The threat from a woman he could easily subdue was as amusing as a dog barking, but the man raised both hands to calm Diane.
"Easy, easy. Such a temper."
These were items from the Duke's vault. How could they compare to the cheap stolen goods brought in by petty thieves? He had to be patient.
"Calm down. Calm down. You're scaring me so much I might wet myself."
The man played it cool, lowering the gun pointed at him.
"If you understand, start drawing the design."
This wasn't the first time. Diane expertly gave instructions.
Whenever the Brooke Baron family needed a large sum of money urgently, it was always like this.
Receiving a fake from the man and swapping it with the real thing. There were already four fakes in Greathill's vault. Now, everything would be fake.
Even if it was discovered after Diane left, they wouldn't be able to find her then. And even if the man was caught, there was nothing to worry about.
"Who ordered you to do this?"
Wind rushed in through the dilapidated wooden window frame. A single candle flickered violently. Following the flickering, the shadows cast on Diane's face rippled grotesquely.
"Olivia Blanchett."
The man grinned, revealing hideous teeth, and turned the bag upside down. Diane burst into laughter as she watched the jewels spill onto the table.
This would be done before Olivia demanded a divorce.
Number 3 Riverside was a quiet residential area located downstream of the Bichen River.
Clear sunlight streamed over the street lined with luxurious townhouses, making the surface of the water sparkle. The increasingly warm breeze passed over the river, fluttering the thin muslin curtains at the windows.
Spring was passing.
After a simple breakfast, Olivia sat on the windowsill, hugging her knees, and gazed out the window with a quiet gaze.
The people enjoying rowing on the river and the white Yachts cutting through the water looked peaceful.
Engagement...
What kind of person would the Grand Duchess Kranz be? Olivia suddenly wondered about the princess who would become Yohan's new wife. The one who might die in Olivia Blanchett's place.
Would he really marry her?
"I told you it's dangerous. Please come down."
Lost in thought, Olivia was startled and turned her head.
Madam Marie, who was bringing coffee, was horrified to see Olivia sitting precariously like a tomboy. Olivia smiled and readily came down, sitting in a chair.
The maid Marie had been dispatched from the hotel to attend to Olivia.
This was Edgar's measure, for the management of a Lancelot-sponsored athlete, he said.
For quality meals and a balanced life. Anne was clumsy in the kitchen, and Olivia had no intention of hiring a maid here, so she quietly accepted his consideration.
As she waited for Anne, who had gone on an errand to the bookstore, she heard the front door open.
It seemed Anne had returned with a gossip magazine featuring an article about the Grand Duchess Kranz. The sound of footsteps climbing the stairs was unusually fast for the usually calm Anne. So was opening the door urgently at the same time as knocking.
"Madam! We have a guest-."
"Olivia!"
Elaine, true to her hasty nature, pushed past Anne and called out to Olivia with a welcoming voice.
"Miss Elaine!"
Olivia, startled, jumped up from her seat. She had returned to Rondos after the Rose Ball. Having reappeared in less than five days, she looked somewhat flustered.
"What happened?"
Before Olivia, surprised by the sudden visit, could offer her a seat, Elaine sat down at the tea table.
"I had to come back urgently. Anne, just a glass of water for me."
"Sit down. I have something to tell you. I'm glad I met Anne. The hotel wouldn't give me your address. I almost had to leave without seeing you. Really."
"You came without knowing the address?"
"I naturally believed the manager or someone would tell me. Or that they would have left a note for me."
"Ah! I'm sorry."
Olivia gave an awkward smile.
Elaine, who had practically run up the stairs, emptied the glass of water Anne brought her in one gulp and caught her breath. Once her breathing had calmed, she took out a velvet box from her bag.
"You're not here to give me a gift, are you?"
Olivia said with a smile. Despite the bland joke, Elaine's expression was serious.
Puzzled, Olivia turned her gaze to the case placed on the table. In the center of the square black leather case, the word 'Gloria' was written in gold leaf.
Lifting her gaze from the inscription to meet Elaine's, she slowly opened the box.
"This is..."
Olivia's eyes widened slightly. The unexpected item was the Pink Diamond Necklace in question.
"Why this?"
Olivia asked, looking down at the brilliantly sparkling necklace.
"This necklace."
Elaine lowered her voice and continued.
"It was real."
"!"
Olivia's lips parted, speechless.
