Chapter 24
****
The next day, when Dana opened the door to the study, Theodore had already arrived, reading a book.
His face was a far cry from yesterday, when he'd looked lethargic and sluggish.
His dark chocolate hair was neatly swept back in a pomade, and his top was no longer a solid color, but a gingham checked jacket. At his collar was a narrow, slender pointed hand tie, not a rich cravat in the form of a scarf, which made his already chilly appearance even colder.
Dana wanted to somehow avoid his notice, but before she could take a step, he tore his eyes from his book and turned to face her squarely.
"Ah, hello. Master...."
Dana barely managed a greeting before she scooted away and sat down on the couch.
As she set down the pen, ink, and paper she was clutching to her chest, she wondered if Celeste had explained the fountain pen well enough.
Surely she hadn't forgotten to mention it?
Dana raised her eyes and looked at him. Fortunately, he didn't seem too interested in the pen. In fact, he wasn't even looking in her direction.
Dana flipped open the book and pressed down firmly on the center. Then she started writing word-for-word, just as she had yesterday.
Theodore didn't say a word, his eyes fixed on his book.
The sound of the scribbling continued for a long time in the silent room.
Concentrating, but not working.
Dana was both relieved and disturbed that the man across from her was so quiet.
Don't forget.
If it doesn't work, you can run.
That's it.
Dana tightened her grip on the pen, remembering her vow from last night. In her mind, she thought of Master Edwin.
The way his arms had stretched out to her when she'd fallen into the water, the warmth in his eyes, and...
"Let's go outside for a moment. I only meant to say hello, but my thoughts were short.”
"I'm sorry I put you through all this trouble.”
She tried to calm her anxiety by replaying his kind words.
The sun, which had been dipping in and out of the window, had now penetrated deeply into the sofa table. It was intense enough to sting her eyes.
Dana checked the time.
Suddenly there was a knock on the door and Celeste appeared.
"Good morning, Master."
She greeted cheerfully and gave Dana a glance.
"We have a visitor from Belvida."
Dana flinched, and Theodore closed his book. Celeste's cheerful voice boomed over their heads.
"Master Edwin would like you to come to the Shore this afternoon."
Dana's head snapped up involuntarily. But her intense, eager gaze could not reach its target, Celeste, and she immediately bowed. Theodore’s frighteningly calm green eyes quickly stole her attention.
He stood with his arms crossed, staring at Dana with a blank stare.
His eyes were as calm and leisurely as a lazy spring afternoon, and it was enough to send her into an eerie mood.
Cowering like a turtle, she lowered her head again.
Don't be anxious. Maybe the heavens are trying to help.
Here he comes. Master Edwin...
Her heart pounded in her chest. Her face began to flush, the blood rushing from head to toe.
"What should we do?"
"...."
Strangely, Theodore took a long time to answer. It shouldn't be, but Dana felt as if he could see right through her.
Dana took a deep breath, steeling herself to keep her 'rational resolve' from crumbling under the weight of the previous night.
"Tell him he's welcome, with pleasure."
Yay!
The answer she'd been hoping for. Dana stifled a sigh of relief that threatened to burst out.
Celeste smiled and looked back at Dana.
"I heard the head maid is coming, too. Say hello later."
And with that the door closed behind her, and the scent of lavender lingered in the air.
Theodore suddenly rose to his feet and walked slowly over to stand before Dana.
The shadow over her head was enough to make Dana's breath catch in her throat.
"You've heard of the Rodenschild Bank, haven't you?"
Theodore asked suddenly.
Whenever he said something out of the blue like that, something always happened, and Dana couldn't help but feel nervous.
"The founder, Bill Rodenschild, was a loan shark, a sleazy, sleazy man who only cared about money, until he met my grandfather."
Dana clasped her trembling hands together.
"Now Baron Rodenschild pretends to be a respectable businessman, on my family's dime."
She'd heard the MacMilan family's strutting authority before. The question was, why now, out of the blue?
