Chapter 13
****
She didn't know what she'd been doing all night. After staggering home from a party that lasted until 4 a.m., Aubrey quickly changed and pulled the covers over her head.
"I can't believe you’re dressed like this.”
The voice, heavy and soft, lingered in her ears. After a moment's reflection, the man's face, with its sharp lines, came into focus.
Khaled Karnus. That was the boy's-no, the man's-name, and it was the one thing that filled her with even more dread. The fact that she knew nothing more than a name for a man who knew her past.
"Come on, lady, just one bite."
Trin scooped up the soup, almost sulking at Aubrey for skipping breakfast.
"What the hell happened at the party? What did Lady Emily say to you?"
"......."
"Lady......."
Trin was thinking of Emily, she could still do that. Even when she left the mansion, she screamed and left, so she must have been in a terrible mood there. Moreover, the decorated Aubrey sparkled like a star.
If Emily was honest about her feelings and had to say what she wanted to say, she might have been unable to hold back and grabbed Aubrey by the hair. If she had been caught by her hair in a ballroom full of ladies and gentlemen, it was understandable that Aubrey would be so out of it.
"You haven't even had breakfast, and if you don't eat this, you're going to collapse. Why don't we just finish this soup and go out into the garden? Yes?"
Aubrey asked softly as she stared at Trin, who looked almost mournful. Trin had been her eyes all this time. She was the one who knew so much about a world she didn't.
"Do you know anything about the Duke of Karnus?"
"The Duke of Karnus?"
"No. He......."
"Oh, the Count of Lavonne?"
Then Trin held out her spoon with a meaningful grin on her face.
"Take a bite and I'll tell you."
Aubrey immediately opened her mouth. She gulped down the hot soup she didn't want to eat, and then quickly removed her lips.
"Do you know anything about Count Lavonne?"
"But what about the Count?"
"Well, just."
Trin tilted her head, puzzled.
"You don't have the Count in mind, do you?"
"No."
"Don’t you? Because I want the lady to meet a handsome gentleman, but not as handsome as he is. I mean, I've heard he's handsome enough to make you swoon, but still......."
"So why?"
Trin shook her head at the question, then scooped up the soup. Unsure of the meaning, Aubrey snatched the spoon from her hand and gulped down the bowl in one go. Trin smiled with satisfaction.
"Rumor has it that he is the illegitimate son of the Duke of Karnus."
For a moment, she remembered the boy staring numbly into the cool night sea. Aubrey squeezed her eyes shut tightly to erase the image.
"Well, I can't say for sure but that's what I've heard, and besides, he attracts women with his handsomeness, so that’s a complicated matter….By the way, young lady, is Count Lavonne really that handsome? Did you see him at this party and that's why you're asking me?"
Aubrey shook her head vigorously. Trin breathed a sigh of relief and cleaned up her empty bowl. Still, she gave her one last look to make sure she was uneasy.
"You really can't have that Count, lady, I think you and Lady Emily have him in mind."
She thought of Emily, who had gone to see him, looking so happy, only to be turned away and saddened.
"Didn’t you say he was the Duke's illegitimate son, then why......."
"I don't know, maybe it's just a rumor, or maybe Lady Emily has fallen head over heels for his handsome face. One thing's for sure, nothing good can come of being associated with him."
Trin traced the horns on her head with her fingers as if she knew Emily's personality.
"Not him. Do you understand?"
Trin shook her head. Aubrey nodded. She nodded again and again. She didn't want to get involved with Khaled Karnus, and neither did he.
* * *
Barbara came to see her not long after Trin had left, at noon, when the rising sun shone more intensely than ever.
"How was the party, Aubrey?"
She asked, her eyes wide with anticipation, wondering if her niece had met a decent gentleman there.
"It was fun, though a little tiring."
Aubrey spat out the words that would satisfy her expectations as much as possible.
"It's a shame, because if you had more time, you could have learned to dance. But you said Patrick Paddingham asked you to dance, and I was surprised when I heard about it."
