The Count sighed as Ashley glared at the Countess. Then he said, "Stop all this ruckus, Ashley. You have caused me plenty of problems when you run away."
Ashley shifted her glare at the Count, "And why is that? Is it because your plan to marry me off to Lord Lottway got delayed?"
"You wench! We have fed and dressed you since you were a child. And now you won't even be useful." Her stepmother shouted. "You should be grateful that we are marrying you off to a young nobleman with a higher status when other ladies got married off to old men."
She raised her left eyebrow. "Fed me? Dress me? You couldn't even give me a decent room. If I may remind you, I've been living in the attic room for ten years, and you treated me worse than a maid. A slave. You treated me as a slave."
The Count frowned, "A slave? We never treated you like that."
