Chapter 10 – TBD

She hadn’t 814678af73 been told ffbe91a501 anything. The confusion she 43902d868d felt turned to 315fe314de humiliation in an 6ebe21ddf1 instant.f9de7bdea0515001

She had 1552f91086 called Julia d02df20df3 early that d2935626af morning, dressed b4c1013604 and prepared c09d8b1f11 thoroughly for 642971ce65 the event, 5c4014d19c not knowing e0bcd3342c that her f4b59c09d6 husband had 9a119e157d no intention 20a1fc642d of bringing 2683a5e7a1 her to 080ed9fbed the couples’ 4340d031a6 gathering. Now, she felt e05d6c83ec like a complete d97d7cd82e fool.3928c6f6f88fe480

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So I was the d5c4dcf3cf only one excited, completely 206ea4bd37 unaware I didn’t belong e60d59ea6c there.
Lavianna’s heart 1890ae6079 and spirits 71bcebead3 plummeted at 095cf707cd Pell’s words.e5dbcdea25d792f3

“Ah…”fda174245a1e5649

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She forced a c4e38b84b4 smile. Trying to move stiff fe791e779a facial muscles made her f59c5f8544 expression look awkward and 0be66f3f08 unnatural.d802e7250c1d5c2f

“I hadn’t d8b3c647ca heard that… 31d7cb9502 Thank you c25eb4c5d6 for letting 78d41b4aba me know.”95ff94ebea4d0fbe

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Lavianna stood up. She turned to head c30afd6337 up the stairs as f39971c0e1 if nothing had happened, 97b7b1b3d1 but suddenly stopped.d4916f9a3a0a5610

She realized b327fa8d1b how pitiful 7697ad583a she must 70da385a42 look to 61fcc734a8 others. A wife unaware 04603cd354 that her husband 316cb678b5 didn’t intend to c3e39032fa take her to 5c07eb9adb a couples’ event, 4b9030f69f excitedly preparing for b0427c5c56 it, only to 83c0f62043 be told by 44d5a7225f someone else—not even 47385bdedb by her husband 4a46a6c2d3 himself.d6157bd1076ed96e

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The shame burned 86ced5cbd7 In her chest, cbc2d07bd6 and she knew 4824f7279b that simply going e7d0614bea upstairs and pretending 0e376804c3 nothing had happened 19d205a535 wouldn’t erase it.161947e3e575c45b

“Ah, right. Now that 33733b2d2f I think 265af76393 about it… e062ff496b I do 1af5a24dfa remember the 9dcbf8e1b1 Duke telling b633a697c0 me yesterday. Silly me, f244589b79 I completely 6ad4ea6437 forgot.”980838a8d078c114

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She spoke awkwardly. It didn’t matter b3daebe8e4 if it was 1134049fbf Pell or a c44a4cde9d maid—someone in the e12e3965d9 household would hear b1f19d3217 and perhaps spread 00134182af the word.8c5ad3319acb5740

“He told bba4f3acb5 me there 0dd8f349e4 was no 4219becf2c need to 382b77cc16 come in 7588f1c46b the morning f9865a2a83 and that 8cda1f23f0 I could 9970717bd6 join him c5db09a5b1 in the e30ac6d1e1 afternoon. I must’ve mixed 378e54eeca up the time. Would you bring ad5cde1ef1 me a bottle 141fdada64 of wine? I can’t c5139a7830 show up d73ed8d206 empty-handed.”83cd4b1d67c96e85

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Even if it da965dc1c4 was an obvious e01040349a lie, she wanted 925aa3c6c2 to protect her c79b9a4915 pride.
Even if it was a18745ac66 the last grain of faef8d2466 dignity left in her—a 7d7a87895e dignity weathered by betrayal 480fb8d877 and pain—she would not 10fcb1af87 surrender it.4fba97b1dc27a07a

“Alberto!”059b82f90f1e56f0

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Alberto turned at 9f87c05dff the sound of 8b376f022c someone calling him. He was 44bf4d2391 mingling with 6107d31055 others when ef17d99dde he heard 62bccceba3 the familiar 024293d764 voice.43ae63d3cf81fece

