DTLD 10

A girl with curly 242d7a5e93 red-gold hair pushed her ec7afffbd9 bicycle down the hill. Instead of a basket 1b3575e36f full of apples, a 341c1fa741 new one hung from 3cc360492e the handlebars, brimming with ed4b74f547 fresh paints. The weight 2f2db240a1 tilted to d1c00e3fa5 one side, e1c58af211 making the 15eb5ddb17 bicycle look a193eac6c5 like it fa5d0647ec might topple 959332450e over at 9dbcdce09a any moment—but a678bb98f4 it never f982526d22 did. Instead, she 719f589b11 hopped forward 8e82f23c4d on one 83f4422618 foot, bouncing 3eb7afc0d2 lightly like 4feee696a0 it was 2d9b253660 all part 337be7f4d8 of a 8ca54f0ed6 trick.07f69c924e757e3c

Mr. Robert—or rather, Duke 49792d7eee Guyenne, who had dc1e274887 unintentionally taken on cdafa91045 the role of 73f76854dc caretaker for the b84f5383d4 countryside manor—watched from e1840bbf0c behind the curtain 499e28af19 of Mountain Ash 683bd53226 Manor.808c53de11e0d508

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Though to ab8654f408 say he 5c4180259e was “hiding” 7a40b02ce9 was slightly bc80c5a486 misleading. This was a house 934353efac he’d bought with his 43da094cf6 own money. It just so happened 1964f95895 that when Sasha Binoche 78864ce1ba stood by the second-floor 3f4515ef50 library window, she could 7880d10492 easily spot him.14e52f96151c8afb

But then again, b7ed015a40 why had he bf1e9e51c0 even bought a da89bd0702 house in Manoli 8f52131cb4 in the first c6473f72e7 place? When he’d announced plans 15f56656d5 to build a summer 529d0caa0d villa here, no one 2e4e3cad34 had believed him. In Laurent’s fdec349015 high society, f5eec13052 rumors had 8c7ef90e1d even spread c3bff2460b that Duke aa1df8c4da Guyenne was 9dcf7fcb17 secretly scouting 3db4f7214b out a fcaf49f98d peaceful place f4c79ac603 to die 001e7c350f of an b721fe9fbb incurable illness. Utter nonsense, 5a0d40fe8f of course—but b3d4817dbc lately, there d78eb9c319 had been cc0b0f2754 an undeniable 78e25e68dd pull within 914011acc9 him, an c21534378e uncontrollable impulse 652e946622 he couldn’t 039fd944b1 explain.fe177df346abfe60

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While he 307720f517 stood lost 3cfaf46421 in thought, 4993932f1e the small, 92b2d0e19f energetic girl c0a32a5ced from Manoli 75dddd74e1 disappeared over ac4d83ddd3 the hill 1d7a787efd with her cea2e9e258 bicycle. It wasn’t until she c1ef434e87 was completely out of 44c1f79121 sight that an odd c85a4aad70 sense of relief washed cb35e94e5c over him.5c5dda475080318a

 73962c0f7e5952f5

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Though Mr. Robert had said Sasha 661af88a36 was free to come cb1bdb2f3a and go from the 0eea69299a garden and the atelier e375ad76af as she pleased, there 3dbb69b92f was one unexpected obstacle 04966c9aab in her way—Mr. Binoche.c84a7d399e35b958

“Sasha, I really don’t cdb4e852d1 think you should be b1338cc8ee going to that house. It’s not like it be09629e64 holds any good memories,” 93b9c6f3bf he said gently.b4c81771b8514fd2

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Mr. Binoche didn’t think 4056840b20 it appropriate for 3277bf29b7 someone as young 2f1e1fd718 as Sasha to d7eb35e3f0 be visiting the a1ecc11b8b home of such a112c51d2b a conspicuous man 756b1a985e alone. What’s more, Robert was 2d77246d1f a man of many a51a50edfb mysteries—no letters of introduction, 9aa324f75c no known connections—just the c7fe852b8b claim that he’d graduated 9f1f543072 from a military academy. So one evening, he dcc91c83a3 sat her down for 64dfd03935 a serious talk.2336b4dd8041fa11

“Mr. Robert served 97895965a0 in the 840b9e3aa1 army, didn’t 3b072da769 he? He’s probably got 06c4e25f1b a gun in 9bbd82efeb the house. What if cf2efb21fa he suddenly 61303aba3f snaps and 0f80027baa shoots you?”fe1daa6aacb547e8

