Chapter 75
- The Storm
2023.12.14.
"That ship. I'm its godmother."
Yohan slowly lowered his gaze to look at the unfamiliar woman.
The admiral's daughter.
He didn't remember her name or face, but Yohan recalled that the godmother of the King Trafalgar was the admiral's daughter, and he gave a short nod.
The woman smiled brightly as if he remembered.
"Could it be because we've met again in such an unexpected place? I'm so happy."
The young lady, who hadn't yet shed her girlishness, had cheeks flushed with a peach color.
The red light in the train corridor made them look even redder. She was a lady who couldn't hide her expressions.
Or perhaps she had lived a life where she didn't need to. Either way, it wasn't his concern.
"Excuse me, I'll be going now."
Yohan lightly touched his silk hat and bid her farewell. Fortunately, the woman wasn't oblivious.
She looked dejected but willingly made way.
"It was nice meeting you, Duke."
The woman, who greeted him with perfect gestures, brushed past Yohan. The sound of small shoes walking on the carpet stopped, and the woman turned around.
"Duke?"
Yohan's steps, heading towards the private compartment, also came to a halt. He narrowed his brow and tilted his head, meeting the woman's eyes.
"Do you perhaps like paintings?"
"......"
The woman smiled as she asked the sudden question. It was a transparent smile without any ulterior motives.
Blue eyes shone between thick eyelashes. It was the same color as Olivia Blanchett's when he first met her.
However, the difference was that, unlike this woman's eyes, which resembled warm spring sunshine, his wife's eyes were as cold and lonely as midwinter.
Yohan couldn't take his eyes off those eyes for a while.
It was from that moment that small, unseen facts began to appear, one by one.
The weather wasn't on Yohan's side.
He had been uneasy since he looked out the window from the train car. As Lemonde got closer, the view outside the train window was all gloomy gray.
Sure enough, when he got off at Lemonde Station, the weather was unusual.
Yohan's straight gaze turned cold towards the sky. His eyes, bloodshot from working on company matters all the way here, were narrow.
When he arrived at Lemonde Port, the situation there was even worse. A strong gale was blowing ahead of a major storm.
Ships that had taken refuge due to the high waves were bobbing, tied to thick ropes.
"Departure is impossible, sir."
A heavy silence flowed through the VIP lounge of the Passenger Ship terminal.
Thick raindrops began to patter against the glass. The wind, meeting the rain, became even more ferocious.
The fierce rain and wind screamed as they clawed at the air. Its momentum was so great that it seemed like it would sweep away everything in the world.
"Damn it."
A low voice was heard.
Yohan, who had turned away from the window, sat down and took out a cigar.
The captain of the Leopold Hotel was startled and glanced at Maurice.
He's been swearing a lot lately. Don't worry about it.
Maurice gave the captain a comforting look. The relieved captain nodded but still glanced at Yohan.
The bad weather wasn't his fault, but when he met the Duke's eyes, he somehow felt like an incompetent human being.
Yohan rolled up his sleeve with his fingertips to check the time. 4 a.m. There was still plenty of time.
The match was the day after tomorrow, at 10 a.m.
"You may leave."
Yohan nodded briefly to the captain, who bowed, and took a deep drag on his cigar.
Today, Litten felt particularly far away.
Lightning flashed through the hazy blue smoke. The gold rim of his wristwatch sparkled in the silver flash.
'Think of me.'
His wife's wish was close to a curse. Now, Yohan could only think of Olivia.
"Aren't you going to White Gable?"
Maurice broke the silence and asked.
It wasn't a storm that would pass easily. They had to move before the Carriage turned into a monster that swallowed and threw everything away.
Maurice, who had suffered with Yohan for about a week, wanted to quickly go to the villa, soak in lukewarm water, and rest.
Whether he knew Maurice's earnestness or not, Yohan stared at his wife's birthday present with an indifferent gaze and exhaled a long stream of smoke.
The gray smoke disappeared in vain, and the incessant rain covered the window. The world in the darkness was unclear.
There was enough time, but he felt an unknown impatience.
Yohan slowly closed and opened his eyes.
The cause of his anxiety was clear.
Edgar.
He was at the end of his thoughts.
Yohan emptied his brandy glass. The alcohol made his head hot with fatigue.
Olivia strongly penetrated the throbbing pain.
Eyes full of wariness, as if guarding against strangers, a voice that rang clearly without sobbing, an indifferent expression as if her mind was elsewhere.
The woman who kept rummaging through his consciousness since the day they reunited bothered him.
The slow gaze that swept through the darkness outside the stormy window stopped again on his wrist.
'We have similar tastes.'