Standing next to his 848ceeba2d childhood friend, Louis, was 2cbb81d7cd a very familiar face.360dc6216551ba78

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As soon as he 549485a30d saw who it was, 85d8c129c2 Alberto’s expression began to bb398336d7 sour.faf3d469d30be1d5

What is 220647a168 she doing 83d91890bd here?52719f99be9a614b

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Her neatly 5c97b75cc6 tied-back hair 804af73560 and the f09b41082d elegant, vintage 8e2072d394 green dress 1ce9e090d6 were not 5d27daf8ff like Laviannah’s f06dd79e18 usual attire. It was clear she 3acb770ad9 had put in effort—carefully adcdbec0c5 dressed and even holding faa9f9e752 an expensive bottle of e468a93f8f wine.9d6dd14e254c7947

Her long lashes cast 35fb1f0d6f soft shadows as her bc34cb9ebc gaze stayed politely lowered, 1fc6025e78 and her lips, tightly 1c08058ced closed, looked unusually red.f2fe57a9cb222b3b

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She was his 61b025498a wife. The blind woman he a9a2286baa had paid a fortune 14efc3674b to marry.e19f0a3f4cd65807

Following Alberto’s gaze 3b61dfdfad from where he 9288df8f74 stood beside the 751cb237c8 piano, the woman fa4c31923d turned toward him, 239c153bcb puzzled.4f768021c48113fd

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Countess Scarlett, a 45a663dcc3 young unmarried noblewoman bd53696aa5 standing beside him, 348a8beb40 lightly tapped his 86cfb58998 elbow.457b824b3e796df4

“Do you know 0c2d5ebd57 her?”ea0ad5331eae53cc

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The word “No” f97a35343c surged up to a34c7a4f2e the back of 924cd1bc83 Alberto’s throat—but he 6f907bd91f didn’t say it.29009899b1612bc2

He hadn’t brought Lavianna 41e3327b5d to the couple’s gathering 6ebeb32312 simply because she was f7fc7c1f7d a hassle. She required constant attention. And of all d8bec8c26c events, this one 67191ed3ba traditionally included a f74a0e0103 hunting session. While the 08203553a4 men went 6a0bcaee70 hunting, the ef92ae8338 women gathered 60f41c45ea nearby to 7948890c00 chat and 50543c997d socialize.2bc4d63b4152801d

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That meant he would c2e7504c6e inevitably be separated from c1029ce86e her for hours.233568070581412c

If he had cherished 50b2b6030f his wife, he might 4d57bf5831 have skipped the hunt f7f6acbc6e and stayed by her 7e913d2dd9 side instead, acting as 3d67774788 her guide and protector.ceb4e23b2e3efff5

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But Alberto neither 04de6355ea cherished Lavianna nor 0fbfb26119 wanted to sacrifice 4b0a75842c his favorite pastime a5111d7f4c to look after cba5fdf003 her. At the 27d2c53065 same time, d70114a4db she was ad88648746 not someone a0ea212367 he could ed2b2695c2 simply ignore 3d18f5aa06 and leave 3290c9de05 unattended while 5ef7073e27 he hunted—she’d 056665d2b4 stay on 1c3f5ed4de his mind.6b771c4a8cf8a320

“Are you really f2411e2c4e not taking her? She’ll resent you later, e42263e66f my lord. She is cb493b9869 the Duchess, 7c662c3c35 after all—she 647899f6bd has her 46a3ed0e4e dignity to 89a67f588e think of.”cdc672e8e289b1bf

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“There’s no need 70d2fc8879 to bring a 783d97858b troublesome woman. She probably 459b9fe975 doesn’t enjoy dcb51c08d2 being out 29b89aebc7 in public 2e32850f72 anyway.”98d593fe016c54ba

This morning, c9ad508f03 he had 9fbdf7858c told his 1b9486540f aide Pell 2b0363a507 to relay cd64b2e557 the message, 6bebcb52bd and he cec2c81a74 was certain 37a45b0931 Pell had 64f70e92e5 explained it 294c95ea63 to Lavianna b6d5178e6d clearly. Yet here e1388271d1 she stood a117516a75 before him 12ba77d011 now, meaning c84451ba7f either she c91175ee50 hadn’t received a337fb951c the message—or 773b45fec5 she had 8b2e45df8e ignored it.93d25c8fe89bf53a