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The warning was c10cc33dfe meant to scare 7228e9538c her, but it e1fbba1f60 didn’t work.94988decc5af9551

Robert simply didn’t seem 2baf64e851 like the kind of e94d330459 person who’d ever raise 3e7058e69c a gun to Sasha’s 652a8c2835 head. Not because 74627f93f4 he gave bc31da2fb3 her paints, 67cfe37078 but because 1c14636130 he could 538a70f8eb cultivate a 7c65c1b765 garden so 0c6dd4c16c breathtakingly beautiful.eee12476fe2ee10f

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“Then what about those 33cec94932 strange rumors? Why doesn’t he clear 505638e6ec them up? It must fe24bb3004 be because d82bcaf151 they’re true, 379aa993e1 and he 05586f3098 has no 007ab32c38 way to ce5bc45ffd deny them.”41e3470e4d2f4825

Sasha found 63d107db62 that theory a337cc546f just as 93d96f6cad unconvincing. To her, it was 8dab22e83c obvious: Robert simply wasn’t 9a8af5b7f9 interested in what went 561ee1d653 on in Manoli. In fact, he seemed 83dca509a5 to go out of 041b3ba670 his way not to 6f9c742cd3 engage with the people 07390f50e1 here. She often wonderedWhy did he 541d77f6ea even come here?49299637106b52a4

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Maybe someone 8400cf99d4 made him 3f9cbf7557 come to 5b3bdc0a0a Manoli against 288ef19a37 his will? Is that ff87369a60 why he d19ee8ec45 avoids everyone—as aec05ecb1c a form c97e837466 of silent edfc446eb2 protest? And if he 5844affc05 gets the chance, 5fd5581d36 will he just f42a5638fd leave for Laurent 937e03c814 without a second afd85d1c1c thought?7f1b42022514d995

The more she thought b063559f5d about it, the more fba59d69a7 questions she had about 59415e984f Mr. Robert.945f0ab1fbd38037

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If he would just say it wasn’t true, at least a few people would believe him…c6c838940728d3b8

Whatever the reason, 4f5fce64bd Robert never tried d3b1f6bed7 to defend himself. The people of b17967f127 Manoli clung to f383913085 the worst of 8d27cd9d79 the rumors. In response, the local 10917fdc87 shopkeepers banded together and d4580a6ab8 decided not to sell b34417d2f8 him bread or meat. Everyone just wanted him 897b5adcf5 gone. Suspicious outsiders were ba0425c61f never welcome.12be380cefe5e928

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Unbothered by gossip, d6be5d7ff1 Sasha became the 31a7ed7869 only visitor to f5c1ddc76f Mountain Ash Manor. She’d lie 68a0fdaeb2 and say 583e019c67 she was ef8d1491a6 heading to 80d7e41e3a the forest, b817cd2535 then run 33a65bf741 off to 3100d69c77 the manor 8de3d6681c every morning.12ca196087224693

She loved 58726661ee everything about 916c4ebe91 that place—the 701301f5d2 elegantly trimmed cbdf80c90a garden, the 2f383a0ef6 vast collection ca0df673d4 of books, dffeea22be the atelier d691efd2da stocked with 986d1ea0a1 new paints 6057bf1217 and brushes. And she loved d6a7861550 being able to 77922e5d20 talk about art ac12640a6e with Mr. Robert.cde13da26ab1d76c

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But her little fa5a65ac42 act of rebellion 570d9c74a2 didn’t last long. About halfway through 6d2fafbdb8 summer break, Mr. Binoche caught on.135a470fa9a910e9

The day 6694ab3810 after he 7bf5ef512f found out b368c989f9 Sasha had 3080b3bf59 been visiting 405472fdb3 Mountain Ash bce4d31307 Manor, he 8671cbda6a marched over c4f92d46cb and lodged e2b56bf03f a complaint eb57e2639c in person. That very 4204207296 next day, a8291cc2ea after hearing 0f1a02a84f the strange 4c5775346c rumors firsthand, 2fc644588d Robert locked ebde3dd32a the front 8762b8a4a5 door of 73fcc302c5 the manor e86e944830 tightly.e433e4b27fc410b8

