Night of Eden 82

 Chapter 82

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It took calm and a little lying to disappear like smoke.

Dana first asked Tobias to drop her off at the general store, not in the square, where the taverns he frequented were lined up and where the stagecoach to the port passed.

Yawning the entire ride, he was delighted with the suggestion. When he asked if she was sure she could walk to the square, it was easy to push him into the tavern.

Once she was sure he was inside the tavern, she and Dorothy retrieved their luggage from the carriage. Soon enough, the stagecoach arrived and they headed straight for the harbor.

Inside the rattling, cramped carriage, Dana stared out the window. She didn't say a word, except to comment on the weather and Dodge for fear of making Dorothy uncomfortable.

Fortunately, Dorothy was just as nervous and didn't say much to her. They rode in silence, hugging their respective luggage.

They finally arrived at the port of Balderport.

The ride into the rising sun had helped Dana recover from her swampy mood.

When she paid the carriage fare and stepped down from the platform, and Dorothy turned to face her, Dana could hardly contain her emotions.

She had never expected to see such a sight.

Huge cranes carrying heavy loads, tons of laborers, sailors and passengers just returning from their voyage, workers at the docks...

But most of all, they were mesmerized by the sheer size of the ship, so large that even with their heads tilted back, they couldn't take it all in.

Everything was big, many, and noisy.

The salty smell of the sea was completely overpowered by the smoke and oil from all the machinery and boats. Dana  hugged her bag tightly to her chest.

Dorothy's legs shook, too. But she never showed it. Not because she was yelling at Dana to trust her.

She was still reeling from what she'd seen in the outbuilding last night.

Theodore MacMilan, Lady Liana's fiancé.

He was the one who had sent Dana fleeing in such desperation...!

Dorothy closed her eyes as if to shake it off. But the shock didn't lessen, it only grew stronger.

Dana must have been fooled. If you were to ask her who was more likely to undress willingly in front of a nobleman or a maid who was forced to, the latter would be far more likely.

And not just any man, but her master's fiancé.

When did that start? All the way from the Shore to now?

Dorothy remembered that Dana had been strangely uncomfortable about being a handmaiden.

Yes, that was why...

Her hands fidgeted with the puzzle. The fire naturally flared into anger at the nobleman.

If only she could punch him in the face!

I will pray to the gods day and night. One day, let that man get what he deserves!

Dorothy's stomach churned as she tried to cut through the rising tide.

Of course, she didn't want to humiliate Dana by revealing that she knew the truth. Dana wouldn't want anyone to know. Dorothy was going to keep her mouth shut until then, just in case she was the first to tell.

Dorothy didn't want to lose that great feeling of someone trusting her and confiding in her. She didn't want to disappoint her friend, who had given her that opportunity.

What if the man followed her?

Dorothy had heard similar stories before. Men were often more fired up in such cases. Especially if they were married or had someone to marry.

The thought that Theodore Macmilan might be one of them gave her chills. She glanced behind her worriedly, then tightened her brow.

If anything happens, I'll protect you, I just need your help.

Dorothy was willing to fight, even if it was the devil, not Theodore Macmilan.

Dana squeezed Dorothy's hand as if the sentiment had been conveyed.

"I'm so glad you're here, because I don't know how I'd survive if I were alone."

Dana smiled sweetly, and Dorothy pulled herself together.

"There, there should be a ticket office."

Dorothy pointed to the terminal in the center of the square.

"Let's... Should we buy tickets first?"

"Yeah, yeah, wait."

Dana nodded and pulled a stack of papers from her bag.

Mr. Patterson, the owner of the employment agency, handed her a slip of paper with instructions on how to find a boat to Dodge and how to board.

Dana ran her fingers slowly over the notes. Fortunately, she hadn't gotten anything wrong. With Dorothy at her side, they made it to the ticket counter in one piece.

There were several routes to Dodge. But Dana chose the fastest ship, even though it meant two transfers.

Dorothy didn't say anything, because she knew why.

So when they finally had their tickets in hand, they felt their hearts pounding.

"Now... what... to do?"

"We need to get an inn, we're leaving tomorrow."

"Oh, right, an inn...."

They turned their heads this way and that in search of an inn. But it was hard to see through the crowd.

"Why don't we go up there and take a look, maybe sit down and rest a bit."

Dana pointed to the top of the square's staircase, where it was quieter and less crowded.

"Sure."

The two walked straight up the stairs, and from up high, they could finally see the direction of the street and the buildings.

"There, I think I see it!"

Dana pointed to two fluttering flags. She remembered a story she'd heard from Noah before.

He'd told her that famous inn always flew snake-shaped flags like that because of an old folklore that snakes warded off bad luck for their guests.

"Oh, I think that's true!"

Dorothy exclaimed.

A few steps down, a young man's eyes widened as he recognized the two women.

***

“I slept with her.”

“So I’m getting Dana out of here.”

“Here, too.”

A sudden surge of killing intent flashed in the blue eyes that had been sucked into the darkness.

Out of control, Edwin's fist snapped, headed for Theodore.

Theodore dodged the flying punch lightly, already anticipating it, and grabbed the deflected wrist and held on tight. The two pairs of arms interlocked, sparks flying in their eyes. The bones along the backs of their clasped hands were white.

"Master!"

It was the old butler who broke the tense confrontation, boldly thrusting himself between the two young men.

"Please calm down, please...."

Stan was sweating profusely and glared at Tilly. Tilly hurriedly helped him.

"Come out."

"Master...."

"Master...."

"Come out!"

A small struggle broke out. Pushing and shoving, someone's buttons was ripped off.

"I'll kill you."

Edwin glared at Theodore.

"You son of a bitch... I'll kill you... I'll kill you! How dare you...!"

