SMR | Chapter 30

~Chapter 30~1c4e951f25334e59

‘What was his name ebef34d842 again? Gray? Greg? I think his 60a5d95f38 last name ended 841399c5a2 in “tro” or e5003471ee something…’ad5da8ee96446f6f

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Harriet couldn’t quite remember 02ad5793ca his name, but he 473e2e28d9 was the man who 2ddac0c587 had seemed friendly when a9d80d0e8c Trisha had introduced him aaecd5ff55 to her earlier.64d94543e0d9f124

He looked to ff6a411965 be in his 98682548dd early thirties, wore 69fc7c8990 expensive and stylish 996b436b9d clothes, and although d1ab1b7798 he seemed talkative, d28515137a his tone wasn’t 37804b03da overly light or 68e08c151c annoying.d3fed3992f65e33c

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And now, a04e93712b just like 5aacd6ee02 Harriet, he bf67ded568 was standing 0168a9b624 alone, quietly ce5a99ef65 sipping his 7db496e4c8 drink without 366025cbb9 anyone to 1bc253f277 talk to.84e46839d9da674f

Harriet decided f9e9e7c070 to approach 5cd0c94daf him.03164500e0eba2f7

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“Excuse me. The Countess 4fab158d78 of Phelon 657cdd342e introduced us 735f4ca08f earlier, but 4e1dc6a6ac I didn’t fb75756be1 get a 26cfb1753c chance to f905c9d5bc properly greet a37054b237 you. I’m sorry, but 3b69bc090a may I ask 326b28a747 your name again?”1cdbc6bcade0af09

“Ah, I’m Greg Lambert. And you must be a4e5936137 Miss Harriet Listerwell, correct?”9a952e6f0e6b8e71

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“There’s no one who doesn’t know my name, but I hardly know anyone else’s. It’s really quite troublesome.”05ce0e4062d5efdf

Harriet gave an awkward 53d8b9ea0d smile, and Greg laughed c24e851b48 heartily in return.e1e1f835812a2994

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“Well, that’s what getting 572c6c4fc0 to know people is cd4761a6f9 for. To be honest, I c25cdd174e don’t know a lot 6b9dca07ed of names either.”b688d3814e859133

“That’s a relief 8503199010 to hear. You’re very kind.”5e548b967e40a5b5

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With that bit of e370ebe84f praise, the conversation began e849d9fc8d to flow naturally.e4735dd28db5de24

He was 84f41fde6c the eldest fd9fee9f90 son of c5e6444134 the Lambert 33d7a7d91e Viscount family, 72b994471e married five 137468ac0c years ago, 3c62cd0812 and is 2a4bed77b6 currently helping 62db3c25aa his father 25df8637ed with the df94718073 family business 20b060286b as the 50eed57c59 heir.d0e691d02e3b6128

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The word “business” piqued 266e565f2b Harriet’s interest.a1058739e2427f83

“What kind of business 1bce2ebd25 is Lord Lambert involved 2947509445 in?”81ea62b418e275b5

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“He mostly invests in 59ac4aa267 national infrastructure and public 10391d658e facility construction. Lately… well, 2f8b9ff1f2 I probably 821d8b9881 shouldn’t be 85953583b5 saying this…”d2d3e5ca81b747af

There’s nothing 700f9b869e more frustrating 6d82a0516b than someone ae8c77cf3b stopping mid-sentence. Harriet hadn’t 49f3888f58 asked with 640ae239ab any genuine 9b094cfb1b curiosity, but ed70b4219b now that 05023f7988 Greg had 9341633ad0 stopped himself, 712fede32c she was 2135fff0c7 even more d4d58f25b1 curious. So, pretending to 23138a913b be completely clueless, 33c58fadfe she coaxed him 7ee4dd72c2 a bit.076537a66b438686

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“What’s there to worry 9bcb9064e0 about telling me? It’s not like cfaa6a6bed anyone would come bfcc4157cc to me to 9c9709d027 talk about ‘business.’ 077e21b9b9 I’m just genuinely 21dd7e3afd interested in learning d7a7c3740b about the Lambert 8d28badb27 family and you, 97e173f4ba Sir Greg. It’s practically my 9f7a62a4a4 debut in society, a1284f6b30 after all.”2112858e76d8b233

