After I Died, My Husband Went Mad - Chapter 10
Sebelia was finishing up her letter when Flora burst in.
“Hey, Wheddon.”
The red-haired Flora flung the door wide open without warning. Then, she stepped forward and abruptly snatched the letter from Sebelia.
“So, the butler was right about…”
There was no hiding the anger in her voice. She read the letter quickly, flipping the pages with a rough hand.
Then she let out her pent-up anger. “What do you think you’re trying to do this time…ha!”
Flora’s eyes caught an unbelievable passage. Sebelia was asking to enter the vault to manage the ‘personally acquired miscellaneous properties’ brought with the dowry
“This is so ridiculous.”
Sebelia was momentarily stunned by the sudden intrusion, but quickly regained her composure. “Flora, what on earth is this?”
But Flora only scowled at her, waving the letter in Sebelia’s face. “Oh, Sebelia, our precious spy sent by the Capital. Is this how you plan to deplete our fortune this time?”
“Stop it, and give me the letter.”
“Oh, are you feeling guilty now? Or are you scared that, like last time when you claimed to be rescuing refugees, you’ll get scolded by Father again?”
Sebelia’s face turned pale. What Flora mentioned was the second incident that had irritated Dehart’s sensibilities, following the time when she was labeled a spy from the Capital.
“I…,” she began but couldn’t bring herself to continue. Unwanted memories forced their way into her mind.
Sebelia’s lips turned blue. She had tried to help the people affected by the disaster, as other noblewomen had done in the past. She believed that by assisting those suffering from the calamity, she could win his favor again.
Flora’s mother, Glenn, convinced her.
[I don’t believe you are a spy. How could a delicate child like you do such a thing?]
[I know it’s hard, but you have to stand by that boy. Once he knows what you’ve done, he might understand your sincerity.]
Glenn’s eyes filled with tears as she said this, holding Sebelia’s hands and infusing her with courage.
[It’s the only thing you can do.]
Ah, how deeply her past self was moved by those words. How she wanted to shed a tear at the sound of Glenn, who was like a mother to him, believing in her innocence.
[Thank you… for believing in me.]
Loneliness and isolation. The scorn and resentment that poured from everywhere she turned.
Vulnerable as she was, Sebelia took her advice too readily, and that’s how the incident unfolded.
[Don’t ever do something like this again. Do you understand?]
When Dehart realized what she was about to do, he spat out his anger in a clenched fist and stormed out of the room. That cold back, that invisible expression. The prickly voice and the hand that pushed her away.
Sebelia realized it was a repeat of that terrible day in her past. Foolishly, she had allowed herself to be betrayed once again.
[I… I…]
As she began to crumble, Glenn deftly deflected the blame.
[My dear, you were in too much of a hurry. You should have taken your time. Didn’t they teach you that at the Wheddon estate?]
Oh, it was all because she was pathetic.
And just like that, Sebelia was stripped of all her formal duties as Duchess. Even the right to access the underground vault where her dowry was kept.
Rip—
Before she knew it, the letter in Flora’s hand was torn in half.
“Please don’t embarrass Inverness any more than this.”
“…”
“You forget that sometimes staying quiet helps. You really should have listened to Father.” Mimicking a pleading tone, Flora tore at the paper a few more times.
In an instant, the letter tore to piece and fell to the floor. Just as her heart was torn in front of her.
“Why do you think Father told you not to do anything? He probably foresaw a moment like this.”
Flora spoke in a sing-song voice and waved her hand gently. She secretly hoped that Sebelia would fall into despair, just like her mother had made her do. However, this time was different.
Sebelia’s blue eyes did not sink further inward, nor did they fall into melancholy. They were simply staring at Flora’s white wrist, as dry and impassive as a windless wilderness. Or, more accurately, she was looking at the bracelet on Flora’s wrist.
That, could it be?
Sebelia blinked, ignoring Flora’s mocking comment. She couldn’t believe it, but no matter how many times I looked again, what she saw was undeniable.
That’s what I brought back from my marriage.
Her blue eyes turned cold as frost. Flora had stolen her dowry.
