably the right path.

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