THE COLONIES ~ 1 ~ PROLOGUE
In the town of Sussex, there was a large country manor overlooking the prairie. The estate had been in the Marin family for centuries, handed down through generations. Without a doubt, on his eighteenth birthday, the firstborn Marin son inherited control in the estate and began preparing for his eventual reign as Duke of Sussex. Such had been the case since the establishment of the Kingdom of Sussex in the fifth century, and would continue to be the case untilTom Marin failed to produce a male heir. That is not to say that he and his wife Ashley were unable to conceive children. In fact, they had a beautiful baby girl in 1758 and for the next decade they tried to have a son but to no avail.
Their inability to produce an heir who could continue the Marin legacy, led to heartache for the family, but more importantly, extreme measures were to be taken in order to ensure order in Sussex. After it became clear that Ashley could no longer bear children of any gender, Tom took it upon himself to use his preadolescent daughter to the family's advantage.
Tom Marin, despite his wife's protests, struck a deal with Sir James Rivers, the eighth baronet of Chafford in the County of Kent. Typically an arrangement such as this would be considered beneath the Marin family, but the introduction of a sole female heir put them in a precarious position. Tom bartered his daughter's hand in marriage to the son of Sir James Rovers in order to unite the two families and increase their wealth and status before risking the loss of their title.
As the years continued, the infant daughter Hanna Marin eventually grew into a beautiful young woman. She was strong-willed and opinionated but so incredibly compassionate. More importantly, she was adored by all of Sussex. Despite their apprehension at the possible changes that accompanied the absence of a male heir, they loved Hanna and she was a staple in their community. So much so, that a statue was erected in her image in the town square for her sixteenth birthday. The soon to be Duchess Hanna Marin lived a life of luxury and I enjoyed every moment of it.
The girl from the story whose father sold her life away in exchange for a change in status, was not bothered by the patriarchal tradition of Sussex, in fact, she reveled in it. Since as long as I can remember, I have had my entire life planned out for me. Most might find it a burden or consider my father overbearing, but I find that it allows me the freedom to focus on the things that matter, like my friendships and charity work. It also helps that I have a helpful associate who allows me a few minutes of liberty when this life of leisure becomes to tiresome.
My dear friend Alison DiLaurentis of Beaufort likes to engage in a little game we call "voile." I wish I could take credit for the name, but clearly her French ancestry lent itself to her abundant knowledge of the foreign language. She tells me the translation means "veil" in our language, which is exactly what the game is about. Our similar features and coloring allow us to exchange identities when needed and that is how we avoid the strenuous task of being adored.
Sorry for the short chapter, this is just a prologue but there's more to come if you leave ten reviews. Also, this is so out of my league. I've never read a historical romance and certainly never wrote one, and all the Brit lit classes I took in college only focused on poetry, so I apologize if this story starts off a bit rocky until I feel more comfortable in the genre. In the meantime, I hope you liked the prologue :)