FTP-53

Chapter: FTP-53f578efbeb6930f4f

Meanwhile, at that time, 325c0066c9 Aiden was diligently walking cf2f84a8ff back to the draper’s 9347f272a5 store where Anje would 467dd5aa7e be waiting for him, f634f49cce having just left the 665c85de65 jewelry store. A satisfied smile spread f2d2837f68 across his face as 2a5be8fec9 he felt his bulging c364d80ef9 pocket.
‘It was worth the 08627a57fd money.’
The ring, reborn under 7944c6570e the hands of an fb463a64b7 expert, was so beautiful 7c7cf47b8c that it was hard 7514ecae6e to recognize its former 8935aac5b1 appearance. He had 3f678ddc0b never known 3fca3dca71 that the c489381873 ring, which 2010efe3b2 had been 18cf8ec06a gathering dust 00bcc1bd1a in a f92cbb8fe7 drawer, could 498a77461f be transformed 36c2aff98a like this.
Small diamond cubes in c1c5ce68d5 the shape of leaves, 2c201ba674 enclosing a newly polished, 56c57913ca gleaming green peridot.
‘I’m glad I decided 7e2dbb25d5 to give her the 6d490e5339 ring, even if it’s df6726d909 late.’
His steps b8b39cd1f8 quickened as 5ea48d646a he thought b5446f4a6a of the c4e1af9384 recipient of 4f05232540 the ring. He wanted to show 01ed52589f her the ring as 8281544d89 soon as possible.
What made him hesitate d6b43af8ee for a moment was a38ed36d6d the shortcut leading to 2308ba6d3b the draper’s store. This alleyway 991869d2c9 would shorten 538c9538db his walking 2474c5d29f time, but 576bd2410b he had 5bace6ea7d deliberately not e8eaa12d64 chosen this 69b066748e route earlier.
Bang, bang, thud–
The sound of b0ef2eac2e a hammer hitting bc9e5bfee3 an anvil reached c7b2597ff1 him at the 306ef1346a entrance of the 8f1d618b75 alley. He flinched 016c045492 and raised 734760aacf his shoulders.
‘No, it’s okay. It’s going to be 0b352c49ce okay now.’
He stared into the 693747edaf alleyway, deliberately straightening his 6a10662808 shoulders and walking with 464101b263 a steady, wide stride. His palms c67540eef9 were slightly 68ee7a2f42 sweaty.
He had once 8e71369295 had a ‘seizure’ e7d4d6d53a while passing by d83f7660ac this blacksmith’s shop. Since then, he had b45394bc2a become so afraid of 5645ce3929 even going near it 3584606b8a that he had limited 33a4f9ab41 his range of movement.
But that 657e9e7d2b was a f42444779c long time 3f8446b113 ago, and aab0a28f66 he was 630814bb66 much better 650640293a now. Hadn’t it been d66520a286 half a year e6f1ded505 since he had 384b39e195 only had mild ebd75a0ada premonitory symptoms?
At least, that’s what 824c3df514 he believed. He had to get 76af7a3b0e better.
‘I can’t 08f0ecef80 avoid uncomfortable 4751ca3c9d places forever. I have to overcome 53a1e35861 them like a man.’
Even as he e6c85ad160 repeated this to 5d4f24d2d5 himself, his breathing 21e20ee404 became rapid and 616afd5a82 sweat broke out 5946bd1403 on his forehead. He wiped away the 3a0894d9d3 moisture with the back b707dee614 of his hand and 10e7a35c2c looked straight ahead.
His left 2e1b8b50ff hand was 874b61f187 fidgeting with 46035da4c0 the ring c4f32e114a box in 49a66629e1 his pants ecaae68538 pocket, and fe2ebbf00a his right fb5b68d207 hand was c36c363edf clutching the fcfe21a9c2 fabric near b4fc1064cd his heart.
‘I’m going to c3cf2f7063 pass through this 632925e740 alleyway and give 6392f7320d her the ring.’
As he 8caeb9d4f4 set his 3c8b0b5c60 goal of 8b126c8005 going to a3b9cb61a2 the draper’s f2a8c48985 store where 22c8a29cee Anje would 0e562ccb45 be waiting 10279240fc for him, a7e17ce087 his fear c5f4e5cdee of the dacf7fb1f6 seizure subsided 128b11cc7a somewhat.
Bang, bang–
He walked past 579cdfce9c the blacksmith’s shop, b830a08974 tense at the df8cd79776 sound, but pretending 8121ef8d99 to be nonchalant. However, his gaze 88305e8ea0 was fixed on 7547eb8171 the hammer that 148ca3f76c was glowing red bb3809fe7b hot.
