She had no idea what was going on.

On the day the summons bell rang from Adeline’s bedroom for the first time in nearly several months, everyone stood there blankly for a moment, unable to react quickly, wondering if they were hearing things.

Ten days had passed since Mrs. Lien came to her senses, gathered the maids, and went to Adeline’s bedroom, and yet whenever the servants gathered in groups of two or three, they were busy tilting their heads in puzzlement. Today the corner of the hallway was just as noisy as ever.

“Don’t you think the lady of the house seems like a completely different person since the master came by?”

She had no life in her at all, pale and so thin it was worrying. But lately she’s been asking for this and that, telling them to prepare whatever food she wants. It’s the first time it’s ever happened, and the kitchen is apparently surprised too, chattered one maid as she wiped down a picture frame.

“……Could it be, by any chance. She hasn’t gone and gotten herself with child, has she?”

“I don’t think so. After everything she went through…… surely not already. Besides, the two of them haven’t been sharing a bedroom for months. And when the lady was pregnant she actually ate even less. She had such terrible morning sickness. The head chef was always looking miserable, apparently, and it was pitiful every time you walked past the kitchen.”

Their hands were busy wiping dust from the wall sconces with dry cloths, but their lips were even busier answering back.

“Well, I don’t know what sort of miracle it is, but the two of them must have made up, that’s all.”

“The master must have soothed the lady again this time. Honestly, up until the miscarriage the two of them were on good terms. He really was good to her back then.”

Hmm, was he really? They did argue from time to time. A voice offered a mild rebuttal. Though what couple doesn’t have that much of a quarrel, someone said, and arguments come from affection too, because if a relationship has grown distant people don’t even bother fighting. 

Either way, the opinion that defended Kailen, the master of the house who willingly took on a mistress who had become a burden, held the stronger ground.

“Anyway, things should be a bit more livable now. It’s been so exhausting. She should have kept her tantrums within reason. Honestly speaking……”

“Who dares to pass judgment on their betters like this?”

You must have nine lives to spare. The head housekeeper’s voice, stiff to the point of coldness, rang through the first-floor hallway. The maids spun around in alarm and stood trembling, not knowing where to put themselves.

“We’re, we’re sorry.”

Mrs. Lien knew well enough that she could not stop every servant from talking behind closed doors. But speaking lightly of the master and mistress in a wide-open space rather than in the lounge or their private quarters was something she could not permit.

Adeline had been going up and down between the first and second floors quite frequently lately. The head housekeeper worried that she might overhear the gossip directed at her. This was the moment to properly rein in the servants’ tongues.

“I, I must have lost my head for a moment. It will never happen again, ma’am. Please forgive us.”

The maids prostrated themselves, saying they would never do it again and that they had overstepped, and Mrs. Lien looked down at their backs and gave a stern order for them to follow her to her office.

* * *

Having put an end to her reclusive life in the bedroom, Adeline made a deliberate effort these days to eat and sleep well. It was because when she stood before the mirror, she looked so wretchedly thin, nothing but a bony skewer.

On the day she rang the silver bell, Adeline had let Tanya attend to her bath for the first time in a long while.

〈……The water temperature is all right, I hope.〉

She could not forget the look of pity on Tanya’s face as she lifted Adeline’s gaunt arm in the bathtub. Tanya had kept her lips pressed firmly shut the entire time, right through applying scented oil to her dull, lifeless hair and finishing the grooming, but the look of compassion visible in the mirror had been uncomfortable.

Fortunately, through persistent effort, as soon as the cool winter wind began to blow, Adeline started to put on weight little by little, like a small squirrel or rabbit settling in for hibernation.

She woke late, at ten in the morning. Adeline sat down at the breakfast table set up in the sunroom as she had requested, and for the first time in a while asked for the newspaper.

“Bring me the newspaper. I’d like all the issues from the past ten days as well, not just today’s.”

The maid hesitated and looked uneasy.

“My lady. I…… the head housekeeper told us to keep newspapers out of the house……”

Newspapers and magazines had been treated almost like forbidden items in the household for some time, so even though she was obliged to follow the mistress’s instructions, the maid could not help but hesitate.

“Tell her I asked for them and she’ll hand them over now. From now on, have them ready for me every morning.”

Yes, yes, the maid answered, and before long she reappeared with a bundle of newspapers. Adeline was going through them in order by date when she set down the glass of water she was holding. She had spotted a name and a photograph that caught her eye.

