Chapter 10
10
As Scarlett descended the stairs, Andrei, as if expecting it, spoke without turning around.
"Go to jail instead of paying the fine. I need to get my salary."
"Always with the comments."
Scarlett chided him, but she had strong faith that Andrei would never breathe a word of it to anyone.
As always, with her tool bag slung over her shoulder, she took the children's hands, one in each of hers, and entered the garage where the Trams were kept.
The expressions of the Tram drivers, who had been wearing pained looks, brightened considerably at her appearance.
"Dad! Scarlett's here!"
As the siblings ran towards him, their father, Mr. Powell, snapped.
"I told you not to call such an important person by their first name! Call her 'Miss'!"
Even though Scarlett had asked him to treat her casually, Powell insisted that he could never do that. However, the children felt differently.
"But Scarlett doesn't get mad!"
"That's right!"
The siblings babbled, then ran boisterously around the Tram.
Powell said with an apologetic expression.
"I'm really sorry for always imposing on you, Miss Scarlett."
"This is really the last time."
"Yes! I promise!"
"Then everyone, please turn around. Except for Susan."
At Scarlett's words, everyone except the young girl turned around.
She took off the simple dress she had been wearing for going out, and in her work jumpsuit underneath, she crawled under the Tram and said,
"Powell, the spanner."
"Ah, yes!"
Powell quickly opened the tool bag, and Charlie swiftly took the spanner and crawled under the Tram to hand it over.
Charlie asked, lying on his stomach.
"Scarlett, should I bring anything else?"
"Bring the pipe wrench and all kinds of nuts."
"Okay!"
Charlie replied and quickly crawled out, then looked at Powell and asked.
"Dad, what's a pipe wrench? What are all kinds of nuts?"
"Here they are."
Since it was too heavy for Charlie to carry both, he carefully wrapped the nuts in his hands and brought them over, then brought the pipe wrench.
After a long time inspecting the steam engine, the connected wires, and the handles under the Tram, she came out.
"Try starting it."
"Yes, Miss!"
One of the drivers hurriedly climbed into the driver's seat.
Meanwhile, the other drivers brought coal and started the steam engine. They were sweating profusely from the tension, despite the winter weather, and when the engine started successfully, they shouted with excitement.
"It, it works, Miss!"
"Oh, I really thought it was broken this time!"
At those words, all the drivers cheered.
If one Tram broke down, two Tram drivers would lose their jobs. Seeing the people breathing a sigh of relief, Scarlett couldn't help but smile.
Susan came running and tugged at her sleeve, saying.
"I'll wipe your face for you."
"I appreciate the thought, but I'll go wash up. You'll get in trouble if your clothes get dirty, won't you?"
"No, I won't get in trouble for wiping Scarlett's face."
Susan said firmly, but Scarlett shook her head and wiped the soot off her face with her sleeve. Then people burst into laughter.
Susan pointed to her face with her finger and said.
"You got even more on!"
"Really?"
Scarlett was embarrassed and looking for a mirror when one of the drivers who had been watching outside rushed in.
"Police!"
"What, what? Hide Miss Scarlett! Quick!"
As soon as he shouted, the drivers found the jackets they had thrown around and hung them all on the clothes rack. And they put Scarlett's dress in an empty coal sack and hid it, and she was put in a cargo box and pushed behind the clothes rack.
Almost immediately after hiding Scarlett, the police entered. Powell deliberately put on a more menacing face and asked.
"What brings you here? We're all busy."
Then the policeman said accusingly.
"We received a report that the Tram had stopped. We came to check if it was broken."
"It stopped because it ran out of fuel. It's fine now that we've refueled. Who reported it without even knowing?"
Powell, who had been preparing himself for the possibility of getting caught, shouted.
Scarlett hid behind the clothes rack, holding her breath and waiting for the police to leave. Her fingertips felt frozen from the tension, as if the blood wasn't circulating.
Powell grumbled to the policeman who was checking the Tram.
"In the first place, there aren't any technicians who can fix Trams in this country."
