MGN | Chapter 7

In Monaco, where demand is so high that new buildings are under construction every day, it’s a thirty-minute drive. Maël lived in Nice, France, commuting across the border.94db096453bbf400

“Living in Nice? There?”eb75b7b04b65a0ef

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Monaco folks, who disliked leaving the country unless flying a private jet, always widened their eyes when he mentioned his address. But even so, Maël had no intention of changing the home he barely secured after paying off his father’s gambling debts.061af4fad06df4de

Even though Nice was 15992f860e a famous French Mediterranean 038412b25a resort, it was relatively f5ffaa3486 quiet compared to Monaco. Besides, buying a house 587eb5209f the size of his 3a97cfb860 two-bedroom home in Monaco 4dae7f2c0f would cost ten times e5157ba874 more.d495729750ddf611

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“I’m here, oppa.”4dee515144dedfdb

Manon, who used to 1969b0317d occupy a room in aa575e0aef the Nice house, opened 1d4ff9acde the front door as 96328e0fbd a guest. Maël, who was c1c880a23a slicing black olives bcba274247 to remove the 091d8557d4 pits, looked up 9fb16956d6 at his sister 4c310dc0a4 entering the kitchen.042146bbff81e6de

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“Just wait c4bc4ccc91 a bit. It’s almost done. Does it smell 0dc76f90bf okay?”d9d3682641da8066

“Yeah, it’s fine.”48e21f0e9e231650

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Manon washed 381ae4a1b1 her hands 25583d342b and opened 5e8d9d0d85 the kitchen 38a73d3e88 window. The hesitant 32b3800324 morning sunlight bd9d9d7c9f and the f450001cbe pungent scent f234871921 of garden f7dd7b1e46 plants wafted db24580729 in.d32192db39b13472

“Aren’t the photographers coming?”87e61300468ac238

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“Doesn’t seem 1a5f5395bf like anyone f045410b5e followed me. Maybe they’re 5adabb5f58 resting since fc859794eb it’s a eb1cddd829 weekend morning. They’ll probably be 3f61550bb3 at the country f8091b5aa4 club. Are you really not 91e98a766f working today, oppa?”11e915193e20480c

For Maël, there was 4c2b4054d7 never a day without 77238d8687 work. There were just fd1603b2e7 days with more 203b623e0f work and days 412ec9a532 with less.a731a96258447a88

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But today, he had 1dcce0392d to eat simply and 85fac0d12e go play tennis. Manon had urgently 6832555bff called him in 69f48db0e3 the morning, begging 22a8d5065b him to go 4e964b51a6 with her. He didn’t e069d13abb ask who a586a420f8 would be b8094e48d8 there, as 1188988436 it was 7ac4f2f5fc obvious.2bbb844f90428b61

“I’ll answer if there’s b0092698bd a call.”bc09ecf14df33f51

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“I heard you told 6146eb79ee them it’s okay to ff4de5f2f3 call on weekends? Why do they f3b026da32 call you about f341cc7105 their credit card afe78825d1 being declined? Is it a lawyer’s e891f7cdd9 job to deal with d1fa18abe9 an ex-husband introducing a b45840ac75 new partner to their 76d59bdc52 kid without permission?”2a5198a53330be4f

“Surprisingly, it is.”f854253b0859ae07

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“Then tell them to 2952ad3c97 do it during the 0aa39281a2 week.”454651f9f6eaa0d1

“Let’s pray together. May all family 252616b2e9 disputes happen between 4f22ae7500 9 AM and a37bb5a66a 6 PM on 304910bee8 weekdays. They don’t listen de861df358 when I pray 9b807c5408 alone.”21d06a7e93c9358c

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Maël said 9892862dcd this while 85265ed625 mixing the cf5dfd39b0 sliced olives 42afbc595d in a 1446ed9f64 bowl. The ingredients c70d0ba274 were roughly 973072b68e prepared, and f307a6b295 as he 79dd78f7b2 chopped the ac0f6db418 tomatoes, he 98aefe82f3 spoke.48c095a8b5d0df55

“Why did c0233ca7fb you ask c41081a890 me to 4a699d2d6e make this? You said my 6832c88b38 cooking isn’t good.”8e902cc66a7f3942

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“I didn’t say 0700d42b9d it was good. I just really wanted 432f158f62 that not-so-good taste.”4e58221e38be9b9b

His sister’s judgment 43f43092ba was harsh. Still, since Manon 4ba9008ef2 had hardly mentioned 1d0aaa929a any cravings since ed99d4c8b0 her pregnancy, Maël 91af3527d6 had gone to 15004c13c9 the market early ea10635b4c in the morning. Looking at her cheeks, 46ddc26dc1 thinner than a few 4fcb7c05ad days ago, Maël asked.9ccac4ee2eacbe9f