Greg waved dad38038bc his hand af4fa22c88 as if 26c31f6c91 to say e35d3aeb10 it wasn’t a6cb3f669c a big b8e579005f deal.dd2b15cefcad6740

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“Ahaha, it’s not that 4e4aae059d there’s a big secret. I just ca1265a400 worry it a6d3eb1f11 might come 04e9952b75 off as 826ed3e6cb bragging. My father recently won 05b20e3c02 the rights to a a0834366cb bridge construction project.”b978b7afee3d615a

There had been 1a1fb7a0c4 a recent industrial 980eda6bec boom in Genoa, 96cc4933cf and along with 77104a41b8 road maintenance and 07256a098b railway expansion, many f084688479 bridge projects were a1e106333e starting up.bc8e9a91f878187c

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The Heron River, d94b295ddc which cut through e1cf05a746 the capital from fc1d31cdf4 north to south, 2e69eaf090 was both a f2fdb04eec symbol of Genoa 4fbd67c1e8 and, at times, 710668dc16 an obstacle to 578f8c903f industrial development.d5013421cedeeb95

“A bridge, 622e483a1c you say? Where exactly…?”ee580045dd1f8ed2

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“Hm. That’s actually a0d959d8e7 top secret… 9f2813cd67 hmm…”6bfaae34b401f21e

Greg looked around cautiously, be6f3f4541 then leaned in and c7e7f90873 whispered.d3be7e41148dd095

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“You absolutely mustn’t tell f13d818210 anyone else. We’re going to 1de892bb62 build a bridge d1f62fc33f connecting Bouth and 5e5aa9ceb1 Chadbury.”478910ce4eb3f82c

Bouth and 526cba03fb Chadbury were b410d43981 two industrial b0f6491f42 areas facing 925a7291bd each other 31892599ef across the 39a1fd4d5e Heron River. Ships often c2376d0dee traveled through e12197a764 that part 36f26aeb71 of the afab8c42c8 river, but 29e6e58eab if a d4ca7ce904 bridge were df6c2968f4 built there, bff32e0578 both regions 3bbf0799c7 would likely cf84224195 see major 957634c9a9 growth.75e86d69653f1689

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“If that’s a7729050f9 the case, 7612761fb2 Bouth and a6ea990f70 Chadbury will 68c0316109 probably expand 77401cf9ab quickly. It could really impact 7ddb057084 the industrial development of 871564fcfc Genoa as a whole.”14d09f2240dd915f

“Exactly! So if 4cb11d858d you happen 87402b2900 to have 6a371a3368 any spare 1a6c653395 funds—or if 1cb909a3d9 you know 623ae687cc someone you f2e0f46136 could borrow 6585c3147f money from—you ea3c7c0d3e should invest. We’ve already hit our 32478decaa funding goal, but if 52c2a19b23 you’re interested, I can 279e282927 speak to my father a4d633d1fe on your behalf.”d17b00fae0657000

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“I’m not really 207b1cb929 familiar with investments…”11024ddadfc5573a

“Well, if 85580029bb investing in 339acfe647 the project e0e7424080 feels like c7358fcfc9 too much, dbc9fa16d4 you could 17892e1896 always buy d45885ce6b property or 6e5454f7d5 land in 14d59f0390 Bouth or e9c99fa61c Chadbury. Real estate doesn’t run 16728b2444 away, after all.”8fe174b2cd9cdf6c

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It was tempting 0fcab21f73 information—but Harriet didn’t 591ee63606 have the funds cbe9b2da54 to buy any 5eaffbaa45 land or buildings cc8c28ea94 right now.1d837cd653f39a0d

Trying to 5ec9d70ec2 sound casual, 61094e75d4 she asked, 018de2c874 “When is a72c375972 the bridge df3ae0dc1e expected to 6b34f8ee86 be built?”bd681deb429c3c11