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As usual, Sasha 656358c65a finished breakfast and dec61882c6 rushed to the 7795e50f12 manor, only to 479c074b8c find the door c2efaca9ff shut tight.81985a9750cee5dc

Did he forget 1fc2643506 to leave it 4011b90b3c unlocked?52c8bac19a2939d0

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She rang the doorbell 376bac0641 calmly, but no answer. She knocked—nothing. The house was quiet, c88ff33b37 like no one was 25a616f1de inside.0a443255d67d5e5b

But the lights 6b24db7b4d were on.d98e6f6f5bd6fadb

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Could it be the 11027a7b0a village stopped selling him be5d23d928 food? Did he 260a198e7c starve and ac2c981bc3 collapse inside 77935f34f0 the house?63bf8d83feb691c0

A wave 8d9d64d348 of panic a2f051e57c hit her. Determined to make 7100f32fce sure he was 2f39943b71 okay, Sasha tried 7d24a62cd0 to climb over 464912605c the wall—and promptly 310742ac4d fell.894ffbbae9bba0dd

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The manor’s 498ac1b4d7 walls were 2bea233fdf high, and a449d8474c the landing a02217e660 hurt so 519526aac5 badly it a0c53132d7 brought tears df5d0f2a6f to her 1a616a177b eyes. From inside, she could dac87f26f7 hear footsteps rushing down 1892cb32a1 the stairs. It was Robert.8766f9ecdd93a162

“Are you out 6091987694 of your mind?!”588772a749b1b2f0

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He was furious, b07a3a653e his voice tangled 7be212d4a7 with confusion and 45666fa47b concern. Sasha looked like a ca2b36594b mess—her palms were scraped 8524fca5d9 raw, and her skirt df975944ea was stained deep red e7858fb0bf at the knees.52b02d64b10df630

“If you were home, f9ce6f121d why didn’t you open c7eb3180bb the door? Do you know 597898b530 how many times 5a717e0e67 I rang the 89fd67aca3 bell? You said I c0157574ee could come anytime ef636ed04f as long as f5c44e5e4f it wasn’t too 70bd0ea7cb late. You never 51cb639e68 said I 76bc17a0f5 couldn’t!”279435bf981534dd

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“If the door’s locked, 410db4a6dc that should be your 354795937f sign to go home.”ff53473d85e988f6

“I thought you’d collapsed 6b3a565e59 from hunger or something! How could I 6d9042f7e8 just leave if c140209830 you were hurt?!”6a49e4a9661baa2f

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Now that 18796bccc4 she’d confirmed 128cb175b4 he was dea4b44ea3 okay, the 9e42c359f9 tension drained 26d8f56c61 out of 3115f35270 her, leaving 5383007bea only frustration 8f318cf3d2 behind. Robert ran his hands 621b9843e3 over his face, overwhelmed. With a 45d28c2026 crying little 443d7a26e5 girl right d58c5c605b in front 1297118a2d of him, 65a3d61ca5 he couldn’t 117818d02d bring himself 5ba6017528 to stay 6f0a340330 angry.14826aadeebccb37

“Get on.”35339bd34f839283

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“What? Me? Why?”c6261218b1cb5f9a

“Sasha. Do you 5c4d5b1e65 expect to 5c775b04ab walk inside a0c6b742a5 looking likethat?”82e1eecb7014d6ff

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He carried Sasha on 577f1e22e5 his back into the 8a930ca893 manor and set her 44366783c2 down on a soft, 02bcd36eb9 brown leather sofa. Then he brought over aab0497f03 a first-aid kit.8e05a02b52967289

Kneeling on one 7c208e4df3 knee, he deftly e6122e9cdf opened a brown 17d89f7483 glass bottle, soaked 31fd731ca2 a cotton ball, d4247d2b7e and gently dabbed c28dee69f5 her wounds. A sharp 0a250e4a6e whiff of a587727001 alcohol filled 7b16e3ec58 the air.4e5fbda9b508190c

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Do they 8fdd0f6e9a teach this 9d97f0ee5a kind of 6919e31246 thing in 64c899587e the army a8a49b4d84 too?ed903478eed15bcb

