Reincarnation of The Villainess: She Has The Duke's Baby!-Chapter 72: #-Goodbye, Edmund Gerwyn
"I’m so sorry for this incident, Your Grace. I don’t know if Isaac Abraham managed to fool me. I have nothing to say and am ready to accept Your Grace’s punishment."
Edmund Gerwyn, who was standing in front of his study window, looked at Chris, who was kneeling in front of him with a cold gaze while crossing his arms. Then, the Duke walked over to his desk and threw the box filled with dead rats covered in blood in front of Chris. The shadow knight froze and didn’t dare to look up.
"You know what it is?" asked Edmund in a sharp tone. "The dead rat was sent by someone for my Duchess, Chris. And, the only person who could do something like this that popped into my head was Isaac Abraham. So far, the Duchess has never had an enemy, Chris. She may be known as the cruelest and most evil woman in the De Louis empire but I have never heard of anyone intending to threaten the Duchess like this!" shouted Edmund. The man was furious. Penelope became gloomy and a little scared. Luckily, the woman still wanted to eat and do other activities even though she had to be accompanied by Sarah. "When we met the man after the Duchess shared her dream which showed Isaac Abraham kidnapping her and harming her, threats like that came to the Duchess."
Chris was speechless. He tightened his jaw and gritted his teeth. How dare Isaac Abraham give a dead rat covered in blood for Duchess Gerwyn and threaten her?! Chris will not stay silent. He had to find evidence. And, if Chris got the proof, the man swore he would give hell to Isaac Abraham for daring to make Penelope Askary scared and cry.
"Find evidence of this, Chris," growled Edmund. "This is the last chance I am giving you. If you fail, then I will kill you with my own two hands!" the Duke threatened.
Just as Chris was about to open his mouth to say that he would, the door to Edmund’s study opened. Penelope Askary entered with a sullen face. This made Edmund raise an eyebrow. Chris, who also noticed Penelope’s arrival, immediately greeted the woman.
"Greetings to Duchess Penelope. May the light of Goddess Elleia always be with you."
Penelope stopped beside Chris and helped him to his feet. Though confused, Chris stood his ground. Then, the petite woman stood in front of Chris to stare at Edmund.
"Penny? Why are you here?" asked Edmund in a confused tone. He approached Penelope and intended to touch his wife’s face but Penelope immediately jerked his hand. The Duke blinked. "Honey?"
"I got information from Sarah and the other maids that you’re scolding Chris here," Penelope grumbled. The woman crossed her arms and looked up so she could meet Edmund’s blue eyes. "Why are you scolding him?"
"I don’t—"
"You must have scolded him because he couldn’t keep a good eye on Isaac Abraham as you told him to, right?"
"That—"
"Edmund Gerwyn," Penelope snorted and pointed at the Duke’s face. "We don’t even know if that dead rat was a threat from Isaac Abraham! You haven’t got any proof yet and Chris has done his job to keep a good eye on that man! You should be praising Chris instead of scolding him like this! I don’t like you scolding and threatening all your subordinates, Ed. I won’t forgive you if I find out you killed Chris over a trivial matter like this!"
"A trivial matter you say?" asked Edmund in disbelief. The man laughed and snorted. "My dearest Duchess, matters that concern your life or the lives of our children cannot be called trivial matters! Someone’s threatening you, Honey! Did you think I would just stay silent?"
"Not that you can kill others as you please!" Penelope massaged the bridge of her nose. "Anyway, I’ll be mad at you and won’t talk to you again if you hurt your subordinates, who have been very loyal to you!" Penelope looked at Chris. "Chris, go. Eat, play, or do something else that you really like. You’ve worked hard and I want you to enjoy the day off even if it’s just one day."
"Duchess, I—"
"Leave right now or I will punish you!" Penelope threatened. This made Chris blink and exchange glances with Edmund without him realizing it. It wasn’t only Chris, who was confused by Penelope’s words but also Edmund. The two men both thought that Penelope’s words contradict each other. If earlier Penelope said she would not forgive Edmund if Edmund killed Chris, then Penelope just said that she would punish Chris if Chris did not go on vacation today. "What are you waiting for, Chris? Should I drag you out? Oh! Since I’m just a Duchess and not the one who hired you, that’s why you won’t obey my orders, is that it?"
Chris looked at Edmund and the Duke just sighed heavily while waving his hand.
"Go. Do what my Duchess says because that woman is now your master too," said Edmund in a firm tone.
Chris immediately bowed and said goodbye to the Duke and Duchess Gerwyn. When the man left, Penelope glanced at Edmund and snorted.
"I don’t want to see you."
"Huh?!"
"You suck, Duke Edmund! Don’t look for me because I want to go play outside!"
"What?" Edmund blinked and ran after Penelope, who had walked out of Edmund’s study. "Honey, wait for me! I’m sorry, okay? I will never do it again. Penny?"
