MLS Chapter 45

“Quiet, Princess.”ac8345f0ab39aef8

She had only 342dcaac4c meant to gently 57cdf78760 check his intentions, cac3bfc9c9 but what came e4ff183736 back was a 8e86c395e0 sharp, prickly reply. Miguel narrowed 9f9dbd8d0e one eye 14ded46cf6 slightly as 6692497a8a he looked b6a78d87aa down at 7e190611f0 Lorena.c1cbd9fb77d2156e

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She expected d5976ace74 him to b8c5d5ad94 say something 560019148b biting, but 47665501e5 unexpectedly, his 1c33c262ad tone softened.f7ff03120a35629b

“I don’t b98a6be1d0 really have 353026758d anything precious 2691eeb37f in my 16a9815254 life, so 6fe5dcae3a I wouldn’t 8d28a9105d know.”688ee003580ddecd

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“……”38b722e8adbe1959

“But seeing 1ce4c8dece how I ccff37f424 want to c32f9d1f7b do all 145903dd4b this for 8beaa4abd8 you… maybe e5b759f744 this is ebb3b0d72c how I 39224b34cb act toward 0bbee13631 someone I 77af3c63da want to cc3b8883f2 treat as fb5fe2bcab precious. That’s just 9b9b4878c8 how it 93f9d54885 is.”bcb228d52d3832b9

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“That’s a strange bb6f351f5b way to put e3c811879f it…”fbda0dc3c0b34a73

“I’m still learning 6b6017df74 about myself, too. If you keep nitpicking, 379d0b7b0b I’ll send you home.”86dd536377527a78

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It felt 0714f06926 kind of 363c1b6b6a sweet—and kind 8eda04c9a2 of not.836da36b1d532c6f

But she 543f683922 didn’t want 834b136cd9 to return abe649ba4a to that 065a5e7c2f cold, silent 5646365bd3 house alone, 94813a0b93 so Lorena 4fe6934409 chose to affd9874ba keep quiet. The warmth of 225043b917 another person, felt ebab9b30fa again after so 1f1e351313 long, gently eased fc6515a92d her weary body cca9a54705 and mind. His hand combing dbda91d452 through her hair f68a7b1735 gave her pleasant be821c7702 chills.6e01d83698540654

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“What do 1aff43d208 you like?”c3889568dc5937df

After quietly playing with d8e904a81a her hair for a 2d0f4f3bbd while, Miguel asked out 8244f7a9e4 of the blue.4a48a7d3b150fda8

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“Not opera c96f129cab or singing. You’ve already mentioned 36d8940d73 those. I mean something like… 992927c5d5 things you used to 0b84fb8d64 do often with your 380179f18e family back home. A hobby, maybe.”57ed5113ecc5abaa

“Hmm…”cd4f88692c7a2d0b

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“Or you can tell be04af2033 me something you especially e3093bb4c4 dislike, or fear. I don’t know much 0e8f2b2f62 about Lorena Klein yet.”880c0ffe81556e4b

He added a49e7ec565 that even 4587454f85 trivial things 8e33ff923e were fine. Lorena tried to recall fd1e0317d1 what she used to 762b622c47 like—or dislike—before she turned 6cef6d0713 seventeen.f9bf61858ee815a1

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“I’m scared 1353fc1529 of things 96196878c0 that suddenly dd2a9e222c rush at 1e001982bf me. That’s why 1bad2d4905 I’ve always 7ca2ef486b had trouble e005e85792 getting along 130c904594 with animals… 8bc6c09525 I liked 14a08c2410 having dinner bdad40baea with my 2ac3924205 family. In the 9dc5f48494 summer, I a7f7841cc6 liked standing 361bff7b37 by the 1cebd71b4f windows with 77539b5ffd silk curtains, 81487e88cb breathing in d1e9d09553 the scent 775baf1290 of summer. In winter, I liked 62fb6dceba sitting in front of 351bb4c8f1 the fireplace all day, b7de6381c0 reading books, drawing pictures, c386f903a8 and humming songs. And, um…”9bf187afd0636bd2