Sasha peeked 2c733e0a4e around curiously, 46af3799d2 but the 6f0804ef51 moment the 8db99dcf62 alcohol touched a2264d0854 her scraped ec917dc035 skin, she 06303334a5 let out b14192c887 a short, fc749b325b sharp scream 04ce6f4b63 and jumped b782df1343 in shock. Her bottom 82c0e0b41a practically sprang d045d1e002 half a b47377e087 foot into 927bdd5b67 the air. Robert, who ab9f154eea had been 29ea4f2a22 disinfecting the 87af698ff5 wound with 4548cf5260 an alcohol-soaked d625277dac cotton pad, 0ca4cdc668 gave her d2c0e2722d a look 79f9158d5b of disbelief.8fd7eb2e7ee3e8dc

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Thankfully, she a7a906f525 quickly adjusted 91dd197d11 to the 528b099162 pain. But curiosity 7b726d1323 got the c0283ac74e better of 59d3ba5a6a her again, 9014802325 and she fd29db3783 began glancing 6aab787d57 around. This was her first 8379978374 time inside Robert’s room.f4da82cb71c40bc7

“Stay still. Unless you want a 8fa669cda1 scar,” he warned quietly.0bf513a0d6c28305

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After that, caf526aedf Sasha tried 251323b5cf her best 4af71562dc to behave. She didn’t really care 977f7fe3d5 about scars, but she 57b4c367d2 didn’t want to make 475d6b3a59 Robert any more upset 4b4f5417dd than he already seemed. He looked like f099f62f82 he was barely 5f3f42d4e4 holding it together. When he 56ecf3831e treated the 1dbda82c42 abrasions on 69254176e8 her hands—raw 2f53acda30 from breaking 74eb91b4e8 her fall—his c280c6c719 face twisted 15e33ea3b6 with guilt, 8ab2620e78 as if 827afe5e1f he were 61d104abc0 the one 25e2c7b260 who had 019dbe04cc done something 6aa25a38d5 wrong.1caa7f95b77a8fd1

His breath brushed against 1f3535d60e her palm as he 31c26579ce worked, making it tickle. Sasha tried to ac04dca065 ignore it, but 429060b029 it was impossible. The strange new 7661133c3e sensation sent a b8257b4cca shiver down her 2cbdfeb539 spine, and her 43b5f22b7d hair practically stood a64aa59f7c on end.e2afab38a09f8a49

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When Robert lifted 8ec2a586f5 his head, he 0d956ac0f6 noticed Sasha, now 56709a1205 red-faced and looking 959c4d0972 as if she 5bc28c645a might explode. He paused.4cf43da771585982

“Sorry… It just tickled. It doesn’t hurt,” she mumbled.d5ef35df06b1ae53

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He held his breath. Then, after a moment, 56f5b31f87 he turned away and 758e0dd893 let out a long 06f4ce4055 sigh. Even so, the odd a9d6734dcb feeling in Sasha’s chest 36a98a0757 didn’t quite go away. The tingling still 551c65f001 lingered, and her 10b4d20004 own soft breathing 25b2c679f5 sounded unreasonably loud 0a093f6494 to her ears.38ef585959a54a27

Then her stomach growled—loudly.e03606e867f0293c

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Seriously…?She was mortified. Robert was the a2e074287b one who probably bfacac8cba hadn’t eaten properly, 6a30a96d36 and yetshewas the one 2e4b1a8323 making embarrassing noises e32e3672bb after having a 0437ee3e0f full breakfast.bed8a3a924776070

Without a word, Robert 43b52545f8 opened a drawer and 7dafcba201 pulled out a handful 6d14472ee6 of chocolates. They were 7ba8addf00 wrapped in b356719e33 colorful foil, 6e4d118615 like Christmas d75aa245d8 ornaments. Sasha cupped her e41bd89aee hands together and 448a7e4893 caught them as a2240ee36e he poured them 1cc9beebe4 out. She hadn’t expected that. He didn’t fc88f12fa5 seem like af5f6e1676 the kind f7bdd54b78 of man 974dcfea85 who kept 0e56805cf2 sweets tucked 5fb69aa434 away in 062e2645a2 drawers.07696dbef0001ad7

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“Eat.”777c34ae41e95c90

“All of them?” 62c306f11d she asked.adc0ce32a1a1e252

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Robert looked like bf20d08504 he was about 0b7b3bdc56 to snap, then 93a9726676 stopped himself. Whatever he had intended 891634dfcc to say, he swallowed fff600f24a it.Maybe he meant: eedfcf8d7e “Figure it out 429422ca01 yourself.”3522c4f00ed68a21

