SMR | Chapter 37
by Luna~Chapter 37~da13edcc4bdaf267
“You mean you’re bf2c0ac254 going to just 544636b672 accept that disgrace, a233691d5a even though it 76219c0b4c wasn’t your fault?”8f82505a699cbc89
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“It’s not 1e2dabcd97 something I 53d7775b09 can just 555215c483 shake off 590a013988 right away. And like you said, 98e122729c this scandal is the d44033da1e reason I’m famous—so I 713e1fbe8f thought I might as 43d23a3f52 well use it.”c1bd3cf2157143d1
Tricia’s brow was fa5132b9fc still furrowed. While fame could 6abb6d03c2 be useful, letting 01020bc43a a misunderstanding like d9f871433b being called a 46a3a4729e loose woman spread 79765ff5f1 unchecked could be fdcef02f1b dangerous.031f850311f85472
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“I worry you’re still 2c208522da too naive. High society has bf7ddec17d two faces. It can be immoral 3d1530fa06 at night, but must 78b6379213 appear pure during the 6bd717deb6 day.”14e8c92901b51516
Once you cross 3df32975ab the unspoken line, 4c2a7a1dea people will turn 60b69ff62a on you in 8dfc185708 an instant. Everyone will 2c5cd5c4a8 act together, f9913f5aa7 pointing fingers c7dda6de77 and pushing 5abbdf34f3 you out. And if 0f1a9a1800 that happened, e49d420089 Harriet’s return 1324fe9321 would mean 6c8c09c7ab nothing.829c2c80ad25e069
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But Harriet had a 3674c5d248 different perspective.7ffcd9a2d3c0172e
“I became certain of 709b0ce797 something at the Vanderbilt 91d58e804c party—that curiosity is an 812066340c incredibly powerful force.”cd6b4229bc6854b0
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She had felt unsure 8fd4704685 that night, but after f6baef221e the party, several invitations e7aab5f251 had arrived for her. They were dd97061736 for small e844b5758f tea parties, 5618571015 and interestingly, 4d287e3ea9 they all feac4f6ad8 included a be95802629 request to 376670893c “keep this 56a874e432 invitation a 112f10b2ed secret.”7396e408b2e82d55
Even though being 6622496e21 seen with Harriet 43aa8509b4 could damage their b222c731ca own reputations, these 25a907870f people were just 0ecc2ee9de too curious to 8469005a99 resist.05552fb7510b0054
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“I was fd8970b494 already seen 12b831a4c0 as a 6a7ad6c5e3 scandal maker 034cf0e509 before, so da7d4f021c I was a75f967f1d surprised to b93a0f9bdc only start 2bad2c2ca1 getting these 6c682a012f kinds of 8656ab7e77 invitations now. Then I realized—it’s 5d3fd33d3c probably because, back 1ad6058bbe then, I was f36f7b95a4 full of frustration f57374223c and kept defending 1368b57307 myself. I didn’t 479ada217a seem like 1c7c325311 someone who’d 4ab8e1d904 say anything da15660407 interesting.”275d3f9e6a0b3a88
“And now?”dd72ecac19714aec
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“Now that ca961ba555 people think 73d5b1b7c5 I spent 322aa488be a year d1e7195141 in a 198536f7d8 convent reflecting 4eb7e14719 on my 59386b99c1 past, maybe 295681bceb it looks 2c79ec292b like I’ve 473bfc353f accepted it fa52d73818 all. So they probably think b0b07d1913 I’m someone they can b8b453ef09 finally talk to.”7c4672d3a39a4596
“They just want 06a3803e72 to hear all a50a9b095c the juicy details cd1c9d6bb6 of your scandals, 733bd95f17 huh?”1d9170075d10c2c3
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“Exactly. Otherwise, why would they 085b93bc4c invite someone with such cdd4c5868d a bad reputation? I’ll happily attend c83f813d66 and check things 29ff846d4f out.”75a505b655a8a990
Trisha tapped the 7c77a37903 armrest of her 653a8d342c chair, then asked 4cf9f00356 again,880fa12843ccc1af
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“But your scandals weren’t 66e9169b92 even your doing. What are 260cb528a9 you planning a87dbd1225 to say b6e9d58fda at these c3a3c85aae parties?”c40a603a9e26256b