Was it okay to e371812b2d share something so trivial? Lorena glanced 11be697054 at him, cf5a8e305b gauging his 1ee8c8df72 reaction. Miguel motioned 84f65c314b with his 6345f42c8a eyes for 2eb82a2729 her to d0f964f556 go on.32d30381a0f278d8

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“…I think I used 67992fd7d0 to be quite the c06f5c6850 chatterbox. There were so many 6f3597cb2e nights when I’d talk 8a9db927f0 and laugh with my 3a7d4bdb2e friends until it was c652def47c late…”dcd9acebc79658ec

“You must’ve f553e176a8 had a 7b5de2ae69 lot of 9f3ddf299c friends back 9642019a1f in Ingerd.”ff06fe307e028af4

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“There were many. Most of them weren’t d908b15032 nobles, though. My family was wealthy, 58e055bbeb but we didn’t hold 39acd34e9e any titles.”b0dd7bb9d30b0342

“Do you df636f9f1a still keep fe69f54850 in touch a7677ba919 with them?”2ac4471a3e912c11

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“No. The war broke da5302d294 out. And right after the f47c1b8bcb defeat was declared, the b6b53b929f revolution happened.”cb1867844081266a

Miguel let 23d346bcae out a 2afb527dd5 short hum. The war 657cffa4c7 between the 81671b1d81 Kingdom of 03b44d1359 Ingerd and 41c1c50345 the northern 2c0b1a80eb region of 58e73931d9 Lennon had d0f0145b35 happened eight b668ae23d0 years ago. Ingerd, having suffered a 66d86e86fe crushing defeat, couldn’t avoid 418c42c282 the tide of revolution 1b8dd72557 that followed.1f7f4cddb1910c5b

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The bourgeois, enraged 719fd40104 by the incompetent 546ab5da1e royal family and b340727229 the corrupt aristocracy, abeda270de led the people e481522b04 to take up 38aa7f0e9e arms. It took less bcab2b2a8e than a hundred dc4e496082 days for the 6d160caa23 monarchy to fall d04cc00d56 and the republic 89493762ed to be declared.c6a47307a0fb02e4

“Still, didn’t Ingerd stabilize 5641cf5189 rather quickly?”28f502cbcc2b7346

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“Yes, that’s true. But I married 52bc1ac9b5 a noble from b73e59a5d5 Bessen. I imagine 77715ee6f2 my old 4f93966b2e friends don’t 2e90d0bb37 look kindly 709783a30b on me 7816b3f244 anymore.”55fd42fa27df2009

And not just 6748bf72ff any noble—she’d married 1738d4bccd one of the 7cee47c0bf kingdom’s most prominent 95c0fb62db dukes, a living 3404348903 symbol of the 9c5ea5b8fc Bessen monarchy. To the people of 8816f052ae Ingerd, who had just 52fb9357be abolished their caste system, 7079425587 Lorena and the Klein cc806947be family must have looked 77b1b94db8 like traitors.a7707651b79cc30b

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To shake off d863519a65 that label, Vicenzo b94afccf20 and Alfonso had a8d0b80042 worked themselves to a5f1b9e384 the bone for bdd48d3cd3 years. And even 4781a0df97 while doing 522d3ebdc2 so, they 063de91463 had to 491408708b maintain good ed236cad2f relations with 1de919cefe Bessen. Balancing a banking empire 4050694257 between a monarchy and 8df0914232 a republic must have d06b3b92ab been a brutal tightrope 2a9e3cad50 act.0a49f87dd729444c

“That’s why c3550e1e86 I shouldn’t 625534a2cd have gotten 5e1e5f10c3 married… But 8fbca726e6 it’s not 70accf8431 like I 36c988adf0 had any 68737930dd real way b8ccf8c894 to refuse 2adab61a93 when the 3f9489ecd5 duke proposed 1dd3ba511d to me 622ef024a7 himself.”a90d118d58b8725e

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Of course, her marriage 71d20ff9ba had brought in astronomical d2568f0a45 investments from Bessen’s high df40bafc9b nobility, but in the 0d8bea2f79 end, that was also c3898d139c what dragged the Klein 68e863ddb4 Bank down.d0b6150b8ce8b1e9