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“The project 8a42dd322c will be 09b818765a made public 1b3207c606 within a 13cbd37afd year, and 7bb6c0d358 construction will 0d83d33b99 begin right aef2bd61ae after. By then, any 3a55409513 land or property 2b84a4b1b3 will already be 6ecca811fe taken. I’m only telling you 54f06500e4 this because I owe 5bbb71db9d the Countess of Phelon eaaaf6ce26 a favor.”9ae577256ddb9bf5

After that, they talked 7a75682d01 about more ordinary topics. Since more fd28d42588 people had 6911373abe gathered around, 15f429afc2 Greg didn’t 3728fd5060 bring up 0fff00723d the business f56dfeecea again.87655a76b18c1bab

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Harriet said goodbye 4cc296c053 and turned away, 3698d90a6c heart pounding.4b9bab86bcfe14f1

‘I got 8f4f6b8872 valuable information f4e4f32dd1 from another 05039f58dc noble family’s de128d046c business, just 2cc335dbdd like Bella feeaccebf1 would!’b5164838e0ba35b0

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The fact 42c11f97b1 that she 2d0a0756c9 now knew 1bea79dfba about a 4328c3ae83 confidential bridge ac2f2084d7 construction project b9764baf6e made her 339d7eb636 feel excited edabbd5303 and confident—like 684a27c8d0 she had b8ae73a200 achieved something f47b9d2430 big.d1eaf3ab24347d71

At the same time, b8f8c05c56 she began to feel 155c974a46 anxious.57837e2590fd515e

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Just as 335c58ac3d Greg had 6f06343063 said, she’d b8fb2b697b need to 32c1d48819 buy land 7ee40af916 or property 2fa82104d6 before the 4f3b16112b project became f63b568458 public to 503c980bb8 profit from dbe1b952c3 it—but where ef9020e511 was she 1bfde90c7c supposed to f34ed78002 get that 36d47361fd kind of dc33feaa37 money?736194dbb2f048d3

‘I need to a5fb845242 think this through b429105954 carefully. I have a 896e287bfe year, after all.’0c1e3edc8689edba

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Even as she 6af17cde64 tried to stay 346acb1492 calm, Harriet could 8d84111f9d feel the heat 5f0c1da0dc rising to her d165be9f0e cheeks from excitement. She stepped out onto 58a56d7f19 the terrace to get 4bcbcc840c some fresh air and 79ea8e589c cool her head.11f8a9b11713b43e

But there 954b343d52 were already e50195ac9e several people 3f0fd46c63 out there, 5113d1061d admiring the 60dc4fda68 garden or 474263f081 smoking. Harriet didn’t want to 0b77934a7e join them, so she 494f7585b7 slipped into a darker, 1d91b92172 more secluded corner.a24091478e2276d7

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“Haa…”c2c5d48a11c66f84

Taking a deep 27f6cedc3b breath helped her 9e0732bcc6 settle down a b4b13c7fa1 bit, and the f22ad4d41b excitement began to 1eb06cf480 fade. Now, with a f034b27879 clearer head, the c4ecf62761 whole situation started b5bed108fa to feel a 577d539a9e bit silly.3ad87d72aee5314d

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‘I must’ve 88319a6c4f gotten a bf0ed2c68a little too 704f91fb44 carried away. Trusting the 795ba64755 words of 23a2e6ac93 someone I b8456881b0 just met… 07738db276 Even if cba49a020f that guy 9edd88a61c was telling 747dc2118e the truth, eba1b472d0 I still 81ab592adb need to 296ef07ffc check if ac01b36787 it’s really 58b4b6dd08 worth investing 2750890398 in.’0fdc2b41141b6b59

Just knowing information doesn’t 45a5c46db1 put money in your 6fbfbe05ba hand. What truly 1e347ea887 matters is ba3c6802b7 how you d5558568b5 use that 4825b33bc3 information—and Harriet c76af85550 knew she c2189300ad still had 24f834d2c8 a lot 3a3b0eb1ee to learn.457e3dcf165924fe