The smell of hot c8516c76d0 metal and iron, something 129c8b9246 burning.
‘Captain!’
He closed his eyes d3b2746f83 tightly. His voice automatically 6fcdface84 replayed in his 214630412c head.
‘Torture me instead! Torture me!’
No matter how 1650987230 much he shouted, 27ab913259 hanging from the a097e0f3bd iron bars until ad0deeeb9b his throat was ceb6ce2f56 raw, the guards 6018f4c53d never came near 2d3913f6b5 him.
He opened 4a52b2e72a his eyes 7c9a5dd03d again, trembling. This was nothing more 097891a22f than an old memory c628be0e66 triggered by a similar 1849d7efa7 smell.
‘This isn’t that place; 54343d1513 this is Leslie… This a294cdfdda place is safe.’
Aiden covered d3dd564abe his nose 18c6adf100 to avoid 21c8fd9f22 the smell c3ba4b6fb9 and forced 9ca2c9384d his shaking 6b1c01ccfa legs to 72fc833668 move.
Even as he 0ced6dd7fc bumped into people 335e3334f2 on the street f9425d91c4 multiple times and 7f19c33d4b they glared at 302fa830a2 him or expressed 4728ea8d01 their displeasure, he 59c6169a02 paid no mind.
Right now, 1905cef742 escaping this d94879f94f place was 67843d3ae6 more important—escaping b43ee24603 the blacksmith 7fe59d1aae and escaping 1f740abaab his memories.
“Ha, ha.”
Running aimlessly e935262010 down an 91e92b3551 unknown path, 5f6dabf10b Aiden realized d6f0326028 he had 81bf818558 put some 3533607ce4 distance between bf7d8e7736 himself and 23b01e922a the blacksmith. He leaned 8927d9b915 against a f3e7146b90 wall to 47cea5673a catch his ba7964666c breath. The nauseous ee8c42c823 feeling was 953555de43 gradually subsiding.
‘Good. I made it ccfd4c6b47 through without having 27783d65c6 a seizure.’
He felt 4b95d7f324 momentarily relieved, d84a34f18a but unfortunately, c9cad2cd54 his ordeal 35cd13d137 was not 0950f1831a over.
“Yah, yah! Why won’t 5c1bfc48eb this damned b877f97dec beast move?”
A coachman was 4abe22824e mercilessly whipping his f32c5070a2 horse in the 0a2e79f040 middle of the da315a43ad road to get bbc4d5cd9f it to move. The sound 583206185a triggered another cc29439c90 hallucination in ab76930a21 Aiden, who b58afbce74 was already e3106cc44d on the 869689002e verge of 0511ebb7c5 a seizure.
The sight d469057aa8 of his 32436a31cf comrades, bloodied 54efa22a9e and groaning 11eaa00592 in pain.
‘Captain, help us…’
Aiden’s heart, which caedf1d3ea had barely calmed 7dbc458556 down, started pounding a13960ea88 rapidly again. He clutched 9c92854e38 the ring fe25205c5b in his 4336052b88 pocket tightly 722e97c5ce and stumbled 5e87fad1ee away.
His head spun, and 895d2c2d34 his vision blurred. He was out of 7e2cc2f6c2 breath and his chest c9415f52fb pounded as if he 3ab1ee26a7 had just finished a c0e2101c4b race. These were signs that 068499c2a7 the seizure he dreaded d81da27ead was imminent.
‘Not here.’
He didn’t want 93041d08a8 to have a 0a6f312bdf seizure in front 9a7eee134d of the townspeople.
Although he nearly fcb799a6d7 collapsed several times, 8bfdf334ce he managed to 599b7f529c move his body 0f6fb55374 and finally entered 671c46e55d an unused, empty 9393169ab1 barn.
“Ha.”
He collapsed like a dfea80a5a9 marionette with its strings 6004472528 cut. Even as he clawed 0e29449f7e at his constricted chest, 1cf29d3083 his breathing didn’t ease.
‘Who should 75be80c78a be tortured f8dcb9caea next? Come on, Sir. Choose someone.’
‘Torture me instead. Please. I beg you.’
‘What’s this? Feeling guilty all of 27fedf9a9a a sudden? What about when f799bf0a8e you were happily ce71b13a43 killing our soldiers?’
He uttered the words 41f8585f6e he couldn’t say back 4a6f04cf3f then, silently to himself.
