Chapter 18
“Did you really have to go that far?”
Canna said, re-bandaging Rebecca's arm.
The doctors said that her arm and ankle ligaments were badly damaged from falling down the stairs yesterday.
She shouldn't do any strenuous exercise for at least two months.
Strenuous exercise included marital relations.
Zeppelin was terribly attentive to Rebecca's body, so he wouldn't force her to sleep with him to the detriment of her health.
“Compared to what I gained, this is very cheap.”
Rebecca smiled contentedly.
In her previous life, Alicia fell down the stairs exactly as she did yesterday.
And she falsely accused Rebecca, blinded by jealousy, of pushing her.
Thanks to her clever scheme, there were many witnesses.
From that day on, Rebecca had more than twice as many attendants.
And as punishment, she was forbidden from visiting the Liberta Poorhouse.
‘To do the same thing.’
As expected, people never change.
But the situation could be changed.
“So, what happened to Alicia?”
“She has a lot of Hounds attached to her. The Count was very angry. Thanks to that, only Robert is left as Rebecca's Hounds.”
“Very good. By the way, what about the guest I asked for?”
“Yes. I sent a message, and they said they would come today.”
“Zeppelin didn't say anything?”
“Rather, he said it was a good thing and told me to invite them often for the time being. He was worried about whether Rebecca would be mentally shocked by this.”
“Unusually worried about my mind.”
Whatever his true intentions, it was a good thing.
Rebecca began to prepare to receive her guest.
* * *
“Rebecca! What on earth happened! No, don't get up.”
“Mother, it's been a while.”
Rebecca greeted Danae with a happy smile.
Danae felt her heart ache at the sight of her eldest daughter lying with bandages wrapped around her arms and legs.
“I heard that woman Alicia pushed you? I told you to be careful!”
“No. It was an accident. I was trying to save her from falling…”
“How are you going to survive here if you're so kind!”
“Why? What kind of place is this?”
Rebecca unknowingly widened her eyes and looked at Danae.
She knew that her mother had no power. But that didn't mean she didn't feel resentment.
From what she saw in the study that night, the Obelia family was already declining before Rebecca married Zeppelin.
The money Zeppelin offered as a condition for taking Rebecca as his bride was a large sum.
‘Rebecca, never have the Count's child. Even if you do, don't give it too much heart. The moment a child is born, a woman's ankles are caught.’
On her wedding day, Danae placed a tiara on Rebecca's head and said in a trembling voice.
It wasn't the kind of advice to give a daughter who was just about to start a happy married life.
Her mother knew everything. Because of this, Rebecca couldn't shake the thought that her mother and father had sold her here for the sake of the family.
Danae read the hurt in Rebecca's eyes and felt her heart sink.
She didn't know what to do, feeling resentful of herself for being an incompetent mother.
She heard that Rebecca was injured and tried to confront Zeppelin as soon as she arrived at the Count's estate.
But Zeppelin didn't even come out to greet her, using the excuse that he was busy.
The butler only gave her an awkward smile and guided her.
He handed her a thick envelope of money, as if Zeppelin had hired Danae to comfort Rebecca.
“The Duke asked me to take care of the… fee.”
Danae couldn't bring herself to refuse the envelope of money that the butler awkwardly handed over.
The thought of her family's safety was greater than her pride.
She still had two young daughters who hadn't even made their Debutante.
The fate of the family was as good as dependent on Rebecca.
But seeing Rebecca so hurt, she wondered if the family mattered at all.
Danae's eyes turned red.
She took Rebecca's hand and shed tears of repentance.
“I won't make excuses. Rebecca, this is a terrible place. Shall we just run away? Let's do that, Rebecca. We can go somewhere and farm. Wouldn't that be better than this life?”
Rebecca stared blankly at Danae's hand.
Many emotions welled up.
But Rebecca tried to suppress those emotions and said calmly.
“Are you serious? Can you really give up everything you've enjoyed so far and live like a commoner? Maybe you can, Mother, but what about Father? And my sisters? Can you force those three to sacrifice themselves just for me?”
“Becky…”
Danae called Rebecca's nickname in a trembling voice.
Becky. It was the name her family used to call her when she was young.
Hearing that name, Rebecca couldn't help but shed tears.
She thought she was strong enough, but she wasn't.
In front of her mother, she always wanted to be a naive girl.
But that shouldn't be the case.
Canna silently brought a handkerchief.
Rebecca pressed the handkerchief to her tear-stained face.
Danae, who had forgotten about Canna's presence, was startled and looked at her.
She seemed worried that today's conversation would reach Zeppelin's ears.
“Don't worry. Canna is my person.”
Danae looked back and forth between Rebecca and Canna.
The corners of Canna's lips twitched upwards.
‘She said I'm her person.’
