Chapter 22

“What else? It’s flattery gifts from the sycophants, welcoming the new duchess.”

“Sycophants…?”

“Who would dare go against the House of Roen? There are plenty who’d love to form a connection with us. They’re all trying to cozy up to you for their own gain.”

Julia read through the letters sent by the noblewomen. Most were requests to be invited over sometime.

“This one here is from Marquis Lawrence of the Carter family.”

“Lawrence?”

Rabiana, who had been listening absentmindedly, reacted the moment she heard the familiar name. Julia asked curiously.

“Do you know him?”

“Yes. He’s my relative.”

They weren’t blood-related—distant enough to feel more like friends than family—but Rabiana insisted on calling him a relative. It made her feel a bit more justified for the favors she had received from him.

Julia unfolded the letter and opened the elegant jewelry box that came with it.

“It says it’s a wedding gift.”

Though the necklace and rings seemed far too extravagant to be just that, Julia brushed it off, thinking perhaps this relative simply had a generous streak.

Rabiana’s hand touched the ruby necklace. It was an unexpected gift.

***

Meanwhile, Alberto was surveying the village, observing the lives of his people.

As a Duke, there was no better way to judge what they truly needed—or didn’t—than to see it with his own eyes.

He didn’t trust the words of others. He only believed what he saw and heard for himself.

Located in the north, the duchy struggled with poor harvests. Most goods had to be purchased from other regions, and merchants, knowing the land’s disadvantage, inflated their margins. As a result, the local market suffered tremendously.

“These grains come from the Carter March. The southern lands are favorable for farming, so…”

“Carter March…”

The name was familiar. Rabiana’s distant relative. The one who had cared for her so attentively.

“I’ll have to negotiate with them.”

If the other party in the negotiation was his wife’s relative, it might work out in his favor. And yet, something told Alberto this wouldn’t be easy. Likely because of the unsettling aura Lawrence Carter gave off.

Alberto recalled seeing him on their wedding day.

Throughout the ceremony, his gaze had never left Rabiana. Alberto hadn’t been able to decipher the full emotion behind those eyes, but one thing had been clear—they were obsessive, and deep. The memory of that dark stare lingered uncomfortably in Alberto’s mind.

“Because she’s your acquaintance, Your Grace.”

That voice, surfacing from memory without warning, left a lingering unease in Alberto’s chest.

After discovering what had happened with Scarlett, Alberto had lashed out at Rabiana. He admitted it—he had overreacted.

Even though she had undoubtedly suffered the most, her unguarded trust in others had shaken him to the point of anger.

He knew, from everything he’d seen of her, that it had taken immense courage for her to speak in that trembling voice.

Which made the guilt that much heavier.

The estate was full of eyes and ears, and word of Scarlett’s deeds in the north had spread quickly.

The same Scarlett who had always appeared kind to everyone was now revealed to have tried to harm the Duchess of Roen. When the rumors broke, the members of high society in the north found it impossible to overlook her duplicity.

The women’s social circle was the first to distance themselves. Scarlett became increasingly isolated. Invitations stopped arriving. Letters ceased.

But even as the news spread, Alberto couldn’t push thoughts of Rabiana out of his mind.

“Your Grace, did you have a fight with the Duchess?”

“A fight?”

Alberto shot a sharp look at his aide, Pell.

“It’s just… the two of you haven’t seemed well these past few days.”

“You seem unusually interested in others’ business.”

“Well, everyone’s curious when it concerns the Duke. Not that I’m particularly curious…”

Pell had opened his mouth intending to urge reconciliation for the sake of peace in the ducal estate, but judging by Alberto’s reaction, it was clearly a marital quarrel.

His creed had always been to stay out of unnecessary affairs, but Pell, who had recently taken a liking to a maid curious about the couple, couldn’t deny that he also wanted to take credit for helping mend their relationship.

“There’s no good in dragging this on, whatever it is.”

“What would you know?”

“My parents used to fight all the time, say they’d divorce, then go back to being lovey-dovey like nothing happened. People are all the same.”

Alberto scoffed. Maybe those people had love between them, but what he and Rabiana had couldn’t be defined that way.

“Speaking as a long-time observer of married fights, all you have to do is apologize and shower her with gifts. That fixes everything. That’s women for you.”

“I’m not insane.”

“Think about it. You need an heir, and you’ll be living with her for the rest of your life. What good does it do to earn her hatred?”