"That's true."
He thought they would just pretend to search as usual and then leave. After all, as Powell said, most of the technicians who could fix Trams were dead, and even if the police looked at the machine, they wouldn't know if it was broken or just out of fuel. Still, since a report had been filed, the police were pretending to inspect all the Trams.
"Wh, where are you going? There's nothing but smelly clothes there."
One of the drivers' urgent voices was heard.
Scarlett pressed her hand tightly against her chest, near her heart, which was starting to pound rapidly at the sound of shoes walking towards her.
The footsteps, which had quickly grown closer, stopped, and the jacket rack was pushed to one side. Then the box was opened. Scarlett, startled, looked up and froze.
Beyond the jackets, her ex-husband, Viktor Dampfelt, was looking down at her.
Although not much time had passed since the divorce, her ex-husband's demeanor was noticeably different. He was a little thinner than before, and his face, which had been fiercely stern as a naval officer, had an unusually lonely air. The most surprising thing was that the childish arrogance that had been in his straight eyes had subsided as if decades had passed.
Since the navy of the Rubid Ship, of which he was the captain, was mobilized for police force when there were no missions, it was a situation that could very well happen if one thought about it rationally. And wasn't it a law of the world to meet someone you didn't want to meet in a situation where you shouldn't meet them?
In that brief encounter, Scarlett had all sorts of thoughts, but she couldn't come up with a solution.
As Scarlett covered her mouth with both hands and tried to control her ragged breathing, Viktor, who had been looking down at her, took out a fancy silver gun.
Scarlett squeezed her eyes shut and turned her head to one side. Two shots were fired in quick succession from the silenced gun. Everyone in the place froze, and Viktor turned around.
"Let's move."
He replied nonchalantly, but conversely, several of the drivers turned pale and slumped in their seats.
The executive officer, Evan Wright, who had come with Viktor, followed behind and said as if nothing had happened.
"Yes, Captain."
Since there was no one in this place who could go against Viktor Dampfelt, the King's grandson, everyone had no choice but to turn away without question.
As Viktor headed for the warehouse door, a policeman who was nearby ran to open the door and hold it open.
They left in an instant.
Powell ran to the box and saw two shots embedded in the sack containing the coal, and Scarlett huddled there, clutching her arm, which was scratched by the splinters.
"Su, Susan! Charlie! Come quickly and hold Miss Scarlett's hand!"
At his words, the two children, whose eyes had been covered by the drivers, ran over.
The drivers ran over and removed the clothes rack. Scarlett, helped out of the box by the siblings, stood leaning against the wall, her legs trembling.
What would have happened if it hadn't been Viktor who had seen her just now? Would he really have killed her on the spot?
The Viktor that Scarlett knew was not the kind of person who would make an exception just because the person he found in this place was his ex-wife. Still, it seemed his heart had softened a little since they had met after so long.
The repair of the Tram was a matter of someone's livelihood. Not only the drivers, but also the livelihoods of the people who had to commute far away on that Tram were at stake. In the first place, the problem was the absurd law that repairing Trams was against God's will.
She had come here with such a firm resolve, but when death actually came close and then moved away, her mind went blank.
Powell slumped down in front of her and said in a trembling voice.
"I'm sorry, Miss Scarlett. This will never... this will never happen again."
"That's right. It's better to find a new job..."
Everyone was frozen, unable to move, because they had thought Scarlett was going to die just now. Above all, Susan and Charlie, who had brought her here, were clinging to Scarlett and trembling.
Scarlett thought that she couldn't just stay still in shock any longer. She crouched down and looked at the siblings.
"Why are you trembling so much?"
Then Susan, bursting into tears, said.
"I brought Scarlett here..."
"No? I came because I wanted to come, didn't I? Don't you remember?"
As Scarlett said with a smile, Charlie sobbed and said.
"No, we told you to come."
"No, I don't listen to you brats. I came because I wanted to come. Repairing Trams is actually fun."
Scarlett said playfully, but the siblings, bursting into even louder tears, hugged her and cried.
