Chapter 29
****
"Gee, why is it raining so suddenly...."
Edwin glanced up at the butler's words. Outside the window, lightning flashed, rumbled, and thundered.
"Mr. Brugge has taken his workers to the mill, and I don't know if they've packed their umbrellas."
He said worriedly and closed the window.
Edwin turned his attention back to the letter. It was from his sister, Liana.
[I think it was too much for him to go out in his wheelchair the other day, and he was stiff and rigid all night, and he didn't even eat.]
The sudden deterioration in his father's health was enough to make Edwin's heart sink.
[Don't worry too much. His paralysis has eased a little since yesterday, and he's swallowing stew just fine this morning. Mother told me never to tell brother, so how could I?]
Edwin put the letter down for a moment and squared his heavy shoulders.
[Anyway, I think I'm going to have to stay here for a while longer, and again, it's not because of father].
Liana's neat handwriting somehow suggested that she didn't want to worry her brother.
[My literature professor invited me to 'Literature Night in Cudin'. Can you believe it? 'Alberto Cudín'. The same Cudin who wrote The Apricot Tree Over the Fence. ]
For months now, Liana had been taking tutoring classes from renowned professors. They were the kind of people who were hard to find, let alone pay the exorbitant tuition.
In the past, the mere mention of the Hastings name had been enough to make them willing to lower the bar.
But now it was different.
If Liana hadn't had Macmilan behind her, she would never have been invited to Cudin's Literary Evening.
[There's a lot of people coming. Famous writers and critics, as well as the hottest musicians in Peron these days.]
He could almost hear his sister’s excited voice right next to him. Of course, Edwin couldn't help but laugh.
All the expenses would eventually come out of Theodore's pocket.
And Liana was completely unaware of it...
[The problem is, the event isn't until next week. The Duchess has said we can attend, but what about Theodore? I'm sure he won't like it.]
Edwin rolled his eyes. After yesterday, the mere mention of his name made something inside him feel like it would explode.
[I know how much he hates the Shore].
Well.
Edwin smiled bitterly.
Theodore seemed to be enjoying his time on the Shore immensely.
Finding a new prey, another 'Vincent', and provoking his friend...
[I'm supposed to ask if he can wait any longer, but I'm afraid I can't, and I've given up on writing to Theodore and am just going to ask you].
Liana, how far should I confide in you?
That I think your fiancé is using the girl who will be your personal maid to provoke me?
That I couldn't wait to get that girl away from Theodore's hands, even though she was transformed into a completely different person?
[In that sense, I think you should just reveal the surprise I have in store for him. I'd love to give it to him myself, but I can't keep him waiting, and I'm sorry].
Edwin thought of the stallion from Erncia who was in the stable right now.
It had come full circle, and he too had come from the pockets of the MacMilans.
How shocked would Liana be when she found out?
Edwin felt the urge to tell her everything now.
[Please tell Theodore my true feelings, and that I hope to see him in a week's time...]
Though the letter was written in a casual tone, Edwin could imagine what must have been going through Liana's mind.
She must be thrilled to be invited to the famous salon. She couldn’t wait to show off to her friends.
But she must also be genuinely anxious to get to Belvida.
Ever since the engagement was finalized, his sister had been completely enamored with her fiancé, or rather, the name Macmilan itself.
[PS. The enclosed gift is for Dana, my maid in training, and I hope she will be as pretty as a refined and elegant doll, so please tell her to work hard and learn. I'm very excited and miss her].
Dana.
Edwin was overcome by an unknown feeling.
Whether it was a crush on the opposite sex, or just childish rivalry with Theodore, he wasn't sure yet.
He hadn't gotten to know the girl well enough to determine the nature of his turbulent feelings...
But one thing was certain.
Edwin hoped she wouldn’t get tainted by Theodore. He wanted her to keep looking up at him with those soft, cute eyes.
Edwin picked up the small, beautifully wrapped gift box.
Liana had given him another excuse to see Dana.
Of course, he hadn't intended to take it himself.
What little pride he had left, he didn't want to be seen in front of Dana getting his ass kicked by Teddy over and over again. He didn't want to keep showing up and provoking his twisted judgment...
...What could he do?
As he stared into space, something touched his ankle gently.
It was Willow, the fluffy dog.
He scooped her up in a quick hug. A wave of warmth rose from deep within his chest. It was the same erotic warmth he felt every time he saw the girl.
"Yes."
Edwin pulled the squirming pup to his chest and stroked it gently.
"I think I should give her this gift first."
Muttering, Edwin called to a servant who was just leaving the room.
"Will you fetch the maid, and the trainer of Nicaea."
****
"Tell me, what’s so good about him?”
There was no way to say no now, no way to say yes.
Dana flushed bright red and stiffened like a taxidermy on the wall.
"His face or personality?"
Theodore asked nonchalantly, as if choosing a color, and walked past Dana to the display case.
When he returned, he held a whiskey bottle and a glass in his hand.
"Go ahead, tell me. About that great charm that makes a stalwart maid like you lie."
He poured the drink, the dark, intense oaky flavor beginning to reawaken the anxiety that had been buried deep in Dana's chest.
Now the whiskey alone reminded her of Nicola. That poor man, forced to gulp down a strong drink he didn't like in front of his devil-may-care patron...
Was he trying to make her do the same, to torment her physically as well as mentally?
...Luckily, that didn't happen.
The faintly slurping amber liquid went to Theodore's mouth, not Dana's.
His face was glowing from a full day of tormenting. His lips, too, were slick with lazy boredom.
Theodore draped his arms over the backrest, a large cup dangling from his fingertips.