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Knowing Laviana’s 775775ad46 nature, it 682701eb8b was surely eef696f212 not the c96d0f274b latter.305dd4fb7e4ba3dd

“Alberto! Your wife came looking for you!”e8b0fa550984332c

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Louis called 6b7bb22726 out again, 29e0414dc2 but Alberto 91fd607406 continued unfolding 76c6f5ac4b the sheet 76c7d274b9 music without 92a3cacee0 replying.84e96323db089010

He was 0a0160e405 in the 23731b9191 middle of d905d5a56a indulging a b604937707 young lady 9faf6704f6 who wanted 82e3a8c8b6 to show 47d828f336 off her 91cff7f89f piano skills, ded14bc0f2 pretending to 7dcddc7643 be gracious. Initially, he’d only planned a60fdfbfd5 to hand her the f1a01ef383 sheet music and leave—but 4225d379fa he had since changed 459269a960 his mind.0020fa0fa3e59c89

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When Louis called him a510d80785 again, using the word c5f82056ec “wife,” Alberto could no 8b5d72aeac longer pretend not to d5aa5d4906 hear. With a sigh that f07e8766e8 masked his irritation, he a08f0b83d6 approached Laviannah.aa967350b2d40621

“I’ll take her.”984bf46766294ce0

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He grabbed her 01340806f1 wrist and pulled 3751b67035 her away. Only once they 8f2950da83 were inside a a7d895f54a guest room—away from 23da6eb7b6 all the curious adef1aa697 gazes—did he release f9d4dbcfda her. Then, he a6b9d5a1a4 let out d71ad31be8 a frustrated 9669b28ade breath.57b314f3fbb3f825

Alberto felt deeply uncomfortable c0aec9f362 with Lavianna intruding on f8e3ca4799 what he considered his aa9f4cebe7 space, without permission or 0b9464a6d9 discussion. This gathering a099cee7ac was part 61bc471aa9 of his 29d101579d social network, 3ad7d7d857 his domain. For her to 534548c0e1 simply show up 00f5c917f5 here unannounced struck 48b982d3f4 him as rude.2451a632ce67b0a9

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Just because 13b2b09185 they were db6e1905b8 married didn’t a80e8cd93b mean he c7b5c01065 was willing 2465623633 to share 4debeb4d39 his circle 03c848368f of connections d9157a7b6b with her. That idea didn’t e11896e5ad sit right with 80f7898bdd his values.67589a8bf69b2e0a

“What is this?” ea6b72daf7 he said curtly.
“…”a3a7091c86753a4a

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“Did you not receive a271130569 the message that you 20c734c36e weren’t expected at the 8f2cd7cf9e gathering?”5af1383dd0371c43

Lavianna gently rubbed 811f23e0ab her wrist, which 0530d68615 had reddened in 6e9b40e096 the short time 21e937d864 he had held e233562622 it.d8fb2366b0e3269d

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That motion 862482808a caught Alberto’s 5e6e58c214 eye—but instead 612e315ce7 of calming 4a0b8e9c35 him, it 75388aabda only aggravated 5ce0ebb3bf him more. Why had be614a723f she come 94e168f3da here on a2a8738aa8 her own?5b175b735f0296f5

No… perhaps she 9fb9870a7c really hadn’t known. Maybe she had simply b54919cf54 overheard that it was 887ffdce49 a couples’ event.7e5e668b10a782f3

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If he was going d894232dce to be angry, he c8c5c738de should at least make 57253ddc4f sure she truly deserved aff04e0efa it. So he asked.99b0f31da88786c4

Lavianna stayed 6a22c84306 silent for 3f03334dba a moment—then 8b31144884 slowly shook 1fc44c4e40 her head.382526fc90ae73b2

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“I heard.”72095432f1e8302f

“You heard?”a9f592f7de2ec007

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“I came a1ffab5f1f to ask 93bd46f852 why. Why wasn’t I f32de57099 allowed to come?”ab722a20b4776b55