Elaine still felt dizzy when she thought about that day. She almost drove her solid husband into a corner, branding him as a shameless adulterer and divorcing him.
"I was going to corner my husband. So I told him I was tired of this necklace and asked him to sell it. I said I wanted to reclaim my grandfather's land. I should have seen his expression when I said that."
Olivia listened to her quietly.
"As expected, he was very embarrassed. Of course. When did he ever act like he was giving me a replica? Now he's saying it's difficult to resell it. I really wanted to kill my husband at that moment."
Elaine moistened her lips with strongly brewed herbal tea.
She said she had made a fuss, mentioning her husband's affair and demanding he return the money he had siphoned off to his mistress under the guise of a fake necklace. Her husband, claiming innocence, became furious and eventually left the house.
"After he left, I started to get confused. Did I misunderstand? Or is that man such a good actor?"
Elaine closed her eyes for a moment, as if recalling that day. Her hands holding the teacup trembled slightly.
"So you had it appraised."
Olivia urged the story, feeling impatient.
"Yes."
"And it was genuine."
Elaine nodded. Olivia couldn't believe it.
"I went to four more places. I couldn't believe it. Because I kept doubting, the appraiser said he could even write a guarantee, staking his career on it."
"How could that be?"
"That's what I'm saying."
Elaine finished her teacup and said.
"I couldn't help but ask my husband. How on earth did you get this thing? And then."
Elaine sighed deeply and suddenly pursed her lips tightly.
"And then. What did your husband say then?"
Olivia couldn't help but ask again.
"I can't say it sober..."
Elaine's cheeks flushed as if she were already drunk.
"Come on, it's okay, tell me."
Elaine took a long breath and then pursed her lips.
"He, well... it was... sto-"
Elaine, stammering, squeezed her eyes shut with a bright red face and said quickly, as if shouting.
"...he bought it as stolen goods, he said."
"!"
Olivia frowned.
Stolen goods.
Whatever the reason, in the end, her husband's anniversary gift had turned out to be something dishonest. Elaine sobbed.
"I wonder, which big-hearted person stole the Duke's treasure? My heart still trembles when I think about it. I'm so scared that the truth will be revealed and even my husband will be caught. I'm so scared, Olivia."
Whether Elaine's husband knew or not, acquiring stolen goods was a clear crime.
"So I came to return it. To the original owner."
Elaine closed the necklace case and pushed it towards Olivia. Olivia, flustered, blinked her widened eyes and belatedly said.
"...No. No. The owner? Elaine. You should have gone to the Duke."
Olivia pushed the box back towards Elaine.
"How can I go there? I can't. I can't."
Elaine avoided her gaze, and the black leather box went back and forth on the table several times.
"Please! Olivia. Please handle it for me."
"..."
"Please."
Elaine wrung her skirt and soon shed tears.
"If I hadn't kept nagging about the necklace. If I hadn't, I wouldn't have done such a reckless thing. It's all my fault. I'm sorry. Olivia."
Elaine sobbed at the bleak situation created by the vanity of wanting to stand out in society.
Olivia watched Elaine leave, being seen off by Madam Marie and Anne through the window. As the Carriage departed, Elaine leaned out of the car window, raised her head, and moved her lips towards Olivia.
Help my husband. She said that as she disappeared from view.
Turning away from the window, Olivia became troubled when she saw the box left alone.
Yohan would soon be getting married, and the princess who became the new mistress of Greathill would check the list of jewels owned by the family.
Having always seen only precious things, she would have a better eye for distinguishing jewels than Olivia, so it would only be a matter of time before the fact that the Pink Diamond Necklace was a fake was discovered.
Naturally, the first person to be suspected would be none other than Olivia Blanchett, herself. Moreover, the real thing was here.
Olivia sighed deeply.
Who could it be?
Returning to the table and sitting down, Olivia placed her finger on the smoothly polished box and tapped it.
"Who on earth stole the necklace..."
Unconsciously, the thoughts in her head flowed out between her lips.
"Diane Brooke. It must be that woman's doing."
Anne, who had approached her unnoticed, broke Olivia's reverie with a voice filled with anger.
"Diane Brooke?"
"Yes, Madam."
Olivia quietly rummaged through her memories. Yohan's hired secretary. The times when they were close like sisters, trusting and relying on each other, came back vividly.
"That woman?"
Olivia's eyebrows rose slightly, as if she couldn't believe it.