A harsh cry, barely more than a growl, rumbled through the air. In the distance, people noticed, and one by one, heads turned in their direction. Tilly felt like his heart was rolling out of his chest.

"You touched Dana?!"

Edwin, who had hesitated, lunged again, his body well-built from polo and rowing. He succeeded in pushing the old butler out of the way, and then he uprooted Tilly.

Having cleared the obstacle, Edwin threw another wild punch. His stance, angle, and timing were perfect: he aimed directly at his opponent's face, not sideways as before. Theodore was probably going to be hit with an orthodox punch.

"Master!"

If it weren't for Stan rushing up behind him and grabbing him from behind.

"...!"

The outstretched fist didn't even reach Theodore's face before it was snapped back. Meanwhile, Tilly had formed another wall. This time, it was to protect his master, Theodore.

"Master... Please... Please...."

Stan was almost sobbing, and as if that were a sign, Edwin was rapidly losing strength.

"Aah... Theodore...!"

He stumbled backward, his hands flailing.

"How could you do this ... breaking up... How could you do this!"

Edwin’s blood-curdling scream made people flinch.

"I trusted you...! You'd do the right thing... I trusted you!"

Theodore stared at him, his eyes harsh and heartless.

"Ah, damn you!"

Edwin clutched his head with both hands. His eyes were open, and he looked in such pain that it was hard to see.

That was enough for Tilly, but his master was not satisfied.

"I'm warning you, don't even think about pulling any funny tricks."

Theodore seemed cold-blooded. No compassion, no guilt, no remorse, nothing at all....

"Tell your sister. If she touches Dana again, I will not let her off the hook."

He thought he heard a gunshot somewhere. Edwin dropped his arm, and Stan narrowed his eyes.

Tilly realized that things had gotten out of hand. There were more than a few people loitering in the distance, probably reporters as well.

Still, his master didn't seem to mind.

"Don't call her Dana again."

That's all he said now?

"Ha!" Edwin was laughing now.

"One more."

Theodore looked down at Edwin's bowed head and continued.

"Breaking up is not a negotiation. Don't forget that all of this, including Belvida, was mine in the first place."

Edwin's breathing, once so ragged, slowly slowed. Sensing that his opponent had completely lost the energy to fight, Theodore's voice dropped even lower.

"I will fulfill my responsibility. I will lose quite a bit, but you will not. You'll have enough to live on."

Edwin sank to his knees. It wasn't the reward that bothered him. Anger and misery were ravaging him.

He just gasped for air a few times.

"Aaaaaah!"

Edwin slammed his fist into the ground, hard. Slam, slam, slam, slam, slam. A shadow of rage and despair hung thickly from the kneeling figure. It was a horrible, horrible sight.

Theodore stood before Stan, unperturbed.

"You know better than anyone the debts of the Hastings family."

Theodore's voice oozed with the air of one who had the upper hand.

"Dana must arrive safely at Kreutz with Tilly Bryson, and if you wish to keep your master's property intact and in good order, you will cooperate unconditionally, do you understand?"

The old butler paled and just stood there, mouth agape. It was the most terrifying and horrifying moment of the old butler's 54 years of life.

Theodore walked slowly past the butler, who sucked in his breath. Tilly fidgeted and followed him.

The people who had already assessed the situation were murmuring in shock, and not even the Marquis of Drayton dared to approach Theodore.

Theodore brushed past them and stood in the roundabout.

"Tilly."

He called out, suddenly calm.

"You don't intend to live out here in the country with hunting lodge forever, do you?"

Even as his head spun from the repeated shocks, Tilly realized that he was saying something important to him.

"What? Ah... that, that, that...."

"I was just marveling at how unexpectedly bright you are."

Theodore continued calmly, watching Tilly blink.

"Keep her safe until I get back."

In the distance, a carriage drew up.

"Don't let anyone get near her except me, do you hear me?"

"I..."

Tilly's mouth dropped open, but he quickly closed it.

"Oh, yes….yes."

"Three days should be enough time to break the engagement, just hold on until then."

The carriage pulled up.

Theodore reached for the handle of the carriage himself. Suddenly, a knife-like pain shot through his wrist. It was because he had tried too hard to stop Edwin. He swallowed a curse and bent down calmly.

Just before he sat down, he suddenly wondered why he was being so impatient, why he was doing this.

He hadn't meant to do this to Edwin.

But when he said her name, he couldn't help himself.

“To tell you the truth, Teddy, I don't think I see Dana as a mere servant.”

"I can't get her out of my head.”

"Well, she’s not married yet, and I've been being so vague with her.”

Dana didn’t know yet. What's in Edwin’s heart.

Perhaps that's why she gave him (Theo) her body so readily last night.

He (Theo) had to make sure Edwin didn't dare to come near her again.

If Dana knew the truth, she would hesitate to leave.

Another stabbing, knife-like pain hit him. He looked down at the bandages on his hand. It was trembling slightly.

I promised you. I'd break off the engagement and come back.

Theodore didn't want to disappoint her. He couldn't let her down.

He hoped she would smile when they met again.

In the back of his mind, he heard a disturbing whisper that Dana had never asked him to break up, but he clenched his fists and crushed it.

It had to be different, but he didn't know how, so he clung to the one thing that was certain: a breakup.

He had crossed the first gateway, he only had to cross the second.

He was confidence.

In all his life, his mother had never beaten him over any decisions, and his father had never outlasted her.

Theodore had always relished his position as the sole heir to the family name, the primacy of the hierarchy.

His parents would never be able to break their son's will to break off the engagement.

So he just had to wait a few days. Just a few days.

Theodore wasted no time in climbing into the carriage. The carriage pulled away under a clear, sunny sky.

****

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