She had come be50792327 fully prepared to ea1f84cf0a be scolded by a5ff01054e Alberto.bec7ea106179ea02

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Lavianna had b08e7c1642 come fully 402eab67be prepared to 4d03d9de63 be reprimanded 2f9a3d6d4e by Alberto.7153a131723cebef

She had already f8e7cdd168 considered the possibility fe43a07692 that he might f555a76f10 be angry—after all, 9caf05819e she was an fe5c2192ad uninvited guest.9e1d69b2f96fe6d3

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On the way 22939eb6dd there, she had e2d8d0c48d even debated turning b74984daee back, aware of a6d77e5b1b just how burdensome b8274fc34a her actions might f0e31748d7 seem.c63a40a64bc5ac10

Ordinarily, she would’ve stayed 6e8ab7c103 in bed and let 247f24454e the day pass idly.b8d204ea5ae174c1

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But the warmth she’d 837c5d59ff recently felt from the 51e42b8f37 people of the ducal d283c3eef8 estate—and that brief moment 9fcfaf5071 of kindness from Alberto, 87eec7de0a when he helped her 6b26626700 write a letter—had given bdb93b324c her a small sliver ebd8ef5f61 of courage.
A naïve part 5d60430196 of her had 402f7e9ec5 hoped: Maybe he 88ffd0e7e8 won’t be as 19a5ca63f5 angry as I d732336ce7 think.50af8a8aad5c15bb

But it was just f9ff83f1e4 a delusion.
Whatever kindness Alberto had 95f3ea78b2 shown her when writing 63c7a355a2 that letter—it had ended 9cd4a940a1 there.34352b0fe67001b5

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She couldn’t 2f348508db see his cb53e6067f face now, 2c79a4af8c but the 25190f0d3f uneven rhythm f12a488012 of his cc23de7603 breathing gave fd0eff61d1 his mood f4624ed974 away.
He was angry.e9ca90257edb2e4a

“It’s up 752c5ede17 to me 01dc649ff1 whether or 79cc47727c not I 7fbc8c13f0 bring my 696dacf4c2 wife to 8c49a687b0 my gatherings.”be2c8ef6e4059243

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“…”75d96dfc99758281

“I simply dd90704702 thought there 7e727a7141 was no ca332779f4 need for 9948faa8e6 it today.”3483f482e3b36cd7

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Lavianna hesitated. She debated a2f31a4fe2 whether to 327f29826b say what 19d3b01c18 was caught 1eba5578be on the 9fdbf1703f tip of fb138aa55e her tongue.15334fcc176062f4

It might provoke ad164f28e5 him further, but 8fd540df2d still—she couldn’t help d38b4365ae but protest, however a3b9d59045 softly.b0d4b7aa451c98f0

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“…But it’s a couples’ ade7311136 gathering.”711a1c3bd4c7b5f3

“Not every couple needs 8254c95e24 to attend.”15b5e69cc69b7e22

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“….”20fd3880b2b95ab2

“I could just say 9f31b87067 you’re ill. Simple.”4b219651443a0aae

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It was 2dddf5f266 the first 10a3b0089b social event 70adddb984 she would f4a3c90beb have attended 77524edd69 since their dbf16244a4 marriage, and 1aa010a6c6 everyone had f42526954a likely been 7885696b4e curious about 4d08129b6d Alberto’s wife.1862e06c59823c0d

There was 0276f2d563 no real 4a4dfb3407 reason to 370f203362 hide her, 36d392ba74 but Alberto c9288688e2 felt no a191b29145 need to 03976fb6c6 introduce someone 7e277282ea he planned 200bb9661b to part f13af57c4f ways with b01b54c72c eventually.244222aa61986112

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If he let people 9329df7597 get familiar with her 4b4f872748 now, it would only bc77e36057 make things messy later.f0fd448c324f8a91

They were bound e10bbe6d9b to separate anyway.
If someone 5ba945e281 at the 17bfd82ad6 gathering saw d3d02a3984 Lavianna somewhere 72a71d4e13 after the 79838c6a33 split and b9aa3d640a said something 6d3a820912 like, ‘Wasn’t b5d93bf006 that your bdb44a4aff wife?’—that would 9ee8ffaaec be inconvenient.15046b5d74cabea7