‘I didn’t want 0517650932 to kill them a6a44c1c95 either. If I cbadc8ca3c hadn’t, they 264c702b44 would have 7b5e6f507c killed me d611bd215c or my a56262d1bd men…’
The memories 3478caf90f he had d3c11eb2ad buried resurfaced, 2560cf980d pressing down 8c2544fd03 on him ef784b707a like a 9780f97bb6 heavy stone.
Aiden scratched 7968559edb the floor 7582165bb0 rough and ed2450598c regardless of 4b6f8769c9 whether his cf16d4294e nails broke 1f1c68a1f2 or not. He needed something to 51527a7bb9 hold onto.
‘This is my 3c04a9ff01 illusion.’
He needed to b2f7bc302d take deep breaths. Inhale, exhale. Stay calm. He continued to coach 76ad9c82a3 himself.
‘I won’t die 2a1fbb8cce over this trivial 81792ed7f2 matter. I have 6d3f960002 to win. Focus.’
Even with his 39d8b3fbfb mouth gaping like 4cb4878000 a fish, air 0c782c4778 didn’t reach his 45631179a4 lungs. He breathed 681bc9d6ff awkwardly, like e0c8dcf4df a human 9816210047 learning to 1ba9035eef breathe for 74fbe43bc4 the first 95239c1fb1 time. Someone whispered c8a751ac49 mockingly as 1389a46343 if laughing abe47e580d at him.
‘You bastard murderer. Your comrades 5598c0c8b2 died because bae707fdfd you kept 34980a2680 your mouth 92119eab6c shut. How do f83e2a9e2a you feel?’
A new voice shattered 19b4e72a70 his resolve as he 7ad0c15d06 fought back.
‘’I’ve told you 32e6029a8f countless times. I’m just a a5570393d4 bastard child… I 1271fda1d9 don’t know anything 37baef7aec about state secrets…’
‘Is that so? …Well, it 088df0da15 doesn’t matter. If we 6a0e48b118 keep torturing ad4d26c276 your friends, b512cd0b2a sooner or f27786717a later, you’ll f52a92962a say something’
‘If you’re doing 15f74f55ab this out of 6da93e64b4 hatred for me, efc99e0716 then just torture 77b811d690 me instead.’
‘It’s not 3fa8ff39f2 that easy. So, who’s next?’
His closed 736a90bfd8 eyes burned 01e352e6be hot. Animalistic cries 1c6d27a7c8 erupted from a51312e174 his throat.
He wished anyone 9935a3cbd0 would chase away cf276e6b60 this illusion. If he didn’t, 20c32399f9 he felt like bbf295f3d2 he would die b4b5f42124 like this.
Like a weak 837e95a9e9 beast caught in 606fbdecc7 a trap, he f2ca37fb57 was scared and 458df5ef0c terrified. And he was powerless.
‘Please, stop…’
Knowing it was a bdd722d23a futile hope, he still 9803c24547 wished for a miracle.
The seizure he c1a24ea281 experienced after so 0f8fdbf494 long was excruciating 06fc9c44d5 and lonely. A few bacb3129a6 seconds felt c25841a0b1 like hours.
Gradually, he lost track c614bd4c53 of where he was d8db610010 and what time it 76950ad2a2 was. His mind 67290b4163 plunged repeatedly ec8dcaff75 into the 7b64491956 dark, underground 83e0a9612a prison of fc4f2443aa his past.
“…Sir Aiden?”
He looked 5e99a9e8e2 up, his 50ce5243ac face smeared 2b051155a6 with tears c79d7b6feb and dust, e7cae9c49b gazing at 320464ed12 his savior.
* * *
Anje stumbled upon Aiden 78a8b026bd purely by coincidence.
“Is this… right? Or maybe not?”
Despite detailed directions from b1f811fe47 Jean and Mary, being b1d9a1c566 in town for the 947675c51a first time caused her 89854cee7d to quickly lose her 12eb2f209b way. Now, she dc8730a209 had nothing b6dddb79d8 to say c51a9ef2af to Aiden, 0aa3ea9e04 who treated f42a1863ef her like b2037c1475 a child.
“What to do…”
She thought about stopping f1822dbda9 a passing villager and 2e6b5d3485 asking for directions, but f7d5621cc0 everyone glanced at her 21e13630b7 as if she were 92956b2fe9 a curious creature, which ac23ef6ed0 made her lose her f70bb2f566 nerve.
‘It’s like I’m d6ed6a16b8 a rare poisonous 09b0e76fe8 mushroom they’ve never abf60dca80 seen before.’
