Chapter 237: The Suspicion

Leone glanced around. The breeze had become strangely cold.

Then a dry leaf lifted from the ground.

It circled Aveline once, caught in a small current that seemed to have appeared from nowhere. Then it circled her again before dropping gently at her feet.

Leone’s eyes widened.

Aveline remained perfectly still, but the air around her had begun to move in slow, restless currents, stirring the loose strands of her hair and the edges of her clothes.

She was furious.

Not the sharp, explosive anger that came and went in an instant, but something deeper and far more frightening. The old woman had stood there and calmly suggested that Lydia’s suffering could be solved by marrying her to one of the men who had destroyed her. Worse, she had spoken as though Lydia should be grateful for the opportunity to climb into a noble household.

And then she had implied that Lydia might have wanted it.

Aveline could hardly believe what she was hearing.

Leone was a woman too. An old woman, certainly, but a woman who had raised daughters and watched grandchildren grow. Lydia was scarcely older than Leone’s own granddaughter. How could she look at a girl who had suffered something so terrible and speak about her pain with such composure?

Aveline’s eyes narrowed.

And the shadows told her something even worse.

Leone wasn’t merely saying these things because she was trying to manipulate her.

She believed them.

Every word.

Every excuse.

Every carefully dressed piece of cruelty.

Aveline slowly drew in a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down before the air around her became something far more dangerous.

Is this how everyone thinks here?

The thought left a bitter taste in her mouth.

It wasn’t entirely new to her. She had already seen enough of this world to know that power could twist people’s understanding of right and wrong. But to hear someone suggest this so casually, while Lydia lay wounded nearby...

Aveline looked at Leone for a long moment.

Then, strangely, her anger began to settle.

Not because she had forgiven her.

She hadn’t.

She was simply becoming curious.

How does her mind work?

The restless currents around her gradually quieted. The leaves settled back onto the ground, and the breeze softened into an ordinary morning wind.

Aveline tilted her head slightly.

Perhaps, before she decided what to do with this woman, she ought to understand exactly what kind of person she was dealing with. Maybe this was what everyone believed?

"You think," Aveline said quietly, "that Lydia should marry one of the men who destroyed her."

It wasn’t a question.

Leone swallowed. "I think we should consider what is best for the girl."

Aveline’s eyes darkened.

"No."

The single word seemed to make the air itself tighten.

"You think she should be grateful that one of the men who violated her is willing to put a ring on her finger."

Leone’s face paled. "Aveline, you misunderstand—"

"No." Aveline took one slow step toward her. "I understand you perfectly."

The wind stirred harder, sending dry leaves skittering across the ground around their feet.

"You’re not here because you care about Lydia. You’re here because someone is afraid of what happens if this case reaches the court."

Leone said nothing.

"And now you’re trying to convince me that marrying her to one of those monsters would be an act of mercy."

A faint tremor passed through the trees.

Aveline’s gaze sharpened. "Tell me, Archduchess... which one of them is supposed to marry my friend?"

Leone gulped.

Yet when she answered, there was no shame in her expression. No hesitation. She looked at Aveline as though she were offering a perfectly reasonable solution to an unfortunate problem.

"She may choose whichever of them she prefers. They are all prepared to marry her. And should she find none of them to her liking, I am certain an alternative can be arranged—someone more agreeable to her."

Aveline simply stared at her.

Leone continued, apparently mistaking her silence for consideration.

"She would receive a proper dowry, a comfortable household, and every provision necessary to begin a respectable life. Considering her humble circumstances, she could scarcely ask for a more generous settlement."

A faint smile touched Leone’s lips.

"It is a very good offer, Ava. She ought to take it."

Aveline was speechless.

Truly speechless.

She had expected manipulation. Perhaps a threat. Perhaps an attempt to frighten her into withdrawing the case. She had not expected this—this genuine conviction that a girl’s life could be neatly repaired with a marriage contract, a dowry, and a respectable surname.

How could anyone think this way?

How could Lydia even think about marriage right now? Her body was only beginning to heal. Her mind was still trapped in the horror of what had happened to her. She had flinched from the gentlest touch, awakened trembling from nightmares, and struggled simply to look another person in the eyes.

And Leone was talking about choosing a husband.

Aveline slowly looked at her.

For the first time, her anger gave way to something colder.

Pity.

Not for Lydia, but for Leone.

Because Aveline suddenly understood that this woman wasn’t pretending to be cruel.

She genuinely couldn’t see the cruelty in what she was saying.

Or perhaps... she could.

Perhaps Leone simply stood to gain something from Lydia’s suffering.

Otherwise, why was she here, speaking on behalf of those four families when her own husband was supposedly pushing for justice against them?

Aveline’s gaze remained fixed on her.

"Do you want to visit her?"

Leone’s expression changed.

It was subtle, but Aveline caught it immediately. The faint tightening around her eyes. The sudden hesitation. And then, unmistakably...

Panic.

Aveline’s eyes narrowed.

Why?

She didn’t want to guess yet. It could simply be classism. Perhaps Leone truly believed a common-born girl should be grateful for whatever scraps a noble family offered her.

Or...

Perhaps Leone understood exactly how terrible Lydia’s condition was.

Perhaps that was precisely why she didn’t want to see her.

Aveline let out a slow breath. Her rage had quieted now, leaving her mind frighteningly clear. Anger would dull her senses. She needed to think.

She needed to know why Leone had come here.

And, more importantly, who had sent her.

"No," Leone said at last, her voice suddenly less steady. "You should make her see reason."

Aveline stared at her.

So... she didn’t want to see Lydia.

Interesting.

The pieces were beginning to move.

"You came here as a messenger for those noble boys," Aveline said quietly. "You want me to convince Lydia to marry one of the men who hurt her."

She took a step forward.

"What is your purpose?"

Leone simply stared at her.

Aveline took another step.

Leone instinctively retreated.

There it was again.

Fear.

Aveline stopped.

She had seen that expression on Leone’s face before. The same fear she’d noticed when she first confronted her. The same fear that appeared whenever Aveline came too close to something Leone didn’t want her to see.

Aveline’s voice softened.

"Tell me, Leone."

The Archduchess swallowed.

"Is that why you drove Leveret away?"

Leone went rigid.

"You didn’t want her near your husband," Aveline continued, watching every flicker of emotion on her face. "You didn’t want her to marry him. You didn’t want her taking the place you believed belonged to you."

Leone’s face hardened.

The panic vanished beneath a sudden flash of anger.

Aveline noticed.

There.

She had touched something.

"And now..." Aveline tilted her head. "What purpose does Lydia’s decision serve you?"

Leone said nothing.

"Who else is involved?"

The silence stretched between them.

Leone’s breathing became quicker.

Aveline watched her carefully, no longer seeing an old woman who had come to deliver an offensive proposal.

She was looking at a woman who was hiding something.

And for the first time since Leone had arrived, Aveline wondered if her visit had very little to do with Lydia at all.

Perhaps Lydia was merely the excuse.

Perhaps someone wanted the case buried.

And perhaps Leone knew exactly why.