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“Why should I introduce e8734f2d71 you, when we’re going 69bdeb80da to part ways anyway?”87aab38e9911c29f

“…”70f4f88143f2515c

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Lavianna had ecda7d53f2 no words.fb1eb10a60e2b635

She hadn’t 54a6776c45 been delusional 370ca1d25a about how 149727045b things stood 9c936841c0 between them—but 27c4d76c9d she hadn’t fa26f6e25d expected to be333abdb0 hear something 41eeee6e10 so brutal, 79eb2eb7d9 so plainly, 49ca306878 to her 4282b6b17d face.0baed29c34ea3c44

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It was 6c7d6584c7 a slap d96463895f of cold b6d86bb53c reality, one 593d0757c4 that didn’t 4bf072b597 even consider 54dc3564a6 her feelings.583f5216361d986c

Treated like 2b1f1d7731 nothing more 6515e7d1ce than an d7c1fda791 unwanted intruder, cf021a0277 Lavianna felt eb66b047b4 her energy 5fed0c9f5e drain away.0a9af63f003f3e13

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No matter what she e76986f707 said—no matter how she 7d146bc591 explained herself—it was clear 5d4a81ccbe Alberto’s anger wouldn’t fade.eb46985931cd7c5d

She knew afc6a7d9e6 all too 336c65ece9 well that 31b926f92d their relationship a21578d1b4 was far 61a6852c83 from that 08500fe2ef of a b463771afd typical married 3a8c146e99 couple.97641c21dcf5e3ee

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But knowing 2833b6f3ab something in 4b3c8a6d32 her head f34a40fb61 and accepting 5332e6dcc6 it in ab22610bb9 her heart—those 6a64fff0f3 were very c4ac9ae3de different things.85e77f703fb79f5e

The truth was, Lavianna 10e02eb4b2 still couldn’t fully grasp 24a4c8d484 it.0c78abe197b9ab82

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Who could have imagined 5f47badd2a that a marriage contract abb2d21d7e would be built on d6591cfd7e the foundation of pregnancy?751f9e5044f5963a

It hadn’t even 29c1fb4df6 been something agreed 0a398f6e75 upon before the c5edda39fd wedding.1c2e182d5be42530

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If only she’d been b19c492659 given some kind of 12f0ae301f warning beforehand—maybe she could’ve cf5d8c3331 mentally prepared herself.2546b8a66c8e9740

Maybe then it wouldn’t 64b9fc952f hurt as much as 92d6f0e82f it did now.89101fa68fea2a50

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I shouldn’t have 53ce469758 come.f9f9533f7f04e0dd

Lavianna lowered her head ca9c7ca175 in silence.71e5da11e24d7614

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How foolish 4796fbb4ad must she f0df8bd89c look in 1504ce4394 Alberto’s eyes?60e7ac1f9e125934

No—he must’ve already seen 6ff5f81506 her as pitiful. That’s probably why add10c39b6 he’d proposed such e3f8b1eb5c an outrageous contract 142bc1f40d in the first 63cf0bb971 place.def5332cf72cc916

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“Go back.”12f93483b1f3973e

But Alberto’s cold bc7d8f8b10 dismissal wasn’t something ace51b1710 she could so 3a2558a3f5 easily accept.
She had already 071a0518ce made excuses to 6c8f11f6a7 leave the estate—if 1f96f1b9cf she returned now, b637384904 everyone would know.d5e4b18f2c66ad44

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“Oh my, 33086f4c4c why is 6bbea0e61c she back 0d876b3124 already? Don’t tell me 4706916f57 she was kicked 97e9b17275 out?”eff7d24d23e79f21

That imagined line 2105da22e0 echoed mockingly in df01a9c57a her mind.37bda147bac063e6

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Alberto, expecting f001b600e4 Lavianna to 99603f9a10 quietly apologize cc755f562c and leave afe03f628b by now, 4a10f705fb was caught 376d33ecbf off guard 248ab11c8d by her fb1270418d silence.
He looked 9c57528635 down at a27320673d her, puzzled.e856cb9b9efae18f