Chapter 4

The wailing had disrupted the funeral so much that the ceremony could not continue.

The Duke's head housekeeper could no longer hold back. She stepped forward to reason with Mia.

"Miss, you never knew the Duke. You have no idea what kind of man he was.

"I served him for 40 years. In his later years, he often said that what he hated most was people putting on a crying act at funerals."

However, Mia was convinced the woman was just bitter about not getting a share of the inheritance.

"Some people serve for 40 years and only ever earn a paycheck. You never even got a title, so how could someone like you possibly understand the Duke's suffering?

"The Duke died all alone, and you, the one who spent 40 years by his side, are this cold-hearted?"

Those words cut like a knife. The housekeeper's eyes instantly turned red.

She could no longer contain her grief for the man she had mourned in silence. She turned and walked out.

I immediately followed, wanting to offer some comfort.

Mia caught sight of me and shouted.

"Why are you everywhere? Pretty impressive, escaping when you were tied up!

"You'll cozy up to anyone, won't you? What do you think you'll get out of sucking up to some housekeeper?"

I shot Mia a look of contempt. She had the nerve to claim she understood the Duke's life?

She had no idea that this housekeeper, Margaret Hale, was the person the Duke respected most while he was alive.

She had been the first in line to inherit according to his will, but out of gratitude for how well the Duke had treated her, and feeling she was getting on in years, she had turned down the entire inheritance and left it for those who needed it more.

Now Mia dared to humiliate her in public?

Once Margaret left, Mia saw that no one else would get in her way. She waved Robert and Paige aside.

Then she dropped to her knees with a thud, threw her arms around the Duke's coffin, and wailed as if her heart were being torn apart.

She was determined to make sure that when Prince Charles arrived, the first thing he saw was how "devoted" and "deeply moved" she was.

The woman was truly shameless. The lawyer who had invited us to the funeral was beside himself.

"Stop wailing! Prince Charles will be here any moment, and he takes aristocratic etiquette very seriously!

"If he sees you making a scene like this, he'll have you thrown out on the spot!"

Mia exploded immediately.

"You're just a lawyer, and you dare make up lies like this to the inheritance recipients? You're using Prince Charles to intimidate us so you can pocket the fortune yourself, aren't you?!"

The lawyer, Harold Sinclair, sputtered, fury blazing in his eyes.

"You're the ones disrupting this funeral and denying the Duke his peace, and yet you have the nerve to slander me?!"

Mia let out a dismissive snort and ignored him. She glanced up just in time to see me escorting Margaret upstairs. Something seemed to dawn on her.

She whipped around and rushed over to block my path, her voice low and venomous.

"So this is your game! You went to all this trouble to find people to stop me from mourning!

"You just can't stand the thought of me catching Prince Charles's eye, can you?"

I curled my lips into a cold smirk.

"The way you look right now, you're like a cat in heat. Who do you think wants to watch you yowl all over the place?"

Mia trembled with rage. Her eyes darted, and then she deliberately twisted her ankle and threw herself down the stairs.

She landed hard on her backside and immediately let out a piercing wail, pulling out every trick in the book.

"What did I ever do wrong? Why do you have to treat me like this, Celine?"

The moment those words left her mouth, the gazes of the surrounding guests turned ice cold.

Wonderful. The crying act was not enough. Now she was playing the victim.

"You're that jealous? You had to push her at a time like this! You've completely humiliated our family!"

Robert rushed over and tore into me without a second thought. Still not satisfied, he slapped me across the face.

"Prince Charles is about to arrive and you're still picking fights out of petty jealousy? Get out! Get out right now!"

The moment he finished speaking, Paige and Mia lunged at me, dragging me toward the door.

I was about to be hauled outside, my arms gripped so tightly they ached.

"Stop!" A sharp command rang out, and everyone froze.

The crowd parted to make way. The only sound left was the click of polished shoes against the floor.

A man stepped forward, a royal crest pinned to his chest. The nobility radiating from him was so overwhelming that no one dared make a sound.

"You've already committed the offense of wailing before the casket and now you dare to get physical in public? I see no reason why this inheritance should be passed on to you at all."