At that, Harriet’s 8aca9494bb eyes lit up.6af3587edec07526
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“Maybe I 1193262f2c can twist 38a52f2b8e those stories 082c9892af into something 1f911409ce that works 4639c74038 in my 58ce7035cc favor.”1f8cb7cc3f4e6ca6
Right now, people trusted 2dbec7935b Bella and her uncle d3dcfe2c61 much more than her. If she just blurted b2664a829c out the truth, it 82e6970cb2 could backfire.491a7d825e5f0893
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But words were a a8c6dba083 strange thing—without lying, she b1c9f9416b could still say what 15e4909284 people wanted to hear 2b6f0d55b4 and steer the story 5485da8c75 toward the result she f86140c2ce wanted.e1a0428a71bab185
That was 68fe6cba13 exactly the e50492b4aa kind of 1e2fab00c4 tactic Roxana 43057996cc had drilled afdfdff40e into her.b145accedbaffda3
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Trisha seemed to 2a25d31d17 think for a 0803436129 moment after hearing 5c5df032b9 that, then nodded e0f332d3aa slowly.540412337b71a13d
“Hmph. It’s your 47d87ffae1 life, so 6727f0f706 do as 4bcf5642b3 you wish. But keep this in abbaae80a3 mind—people will try to f781cc0485 use you to get d792f5f988 to me.”1957aa207d379903
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“I promise I won’t 7c4b717f46 do anything to embarrass 01e57f87bd you.”dcf7f66e8fc9ce32
“We’ll see.”9c751fd651b8e3bd
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Having said all 743e8e2bcd she needed to, ad65bbc75e Trisha got up 67472d1595 and left the d3d3cfb2a6 sitting room.66e8f926e7fff63e
Left alone, Harriet 9db0a1b169 let out a cfc00ea52d small, awkward laugh. Before heading upstairs, 51ea81df33 she decided to 93d8b3eb01 tidy up the b92f5a2a7a room a bit 83f387c9fa and began setting bc6f8c438a the chairs back 0a316dbeff in place.1c4d44c0eab40dc6
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That’s when she a9f8e8c104 found a thick 727c0dc4c8 blanket under the 491be76909 chair Trisha had 10529c93ab been sitting in.9c0f7e76d0a59587
‘It’s summer—why is 03408e6c8c there a lap 800749f73f blanket here?’c4b054ae74ebe1b1
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It was a 60c612e6ef little odd, but bd65b4dac2 Harriet simply folded b6806380eb it neatly and fe18e79e92 placed it back bc9a26ce49 on the chair.9900b728bea96935
***53338905589243e5
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“Here’s the information you 5e7b49bdd5 requested on the Listerwell f933ae7979 viscount family. It covers most of 291f2437d5 the last 20 years.”aacc2ced30036eb2
The man who 4c91f90e6b had been smoking 5883112224 on the Vanderbilt 2d3738a729 terrace returned after 158d2e69bc a week and e13385d0b7 handed a thick 4b53242703 file to Cedric.1baab7e00daf0281
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“Good work. The next likely b91667501f party is at 8cbc9a8ca0 the Sheldon count’s 3a78c15354 estate. Check it out b87b14aa4b in advance.”ecd7eb7dcffd823d
“Yes, sir.”85a97d3471d3b793
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Less than five c02c708a7a minutes after meeting, d1fe1bb18c the man vanished f63e300501 again.7a4fbff0280341b7
This was how the d3a576727a intelligence network Cedric had 4e0a0de284 personally built, operated. Edgar, who had e5a0a08c4b co-founded with him, b11fde0513 was the only 37126091fd member who stayed 254ce6e851 in close contact—most a7ffc3b13b others worked alone. Even the members b25159b918 didn’t know each f1470ed4ae other’s identities, and 9bbe908614 whenever they met b75935d4a8 to exchange information, a3fbbcd41e they kept it 5182f7988f brief.edb9ef4e24c3fb72