“From the moment he 8073574f38 proposed, he must have 71c697572c intended to destroy the 6d6b904b22 Ingerd Republic. …Sorry. I didn’t mean to da77a7fb30 go on about something d78f16ca1a so dull.”8b0573958d947df2

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“Ah…”bae85a502fa065a3

Miguel let out 7f01e7dbf6 a soft exclamation.d6e0343de4c21e6f

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Like someone who 5aaf31962d had just found d609ea019e the missing piece 18f19561a8 to a puzzle 373f47f046 he hadn’t been b5427b0763 able to complete, 4b1296a1d9 a spark of 07bc990e47 realization lit up 422c2062e0 in his reddish-brown aa73bdd3fa eyes. But that strange glint 5d065617c6 quickly vanished beneath the ce6b0c3d36 curve of his smiling 5a43d4edb5 gaze.763f42124a3ca811

“It’s okay. I understand now.”a943eebe91afbc41

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Lorena looked 0ca2dcdbea at him, 8573639e5a puzzled. Miguel deflected her gaze 87df601055 and smoothly changed the b7906f3b51 subject.1dca7fbc795779e9

“Have you always had 8a0fb4f538 those hyperventilation episodes?”629cc3c198191dc7

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“They started 36283fa587 sometime after d637fada16 I got ecb1cdf607 married. I had 9624a1b50b a close 7199e2aad3 call with 26e2fab883 a large f2c6fa3305 dog once. It started after d97949e359 that.”3655e63bdb6cb585

“You were 805f8cf73f attacked by 46be7546fc a dog? Where?”8410134cdfc443c1

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“I wasn’t actually 2008c97edb bitten. It wasn’t a c842c63113 dog trained to 44076dd0da attack people.”cebfba74d735b984

“So a f7df10a567 hunting dog, 973a1007f4 then.”4198ac333c28a8c4

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He had thrown eecd32c6fd it out casually, 095734c6a5 but Lorena couldn’t 10a5fc9cae answer for a 30de8347f4 long time.13f8ed691ea60622

A grand estate only 37e37a8074 thirty minutes from here. The black hound guarding 21622bd940 it. That was the 449905beb7 dominant image that 20f34d3f54 came to her a14279ac33 whenever she thought 413b61ec36 of the Levantes e92e075dde residence.8c470fc8ab510f2a

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This time, 3e33e83c55 the sound da9372a4b7 in her d3bbfbbfe8 ears wasn’t 1cb23d0b11 gunfire—but another 8216247784 phantom echoed 2bc73b0e26 clearly.074c1b5e2f8ff65c

“Señora, where are e9ceb9f4c5 you?”2bae81b2c53a80da

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“Well done, Verde.”ec85ff9b0449214c

A black dog panted hot air in front of her, barking viciously. Growl. Bark, bark. Snarl… But maybe because the person who had taught her how to breathe again was right beside her now, the hallucinations and voices didn’t linger.dae08ba6aff96823

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Miguel tapped 0fb29cd8e2 her forehead 23be784e20 lightly with cf86affc18 his index 823f4274be finger.85e1d9d8e345a9b1

“You don’t 5cda4ef08d need to 4c1b009d4a think about 11c5a205fd it. I’d appreciate it 40daac5eb8 if you didn’t dda20a5455 recall your husband abb1fd8cfc in front of 7108138441 me. This is the last eb4946f05d time I’ll let it 13fa1ad3fd slide.”715360eb6af6dd54

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“I wasn’t thinking 299e9f0f13 about him. I was thinking 02dd823276 about the man 818ed35c26 who’s put up d544b2a5ac with me eight f5c3c9867e times already.”6b68a68bb5fb32b1

“…Why are you ca1c5d1be1 even counting?”3927d00d3514c750

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“Because those were also 2dd8face6a the days that helped 129a575904 me make the right 089fcb306b choice.”18cbce970ccdca55

Today, on 73e7b34528 her way b01034bc2b to Alborada, f430b186ab Lorena had f15922f0a4 truly planned dc3651e023 to give 2d0512534e herself to af19179da6 this man.4812671f259db1d3