As Dana stared into space, he thrust something out at her.
It was a piece of paper with a wax seal.
"Read it."
She could recognize the famous symbol: an eagle with outstretched wings.
It was unmistakably from the Bank of Rodenschild.
"I'm sure you can find a few familiar names."
Dana took the paper in a daze.
It was scrawled with words she could barely read. As she read through her blurry eyes, she saw a name that was all too familiar.
Edwin Laner Hastings
There was Master Edwin's full name.
Below it were other names that seemed to belong to the Hastings family, each with a signature next to them.
Further down, Dana finally found ‘Macmilan’.
Archibald Theodore Macmilan
So he just used his middle name as a first name.
She pondered, her eyes traveling further down. The last one bore the bank's seal.
"It's called a guarantee."
Dana's head snapped up.
"Do you know what that is?"
She knew that much. But she couldn't say anything. An uneasy feeling of foreboding suddenly hit her.
"Exactly one year ago, everything in the Hastings family was funded by Rodenschild. Uh, including your beloved Belvida."
Dana felt her eyes glaze over.
"I stood behind the guarantee."
Her heart was racing and falling off a cliff.
"Don't you understand what this means?"
The grave tone, devoid of any emotion, sounded eerily.
"It means that I am your master, after all, not him."
...Her.. Master...?
Dana repeated in a stunned, almost numb state.
"So take it back."
Theodore slammed something down the table. It was the pen she'd entrusted to Celeste. More shocking words followed.
"Now get changed. The clothes I bought you."
Dana stared at the man across from her, frozen in place.
"We have guests to greet."
***
"It's a beautiful day, Master."
Rosi stuck her head out the carriage window.
"It was raining like it was going to shower earlier."
The sky was indeed clear and blue.
The breeze streaming in through the open window was cool, and the road was lined with endless rows of nameless flowers. The scenery outside the carriage was beautiful enough to make a dour middle-aged woman's eyes twinkle like a child's.
But Edwin's eyes saw nothing now; his consciousness was floating in a dense fog.
"I can't tell you how grateful I am to you, Master, for stepping up like this. I never thought you would come with me...."
He did. As soon as he heard about the teacup, he couldn't wait to get there. Like he had been waiting for an excuse.
"...I hope I'm mistaken. How wonderful it would be if Master Theodore really did make a mistake. It would be a shame to have troubled master like this.”
"...."
"In fact, even now, I can't shake the feeling of regret and remorse. I'm sure that when the butler of the main house finds out, he'll scold me severely. He’ll be angry that I dared to take advantage of the young master’s sense of responsibility.”
...Responsibility.
The maid was right, it had been weighing on Edwin's heart for over a year.
Exactly seventeen months ago, he was handed the helm of a slowly sinking ship. And no matter how hard he tried, things only got worse. His father, who had collapsed in shock, was still unable to get up, and everything in the Hastings family was crumbling like a sandcastle.
But Edwin wasn't going to give up so easily.
The Hastings name had been around for centuries. Hundreds of people had lived on the name alone. As the heir to the family name, he couldn't turn his back on them. He must somehow pick them up and lead them again.
So 'the child' (Dana) was no exception. The child, small and frail as a puppy, was also a member of the Hastings family.
Edwin stared out the window with a determined face. Rosi studied him for a long moment, then spoke cautiously.
"...Are you all right, Master?"
Since when?
The faces of the servants towards their masters had always been so full of worry and concern. Wasn't this exactly how the Prince of Ruins felt...
"If you're uncomfortable, I'll leave you alone now...."
"No, it's okay."
Edwin swallowed a bitter self-pity and smiled lightly.
"Teddy's my friend, and we're barely close enough to be uncomfortable over something like this."
But there had always been an invisible wall between him and the man he'd called 'friend' for ten years, especially since the last time they'd met.
"Your excuse for wanting to protect her from Marcus.”