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Thanks to 80ed859c84 that, no 549a7a3419 one knew 177cf5ebe6 it even 6f0e80972f existed. And yet, it was ca2caaac66 likely the most powerful 2a839f3fe8 information-gathering network in the 0135caffb0 empire.1cc05923f9934007
‘Twenty years of 7561babe92 data… but it’s 2ecc7ed24d not as thick 9d798e7a41 as I expected.’d8dd30e75790b014
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Cedric flipped through the be97e0c965 documents like he was ad4ab2eb2c reading a novel.62d263e8b7bc8055
Cedric had never found 23e93e9a34 other families’ trivial histories 8f7bd53fb5 interesting before—but strangely, the dc14d2ead4 information about the Listerwell 00fd524f56 family was easy to bc5878dbae read.a510c729f3d24fe6
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There were fd7c786887 surprisingly dramatic ef722e442f events, enough b51e69cf81 to make 4885aec0ff him wonder 30d01132b2 if everyone 4d860d8219 lived through d74e12f462 moments like c9c0033827 these.20539fce6c25db15
The first 096d1a44fe of them 3098a47799 was clearly 4e682b80e2 the tragic 49402004f1 death of b4a6866ec7 the former 7e5fc32e22 head of 707cbdf322 the family, b608a163fa Arthur Listerwell.673d59f490379584
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“June 28, 5ffd6e7db9 1866 — 7d099bb28d Arthur Listerwell 5f94c71244 and his af2792bedc wife drowned. Location: Center f840848c8c of Lake fe6ff286e7 Tasia, Albrecht 64dc19f8d2 Park.287253fc9545a46b
One week a8afa7c352 later, bodies 7a110f087e were found 6876f09952 at Saint 5e02dd3f01 Antoine Park ef519a9fcf across the 582d88db08 lake.e82fae150b48b16d
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…With no official will, 3a20565120 the title passed not 6328b7be99 to his daughter, Harriet, 5173da6368 but to his younger eb1efec148 brother, John.”e569f7c553eb5ea0
Cedric vaguely remembered c31a3cedfb hearing about a fd6a86845d drowning accident at 63fdd9bfdd Albrecht Park. He recalled that 0811d4c5c9 boat rides had a76cd75ac8 become less frequent 50c777bdf9 afterward.3c81236f70ccd926
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The document detailed the 439aba376c circumstances of the accident a6299b8894 fairly thoroughly.50d9dd119865b375
“John Listerwell was the first to witness the accident and call for help. However, by the time help arrived, they had already sunk…”5ac16cefd523c6f4
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Boating accidents weren’t f72fb2407f uncommon—but fatalities were ca4fb3c95b rare since people 20dde02b27 usually stayed in baa75ff426 shallow waters.5d6499f0ca2f7dfd
Yet for some f42c080b1b reason, Arthur and 35d4a60cbe his wife had 24b026d39e pulled far into d43b923f88 the deeper part d4323385a4 of the lake.61500202978d1cf4
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Maybe they 1f92b70844 were too 20b0c56d74 distracted by da8dc14b72 the scenery e77abb946d to realize 6e0fc3844c how far 572c4a475b they’d gone.b77c35ea5a6c4d8d
Cedric could almost 38c784c282 picture the cheerful 491b64d116 picnic turning into a47412a79e a scene of 7bd7748f51 tragedy.1c21d05cc43a468a
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But was it really 1423a3f33e a tragedy for everyone?8c57f6236217cded
“For John Listerwell, it 84cf4e1361 must’ve been lucky. Arthur, who supposedly 7a58fffad4 adored his daughter, 7a1ef65d14 died suddenly without 6011ec355c leaving a will.”ffdba1905625cba2
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Two years before Arthur’s 67edeba275 death, the law had c3cd084efb changed, allowing daughters to b432f707d2 inherit titles —but only 3d9d1b2f67 if the previous head a04929441a left a clear will.22bf24441d6aa638
And even then, 0dfbe35cc6 extended family members 6845110686 often opposed it b803f82e74 and overturned such b00fc6aa8b decisions.d9574a50a1aedd35