###
Edmund Gerwyn woke up feeling uneasy.
It was dark around him when the man opened his eyes. The Duke frowned and glanced around. It’s cold and no one is here. However, Edmund could smell the scent of blood which made him very nauseous. The man covered his nose with one hand and realized that his hand was covered in blood.
"Blood?!" shouted the Duke. Now, Edmund also saw the bloodstained sword in his left hand. "This... What is the meaning of all this?!"
"That means you killed me, Edmund Gerwyn."
The voice made Edmund flinch and freeze. He turned his head and his body trembled violently when he saw Penelope Askary standing in front of him with a pale face. Penelope’s face and eyes seemed to lose their light. The woman’s mouth was bleeding, as well as her tiny body. Corrected. The blood came from Penelope’s heart which then covered her whole body.
"Penny?!" shouted Edmund. The man threw away his sword and dashed toward Penelope. He cupped Penelope’s face and shook his head frantically at the state of his Duchess. "No! No! What happened to you, Honey?! Who did this to you?! Your heart... No! You can’t leave me like this, Penny! You—"
"Weren’t you the one who brutally and cruelly killed me, Edmund Gerwyn?"
The cold and hateful question left Penelope’s mouth. She pushed Edmund away and pointed at his face.
"You have killed me, Duke Edmund. You are a very cruel man. You killed me because you didn’t want your and Isabella Lysander’s affair to become known to me. You have the heart to take my life and also our children’s."
Edmund paled on the spot when he heard that.
"That’s not possible!" shouted Edmund. "I never killed you and our children, Penny. I really love you guys. And I never had an affair with Isabella Lysander! I—"
"Ed, Honey... You have the heart to forget about our sex that night?"
The question made Edmund freeze and turn around. He was wide-eyed when he saw Isabella Lysander, who only used a blanket to cover her body.
"You were very satisfied with our sex that night, Ed. You always ask me again and again to do our hot sex. You moaned loudly, filled with pleasure."
"I NEVER DID ANYTHING LIKE THAT WITH YOU! I JUST LOVE PENELOPE ASKARY!"
"Father... You have the heart to kill us?"
Now, Edmund turned to another source of sound. He could see a boy and a girl on either side of Penelope. The faces of the two children were very similar and the color of their eyes were both very unique. The children have different eye colors.
Wait.
Where had Edmund seen them both? Why did Edmund feel that this was not the first time Edmund had seen the twins?
"I didn’t kill the both of you!" cried Edmund.
"You killed Mother and both of us because you wanted to go with that woman," pointed out the long-haired girl, who was standing on Penelope’s right side. "You are so mean, Father. It hurt so much when you stabbed me in the chest."
"You prefer that woman over us, Father. I hate you so much," said the boy, who is standing on Penelope’s left side. Then, he looked up. "Mother, how about we go now and leave Father forever?"
Penelope nodded and picked up the twins.
"No! Penelope, where are you going?!" cried Edmund. He tried to run toward Penelope but strangely, the man couldn’t move his legs. Meanwhile, Penelope and her two children had drifted apart. Then, Edmund’s eyes widened when he saw a man in the distance, who was picking up Penelope and their children. Penelope looked up at the man and smiled gently. She even allowed the man to kiss her lips passionately.
"Did you see this, Duke Edmund?"
When the man turned to look at him, Edmund froze. Philleo Aaron grinned in satisfaction and he hugged Penelope’s body. Seeing that, Edmund’s anger began to rise to the surface.
"Philleo Aaron!" growled Edmund. "Get your dirty hands off my wife’s body, you son of a bitch!"
"Your wife? Ha!" Philleo Aaron laughed mockingly. His purple eyes fixed Edmund with a sharp gaze. "My Lady is no longer your wife, Duke Edmund! She has left you and chosen me. Finally, My Lady knows who is better for her. You better just focus on Isabella Lysander. Haven’t you had sex with that woman? You have also hurt My Lady with your sword. Now, just leave My Lady and your children to me, Duke Edmund. I can protect them well. I can also love them better than you. Isn’t that right, My Lady?"
Penelope smiled gently and stroked Philleo’s handsome face. "Don’t call me My Lady again, Phil. Call me Penny. I am yours now." The woman wrapped her arms around Philleo’s neck. She stood on tiptoe and kissed Philleo on the lips. Edmund, who could hear their kiss, was now growling loudly and trying to move. However, his body still couldn’t move at all.
"PENELOPE ASKARY!"
"Goodbye, Edmund Gerwyn," Penelope said coldly. "I hope you are happy with Isabella Lysander. You don’t have to worry about our children. Philleo and I can give them a lot of love and they will never look for you either. You can have children from Isabella."
"No! No!" Edmund shook his head frantically when he saw Philleo holding Penelope’s and their children’s, then started to move away from the place. He could also hear Isabella Lysander’s triumphant laughter. "Penelope, don’t leave me, please!"
However, Penelope did not want to look back at all.