"Why can't you answer that? You were talking a good game up in the tree that day."
Dana felt heat rising from her chin. It was the first time Theodore had ever mentioned it directly.
"Did he say he was happy to be so close to you, or did he say he was ecstatic?"
The unemotional tone made Dana's face flush relentlessly.
"I thought you were the stuff of fiction, until I saw your clever tricks in the valley."
Dana's head snapped up. Blue-gray pupils widened in confusion.
"...That's... What do you mean...."
A mocking grin crossed Theodore's face.
"You've been waiting for him to come to your rescue, you know you can swim."
Dana felt lightheaded.
I know how to swim?
Her mind cleared, as if she had completed the last piece of a puzzle.
The inexplicable events at the pond flashed through her mind like a flashlight.
So that's why he'd deliberately dropped the tie and asked her to retrieve it?
"No."
Dana shook her head.
"...I never tricked Master Edwin... that way... that way."
Theodore shrugged and took a sip of his drink.
Dana's mouth began to move of its own accord, bypassing her head, as it always did when she was flustered.
"...Of course... It's not like I can't swim at all... But on that particular day... the water was so deep... and my clothes kept getting wrapped around my legs... I couldn't get out on my own... I had to struggle... ...."
As Dana rambled on, she was overcome with a terrible sense of self-pity.
Why was she making such lame excuses for the man with his crooked, twisted eyes...?
But she couldn't stop herself from talking.
"You've never... fallen... in... that waterfall... and even if you know how to swim... it's not an easy place to get out of...."
Dana tried to sound as logical as possible.
"...And Master Edwin... he's not that foolish... he's not the kind of man who'd fall for such a flimsy trick... Nor would he harbor such... strange thoughts... against a maid like me...."
Theodore suddenly laughed out loud.
"Why are you making excuses, like a guilty person?”
Dana's mouth dropped open in disbelief.
"Again, I'm not repulsed by cleverness, not like a tight-lipped hypocrite like Edwin Hastings."
The gaping mouth closed in an instant. A slow-building rage clamped itself tightly in her throat.
He'd already labeled her as a 'manipulative, dainty maid.’
She didn't care if she was wrong, but Master Edwin was different.
Dana couldn't stand to hear the despicable man insult her master.
"Use your head like you did then. And if you ever want to get in a fight, pick your battles carefully."
The man rattling his glass was breathtakingly condescending.
It made her feel uncomfortable to say the least.
How...
How could he laugh at, mock, and trample on a person's mind so casually?
To Dana, Master Edwin was like a hidden gem. A happy secret she kept close to her heart and kept to herself...
She had done nothing wrong, and neither had he...
Theodore was the one who eavesdropped, twisted things, and thought dirty thoughts to himself.
"I swear to God...."
Dana continued, a mixture of anger, devastation, and bitterness.
"I have never...ever...played any strange tricks...against Master Edwin."
Her voice quivered slightly as she spoke.
"In my mind, he's just... a shining star... It's joyful to look at... So precious... I don't even dare to think about wanting anything else...."
Theodore poured himself a drink into his empty glass and slowly raised his head. His green eyes glowed in the fireplace light.
He stared at the shaking body, then set the bottle down with a clatter. Then the tip of his mouth curled up into a sneer. It was a sardonic laugh.
"So sweet, so tearful."
For a moment, Dana felt something snap in her chest.
"Why are you denying it? Just tell me the truth, you wanted to see what you could do with a rich, handsome nobleman."
Theodore seemed to think that everyone in the world had the same frivolous, selfish desires as he did.
"No... believe it or not...... there are people in the world like me... with no greed, no ambition."
Dana sounded sincere in her appeal. But he merely twitched the corner of his mouth up as he brought his glass to his mouth.
Dana swallowed down her rising emotions and gave him another serious look.
"My feelings for Master Edwin... I mean it... I'll say it again... I don't want to be... presumptuous or... I've never been greedy. My goal in life is just to live a normal, happy life. In Belvida... I work hard and save money... and get married... like any other girl, have kids... and live like that...."
"Marry?"
He frowned.
"To who? To the stars in the sky?"
For a moment, Dana couldn't hold it in.
She was tired of being misunderstood, tired of giving lame explanations, tired of having her heart stomped on, tired of it all.
"No, I have someone to marry."
The smirk on the man's face vanished in an instant.
He didn't even blink for a few seconds, apparently surprised that the toy he'd been playing with had a lover.
Of course, that reaction was fleeting.
A chill slowly crept into her dull pupils, which was quickly replaced by the contempt with which she looked down on the insignificant.
"Who is he, a mere mop like you?"
It wasn't even worth answering. Dana simply clamped her mouth shut.
The rain that had been falling steadily earlier became a torrential downpour.
Lightning flashed in front of her eyes like dozens of firecrackers. Rumbling, sky-ripping thunder followed.
Theodore stared down at Dana, his face even more impassive.
"Tell me. Tell me who he is."
Coldly, he took a sip of his drink. He frowned briefly at the taste, then downed the rest of the drink in one gulp.
Outside the window, another bolt of lightning struck. At the same time, suddenly a dog barked outside the door. Then there was a bang, followed by a pounding on the door.
"Master!"
Dana's head snapped to the door, stunned.
"Master!"
Someone else called out.
"It's me, I'm coming in!"
With an urgent shout, the door swung open.
A gust of cold wind rushed in, drowning out the soft sound of the rain.
Two hounds, soaked to the skin, came into view, followed by a man in a raincoat, dripping wet.
It was Tilly Bryson, who had rushed in, worried about his master.
***
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