Dare to Lie [Novel] Chapter 8 – A Tangled Web of Suspicion

I pressed him, playing the part of the victim. I struggled not to shrink under his piercing gaze.

Though his words suggested it could go either way, his demeanor made it seem as if he had already reached a conclusion.

His questioning didn't end there.

I nodded. The maid who died on the second floor was likely Rosaline.

Ash stared at me for a moment before asking another question.

Now that he mentioned it, he was right. Even Baron Tesis rarely entered Rosaline's room, so why would a footman be in there?

My head was starting to spin.

The one who died there wasn't me, but Rosaline. So it made sense for Rosaline to be in her own room.

But there was a male servant in that room too. Why?

‘Wait. A footman… A footman… Oh, oh no, could it be…?’

It was perhaps the day after the first party. I had seen Rosaline standing on the landing, whispering and giggling with someone. The person she was talking to was definitely a footman sent by the Count Brow family. I remembered him being quite handsome, as one would expect of a footman from a wealthy house.

‘I didn't pay it any mind, thinking they were just joking around.’

Maybe they really were just having a light chat. But it was certainly strange that Rosaline, who had come home humiliated from the party the night before, had seemed to be in such a good mood from that day on.

What if some kind of feeling had been blossoming between the two of them? What if they had committed double suicide over an impossible love?

The sudden hypothesis made the hair on the back of my neck stand up, but I forced myself to stay calm.

‘No, I can't jump to conclusions. I might just be trying to force the pieces to fit.’

It would do me no good to let Ash see this agitation.

I lowered my brows and shook my head.

I was inwardly praying that he would never find one, and that this would remain an incident no one remembered.

Ha…!

My intuition that he would be more difficult than the previous person in charge was correct. This man wasn't just difficult; he was persistent and insidious.

What else could ‘you are the only survivor’ or ‘you are the only one who can resolve my questions’ mean? He was telling me not to think about escaping because I was the most suspicious.

It should have been difficult to suspect a noble lady who had lost her parents, but this man was not so easily swayed.

I gave him a bright smile, like a pure and innocent person.

I didn't know what on earth made him suspect me, but as long as I didn't give him anything to grab onto, I would be fine.

A faint smile played on Ash’s lips as he left the Count Brow residence.

For the past ten days, his superior, Superintendent Linbuck, had used various excuses to avoid ordering him back to this case. Even after sufficient personnel had been assigned to Inspector White's human trafficking case, he had remained sidelined.

‘The reason is obvious. Chief Superintendent Astrid is the one who evaluates Superintendent Linbuck’s performance.’

It was common knowledge that Astrid had rolled up his sleeves to secure a promotion for his nephew.

As time passed and evidence and witnesses vanished, Ash had finally confronted Superintendent Linbuck directly.

At the mention of ‘family,’ Superintendent Linbuck flinched and backed down.

Ash felt unpleasant having to bring up a family name he didn't even care for, but at least he was able to take hold of the case file again.

‘An easy case? Idiots.’

Did the people at the police station, who were only interested in power struggles, really see this as a case that could be closed with a five-page report?

To him, it was an unusual case full of numerous mysteries.

‘Rosaline Tesis…. Interest in social circles seems to be growing because she’s an unmarried heiress.’

According to rumors, the Tesis barony wasn't wealthy. However, since marrying her would immediately grant the title of Baron, it would be quite tempting for men who were tired of waiting for their parents to die or for younger sons who had no right to inherit a title.

Even his second brother, Karl, had said as much after the last party.

His tone was clearly sarcastic, but it didn't seem like a complete joke.

Unlike the eldest son, Joel, who would inherit everything from the earldom, Karl, the second son who had to take whatever his brother gave him, likely saw his half-brother who had suddenly appeared as a thorn in his side. They were destined to split a limited amount of titles and wealth.

So he was casually telling Ash to stay in his place and not get greedy for a title.

Of course, Ash didn't back down submissively.

Then he had stood up and left.

‘I suppose Rosaline Tesis isn't good enough for Karl?’

He snorted. It seemed to him that she could play Karl like a fiddle if she wanted to.

Chuckling at the memory, Ash pulled a notebook from his coat and re-checked the transaction history of Baron Tesis’s account from the Central Bank.

The balance was zero, following a final withdrawal of eight million Gilden on May 19th.

She, who was expected to be an ‘heiress’ in social circles, was likely under significant financial pressure right now.

He didn't know how much the Count and Countess Brow were supporting her, but they weren't the type of people to give unconditionally to a distant relative who was practically a stranger.

In such a situation, what was Rosaline Tesis doing?

He had become so curious that he had decided on this sudden visit. If she was financially well-off, it would mean she had found a hidden source of funds, which could be the cause of this incident.

But it seemed he would have to consider Rosaline innocent when it came to money matters.

‘When I mentioned the jewelry that disappeared before the fire, she only then realized it was gone.’

If she were a woman obsessed with money, she would have thought of her jewelry box first, rather than not even remembering it.

But as for the next topic, well.

‘She avoided my eyes for the first time when the deceased were mentioned.’