Sacrificial Bride to the Feared Lord Hastings-Chapter 207: Shattering truth (2)

When the sun rose in the sky, Alice entered the bedchamber to dress Ophelia for the day while Dante was away to start the preparation to go to the palace.

In the mirror, Ophelia noticed how Alice tried her hardest not to look her in the eye.

"What is the matter with you, Alice? When our eyes meet, you keep looking down. Have you done something wrong?" Ophelia asked, suspicious.

"No! It is the marks on your body. The maids who were present when I undressed you have been speaking of it as well. Forgive me," Alice said, but she couldn’t stop blushing.

"Oh. Well, they should speak of what Dante did rather than speak of my bruises. I am married, Alice. In case you have forgotten," Ophelia said, not embarrassed.

"Since you have arrived, it is the first time we have seen you like this. When Lord Hastings ordered your belongings, there was a lot of chatter, but now there would be more. The others are starting to realise your position," said Alice.

"Now that it is evident you are intimate with Lord Hastings, it will push more of the servants on your side. This gossip will be good," Alice said, excited for Ophelia.

"It can also be bad. Everyone will be looking for me to have a child soon to determine whether I will be the one to have his heir. If a child doesn’t come in due time, they will turn on me," Ophelia said.

"They would be foolish to speak poorly of you when Lord Hastings favours you so much."

"It is the way of the world. Many believe love will vanish if a child is not brought into marriage. I must prepare myself for those noisy people," Ophelia said, touching her forehead.

Ophelia was certain the conversations had already started, but as long as they didn’t reach her yet, she was fine with it.

"I am done with your hair," Alice said as she stepped back.

"It is good as always. I must speak with my brother before I go down to eat. Is Lady Valthorn in her chamber?" Ophelia asked as she walked towards the door.

"No. I heard the maids speaking of Lady Valthorn going to the kitchen early in the morning, but she should be back in her chamber now. They said you permitted her," said Alice.

"I did, but she wasn’t supposed to be in the kitchen so soon. We cannot have our morning meal. I’ll need to send for my husband since we’ll be having a picnic," said Ophelia.

Ophelia exited her bedchamber and made way to Theo’s chamber.

The outing had done well to put Theo in a better mood, so Ophelia expected her talk with Theo now to go well.

Ophelia decided to wait for Theo to ask for a doctor and keep one waiting nearby to help instead of pushing it.

"Is your hand well?" Alice’s voice interrupted Ophelia’s thought.

Ophelia looked down at her right hand.

"It is fine. It is doing well since there have been plenty of moments when I forgot it was injured. It only hurts if I place too much weight on it," Ophelia said.

Ophelia blushed as the memory of last night flooded her mind.

If her hand ached during her intimacy with Dante, Ophelia paid no mind to it. She was too wrapped up in feeling good and touching Dante to think about her hand.

"The new doctor is doing well. She tended to my hand and stopped most of the pain right away. The medicine she gave me has also worked well. I am thrilled to get to give another woman a chance. I do not think my hand needs to be wrapped with bandages again," Ophelia said, looking down at her hand.

Ophelia removed the bandages for the outing yesterday because she didn’t want to worry anyone outside of the castle. More importantly, she didn’t want to open questions about why her hand might be injured.

"You must remind me to visit the doctor once I am done speaking to Theo. I want to check that it is healing as well as I think. Wait here," Ophelia instructed Alice, leaving her outside Theo’s bedchamber.

Ophelia opened the door and heard laughter in the chamber.

Beside Theo’s bed stood Thomas, who covered his mouth to hide his laughter.

"Good morning to you two. You are free to laugh, Thomas. I am not so cruel to punish you for doing so," Ophelia said as she walked further into the chamber. "I like that you two are getting along well. Thomas, I want to speak to my brother for a moment, and then you can return when you are done."

"I am to guard you, Lady Hasting. I was told to come here while you were getting dressed," said Thomas.

"I know, but you appear to be doing well here. I will get another guard to follow me today while you stay here for the day. I am not keeping you from my side forever. Just for this one day," Ophelia promised. "You may run, but I won’t let you leave my side with ease."

"Thank you," Thomas said and then excused himself.

Ophelia approached the bed. "You have a new friend. I like seeing how well you get along with Thomas. If you want, I can make him your guard."

Theo shook his head, rejecting the offer. "Thomas wouldn’t be happy. All he speaks about is guarding. Please keep him at your side, but allow me to speak with him often. I do like his company."

"Very well. I have come because you wanted to speak to me, or have you changed your mind?" Ophelia asked as she sat down on the edge of the bed.

Theo avoided Ophelia’s gaze by looking down at his fingers. He picked at them as he struggled to start what he needed to say.

Ophelia laughed at Theo acting shy. "Why are you like this with me?" Ophelia asked, thinking Theo was acting cute. "Did you and Thomas find yourselves in trouble? Or, if it’s that you want to leave your chamber to have fun, I can arrange it for you."

Ophelia waited for Theo to share what he wanted to tell her, but it did not come. "Very well. If it is that you don’t want to tell me, then I won’t push you to. We must prepare ourselves for Giselle to prepare a picnic meant to kill us-"

"I want to die," Theo spoke quickly, getting it over with.

Ophelia’s laughter ceased after hearing what Theo said. "What?" She asked, certain she heard from. "I’m sorry, I thought I heard- No," Ophelia shook her head. "I was speaking at the same time, so I didn’t hear you clearly."

"I want to die," Theo spoke slowly, but loud enough for Ophelia to hear. "I have already made up my mind."