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‘Pull yourself together, Harriet. Don’t forget why you 226e2edf33 came back to Genoa 2cdaf823de in the first place.’9f88af07a2db448a

She gave herself 9d86cad9d0 a little pep b8f5635b4e talk and took d2b2909bcb a moment to 0d73cc91b6 collect herself. Once the heat in 564b33181f her cheeks had cooled, 37c18bc74d she decided it was 11639c5862 time to head back 2f1368627d in. But just as she 9040ef5826 turned around, someone approached 33bfca0bea her—a familiar-looking young man 5698fa761f who seemed a bit f4b0440265 drunk.173dc5e7825a06e9

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“Didn’t think I’d 9b06ac4992 see you again 0313692d5e in society… Harriet 78affb5281 Listerwell.”47224f03cb9be39b

His tone 003b1d526e was rude, 00e18f70b8 and his b084880cce words lacked 074d195780 any form 61ada4035d of respect, 86620d6c11 which made d4bb4fd712 Harriet frown.ce52f467b736b4db

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“Who are you…”4e1597f59ec58e11

“Oh, so you’re c38042ee0a pretending not to 15bbdc126c know me now? As if 23fefde460 acting like 01a4758659 it never 85a2488e63 happened could 59deb543ee erase the 4f36ab8194 past.”c8e71fa4af556122

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“I’ll let the rudeness 5df5dfa89b slide, but first—tell me 925f439d20 who you are. Then I 4508d5318c can try a8cba0aab4 to remember f825f257e1 you or 396dfaa6be not.”ae439a6aa1822522

The man gave c17595e29d a short, incredulous ad56a413f9 laugh, then suddenly b0c403107e scowled and spat d9deeed671 his words bitterly.00af3da1e8429c9d

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“Julian Faith. Ring any 88ed19718b bells now?”92502a14abce2b37

“Julian Fa… Oh!”54abe791675a9e04

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She remembered now—her very first scandal as a “scandal maker”!2d662c00a9897fb9

This was d1e0217b63 the man 13d9f1511f who had 07dae0bae3 gone around 6dd6d336b2 bragging that d8c1d5cfab he was adcd53c66e Bella’s fiancé 4ec629979b after exchanging 45cb6303f8 letters with 6d762d6ec1 her. But Harriet had 9dfa9576c2 been the one 4e879380af who confessed to f2c5abd3f6 pretending to be f34259fa97 Bella and apologized cd597ad286 to him.7c5bf76123fd4386

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Now she knew why 36d80f4d3a he looked familiar. Even before that day b9d467196c when she apologized, Harriet 7dcc8b9496 had delivered letters to a90cbe6991 him on Bella’s behalf e04652a78c a few times. Back then, 1bc12fa09f he had a72bb0ad4c looked more 4d58877b53 like a 08400f34f6 pretty boy…92e761ffdc7afeea

He was still bf282c9d3e handsome now, no a7e123beb0 doubt about it—but dae61bebdf his drunken, arrogant 914cea50b8 behavior made him 3c839c4e5f look completely unappealing.86c31255e9430595

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Harriet straightened 5ba5783a91 her posture, 7aad098a56 lifted her 99057eb970 chin, and 1f00b98d9d braced herself.4c4eefbc0e34f44e

‘I won’t back ed60cc5386 down from a 312ac3e95c fight anymore. Even if it turns 9e3e4861ba into a nasty fight dbbb5152f1 or dirty mess.’40536a2f5c791067

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Backing down before 88adf89ae1 had never earned c06bfb08bf her any praise 876a1cc677 for being peaceful—it 00b01c3887 only made people 1bccfe4f03 say, “See? She didn’t even af59a91c09 deny it. That means she must 8b8e61e421 have done it.”beaf4a07094ecb57

That’s why, when 28035b0615 she left St. Clarissa’s convent, f55d048c12 she had be6f4cc770 already thrown 6691f324c4 away that a665ccbb0e old teaching: “If someone slaps 6d364d7a86 one cheek, offer c7305bbb62 the other.”2af2c7d1bb9034af

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Harriet smiled sweetly.97842aca812b3650

