Previously
Emma rescues Maya, a maid fired by Heather Dartmouth, and hires her as her own personal maid for a higher wage. Maya reveals she was being harassed by a local thug, preventing her from working near home to support her two younger brothers, Kurt and Dylan.
The older boy seemed terrified of something, unable to lift his head and keeping half his body hidden behind Maya no matter what happened.
‘He looks physically fine, but is he mentally ill?’
I figured as much. If her brother was in that state, it must have been difficult for her to talk about.
I had no intention of scaring the boys, so I exchanged brief greetings and told them to go to their room and rest.
Whether it was because she was now staying in a safe place or because she had her brothers by her side, Maya looked much more vibrant than yesterday. No, it was more like… an intense surge of emotion.
I was a bit stunned to see Maya laugh for the first time since we met, and then she spoke.
Maya blurted that out and then immediately began to apologize in a panic, saying it was an improper expression and that she didn't mean it in a bad way. I just felt a bit strange, but I was fine with it.
‘For some reason, I feel a tickle in my chest.’
In any case, my life in Herona had entered a new phase.
Over a table served with tender veal, a conversation was flowing—trivial and unnecessary, yet effective at smoothing the atmosphere.
When Count MacCallan praised his wife's decision, the eldest son’s couple and the second son chimed in with their agreement.
After the talk of food, the conversation moved on to the recent tea party at the Dartmouths’, the news of three calves being born at once on the estate, and how some relative or other had a new grandson.
Even though the conversation wasn't particularly interesting, they burst into laughter every now and then. Everyone except Ash.
He merely gave light nods, continuing his meal without adding a single word to the dialogue.
Grace, who had been waiting quietly while remaining conscious of his presence, cleared her throat and turned toward Ash as the meal was nearing its end.
At that, Karl, who had been just as uncomfortable with Ash's silence as Grace, glared at him.
It was Grace who stopped him.
At his mother’s scolding, Karl shut his mouth without talking back.
Count MacCallan let out a low sigh, and the eldest son, Joel, wiped his mouth with a napkin while wearing an awkward smile.
The meal was over.
Back in his room, Ash loosened his stifling shirt collar.
He rarely stayed home, using his investigations as an excuse, but he was required to return to the mansion once a week to attend the family dinner.
At every meal, he was forced to confirm that he was the only blemish on this perfect family.
The dignified head of the house, his wise and benevolent wife, the reliable eldest son, the second son who set the mood, and the eldest daughter-in-law from a good family who doted on her two-year-old daughter…. It was a picture-perfect, beautiful family, wasn't it?
And yet, there he sat—the evidence of the betrayal the head of the house had committed against his wife, the very embodiment of her deep wound.
‘Why do these people engage in such self-harm? Does this make them look more perfect?’
No one was watching; what would it matter if they just ignored an illegitimate child?
Besides, if they wanted him to participate in the conversation, they shouldn't have spent the whole time talking about things only they knew in the first place.
‘They don't even enjoy living together, yet they say I can't move out before marriage…. Perhaps the greatest mystery I have to solve is these people.’
Ash shook his head and half-heartedly scanned the pile of envelopes on his desk.
Most were invitations to parties or gentlemen's clubs.
He didn't enjoy such gatherings, but he sometimes attended to gather information on high society or suspects, so he had to pick out the decent offers.
However, his hand stopped abruptly at a certain sender's name while rummaging through the envelopes.
‘D. Hamilton’
Ash clicked his tongue briefly, pulled out the envelope, and tore it open with a letter knife.
The content of the letter was simple.
‘My dear son, whom I miss. Let us have a meal together soon. Let me know when you are free.’
It was a letter from his biological mother, Dolores.
He was not pleased. He was no longer at an age where he longed for a mother's embrace.
No, it would be more accurate to say he had long since abandoned all expectations and hope for her.
‘What is she going to pester me for this time?’
Dolores only contacted him when she needed something.
Whether she needed money, wanted him to contact someone powerful, wanted him to bring Count MacCallan to see a performance, or wanted information on the family's investments….
She never wondered what the son she supposedly missed was doing lately, if he was hurting anywhere, or if he was being mistreated at the mansion.
One might ask why he didn't just ignore such messages, but doing so was sure to lead to a headache. Once, when he hadn't replied, she had shown up at the police headquarters without warning and caused a scene.
The former actress who once had all of Herona in the palm of her hand had made a personal appearance; imagine the fuss everyone had made.
‘Sigh…. Just how much more do I have to tolerate?’
He squeezed his eyes shut for a moment before writing a brief reply. Even if he didn't want to, it would be cleaner to just meet her for a short while.
Thinking about how a scene of him with her would be published in the gossip rags and his name would be bandied about again for a while, he felt as if the meal he hadn't even enjoyed was already giving him indigestion.
Ah, the weather is nice.
I tilted my head back, letting the slightly stinging sunlight hit me directly.
I felt like having a long stretch, but I held back for the sake of the Baroness's dignity.
After waiting like that for a bit in front of the mansion's main gate, a carriage soon arrived and stopped.
As I was about to board the carriage, Maya asked in a small voice from beside me, her face full of anxiety.
Today was shopping day.
The unusual part was that I was bringing not only Maya but Kurt and Dylan as well.
They boarded the carriage with awkward expressions, shrinking their bodies as much as possible for fear of even brushing against me.
Kurt and Dylan looked like they had no idea why they were even coming along.
But the protagonists of today's shopping trip were not me, but them.
They still seemed not to understand what I was talking about.
In fact, it would be the same for anyone else watching. Unless one was incredibly wealthy, it wasn't common for a master to provide all the clothing for their underlings.
Someone who knew my financial situation might point fingers and call it a waste of money.
But this was precisely the survival method of someone who had nothing. Showing that you lacked something only provided an opening for attack.
Well, I won't deny that I was a little excited at the thought of dressing the kids up properly.
Anyway, I got off with them at the commoners' shopping district.
I took the children, who had surely been wearing dingy and repeatedly mended underwear, into an underwear shop and bought them several sets of clean cotton undergarments.
I bought a chemise for Maya there, one with just a little lace on the chest, and I happened to see her fingertips carefully fiddling with the edge of the lace. I even saw the joy that colored Maya's cheeks.
‘Well, I felt like a princess when I first wore something like that too.’
When I realized that it wasn't for me…. No, let's not think about that now.
Next, it was time to buy outdoor and indoor clothes in earnest.
I invested a lot in clothes for Maya, but I didn't neglect Kurt and Dylan's either.
But as expected, Kurt was the problem.
The finishing touch to fashion is the face. Skin tone and the vibe of one's features have such a huge impact!
But at the request to see his face, Kurt's hands trembled, and he hid behind Maya.
‘I can't let him keep hiding like that forever.’
I was a little afraid I might be worsening the child's condition, but I coaxed Kurt in the kindest voice possible.
After several rounds of persuasion and being provided with a dressing room completely separated from the outside, Kurt finally managed to summon his courage.
Not wanting to miss that moment, I carefully brushed Kurt's long bangs back.