Barbara went on a tirade about how gentlemanly Duke Paddingham was. As vividly as if she had been in the room. Aubrey nodded vaguely.
"Of course, it's a shame you're not used to dancing and made a mistake, but it's nothing to worry about."
Barbara said in a cheerful voice, brushing a strand of her long hair out of Aubrey's face.
"Nicholas has been talking about you a lot, saying that you're very sociable and a good conversationalist."
Aubrey's slumped shoulders relaxed a little at the memory of his smiling face. Aubrey's first impression of Nicholas hadn't been a bad one: a playful, boyish, innocent young man.
"Maybe there will be more places inviting you soon."
"......."
"Actually, I was having a hard time figuring out what to do after I assured you that I would find you a good match....... That's a good thing."
Soon there would be many gatherings calling for her, and Aubrey was not pleased. She'd had a terrible experience at the party of her dreams, and she didn't want to enter that world again.
She felt punished for coveting something she shouldn't have. All she wanted was to stay quiet, dead as a doornail, but her wishes were beautifully dashed.
"Oh, by the way. I'm going to the Duke of Karnus' manor later, why don't you come with me?"
Aubrey nodded absentmindedly, and then she questioned her ears.
"I have tea with the Duchess, if you'd like to join us."
And with that, Barbara stroked Aubrey's hand with her delicate fingers. It was a warmth she could never resist.
"It would be good for you to open up. These connections will no doubt serve you well in the future. Besides, the Duchess has already given you permission."
She knew what Barbara's wish was. It was Aubrey's wish, too, that she would find a good match and live a happy life. But it wouldn't be the Karnuses.
"I'm just a little sick to my stomach......."
She tried to make an excuse and get out of it, but Barbara's expression darkened a little. As if an invitation like this could not be turned down. Moreover, there was a strange sense of urgency that if the Duchess had given Aubrey permission to accompany her, she should oblige. Eventually, after some gentle but persistent persuasion, Aubrey followed her.
"I don't know who is mother and daughter anymore."
Emily's irritated words slipped past her lips. In the rattling carriage, Aubrey prayed that she would not see the man, that she would return safely.
After a long ride, the carriage passed through the main gate and a large lake appeared, a fountain in the center of which shot a cool stream of water into the cloudless blue sky. Behind them stood a huge mansion with a row of small spires on the roof.
* * *
All the boys talked about was other people's houses and women. Khaled pressed his brow, which still stung, hard. It wasn't all bad talk in the club.
There was one name in particular that caught his attention amidst the bustle of conversation.
"I heard she’s the opposite of what the rumors say. Aubrey Sandalwood.
'That Aubrey Sandalwood', which had become a noun. The runaway slave had become quite the lady, and was the talk of the town.
It was her appearance that made her the talk of the town, as she stood bewildered by the clothes she had never worn, the dances she had never danced, and the people she had never seen before.
A look that had turned expectations on their head, rumored to be so bad that the Count of Ravant kept it to himself. There were more than a few men who stiffened at the sight of her, and Khaled smirked as he remembered her appearance at the party last night. But the short laugh was short-lived, wiped from his face.
'It's going to ...... happen.’
The image of the woman's distraught face, as if she had seen a ghost, made him feel sick to his stomach. Meanwhile, the carriage came to a halt. Hardy, the butler, who had been waiting for Khaled to enter the mansion, approached quickly and spoke politely and urgently.
"His lordship is expecting you."
Khaled shrugged off the comment and strode across the lobby to the center staircase, his back to Hardy, who narrowed his eyes at the sight of him.
"In the parlor are the Countess and lady of Ravant, and...... that young lady as well."
Khaled, who was ascending the stairs with a cool, unruffled air, stopped short. As he came to an abrupt halt, Hardy, who had expected to be the only one who had heard, hastened to polish his expression.
"Who's coming?"
The question came out a beat too slow.
"The Countess of Ravant and......."
As he spoke once more, Hardy suspected his eyes, for the young Master, who should have been heading for his chambers or study, had suddenly made his way to the parlor.
***
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