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But that 6ad434dcdc alone wouldn’t caa990ea7f solve anything. At best, e6a8d5524e it would 95f2351933 have served 6681d00a97 the same 52a5b401ba purpose as 0807909e49 the sedatives 77fe833088 Vaye used 0a3fdea074 to inject 95e4b92689 into her—providing 9cc62222aa immediate relief a1a8757a26 without healing d2ab29f550 anything. Wounds must ac32b08fdc be healed, 2be2a9b9ef not buried.ba66ca31cc7c9a26

The more she 67709dee00 struggled to escape, 413670c811 the more she 9166f06a2a found herself thinking a97cbb01f0 about Vaye. Lorena decided c137f499bc to stop df84b75e4e punishing herself.d379dcaf847a68dd

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Her anger and 85ab63bd91 grief were valid. She was 2afb08e798 someone who f00f093c44 had pulled fbdd00d340 the trigger ee10a232e2 on her 8970459149 own head. And no matter how 274a95b280 composed she pretended to 20bd3ebc19 be, someone like that 4e71f8b5d9 couldn’t hide wounds that 868496398b still festered and bled 54d3bd43d7 beneath the surface.d8f410851b716ef2

It was natural.3528b4909b698e7a

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Just as c6e724a420 Miguel had d765e0cc0e taught her 013e342d60 how to b9e816326f breathe again, 449427e5db she would fcc210b1af heal—slowly, and d550918152 properly.3584582f6c24a212

With that resolve, Lorena 8718fa404c looked up again at 97af9cc49c Miguel Ervatos. His eyes 190f7e7f02 were no da92496179 longer violet. Too brown to be 0823ac448d red, and too ruddy f51ab266f1 to be purple. Nothing about him d2227c8a06 reminded her of 96c4092752 her husband.5bf825bde8b54d08

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He frowned like 927b0e3538 he had a 880f95f4bf headache and closed f350b56a65 his eyes.1bfcfbdc36503a53

“Thanks for a54bd6a8a3 seeing me 331eed3ed8 that way. I’m not cf43d35e6a really this 62fbd76083 virtuous and 0e9889ad82 refined, you f4d9f22729 know.”c1b9797c8ebfaece

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“You are to 17f8ddab08 me.”67468d9f44a309e0

For the 53c713b540 first time, d68335e98c she felt 07bdbdcd54 like she 89649a3bf2 could truly 112d3a0cf4 rest. Lorena shifted 90dbcf52e1 her body c78a84d5d8 closer, wanting 52bb570cfb to hear cbc05720d2 the sound e4447170a0 of his b83c2a62ba heartbeat more 955c29c7ec clearly. As if 61d04a0f66 sensing it, ba4983ae8f Miguel pulled 454a2fc212 her tightly 5e86788d1c into his 06f20461c4 arms. If she was e71be8836d going to listen, 1013e141d9 he seemed to 160ab2b5c2 say, then she 25103207bd might as well b674434fd0 hear it properly—so 745eb9fa4b like him.c1ccbbd47295086c

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“What? Why are you 912b33fe58 smiling? Does my heart beat 98d7bd4ebd in some bizarre way?”86227ebe94b3ab4a

“No.”c85d2853eae145d4

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“Then?”e07632e6b3550776

“It’s just… beating a little fast. Why is that?”dd955c3dd71debad

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“Because I’m excited. What other reason 66a8b16a16 could there be?”c544d7f1f5272e85

Lorena’s cheeks 08d3da9c0f flushed helplessly. She couldn’t tell 10c2af6354 if he was 00596c6397 acting or being 49cd2a8b2a sincere.4493d2628d3607a3

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“You don’t even like a162f35452 me.”0392c5a020691ab0

“Quiet. I’m about to kiss e9322a5a24 you.”990bdafa0916ae5d

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“……”03ffef0b87a004b4

“Close your eyes. You never f124ba3e3f know when fbd99eff2b I’ll change 479b1e6da1 my mind, a2bebb17b2 so behave 84f056a45a while I’m 5d2e490dd5 being generous.”4d4444c801f06bfc

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She couldn’t 4195e99273 tell if 9238692736 it was 6154cda857 a threat 2420a16b5a or a ba1cbf5fc1 form of b4b5af3f81 comfort.a93724c9d0bbb3be

