The Contract Wife Tries to Leave - Chapter 183
* * *
“Mm, mm!”
“Hey, quiet down, stay still.”
I was on my way to the Royal Trait Research Institute to gather some necessary materials. I decided to take a shortcut, thinking about stopping by my regular coffee house, when suddenly some thugs appeared in front of and behind me, surrounding me.
‘Who are you people? No, stay back!’
‘Let’s go somewhere for a moment. It’d be better if you didn’t resist.’
I racked my brain, but there was no way I could fend off six strong men alone. In the end, they tied my hands behind my back, gagged me, and brought me here. A blindfold was placed over my eyes, so I couldn’t see a thing.
“Is this the right person?”
“Hold on, let me check.”
A young woman’s clear voice reached my ears. She grabbed my chin, tilting my head from side to side, then let go.
“Yes, this is Victoria Oder. You brought her in precisely.”
“Of course. I’ve been doing this for over ten years. Now, where’s the payment?”
“Here. And this is for keeping quiet.”
“Hush money? They even give you that?”
Victoria quickly realized that some sort of transaction was happening over her. What on earth would make someone go to the trouble of kidnapping a regular person like her? She’d never had any enemies before…
“Ahem, Miss Victoria Oder?”
At the sound of her name a while later, Victoria flinched instinctively, her body tensing with anxiety. Her heart raced, fearing the worst—what if they were planning to torture her?
“We’re not such terrible people, so please don’t be too afraid. Just stay here quietly for a few days, at most two weeks, and we’ll let you go unharmed.”
“Mm-mm!”
“We’ll remove the gag. As for your hands, we’ll untie them only for meals and restroom breaks. Sorry, but you’ll have to keep the blindfold on.”
Victoria felt someone’s hand near the back of her neck, and soon the gag was removed. As soon as she could speak, she fired off questions in rapid succession.
“Who are you? What’s the purpose of all this?”
“I can’t answer that… But as I said, as long as you cooperate, you’ll be released without a scratch. So don’t waste your energy, alright?”
The woman added that someone would be standing guard outside the door, then left Victoria alone.
Victoria couldn’t even get a proper sense of the space where she was held. All she could tell was that she was seated on a soft mattress, and in this state, her options were limited to sitting still or lying down.
‘A madwoman… How am I supposed to endure two weeks like this?!’
Letting out a hopeless sigh, Victoria slumped onto her side. Soon enough, her disappearance would be noticed, and if the Marquis took this seriously… he might even form a search party to find her. It was just a hope, but still.
Then, a sudden thought made her eyes widen under the blindfold.
‘Could it be… Was I kidnapped because I’m the Marquis’s personal physician?’
If that were the case, the fundamental purpose wouldn’t be about her. That strange offer to let her go unharmed if she stayed put… She couldn’t trust it entirely. There was no telling—they might decide to kill her if things didn’t go their way.
Who on earth had locked her up here, and what were they planning?
Suddenly, she worried about Johanna. Hopefully, nothing would happen to her…
‘Escaping from here would be difficult, wouldn’t it…’
They said they’d untie her wrists when she ate or went to the restroom, so it seemed like she’d have to wait for that moment.
Victoria sighed heavily and closed her eyes again, deciding to conserve her energy for now.
* * *
“Victoria Oder is locked in the far-right room of the basement. Hans is stationed as her guard.”
“Alright, good job. I’ll call you if there’s more for you to do, so wait out in the hallway.”
“Yes, Miss.”
As soon as Mary left and the door closed, a chilly silence filled the parlor.
Josephine set her teacup on its saucer and stared intently at the man sitting across from her. When their eyes met, he flinched, shrinking his shoulders.
Timid, overly cautious, and with a fatal weakness—he was the perfect tool. Suppressing a sneer, Josephine spoke in a falsely kind tone.
“Don’t worry, Mr. Fischer. As long as you do as I ask, your case of embezzling research funds will stay buried.”
“Y-Yes…”
“So, is this the health report?”
“Yes… that’s correct…”
Jacques Fischer was a former researcher at the Trait Research Institute who had embezzled state-funded research grants to line his own pockets. Josephine had learned this through his reckless son, whom she paid to uncover the truth. The embezzled funds were used to settle the son’s assault charges.
“…Infertility diagnosis, you’ve noted it clearly. Excellent.”