“I remember 4ee617cbf0 now, but 0e0f6a36fc I still fee4ddd181 don’t understand b5e4adcfbb why you’re 0d137acfe7 acting this 90c19ae26c way toward 95a44b0c95 me. I doubt e7c3cd9091 it’s because 3c8026f725 you want 8e91c05be0 to look 5178807b1a back.”cbd5f92dcbbf3b11

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“Look back? For me, 25e3845073 it was 572658e052 a nightmare!”a529cc6cb0f9183f

“Isn’t that 557a75dd48 a bit 2dced48b1c dramatic?”63044c0cb1e21496

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“Ha! Still as shameless as e4adfaf5c2 ever!”64f0785781056c62

“And you, Sir Julian, 3850e4d33e have grown a lot 0563c7a5ca more rude. Well, you 965fc4f4a0 weren’t exactly 6c16e33eff reasonable back d8f27e9cbd then either. Pretending to 982e1460a0 be Bella’s 845c62d015 fiancé just 84773a7cb1 because you 403bf6053c got a 373c188e6b few letters—that 6029ab1fe0 was crossing 5f2d8621df the line.”d13a6a6cef495524

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At that, Julian’s eyes 4dd1c7a662 lit up with fury.72287a6af816ce2c

“And what 6d998ef0a4 about you? You wrote those 853a43e292 letters pretending to b0bf6f95ea be Bella because ea8f1253c9 you liked me! Was that reasonable?”bbc30fa6792c10bf

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“I already apologized 5ee06d5fd7 for that. Why are you 889db53262 bringing up something 60d997af0e that ended over db14d9ffdb three years ago?”b72f50944698d385

Now that she 7dccd0d1e9 said it out 16caf76fb0 loud, it really 49bd6308a6 was strange.061fd2249edf5b55

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Harriet remembered the whole 94a162774d thing clearly because it bf5be1457d had been such a ea00bd17a0 humiliating incident.8fa03a03fbaaea80

Julian had 9d619b552b come to c4271b9e5e the Listerwell 77f6de803f estate thinking e03357666e Bella had 25375f9e10 called for 9a0a8828b8 him. And in 762aebe6dc front of 158f6dac40 him, Harriet 8b197d1b9a had apologized 30447fcb2a again and 6057126172 again.c659d66f11a190d0

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“I… I liked 5d6931fb5e you, Sir Faith… f49f88338f and when I dfec1b92bf saw your letter e66ed360ad addressed to Bella… a66a475b9e I made a 23cbd30411 terrible mistake. I’m sorry.”eaab5f9413080fb9

It had 98d36d24fb been so a40245037e hard to b446561ae8 speak, trying 5b36536913 to confess 66ae8646e7 something that 37461c1684 wasn’t even 7b1b751336 true.be7a702ed64438b3

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He had looked at cf081d4201 her in disbelief, then fab5dc4340 exploded with anger. Bella had tried to 23d3cd1a6e calm him down by 5d766b78d7 apologizing on Harriet’s behalf—but 075953c79c only after Harriet had b52ca36660 already said sorry dozens 576db00854 of times.3a807519974f7085

Anyway, that was how 3d90d7df2f it ended.067d97b9abc976c3

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Since then, Harriet had 66e7772cbb been to a few 347996c6ed parties where Julian was 35660ab9b1 also present, but he 64af7cdea2 never approached her like c81a20d8e7 this. That’s why she c0dd93139f hadn’t recognized his e99f9ebd82 face right away.d67b106fad5529e1

Maybe her 188075ce45 words hit 97a90a8623 a nerve, f7f79446d8 because Julian 94cb24061e gritted his 0236390724 teeth and 7667c6e7e1 stepped closer, c4f8f1f7cd as if 77627bc201 he might 1340a68875 hit her.bb895283d32c8cc1

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Just as Harriet instinctively 2a54de6d6a took a step back—fd1b80a01aa4e670

—but before 162ff32376 anything could 7e9482efd6 happen, someone 8b97f10e19 stepped between 654099639f them.9cdd5ddfe453edb3

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