Canna vowed to write about today in her diary.
Rebecca regained her cold gaze and opened her mouth.
“Running away won't help. After creating a proper foothold…”
“After?”
“I have to get out on my own. Mother, let's get out of this damn Devonshire shadow together. With me.”
“Get out, but how?”
“I'm going to get a divorce.”
“Divorce…?”
Danae was even more surprised than before and couldn't close her mouth.
She was confused as to whether the Rebecca in front of her was the Rebecca she knew.
“Yes, and I'm going to remarry. With Duke Johannes.”
“Hey, hey. Are you having a hard time these days? Duke Johannes, you said…?”
“Just keep it to yourself for now, Mother. Especially Father, you must never let him know.”
Danae looked at Rebecca's confident face.
Rebecca raised the corners of her eyes and pursed her lips tightly.
It was a face she hadn't seen in a long time.
Before becoming the Countess, Rebecca did whatever she wanted whenever she made that expression.
Danae didn't press her any further.
Her daughter was struggling to survive in the hell she had dropped her into.
She shouldn't grab her feet, even if she couldn't become a lifeline.
Danae nodded solemnly.
“Okay. What can I do?”
Rebecca smiled then.
Her deep blue eyes, which resembled Danae's, sparkled with spirit.
“Would you like to start a business?”
* * *
After Danae left, Rebecca became even more lonely.
She remembered the days when she had fun with her family.
At that time, Rebecca was a dreamy girl who couldn't even imagine that such a future awaited her.
“Are you feeling stuffy?”
Canna opened the window wide. Cool night air came in.
Rebecca forced a smile.
“A little. I feel stuffy just being in bed.”
“Then would you like to take a walk?”
Rebecca held up her bandaged foot.
“But I can't walk. Even if I could walk, Zeppelin would never let me out.”
“There is always a way. You just haven't found it.”
Canna silently approached Rebecca and lifted her up.
“Ca, Canna?”
Canna, gauging Rebecca's weight, gritted her teeth.
“You're so light… Zeppelin, that son of a bitch I could chew up and spit out…”
“Canna. There are many eyes watching.”
“Don't worry. The Hounds don't come around often at this time. I've confirmed that there's no one around here right now.”
Canna quickly climbed onto the windowsill.
“Ah!”
Rebecca looked down at her feet and unknowingly hugged Canna's neck.
Canna flinched for a moment at Rebecca's touch around her neck, then jumped straight down.
Rebecca closed her eyes tightly, fearing a fall, but felt no recoil.
Canna, who had landed softly on the ground, stared blankly at Rebecca.
“Where would you like to go?”
She had vaguely felt that Canna's muscles were firm, but she didn't know she was this strong.
“I will be Rebecca's legs now. Please tell me where you want to go.”
“Then to the Lilac Garden…”
The Lilac Garden was a garden that the previous Countess liked.
But Zeppelin especially hated it, so it was a deserted place with no visitors except for the gardeners.
The garden, full of blooming lilacs, was showing off its scent to its heart's content.
Rebecca strolled through the garden in Canna's arms.
Canna faithfully moved as Rebecca gestured.
It was a quiet night with nothing but the occasional sound of Canna's heartbeat.
Rebecca asked in Canna's arms.
“Canna, why don't you ask anything?”
“What do you mean?”
“The conversation I had with my mother today.”
Rebecca kept replaying Canna's expression when she pretended to faint yesterday.
At that time, Canna had a face as if the world had collapsed.
Canna should have been able to tell that Rebecca was conscious with her sensitive senses, but she couldn't.
Canna was already out of her mind just because Rebecca was hurt.
And Rebecca was convinced at that moment. Canna was completely her person.
That's why she didn't send Canna out when she was with her mother.
Canna slowly opened her mouth.
“Because I trust you, Rebecca.”
“Huh?”
“Because I vowed to follow you no matter what choice you make, even if it's hell.”
Rebecca was speechless for a moment and looked up at her in Canna's arms.
Her deep brown eyes were unwavering.
“Shall we rest here for a while?”
Rebecca sat on a bench made of white marble.
The moment Canna tried to put a shawl over Rebecca's shoulders, she raised her head with a fierce look.
“Someone is there, Rebecca.”
A black figure moved behind the tree.
* * *
Robert Crowley stared at Rebecca's tightly closed door.
He heard that her arms and legs were injured, so the door probably wouldn't open until Canna came out.
Robert looked around and slipped out into the garden.
Originally, he should have continued to monitor Rebecca's condition, but today he couldn't concentrate at all because his mind was disturbed.
Since he knew the movements of most of the Hounds, Robert skillfully went outside without being detected by anyone.
‘I need some fresh air.’
Robert recalled the contents of the letter he had read from his mother last night.
<The Flame of Wisdom has not yet been extinguished.>