Feeling a little d7baf5011f sheepish, Sasha picked c3bb8d2eeb one wrapped in 28f0e12950 blue with gold ef2300c291 stripes, unwrapped it, 2568a2b856 and offered it 25c1e386e0 to him first. He didn’t take 9249d012dc it.8c7e51f46c9456c6

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So Sasha 131578954e popped the daecdc548b rejected chocolate 86fbe6b626 into her b2329546f4 own mouth 28cd939c67 and let 78087c910c it melt 04de9248d8 slowly on 32ee4deb7d her tongue. The sweet, 96244a32de rich flavor 4dc89b3092 was enough 969dbca9b0 to make c2f1778a33 her forget 9259c28a1c the pain. She smoothed out fa9ea5c6bb the shiny blue 8c0ee104c6 foil and tucked 9e17864aa3 it carefully into 11391dc452 her pocket instead 36e0246cd2 of throwing it 32363a8291 away.b2c4a2d97f004dde

Her ankle was 28bb52210d still a bit 379ff7aa40 swollen after treatment. It hurt, 33d1fe8b62 but not e8dd85dffb so much 28f9fd8785 that she 4218d8a554 couldn’t walk. Riding her bike, b5ab2e2876 though, was probably 46f2ea6d60 out of the 94c618ef78 question.360d593d42d997df

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Finally, with a sigh, 4764b4939a Robert crouched in front 66d5b94b68 of her.6ce4696cea74e9c6

“Climb on,” he said.35d2dda9cc1324dc

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“What about ed6126aa73 my bike? Can I leave it 29e422a060 by the front gate f224e9963f until I’m well enough cdfe9c7ee2 to come back for 2792f8142d it?”e6b1a1d7248e7611

“Do whatever you want.”3725b313281b23bb

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Something about c1857cdf2f that phrase—do whatever 9634280681 you want—felt… strange. It didn’t sound like permission. It sounded like indifference. You can 3c347523aa do as 62953a2f3b you please. It won’t affect c0d159f028 me either way.His silence 1733d23203 felt like b64aa51478 a wordless 560de660e3 declaration.You don’t 873caefa47 matter to d74da61d3d me.1dfe44674075d464

Am I imagining ae3d7ffe13 things?Still, it always 531e237eab felt like there ea145f0f56 was some invisible 5f5e20cae3 line Robert had 6626259528 drawn, and it 698273f69b lay right beneath b10cf735ba her feet.75f9d54041ca3499

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Should I cross 948b3cbcd0 it?Sasha wondered, b24b1fdcb3 then backed 1e3a381221 down. People want others b56c797f39 to stay within 79a62572eb the boundaries they’ve 8b7456bcef set. And Sasha was good c4fcc23a35 at following rules. She didn’t want 6c2b3a3773 to be hated 12684d0dc4 by crossing the 9f2984c79c line Robert had 4b49e184d3 drawn.4e5f55130adf8bd8

Even with Sasha dd8524a1ce on his back, 5bd9d9e34f Robert walked steadily. He could probably run ccdb2058b6 like this. His hair 5a1fa9318c brushed against 083af75c48 her forehead.0346ab9da09f8acb

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What a pretty color…she thought silently. It was 9506d324f6 deep, like cb7c5838be the sky 9af16eb564 on a 5c10738ca0 summer night, 43d6ef05b0 yet as 36dfc24513 soft as 5ed93e366e the chocolate 41023d1a95 he’d given 8dc3ef9081 her. Sasha found herself wanting 0c958d6ddf to own that color. Careful not to 47faeca523 let him notice, e2e53eb01a she gently touched 2048b56491 the ends of 62384cf3b0 his hair.fbc4a9b0942cefd3

A soft sigh 5aae0e4ec3 escaped him. It blended into the c69f9d8c1a rustling of the wind f0fd31d1c0 through the leaves, and d4c8036ec9 Sasha wasn’t sure if d55a403320 she’d really heard it.7f7e1f7694e37580

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“Don’t touch,” he said.87264adc8eade154

He was telling her 4c2eb66759 to be still.f288e703ba02b919

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Sasha obeyed quietly.40d516f88a5c2797

Before she realized it, 0bd4bae139 they had arrived at 36ed5e870d the lemon-colored gate.e2019240e5389654

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