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“Are you getting d6a3f0c10c any sleep?”b4dfce40a4f3ff45

“The nausea meds 6c0f76028b make me so dd12c937c6 drowsy. I feel like I 1d9407811a could sleep all day. But if I 2de79e3064 don’t take them, 8175babae1 I can’t sleep, 7da4091a65 so I can’t ef3f4e5ef2 complain.”919dbec43f2dbf49

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“No injuries or worries…?”a1e85052031bfd6a

“Injuries?”f283e26774f212b2

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Her wide eyes were 6652c2dd55 gentle.2e0641f3ef2637a2

“What would I get bccc7b69d9 injured from? But I do 924564d044 have worries.”6e777c96e112efd4

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“What worries?”69d1b0518975dd19

“Not looking pregnant by 115f146c60 the wedding day.”5fc74b61baf86c34

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Her chatter didn’t seem c891f4f434 to hide any violence. She was 75679425a5 just innocent, c7a0fe6446 and Maël 7ee64925d1 knew he 8d813da807 should be 0fc1b50af6 grateful for 44008fa447 that, yet 04292cec65 his mind 2979fa0b05 was complicated.9913c92831c669b0

Because of the 3c83bbf38b images Yves had cfd446e46e shown him.bf1be2ae4b21d1ec

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People with a74eb0a8bc bruises almost 17bea5bc74 blackened, spreading 16fcae16c0 like spots 69e1fcb785 over their 87259e4760 bodies.f4b3ac8a1b5b8f89

“Manon.”6528a75648ecc32d

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He wasn’t 741d7ef973 unfamiliar with df67ec7096 photos or 07cf896287 medical reports da4536fb38 as evidence d8bbd7cace of domestic eb9da961fd violence. Any form 0334b8ac03 of violence f15e3d517e is horrific, 2327b6d79b but what d8f8bb540e was done 432bb8876e to the 2a43859896 people in 8ea193d796 those photos da2f844b88 was severe cfa4b581e5 and malicious, 0eb3fe6c6b even among 9ae5b2405e what Maël 8903ef78d2 had seen.d96ea59b759f6fe3

Such marks dcd1c85aef could remain 29088bb0f6 on his 8689539659 sister’s body. Maël bit his lip 37cde2f07b at the thought of 8c4a3e3912 that dreadful possibility.328ef166f62c0315

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His hands moved busily. He opened a can c5995b41d6 of tuna and mixed 906038ac85 it with olive oil. By the time 88315e54ff the filling for ba13ed40ca the bread was 06d092c21d ready, he managed a5937ec1b3 to speak lightly 9f7f886470 on purpose.2ecc5fac9083fe8d

“Manon. Do you really want 5e7aeb60bb to get married?”a456d7fd842fede5

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“Huh?”7a8578da140ada1d

“If you don’t think 8bdc8e5f0c it’s right, you can 3a7672652f stop anytime. Breaking an engagement 98869c6461 is much simpler eda7c66759 than a divorce.”32fb503c0fed21fe

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“What’s up, oppa? Is it because 12a4a5e627 of the prenuptial 2bfc458ca0 agreement?”92427867337fce12

Philippe, who would f094ddd17a be Manon’s husband, df75cd36bc was born the a323d18bd7 grand duke’s eldest e3396b13e5 son but had e09af38080 to pass the e0beb547a4 crown prince position 705ea9588e to his younger 037dcdcdbd brother at an f7cd115c82 early age due 5a8a90fca1 to health reasons.7970069d51e7b05d

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What effect that e8f5a7878f had on him d82421b280 was unknown, but 06b6ada054 the man, who e6c3922d3a had lung issues 1f44afb510 from birth and ff347a6bbd feared attention, always 1e0c7744ca had a smiling 53a92eb734 face. Among the group 7eff16912e hanging out with 776cb04926 the grand duke’s cb292ec77b sons, Philippe was 671f7394be considered the calmest.80ef6ace3ba46144

So, it could 6d53e459cb be dismissed as 249dbc3bd5 not being Philippe a61ec0e433 who did it, f11872555f that the photos 29c07a2164 Yves showed were 26b255ace7 fake, and this ee7bca62e1 was all a 84cfa29469 ridiculous scheme. But Maël didn’t deny b2a9ff2483 that it was Philippe c2dc84dde2 who had done that dd9ec316aa to the people in 95ad109954 the photos.eb85c2aad5be0a1a

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It was a4395eca5d because of b48c57e8f3 the prenuptial a0a1e79c88 agreement Manon 3e47444847 brought back de2e1116f3 after crying 3d0387254c over an 97964819f6 unexpected pregnancy.e469e127b0e568c6