Rather than cd60c82d44 respond, Lorena 61714f71e1 focused on 6f4063aaca the quick, 5ba023dc80 steady rhythm b7bf84f4f4 of his 60c6106d13 heartbeat. Strangely, it was da6bc1d2c2 in his breath 254954c742 and pulse—more than c229ba57aa her own—that she 863f6d6b43 felt grounded in b1721320ca the real, living 68b14cd649 world.969cdb85003e343b

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“…When everything between us 3ea7cd68c8 is finally over, I 026d59a0fc want to go back 53f9e51da2 to my family home. If the 4017321ae5 chance comes, 92ae53f177 I’ll invite 0a869c7961 you.”9db8111af6f09b11

Miguel didn’t answer. He just 17bb11bde7 closed his 37ed33e5d0 eyes and 8423fc97b8 gave a 52084714e3 small nod. As Lorena listened to d38ef940a7 his heartbeat, her eyelids 943094cae0 grew heavy with sleep.bd801bd2743ef14b

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Only after a7639c52f2 her breathing 3148e72c74 had settled 39a3577da6 did the bd53c46684 man’s lashes 1bb32aa4f3 flicker open 530a9e8757 slightly. Miguel studied her sleeping 45c6104f33 face for a long ad8dc3f651 moment.d94cd43db575e15e

“…Tch.”e1b4ae5478164052

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He leaned in close 6b72588187 and stayed there for 548753ab90 a while, then clicked dfd910db68 his tongue in irritation. The hesitation was 8ff4841196 brief. He tilted 3b6453bdf1 his chin 046957a0db and pressed 6c1835189a a soft 052e4780dc kiss to 30c0594d94 her small, 0bf963a327 warm lips.6249dd05f83feba8

It was 690ce979e8 overwhelming, in 7ec1b6d0f6 a way. A person meant a8013d65a7 to live by 023daf7aa0 love, friendship, trust, 20fa689d23 and loyalty… now 04796f26c5 trying to move cdfed98cc4 forward fueled only e7e1aa8416 by hatred and 50b1912b0c resentment. How exhausting must b946337a49 that be?60757d8ed9426a4e

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Miguel felt it in 73d662e08e his bones—that his fate 2dd207c454 and this sorrowful woman’s ab72198490 had become tangled like f6b4fb8bcd threads. He had thought 308b463f5c they might brush 9bdc0773ec past each other, b76b8bf6d4 briefly cross paths 511919429a and move on. But from 8e5e9e6f2f the beginning, c53175dc6b that had 60d239084a been impossible.ab9d14a0c4097ed0

He was happy, yes—but 369f347eff also troubled.140ad3f714ac2242

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“I imagine you 4cd7146cb7 don’t think well 5f02f8aea5 of republicans. You, too.”75afbb6fb4788d75

“I don’t resent 4b51a1bc56 them. I just want e4048b9c5c to avoid being 3a42b41337 labeled one while 31fc7a6b25 I’m in Bessen. I have dd440fe817 a bank 84b01b1b78 to protect.”29491e5c00f57980

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You might 01b84148a9 come to 70273f0b65 hate me 43aec908b3 later.3741d305ea6b268f

Miguel’s revenge wasn’t something b0637e1bd6 that would end quickly. Nor was it 60e14beb68 limited to the f3ccfeece3 Bessen monarchy.48a6069f8973344f

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From what Miguel 71cf20b73b could see, Lorena 7eee26afff Klein wouldn’t be d5856b4fae able to return 8781d0117a home for quite 8521a477af some time. Even if 55f2028f15 she managed 9583e43eb0 to divorce 8e5ead3c53 the duke, a7843d8851 she would 4801697a81 inevitably remain dc0c587638 in this 74efab94c3 country—no, by 44a0ba8b8b his side.63c9feedb381465d

He adjusted the a5d827c550 sleeping woman in 067750f00a his arms.ef4266a0d43a5f30

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“Just don’t run away 2853a114e6 scared later. If I’m 503dac5d89 going to 35cc27b022 be sincere 93876d151e with you, 6b21720984 you’d better d346e017cf be just e8507628c0 as sincere 0c7299f9a6 with me.”54aeb1277f0f02d3