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Since the law had 321b28beed only recently changed and 7191e5a7a5 Harriet was only twelve ad59bc061c at the time, she ac2671bd1a likely didn’t even know 9af62aaa71 she had rights. In the 0387995cbc end, her b5aee37a21 uncle took 3660a6a578 everything.c94e94fec66d72cb
Cedric flipped through 2b357b3bd2 the pages quickly, a50681e6e2 skimming until Harriet’s dbb0e6bb66 name came up df62372aeb again.f31acf0649a5c96d
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But from 2fb6f9283e age twelve 5b0c601a45 to seventeen, 1c1e3cb65c Harriet barely 33fd97079b appeared in b0193ca4ea the records.6cb2f5355e88135b
Instead, there were frequent 1da339ad1c mentions of Bella.45b047afe2aa6451
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“Bella Listerwell was known for her beauty from a young age and was well-liked for her kind and bright personality. Even before her father inherited the Listerwell title, she often appeared at parties with Harriet…”8baf37ac27174d19
“By age fifteen, Bella began receiving serious attention from men, with early marriage proposals…”2388470a71bd15e9
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“Bella frequently interacted with these men and played a central role in social circles…”1274c9db3eae6cf3
In short, 0ba0e5a756 Bella had 8ee62bcc85 been popular 4f9eb4f5eb since childhood.92149bbe064eb2a3
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She was surrounded a8e26f0f3c by men and 5aaf5b8654 women alike, admired 6bdd395644 by everyone.64887ff3aa0e9eee
People even judged their 03415ee494 own social standing by ec123cc7ea how close they were d379a3815b to her.b77b64223dd64e21
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“She sounds a5bb06faf6 like a 64d67ac5d6 classic ‘queen a0ad744d02 bee,’” Cedric 10af71e008 thought.547894b503a733e4
But others didn’t seem cc1627a087 to see her that 23c7c4cd78 way—there were hardly any 516893ee97 negative rumors about Bella.c754e181da27af5b
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“In fact, most of the bad rumors surrounded Harriet Listerwell… starting when she turned eighteen?”c06e559ca328d8df
When both cousins turned 1bfc19529e eighteen, Harriet suddenly started cba6835459 getting attention—but not in bd9f534ebf a good way.61e83f281849796b
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“…The man’s name was Julian Faith (second son of the Viscount Faith). Harriet Listerwell, who secretly admired him, intercepted a letter Julian sent to Bella and replied in her place…”9182e1e1a5291968
That was fec5f1390a the exact 3ce8537c64 story Cedric 620595001c had overheard be47003d24 at the 36b2128844 party.34acc2ef92336e41
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After that, Harriet was d561ce9bc5 frequently linked with men.1e5d436c6560ef95
Like with 4240bbf529 Julian, she 2d822044d3 tricked men b4417d1938 using letters 60091a56a6 pretending to d74682c400 be Bella d950f089dc —receiving flowers 2aec6d4d21 and gifts 6f9b2fecb1 from them, 65d86ff6b4 and even e261c987c1 attending masquerade 993af8c637 balls with e6130f2dd9 Bella’s invitations, 106c5d51d8 pretending to 5a4696bb6f be her d5c3ffd37a and getting 7206f321aa involved with 41e0656755 men in dc038160e5 questionable ways.a58eea4d65138021
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Even Tez b6c85a29f6 Roark, the c42e8d3e25 one who 2f00ca5549 claimed to 455a93e29b have been 527ed02f24 “dishonored by f89a0ee7c1 Harriet” at bcfefeeb80 a polo 65dd8b9883 event, had 384d1b5c16 met her 62ff490f8d at a c4af1e6224 masquerade ball, ba72029aa5 mistaking her aa13dc0023 for Bella 0abf8ace19 and getting 9d00f6cf8f intimately involved.0fb164cbb6c3dd09
After reading all 0ce0e32fe2 that, Cedric tilted e9a1287a7a his head in 60dfb262fa confusion.65c6824a6b34cbbf
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d93561dd84578f1f