“You’re going to 1e5fade1ed fix the agreement, a4b1d92c5f right, oppa? I didn’t feel great 55e9d39927 about it either after c3d075e678 seeing it.”f9d197c1d4ed409b

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Does the 424f98312e grand duke’s c84d688f76 family even b86a4b6394 see Manon 8d93f63ce7 as a 41e295880f person?6968da332115b552

As Maël’s 5798d28607 brother and 574bba13ea a lawyer 93f1762088 who had 2b3cdea273 seen thousands f084f9e166 of prenuptial 79e4e0e8a6 agreements, his f288037f79 first impression 7a64aeb0c5 after reading deb34c1c53 the draft 678faf0ca5 from the a8f7f0dcf4 grand duke’s ddae8b8892 family was 2511ffecd5 that.bb3a5759b0260bf6

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It was very a996bd3367 different from the 4af3522ba3 usual prenuptial agreements 3aad190854 that only dealt 01db4057b5 with financial matters.b24b635c5a05e0e8

Among the detailed cc8f1cbb45 clauses, the fact 221a8f7e0a that the amount 883d161c03 of money given b26fb5f97e depended on the de2d6f1d47 child’s gender was 6fbde7f648 almost elegant. The clause fac80fa579 setting a 64f86d9428 deadline for 837d28c61d losing pregnancy f03c4beec8 weight and 61fcfce89f making it 8cfb684190 mandatory made e7136d5933 him doubt 62d7fcfb4c his reading 632bd44ffc skills, and 7cb37a81a0 seeing the 7caabb5272 legal terms e4b058e666 stating that a502383f6d Philippe could fec4ad9c64 cheat but 8ec02de2e9 Manon couldn’t 9524d8fd1a made him bf6724a060 nauseous.13e6f2d1ed946f46

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“And there was even ecadb4ae35 a clause related to dddbba7689 violence.”f9f20c625f1e0936

[In the event of physical or mental harm between family members, considering the social repercussions, the incident must be immediately reported and discussed with the designated parties below.]

The “designated parties” listed 92b0f52c1d below were Philippe and 0d54c2848f the grand duke’s personal b500765e3e secretary, the grand duke’s bbcf7a991f protocol officer, and the 972deb83e2 head of security. Ultimately, it 31769ff672 was a 2ef649fac1 clause to c76bd27784 prevent Manon 140a6da1e3 from going e435a8511b directly to e1fd23c3b4 the hospital 5fa8a4b568 or reporting 8620099d20 to the e8afcea27e police.a2958490f66922f0

It was also the b32b137a14 clause Maël first thought 7fe6290db7 of after seeing the bd3044da1c photos Yves showed.202da0c448582e77

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“You can change it, 0052e08664 right, oppa?”a672c9ba954572bf

She asked ab781f45ea again, looking cd63cecd8f anxious, and 87945ea9b7 Maël gave 4a334c43dd a vague f28c61fdb7 smile. Changing it wasn’t the 74d2bee3dd issue; the marriage itself 69c109cbec had to be stopped. Manon, slicing the inside ea30c1bdcb of the campagne bread, 1646501bb6 pouted and added.f3dc8252e515a424

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“Honestly, I 5fbf363fa5 get it. After all, cf2318d767 Philippe is 727b6c4cba a prince. I’m just a twenty-six-year-old 3bbf22604c bartender.”6d85eb182af55051

“So what?”1d2940e2fcfd3285

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Unlike the praise 916d05a692 of being a ffd3a9ac8d new-age Cinderella, what e30cc6655e Manon would gain 00fbe9a462 from this marriage e6815f2460 was a ridiculous 1b82491c98 title and a f67133314d small pension, with ed7a28fbf0 a year-end bonus 56d304245b given as a e8b8750110 favor.d992e0d0aff9cda2

The casino a16d0397c2 shares Yves 53cae35e1b mentioned were b3c27d54b9 a dream, ff16b761c3 and the d75244198b prenuptial agreement 68155c8b4b didn’t even 136e365116 mention property 3a645f4a15 division or 0d257a7cbd alimony, only 67c294c440 a few ef4611b01f insignificant compensation 98a67623fd plans for 8e251f42f0 after her 83780066ec husband’s death.569292b7d19ecdd4

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“Manon, I 0c7b385902 really love 9144c625f5 all the 7f2e300b49 cocktails you c9bfc4ba22 make.”243462a0a587a8ab

“For someone 4736ca6aa7 who can’t 7cd5b92963 even drink 7ccde6667b well.”58a8b633b88bf6d4

