"Audreya?" Vivia called out, assuming she might still be hiding somewhere.
The house was small enough for one person to live comfortably, so there wasn't much scope for Audreya to be anywhere else.
"Strange. Since the doors were locked, she couldn't be outside."
Erissa shook her head. "That's not possible. I had urged Miss. Audreya not to step out at any cost. I was sending daily essentials, so she didn't have to worry about that."
Vivia swept another glance around the house and caught the sight of a letter on the bedside table. She quickly walked over and unfolded it.
'I'm leaving Orseth. There's nothing left for me to do here anymore. It's true that I loved Raffert. But he…he loved Vivia. I tried my best to bear this pain and make him look at me. Love me. But he couldn't. His eyes always searched for Vivia. It became impossible to bear. Was it so hard to love me? Wasn't I trying my best? I decided that Vivia…she had to be gone. I had no other choice…
Yet even after instigating my dear friend's death with my own hands, Raffert couldn't forget her. He left me behind at Orseth. But I couldn't give up on him. I followed him all the way to Orseth only to find that he was now a married man. He was happily in love with another woman. Then what about me…?
I felt angry and betrayed. He was supposed to be mine! But he kicked me out of his house as if he didn't know me at all, as if we never spent all that time together…The tea party, yet again, opened my eyes to how Raffert doesn't hold any feelings for me. That he will never love me. So I decided to leave the city and never show my face again.
I deeply apologize to Princess Clairette for attacking her. I wasn't in my right state of mind. After Raffert's disregard of my love and humiliation, I couldn't bear the guilt of killing my friend over my fruitless love. I killed an innocent woman because of my selfishness. I wanted a scapegoat to bear the brunt of my miserable fate instead of me…So I concocted the story of the Princess visiting Stras. But in reality, I had never met Princess Clairette in my life. It was all a lie. Please forgive me Princess.
Please forgive me Vivia for taking away your life…I truly adored you, but love had blinded me. And now neither I have the man I loved by my side, nor my friend…'
Erissa's eyes went wide. "W-What? Miss. Audreya escaped? Di-Did she really kill her friend and try to pin the blame upon you, my lady? She's confessing to all of it…"
Vivia read the letter long and hard. The paper crumpled under the pressure of her tightening fingers.
Audreya has not written this letter…This is indeed her handwriting, but these are not her words. Someone has forced her to write this.
A faint movement from behind them snapped her attention to the door. She barely caught a shadow slipping out of view.
"My lady, what happ-"
Vivia sharply gestured a 'keep quiet' signal and squinted her eyes. She tiptoed in complete silence, not disturbing so much as the air around her. Her right hand reached for the hilt of her hidden dagger at her waistband. In one swift motion, she jumped the last step and shot her left arm out, catching what felt like a coat to her.
"Speak! Who are you?"
A panicked gasp cut through in response with the intruder's resistance. He tried to escape, but every struggle failed when she jabbed a kick to the back of his knee.
"Ahh!"
Vivia turned around to face him and yanked his coat back from his face. It revealed a face she knew all too well.
"Sir Walterce…?"
Walterce's chest heaved in and out as he sucked in a mouthful of breaths, the earlier jab sending a numbing throb through his knee.
As Walterce's harsh words and betrayal at the tea party flashed in her mind as ugly memories, Vivia's jaw clenched in response. The letter flapped against the air in her clenched hand.
"Who forced Audreya to write this letter? And where is she now? Answer me!"
As his senses slowly returned, Walterce was dumbfounded to see the royal princess standing right before him.
"P-Princess Clairette…?"
"Just answer me!"
"Audreya? I-I don't know where she is. I came here to meet her myself."
"Lies! After betraying her at the tea party, you wouldn't have come here for just a friendly chit-chat, now would you?" Her gaze grew colder and harsher.
"It's the truth, Princess! I don't know anything about this letter or where she is right now!"
She snickered. "You want me to believe you truly came here for some friendly meeting?"
Walterce trembled. "I wanted to talk to her about that day. I-I know I wronged her. She'd never kill Vivia…" tears formed in his eyes. "I truly didn't know if she and Raffert were in any kind of a relationship. But she'd have never killed Vivia out of jealousy or spite. I know the kind of person she is, yet I lied. I wanted to ask for her forgiveness. I couldn't live with the guilt…Please…please believe me…" he broke down into soft sobs.
Her countenance hardened at his tears. Though her heart resisted in believing him, her instinct said otherwise. Walterce might have lied back then - but not now. Which only sank her heart further.
If he doesn't know where Audreya is then…where is she?
—
Audreya's eyelids flickered open in a daze. Darkness spun around her like a web of invisible threads, and she couldn't make sense of left from right, up from down. Time, space, air - it was as though she felt nothing.
"Uughh…"
She moved around and there it was - something restrictive. Something binding. Metal clunk somewhere.
Her eyes struggled to focus, and when she did, she could blurrily make out the shape of her own feet. She involuntarily shifted again and this time, felt it distinctly. Heard the clunk of a metal against the floor without a speck of doubt.
Reality slowly rushed at her in waves. Her ankles were locked in shackles, clicking and clanking against the ground. The air smelled damp and stale. Metal bars met her sight.
She was in a prison.