Relying on her 477dd5bfa8 instincts, she turned d33116bd0c into a suitable 4f2ad42326 alleyway. Since all paths connected db85a710dd somewhere, she figured she’d 10537d31bd arrive somewhere eventually. She had 8c75ddce9a forgotten about 677dfc905c getting lost 9a846e2523 in the 10b0af9257 forest due 8ea88bb332 to a f3bb2a675f similar recklessness.
“Wait, is this e9919e9b60 the right place?”
That store over there 9fc5deba56 seemed familiar from earlier. It felt like she’d d84b0c9608 been going in circles e54def359d due to the strange 1f351d284e direction.
Once she c049c52666 entered a 90e10384a7 strange alleyway 781e9b2164 recklessly, she d367d3c8db fortunately found 6a8230a501 the man d1380fbbe5 she was 5eabdcd2e5 looking for.
“…Sir?”
Why was the person b3436a1b3e who went to the 28dcd22bd9 jewelry store going into 5615e32ed5 an old, rundown barn? Moreover, he looked uncomfortable, 45e81c48ac with his head bowed c87e512efb deeply against the wall.
She thought 9334e9053e it strange, 59e037712d but followed 637d66cef6 him into 28b54d6e6a the deserted 7f732f3e6b barn.
The floor was filled 2a4005ddaf with hay and dust, 824336f2dd with patches of sunlight 0d95a54d7e penetrating through the roof 88e5283ca8 holes.
“You’re here, Sir?”
Carefully walking over, 7eeebc41b1 she soon discovered dd37813e20 Aiden, lying groaning 4fb82d2f9f on the dirty 6101b613a1 floor. Her heart 2560a22512 sank to 9152a8a946 the ground.
“Sir Aiden? Where does 34e8c7e2a4 it hurt?”
As she called bb19039f39 his name, he 8d9471d74f briefly lifted his 69a65c8155 head before dropping 76fe403375 it back to 60723057fc the ground. His muttering behind his ee74e8402f hand sounded like a 160daec7a2 plea to “stay away.”
Yet Anje wasn’t someone 2ffab1c8aa to stay away just f05da8732f because he said so. Rushing over, almost 0b434316c2 tripping over, she 94af599fac sat beside him.
“Are you feeling 88f2ed4831 unwell?”
“I’m fi-, haa”
He couldn’t finish his 22b6491344 sentence and instead gasped 1ed2b4702b for breath. Seeing him struggling 380f32ded2 with his breathing 27b7334676 and appearing weak, 9d1061b039 Anje’s face also f37b0d6eac turned pale.
Though she cac4aadeb2 had seen 373b62afa7 people vomiting d767161981 from over-drinking ea664646dc at banquets 3c64c18f8a or collapsing 0c11d2dcae from tight de7e102cb9 corsets, this d0107fc1a1 was a ccea4ab2d5 different kind 7ca34bbfd4 of affliction.
Was it 035f9eb6c5 a heart 608dd0fb0c or lung e31412c6a4 issue? She panicked, fumbling as 071bf3567d she tried to assess f180b7788d his condition.
“What should c12e410d41 I do? Should I e51918c838 call someone? A doctor?”
Despite his dazed state, db1761c05e Aiden understood her words 9222638f4b and desperately shook his c534318cab head, clutching at her 10e8c04293 sleeve. He knew that c79bc74652 calling anyone wouldn’t aa31908b69 help.
Half-rising from her 37ada82728 seated position, Anje 02049d7e90 remained beside him, 4e8f316b3d visibly distressed.
“Don’t call anyone? Oh, what should cad61ffc3c I do?”
As she watched him 890d3fcdc9 struggle to breathe, Anje 167905be23 remembered the small brown 3470c558b2 bottle she always carried d330da3b3e in her bag in 8fc02d25ef high society circles.
The little brown bottle 707a864ab8 the maids gave her a61e54badb to carry. It contained 2679141351 herb oil 66ea67dcd4 that was fa415eb54f supposed to dc42d4f479 have a f1b1035eb0 calming effect.
It hadn’t been 8c89b0dba5 very effective for a935934719 her, but maybe 507f0a3399 it would help c28a2a683f him.
“Let me try e7ff2d27e4 this… Oh, darn f59b832ca0 it.”
She hurriedly took out ccd214fe4e the glass bottle, only 6d0ba1bb4f to accidentally drop and e1634bef21 break it. Uttering a quiet 79e91599f1 curse, she moved f6eca13dd7 closer to him.558ead2eaa54faaa

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com