Edgar's words suddenly came to mind. Yohan sat up straight.
He leaned deeply against the sofa, put his head on the backrest, and closed his eyes.
Taste, huh.
It was a marriage where there was no room for taste to intervene.
It was a deal, and the result wasn't bad. The price of the deal, Olivia Blanchett, whom he saw for the first time, was a great beauty.
Now they were divorced and had become perfect strangers.
Olivia.
Yohan calmly repeated the name.
The divorce proceedings ended easily, but his heart wasn't easily settled. Because this divorce was not complete in the first place.
'Please get a divorce.'
Her pale face made her blue eyes stand out.
When she said those words with lips that were still colorless, Yohan simply thought it was his wife's bluff.
A declaration of intent different from her true feelings.
His wife's words were always like that.
Saying she hated him was another expression of saying she loved him, and telling him to get out of her sight was a plea for him to stay by her side.
Saying she wanted a divorce probably meant she didn't want him to abandon her.
So he could have easily ignored it, but unfortunately, Yohan was angry.
Ever since he received the message that she had jumped into the lake, Yohan's anger had been like an active volcano on the verge of erupting.
That's why he couldn't easily forgive her.
That was why he agreed to the divorce. Because he could see through his wife's trick. But it was Yohan's arrogant delusion.
His wife, who he thought would beg him to say it wasn't true, left.
The fierce sound of the wind sharply touched his nerves.
A picture of Olivia sitting shoulder to shoulder with Edgar, watching a tennis match, came to mind.
Yohan, who raised his stiff hand and wiped his face, opened his eyes. He stood up without hesitation and ordered Maurice.
"Tell them to prepare for departure."
"Yes... Y-yes?"
Maurice shook his head violently. He must have misheard him saying to go to White Gable. Yes, that must be it. He wouldn't be crazy enough to do this in this weather.
Olivia, who had been practicing at the tennis court and ran into the hotel to avoid the shower, parted ways with Elaine in the hallway and returned to her room.
Madam Marie handed dry towels to Olivia and Anne, who had returned looking like drowned rats.
"I've told you repeatedly to always carry a parasol. Anne, what were you doing?"
Madam Marie looked at Anne with stern eyes, who was wiping the water off Olivia's wet clothes with the towel she had been given.
"I'm sorry."
"What if you catch a cold when the finals are tomorrow?"
As the most senior maid at the Lancelot Hotel, her voice scolding Anne was quite stern.
"It's okay. It's not Anne's fault. I said I didn't need it because it was cumbersome."
Olivia said with a smile to Madam Marie.
"There's a saying that you shouldn't trust the heart of a Litten man or the weather."
"I'll keep that in mind."
Olivia wiped the raindrops off Anne's face and replied like a sincere child.
The way they took care of each other made it hard to tell who was the lady and who was the maid.
Madam Marie was a person who valued the proper behavior of noble women.
Furthermore, 'a lady should be like a lady' was her theory.
Among them was the ability to manage subordinates well, but in that regard, Olivia Blanchett was ambiguous to judge by Madam Marie's standards.
In her eyes, Olivia and Anne were more like sisters than a virtuous mistress and maid.
"A letter has arrived."
Madam Marie announced as she placed a cup of coffee, cooled to the right temperature, in front of Olivia, who had just changed into indoor clothes.
Olivia sat on the soft chair with her knees up and savored the aroma of the tea.
I've told you so many times not to sit like that. The only good thing was that she showed perfect lady-like behavior in front of people.
"I didn't think there would be any more. Where did it come from?"
Olivia tilted her head and asked.
Until the Ghost of the Leopold Hotel scandal broke out, countless interview requests and invitations to various gatherings had been flying into Olivia's room.
"The sender is unknown."
Olivia widened her eyes and looked up at Madam Marie as she lifted her teacup.
She held out a silver tray. There was no marking on the pure white envelope.
The letter had not been officially sent through the post office.
Olivia put down her cup and picked up the letter. Then, she carefully examined the front and back.
At that moment, lightning flashed, followed by thunder that shook the earth. Olivia's shoulders flinched in surprise.
The rain, which she thought would pass quickly as a shower, was now pouring down in thick streaks.
"Give it to me, miss. I'll open it."
Olivia smiled at Anne's words.
"Why? Are you afraid there might be poison on it?"
The three of them simultaneously thought of one person. Anneblin Grace Britt.
"It's never a bad idea to be careful."
"Anne is right. Give it to me."
"It might be Edgar. Everyone, relax."
Olivia calmed the two down, took a deep breath, and slowly exhaled as she cut the top of the envelope with a paper knife.
With Anne and Madam Marie watching with bated breath, Olivia took out the letter.
