Chapter 165
“I’m going to Linden.”
The voice was impeccably elegant.
At the sudden declaration, the cutlery that had been scraping the last of the sauce from the plate came to an abrupt stop. Wyatt looked up and down at his niece, as if doubting what he had just heard.
“…What did you say?”
“I said I have business in Linden.”
Despite his sharp reaction, Vanessa answered calmly. She lifted her glass and took a slow sip of water before continuing, before her uncle could mistake her composure for defiance.
“I’m thinking of paying the Duke a visit.”
The word Duke made her breath tremble slightly at the end.
Fortunately, Wyatt didn’t seem to notice.
Rather, he appeared momentarily irritated that his niece had expressed an opinion of her own, only to have that irritation checked by the weight of the word Duke. The tension drained from the hand gripping his cutlery.
“……”
Wyatt narrowed his eyes and fell into silence. He didn’t even bother asking the obvious questions, how or why she intended to meet the Duke.
Vanessa calmly cut a piece of trout on her plate and continued,
“Before it’s too late.”
“…Too late?”
“The Navy’s summer leave is ending soon. If I take the morning train from Bath Station, I should arrive in Linden by evening. I’ll take Mary with me so you won’t have anything to worry about… of course, if you permit it, Uncle.”
As she spoke at length, the hostility in his expression softened noticeably at the word permit. It was the result of years spent ensuring she would never even consider disobedience and he seemed quietly pleased by it.
Wyatt tapped the table lightly with his fingers, as though calculating something. After a moment, his expression eased, his decision made.
“A train? Nonsense. I’ll have a car prepared, take that instead. Mary is needed to assist the butler, so bring another maid. If anything changes, report it immediately by telephone.”
Vanessa looked at him steadily. The fact that her uncle found nothing strange about this situation sent a chill creeping back into her mind.
“…Thank you for your consideration.”
“In that case, I’ll write a letter for you to deliver to the Duke. They’ve been avoiding my calls anyway—this works out well. When do you plan to leave?”
“Right after the meal.”
“Harold!”
At the ring of a small bell, the butler waiting outside entered at once.
“Prepare the car immediately. And the driver.”
Vanessa smiled politely at Wyatt and thanked him again. Then, using preparations as an excuse, she excused herself and quickly left the table.
The moment she stepped out into the empty corridor, the nausea she had been holding back surged violently.
Her lips trembled as they went cold.
Gripping the banister, Vanessa struggled to steady her breathing. A wave of revulsion at the situation followed, but she forced it down.
“Nice to meet you, Miss. I’m Emily.”
The maid replacing Mary looked barely fourteen—thin, almost frail. Vanessa noticed the grime still clinging beneath the girl’s fingernails.
Newly hired servants were usually more loyal to her uncle. It seemed Wyatt had decided Mary’s surveillance alone was no longer sufficient.
“The horn’s sounding. I think everything’s ready.”
At the girl’s prompting, Vanessa picked up the small handbag she had prepared in advance and made her way downstairs.
The car waiting outside wasn’t the old one—it was a newly purchased, modern vehicle. There was only one reason he had so readily provided it.
‘To impress the Duke. To dress me up like a gift and drive up my price.’
It was a harsh thought—but not an inaccurate one.
Vanessa accepted the letter from Harold and stepped into the car. Soon, it pulled away smoothly. The maid dozed off once they left Bath, and the driver, Almon, was a man of few words to begin with.
Thanks to that, she finally had the quiet she needed to sort through the thoughts she had been desperately holding at bay.