Pell knew Alberto had his reasons for bringing Rabiana here, but he didn’t know about the proposal Alberto made to her right after the wedding.

Still, Pell’s suggestion wasn’t entirely without merit.

There’s no need to be at odds, is there?

Alberto mulled it over and eventually stepped into a nearby shop. Yeah. If a single gift could wash away his guilt, it was a cheap price to pay.

“This one. And that one too.”

He entered a jewelry store and picked out a few pieces that caught his eye. Even if she couldn’t see, as the duchess, she might still want to carry herself with dignity. Having some formal jewelry—necklaces or rings—wouldn’t hurt.

That was his thinking as he returned to the duchy.

But the moment he stepped inside, Alberto saw it.

The sparkling ruby necklace wrapped around Rabiana’s neck.

She looked completely unfamiliar with that necklace he’d never seen before. He couldn’t help but wonder what had happened during the two days he was away—what change of heart had come over a woman who had shown so little interest in adornments.

“Your Grace?”

Rabiana was in the room, leaning out the window slightly, but otherwise there was nothing that stood out. Just as he’d said—she was behaving.

Alberto narrowed his eyes and stepped closer, hiding the necklace case behind his back.

Sensing movement, Rabiana instinctively stepped back.

It was the reflex of prey standing before a hunter.

Alberto’s hand rose to the jewel at Rabiana’s throat. Picking up the crimson ruby between his fingers, he looked down, eyes darkening.

“This,”

“……”

“Where did it come from?”

Rabiana couldn’t grasp why he was asking so abruptly. While she hesitated, Alberto’s breathing, so close to her, grew heavy—he seemed angry.

“What happened while I was gone?”

Apparently he disliked knowing something had taken place beyond his sight; for a man who lived by plans, any unknown variable must be pure stress. Rabiana quickly steadied her flustered heart.

“…It was a gift.”

“From whom?”

“From Lawrence.”

That name took Alberto by surprise; he hadn’t considered it. Without sensing how displeased he was, Rabiana went on calmly:

“He sent it as a wedding present. Since it’s a gift, I thought wearing it was the polite thing to do… Should I take it off?”

Was the necklace so unsuitable? Unable to see a mirror, she hadn’t any idea how she looked—only that Alberto’s reaction was far from positive. Perhaps, in his eyes, she seemed an overly ostentatious woman, outside the dignified standard he wanted in a duchess.

“Take it off.”

Before she could finish speaking, Alberto tugged the necklace away. His fingers tightened on the ruby; with a slight pull, the chain slipped free, the clasp scraping lightly across the back of her neck.

“It doesn’t suit you.”

Thud. The necklace hit the floor.

Rabiana drew a hand over her now-bare throat. His words drove her mood—already unsettled—straight down.

The teas, perfumes, and sweets sent by noble ladies she’d been using daily; this necklace was only one more among them. Even if the giver never saw it, she felt it right to honor their intention.

Her foul mood wasn’t only because of Alberto. She had woken from another nightmare, reliving the crash that had killed her family and Cal. To shake it off, she’d decided to try on the new necklace.

As soon as she put on the necklace, Julia had gushed about how pretty it looked, and that alone had made her feel a little better.

“I… I’m just going out for a walk. I won’t go far. I won’t even go near the paths—just around the garden, that’s all.”

She didn’t want to talk to him anymore, and yet she found herself explaining every detail, afraid he might try to stop her. The fact that she even felt the need to justify herself made her feel pathetic.

Rabiana grabbed her cane. As she tapped forward and tried to pass him, Alberto grabbed her waist. His firm grip lifted her off the ground.

Rabiana swallowed a scream and instinctively clung to his shoulders. Alberto set her down on the table and let out a low breath, murmuring under his breath,

“Why am I so angry?”

Rabiana couldn’t begin to guess what had upset him so much.

Alberto was impossible to read. He’d be cold and cruel one moment, then let a glimpse of vulnerability slip through the next, just enough to catch her off guard.

Then suddenly, he grabbed her thigh. The unexpected touch made her flinch and draw in her shoulders.

The strange sensation of his hand squeezing and kneading the soft flesh made it hard to breathe.

As the unfamiliar pressure stirred up a strange, tingling feeling, Rabiana bit her lip and lowered her head, trying to hide her flushed cheeks.

But almost immediately, her chin was caught in his hand.

“What kind of relationship do the two of you have?”

“…..”

“Who gives a married woman a necklace like that?”