“Ha……”

Adeline swallowed a hollow laugh at the sight of her husband Kailen’s photograph printed large beneath the name Alisha Melcher.

Leniency……

So Alisha Melcher had been the cause of losing her first child in such a senseless way. They had said the cause was unknown, hadn’t they.

She truly had not seen this coming, not even in her dreams. Crack, a phantom sound rang in her ears, like something shattering miserably. She felt a tightening pain in her chest and slowly rubbed her hand over her neck and collarbone instead.

William was the greatest culprit behind losing her child, the mastermind of this terrible affair, but it was also true that it had passed through Alisha’s hands. That was why she could not easily forgive her.

You still feel nothing about what happened to our child. How very magnanimous of you.

Adeline read the full article, which reported that Alisha Melcher had confessed to feeding Adeline a substance that chilled the womb for over three months on William’s orders, and that she had been sentenced to four years in prison following Kailen’s appeal for leniency. Adeline squeezed her eyes shut and then opened them.

And my child? What about the child who is already gone? How could you do this without a single word to me……

Of course, in her mind Adeline understood well enough that Alisha Melcher had been in no position to refuse William’s orders, but the heart does not work that way. Because it had been a matter of her child.

William Rosenthal. Adeline looked down at the black letters, then folded the newspaper and set it to one side, and picked up her fork again. Then she slowly brought the remaining food on her plate to her mouth.

“……”

The eyes of Adeline, who had harbored the feeling of murderous intent for the very first time, gleamed with a cold light in the morning sun.

* * *

These days, unless something came up, Kailen made a point of coming to Adeline’s bedroom even if it was late. He lay down in the same bed and settled into sleep naturally, but he had not yet done as he used to, sliding his desire-filled hands under her nightgown and pulling down her undergarments.

“My mother’s death anniversary is coming up soon. I’d like to go to Harden for a short while.”

Kailen, who had finished showering and was loosening the knot of his robe before getting into bed, paused his hands.

“Harden…… I see. How long are you thinking of staying?”

“I’m thinking of leaving next Monday and staying for at least two weeks.”

There are things she needs to discuss with Mrs. Neumann about managing the Harden estate, and she needs to visit her mother’s grave, and there are quite a few matters she cannot take care of in just a few days. She intends to resolve them this time.

One of his eyebrows rose slightly as he looked at Adeline, who held his gaze without looking away. He appeared displeased, as two weeks was longer than he had expected.

But Adeline did not feel like adding more excuses or reasons on top of what she had said. If he ultimately told her two weeks was too long and asked her to shorten it, she was prepared to compromise willingly down to about ten days.

She was tired of pointless arguments. So tired that she did not even want to bring up the old article about Alisha Melcher. Rather than waste her energy and emotions on the wrong things, she wanted to keep their conversations as brief and necessary as possible.

“Two weeks…… all right. But before you leave for Harden, it would be best to add two or three more people to accompany you.”

“All right. Do as you see fit.”

Kailen adjusted the brightness of the lamp on the nightstand before getting into bed and said quietly.

“Even if you feel safe, never go out alone. There’s about a week left, so I’ll have a telephone line installed at the Harden estate tomorrow.”

What could possibly happen that would require a telephone call?

She simply nodded at his reminder to be sure to contact him if anything came up.

“Yes, I will. Thank you for worrying.”

* * *

A fierce winter wind had arrived that cut to the bone, but unlike the capital Varsen, which had been in an uproar day after day, the streets of Harden on a midwinter night were quiet and beautiful. The streets with white snowflakes drifting through them sparkled all in silver, as though welcoming her arrival.

Adeline had fallen into a deep sleep for three or four hours after getting into the car and woke to find the window frosted over with white. She looked at it and began running through the things she needed to do in Harden in order of priority. Visiting her mother’s grave was of course important, but she had something just as pressing.

First of all, I absolutely must get a prescription for contraceptives before I go back.

She kept her body facing the window and only gently shifted her gaze forward. In the front seat of her car sat the driver and Tanya, and in the car following directly behind rode three attendants responsible for her safety. Five people in total. Getting past five pairs of eyes and making it to a doctor without incident was the most important thing of all.

Tanya is one thing, but how am I supposed to shake all the others……

Adeline was busy racking her brain, fretting inwardly, when the car glided to a stop in front of the main gate of the Harden estate.