Chapter 5
****
1. The Will of Count Lutgard
On the day of the funeral, it was raining in torrents.
It would be a shame if the water accumulated in the grave, which had been dug in advance. As Theodore Lutgard listened to the solemn prayer recited by the priest, he suddenly looked up.
Small whispers floated around like dust and reached his ears.
"I can't believe she's showing her face at the funeral."
"I wouldn't dare, for Theodore’s sake."
"It's a stain on the House of Lutgard."
"She's the foster daughter the late Count loved so much that he wouldn’t mind putting her in his eyes. It's only right she should be at the funeral."
"Oh, no. Considering that the Countess died because of her and her mother, I'm sure Theodore would tear her to pieces."
"And from Pavel's point of view, too; for no matter how cute the illegitimate child may have been, can you imagine his peace of mind when he is forever estranged from his only heir because of it?"
The accusations and mockery continued, but Olivia Ferrill's expression, obscured by her black veil as she stood stoically in one corner of the chapel, was unreadable.
Perhaps she was grieving, unlike himself.
Theodore thought so. His father had loved her, and she had loved him. The dead Count was more like Olivia's father than his own.
"Maybe he's rejoicing."
And the mourners knew it.
"Theodore has been estranged from his father for a long time. He hasn't been home in nearly a decade, and I'm told they never even exchanged letters."
“He didn't even honor his dying wish, did he?"
"It is too much to say so; it is Theodore who is most to be grieved that he has been delayed and has not kept his deathbed."
"Poor Count!"
"To be honest, he deserves it; he's been so infatuated with his mistress and his illegitimate child that he drove his wife to death, and no wonder his son hates him."
Most of the people who spoke were relatives or people who had traveled from far away to pay their respects. The vassals who had served the Count so closely for so long made uncomfortable faces but said nothing.
It was no secret in Lutgard that the late Count Pavel had fallen in love with a woman named Peril and neglected his wife. When theCountess learned of Peril and Olivia's presence during her second pregnancy, she was so shocked that she collapsed and miscarried. Unfortunately, she was in love with Pavel, even though the marriage was purely arranged.
She died shortly afterward. Everyone said that the Count had murdered his wife.
Pavel had been a virtuous lord, but he had lost all honor for what happened.
The loss of honor also led to real losses. The Countess's relatives, including Count Knox, cut off all ties with Count Lutgard, and Pavel lost his position at court. This discredited the House of Lutgard itself.
His relatives demanded that he disown Peril and apologize to Count Knox. Pavel apologized to Count Knox, but he neither disowned Peril nor remarried.
"Do you think that a vow to a lady is so easily broken? Lady Peril will always have my loyalty and protection."
Everyone laughed at Pavel's talk of loyalty to the Lady, for it was clear that it was because of Peril that he would remarry, but Pavel refused to do so.
It wasn't even clear that Peril was a lady in the first place. No one knew who her parents were or what family she came from, and although her appearance and education suggested an aristocratic upbringing, a truly educated woman would never serve as a mistress.
When Peril died, the kinsmen of Lutgard were relieved. It was thought that Pavel would now come to his senses and remarry a noblewoman of true dignity and class.
But Pavel never remarried, and after his only son, Theodore, left home, he relied solely on Peril's daughter Olivia for support.
Eventually, even his funeral, which was supposed to be reverent, was filled with gossip.
Theodore shrugged them off.
What people said was both true and false. He despised his father, hated him, and was not particularly sad about it now.
But it was not what they thought. There was a time when he was a passionate boy and resented his father, but now that he had cooled down, he didn’t have many negative feelings. He was just a human being, with some big flaws and some big strengths.
Sometimes, when he thought about it, Theodore realized that even hate was just another form of affection.
"Theo."
His cousin Andrei Knox, standing beside him, called out to him in a low voice. Theodore shook his head slightly to indicate that he was fine.
He had returned to fulfill the responsibilities of being the firstborn of Lutgard, and he would continue to do so. There was no reason for any other feelings to interfere with that.
"Lighten the way of the departed."
The priest's prayer ended. The organ began to play a funeral dirge.
Theodore was the first to step forward and place the flowers in his father's coffin, as per protocol. He then stood to one side to watch the tributes and thank the mourners.
The tributes began with close relatives and continued in order of closeness. But until a mourner who had never met the Count in person laid a tribute, Olivia stood still in the corner.
Only when no one else was left did Theodore glance over at her. Maybe she was too sad to move, he thought.
"Shall we end now?"
The priest asked him in a low voice. Theodore did not nod, but waited a moment.
Finally, Olivia moved. It was the last of the last.
In the coffin, Pavel Lutgard was already buried in a mass of flowers. Olivia gently set the white flower she was holding down in the corner. As if it were a sin for her flowers to be in Pavel's coffin.
Theodore watched the scene in silence. The face behind the veil was still unreadable, but her calm body language suggested she was not crying.
He nodded to the priest, indicating that it was time to end. The priest signaled for the coffin to be closed, and two deacons carefully closed the lid.
A few more people couldn't stand it and collapsed in a feverish heap. Theodore glanced at Olivia again, but she remained standing stiffly.
The priest rang the bell and began to walk out, leading the way. The coffin followed, followed by the choir and a deacon with a censer.
Theodore's seat was directly behind the censer. His uncle Denis followed, supporting his sobbing aunt Daria. The procession to the cemetery formed a long line in the order of those who had paid their respects.
Would Olivia follow at the back this time? Or would she head back first, away from the public eye?
For a moment, Theodore wondered, but then he realized that it didn't really matter; Pavel had made plans for her.
Her future, her grief.
***
It was that evening that the heirs of Count Lutgard gathered in the study.
It was an unofficial affair. The funeral had been held today, so it was only right that they should spend the rest of the day in mourning, at least for tonight, and only begin discussing the inheritance in a few days, perhaps tomorrow evening, even if it was urgent.
But Lutgard’s relatives didn't want to wait.
"What's the point of stalling if you're going to do it anyway?"
Pavel's younger brother Denis's self-justifying mutterings echoed in the silent study: He was in debt from extravagance and failed investments that he could never pay off.
No one answered. The study was quiet, but there was an odd calm before the storm. It felt like a big fight was about to break out.
‘It's not strange.’
The Marquis of Ascensio, the executor of the will, narrowed his eyes and looked around the room . Pavel's sins were deep.
***
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roxcell (Saturday, 02 November 2024 02:32)
Thank you for your hard work.