Verity flattened her palm on her chest as she overlooked the accounts recorded on her family's ledger. Verity is the third daughter of one of the Colton's household triplets, all three sisters are a little bit identical and are named accordingly.

The first daughter Veronica is a beautiful red head with flawless skin, blue eyes with an average height. The second daughter Victoria is also very beautiful with black long hair and blue eyes, Victoria is the tallest triplet who is already taller than their parents at age twenty and two.

The third daughter Verity, the most unfortunate one as her mother says is also beautiful but the whole town never fails to remind her of how her sisters are more pleasant to the eyes than her. Verity is also a red head with an average height, same blue eyes, a photocopied Veronica but Verity  is blessed with a deep olive skin making her different from her remaining two sisters.

She overhead one of the cook in their household tell her son who is the stable boy to stay away from her when she saw Verity talk to him in her Papa's stable. She had covered her mouth with a gasp when the cook told him that the moment she was birthed and voiced her first cry one of the rooms had caught fire killing her father's twin.

Verity wondered if it was really her fault, she was just an innocent babe who didn't know something tragic had happened. She also overhead one of her father's coachmen tell the same cook that she was the reason why her Papa became a drunk disgracing his tiltle as an Earl  and why her Mama jumps into the bed of any man willing to give her bags of shillings.

She knew her father was going bankrupt since she turned twenty and had attended her second season in London with her sisters. As always, she had worn her sisters old clothes while they bought new ones. Her papa had literally begged rich suitors to pick one of his daughters and her mom had trained her two favorites to be a very good seductress.

It was on their first ball at Earl Manning estate Victoria had gotten engaged and it wasn't a pleasant engagement, it was planned by the whole family and Verity had thanked God they loathed her because if they hadn't she knew she wouldn't be a part of their plan.

She remembered her Mama and Victoria whispering in a dark hallway at Earl Manning's estate, it looked like her mama was furious at Victoria. Her curiosity made her hid behind one of the huge pillars, close enough to hear their conversation.

"But mama he doesn't love me, he only took me to bed last night, he said he didn't want a wife."

"You have to dig your claws in him, marry him or you'll have to scrub the floor like maids and clean horse shit." Her Mama gritted out and Victoria gasp.

"Noooo Mama , what do you suggest we do ?."

"I talked to your papa about this, all you have to do is lure him into one of this rooms, Your Papa and I would barge in and act surprise while Veronica informs the people in the hall."

"But....but what if it all back fires mama..I'm scared."

"It won't, he won't want to ruin his reputation so he'll have no choice but to marry you."

Verity was shocked when she heard the plans her family had sculpted out. She waited behind the pillars breathing heavily, she watched Victoria and the Earl kiss messily as they stumbled into a room, she watch Victoria drop her tiny purse outside the room before closing the door.

Behind those pillars, she watched her mother barge into the room with her father, she heard her Mama's cry and her Papa's angry voice and then the final stage was when Veronica and the people present in the hall rushed to the room, everywhere was crowded and messy.

Tears, scream and shouts mixed together, everyone might be oblivious but Verity saw her mother's sinister smile towards her wailing daughter. The plan was perfectly executed because Victoria married the Duke a week after.

Verity turned the pages of the ledger as fast as she could before her Papa awake from his slumber. She knew Victoria and the Duke marriage saved them from going completely bankrupt but they weren't as rich and influential as before. They moved out of their big estate two years ago into a very small one. They still had maids but they were only six in number, who was hired for really important task.

Her mother had told the maids Verity wasn't allowed to order them, Verity had gotten used to being alone and abandoned since she was ten, when her parents threw a birthday ball for her sisters and she wasn't invited.

She had gotten used to scrubbing the floor, she had gotten used to helping the cook in the kitchen and even take charge of doing the maids work when they are not available which seems to be a lot.

"Papa has gone bankrupt again." Verity whispered and shook her head in disappointment.

According to the reports on the ledger not only had he gambled his wealth away but he had also been swindled by his one and only friend Lord Rodriguez who is apparently one of the few men who has not slept with her mama, yet.

How was she going to tell her father that she had learnt the basis of accounting, how would she tell him that she had stolen all his books and had gotten so good with numbers.

"Veronica dear...." Her father says and open his eyes groggily.

"It's Verity Papa."

She watch him stand up in haste and staggered, she placed the ledger back and moved to her Papa's side to help him stand firm on his feet.

"You wench." Her Papa shouted and pushed her on the desk his fist landing hard on her cheek.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry Papa." Verity cried as she placed her cold palm on her stinging cheek.

"I'm not your Papa, you unfortunate child."

"Papa." Veronica shouts as she runs into the study with her mother trailing behind her.

"She's him....he's her...she looks so much...so much like him." She watch her mother move to her father's side and whisper something harshly to him making him calm.

"No dinner tonight." Her mother hissed glaring at her and Verity gasped.

"But mama I didn't break my fast in the morn." She cried at the taught of going to sleep on empty stomach again.

"That's what you deserve wench, you ought to starve."

Verity looked from her Papa to Mama as tears spilled out of her face and ran out of the study accepting her faith.