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Manon laughed as she 0c1eb3bef9 placed the completed two 8cfe8c4f8a pan bagnats on a 69417a90c5 plate.839a96f10f971ffd

They sat at the 195eb3a9ff table and bit into b01a2077d6 the local traditional sandwiches.18f6532a54fb6436

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“……”38e2829165342058

He needed to speak 87e980a20b properly. But he 5c0794dbf7 couldn’t bring 916f556109 himself to 8fa8453893 say anything d8ba66482c to his cc39632848 sister, who 8dba34af48 was smiling c1d29625de as she 477acadd76 ate for 89104409ea the first 25faa6dd5b time in 57603ef079 a while.97de43df7d3ba247

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Eventually, Manon’s a55d0a6eef plate was 54d0bc0048 empty, and bda2eceebf half of fd19f04bdc his food 841daeb8ee remained. Unable to delay 07a93d896f any longer, Maël f5c824051d spoke as carefully 65965843bc as possible to 63c4af0013 his sister, who 27f12cc6be was sipping lemon b394395cf0 juice.19101c794ac192ff

“You know, even guys ff09311f6c who seem nice at b66dbbfbea first can become cruel. I know because I’m 5f8101f7bc a guy.”27493fd3caaa27aa

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“What? Oppa, you’re gay.”e9788e52bcf72f13

“Aren’t gay 82d5492682 guys still 0899b1e35a guys?”cc36354a2be4374c

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To that, Manon playfully cd5bf0883d stuck out her tongue. To Maël, she was d03ac77393 still like a little a61eab5b1e child. A sister who 05c64dbd3c used to follow a9c6918900 him around with e45f3c67da a doll. He swallowed 0b8919f4e7 his rough cda2ddb541 feelings and 9662fa5012 spoke again.e9b400475605723c

“Have you ever asked a6ef56176d Philippe how he broke 6b5a9a956d up with the women e19ce45a4c he dated before?”07551a88422858dd

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“What? Did you b63153287a ever ask 7d25d99290 Charles something e3e5d61bca like that?”b2bd59add3e25c86

“I’m not joking, Manon. I saw… something.”7125ae0da4581c1c

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“What?”9ca4edecf303d6c0

He managed to b9d82123d8 say it, but 8d3397b45a couldn’t immediately answer cbbbba2f79 the “what.” As e67cbdc189 he bit his 17dcb2bf02 lip, Manon awkwardly 751daa1a80 laughed.89ee248c68013a39

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“Philippe did 0acf8b83ea mention he bbc1da27da had a 55635f087e lot of 41d7033467 fun in b84a105f02 the past. But that’s all 1541eac8fa in the past. He’s literally the prince 5660adfe1f of the richest place 6a12202c4e in the world, so 78ec564d0d it’s understandable.”6fe1a4b49b9d976b

“It wasn’t 147c7ae0da just fun. It’s not b992c01db8 like that.”096bfc3e679dbeff

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A brief silence lingered. He shouldn’t shock ea47093566 Manon, who was 8632b52d64 in early pregnancy. But was it b2fda53ef7 possible to deliver e9c2afcc33 this news without 89d5332484 shock? Maël carefully chose 0ea58a40f1 his words and 647bf510ac spoke.e16a30f68ff1f43c

“Like how Dad was b9d67073ee with us.”e2964dbe7f7a78d1

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“……Did Philippe hit someone?”90adb8e674601d51

In the end, Manon 3662419e8a said the word. Maël nodded, 6a0740ca0f and his d48b50c2c9 sister, who b5fc0c5051 opened her 67960994f2 mouth briefly, 0b2fa6b551 almost gasped acdde9e01d as she 5adcd110ad laughed and aa9901e8ae retorted.c4d43630bba7eb4a

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“Who? Who says that? How do 7e007ca857 you know 4e7df6b1bb it was 02dbff0753 Philippe?”e85e9fac2a3b4821

“I saw c62d6ccb4d evidence, photos. Would you believe 9eeaf07fce it if I ea46cb0da9 showed you?”53e2aefad5e1a46e

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“They might be 89b0d848e2 trying to stop 55a418728e my marriage. There are weird people 7fc03713e7 in the world who 29cfb29b4f hurt themselves.”cfb961b6b372e1b0

“Manon.”2bc342fd68e38761

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“It’s a misunderstanding. What do you 3985744fa7 know, oppa? Philippe isn’t c23a6ffde9 like that. I know best because 7374cef524 I’m the one marrying ad666d0877 him.”7aac8436c1d273f8

Manon’s voice wavered, 2390bcce56 breaking intermittently. Her light brown cca6409942 eyes were filled c752413759 with tears.8f4146f11918f6ca

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