Edwin couldn't believe that those words had been the reason he'd been hesitating and agonizing over the issue of 'the child' all this time.
"But I... Seeing you two together makes me nervous. I'm not the only one, I'm sure everyone who knows you both feels the same way."
Maid Rosi wrinkled her nose in amusement.
"I think it's become more so since you've been captaining your respective teams in the polo matches, and I've noticed the same thing with Master Theodore, who seems to be more conscious and wary of you lately."
Was it just Teddy?
Edwin turned his attention back to the window. As he watched the clouds float lazily by, he put on a face fit for the heir. Meek, calm, and respectable, the gentle Master Hastings.
"Yes, he’s very unpredictable, sometimes fiercely rational, other times like an immature child, and I'm not sure I can trust Liana with him.”
"But the madam likes him, doesn’t she? She has such an accurate eye for people."
Yes. Edwin said to himself.
His mother approved of Theodore. No, she didn't just approve, she desperately wanted to.
"The boy is Macmilan, Edwin.”
When he expressed his doubts about Theodore, his mother replied: 'Macmilan is cruel, unreasonable, and selfish, but once he thinks it’s his, he's quite different, especially when it comes to his family.'
The Macmilans' strict territoriality was well known in social circles. Some people likened it to that of a predator.
"Look at Anton. He's well into his forties and still only knows his wife. He doesn't have a common mistress. Teddy's just like his father, and there's a reason he's number one on the list of matchmakers, despite what you say about him being a character flaw among men."
Edwin was willing to give her a pass on that one. As a "fiancé," as his mother called him, Theodore was perfect.
Not once since his engagement to Liana, or even before, had he ever gotten into trouble or gossiped about because of a woman.
He was no stranger to being called a character flaw, but he'd never done anything so egregious as to be fatal to his relationships or reputation. His longtime friendship was close, but it never crossed that last line.
So why was he becoming more and more annoying?
The carriage sped through the arched gates. With a thud, the carriage slid to a stop. Rosi put on her shawl and prepared to disembark, and the coachman opened the door for her.
"Welcome, Master!"
Celeste's cheerful voice rang out, almost too loud for the ground. Edwin smiled softly at the fluttering hem of her dress.
"You've come a long way, master; I hope you're not in any discomfort?"
"Not at all. It was very nice."
"I'm glad to hear it."
Celeste pushed past him and walked over to Rosi.
"How have you been, Maid?"
"Yes, thanks to your concern. How have you been, Celeste?"
"Yes, better than ever."
The greetings exchanged, Celeste realized that the sun was beating down on her head. She quickly turned to Edwin.
"My Master is waiting in the parlor. Shall we go?"
Edwin nodded, and Maid Rosi quietly drew herself back.
"Then I will wait in the hall, and if anything happens, call for me immediately."
Maid Rosi disappeared and the two made their way into the cottage.
As soon as they entered the center hall, Celeste suddenly slowed her pace and glanced back. Her eyes were twinkling like a child about to open a surprise.
"Do you know who's next to him right now?"
The girl.
Edwin felt a strange warming in his chest as he thought to himself.
"Dana is there. Lady Liana's maid."
"..."
"I had her entertain guests the other day, and she did a much better job than I expected."
Belle Celeste had a tendency to make a big deal out of small things. She's also good at pretending to be fierce on purpose to relieve tension or lighten the mood. Amongst a group of nobles who like to show off, there could not be a better maid.
"She's fun to teach, if you will. I was only going to teach her how to serve tea, but I think I'll just have to educate her properly."
"I'm glad."
Edwin replied sincerely.
"My mother and I were both worried, and I'm grateful."
"Don't say that. I'm more grateful that you trusted me with her."
Celeste threw up her hands.
"I'm trying to teach her table manners, and she's learning to read and write."
She paused in mid-sentence, then chuckled.
***
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Write a comment
krung12 (Friday, 04 October 2024 13:42)
yaaay! thanks for updating the chapters. ❤️