Chapter 7
Just as the words left my mouth, a well-dressed maid stepped out from behind the screen.
It was Jane's most trusted maid, Laura.
She curtsied to Russ and spoke with a calm, measured tone.
"General, I can testify that Lady Luna didn't touch anything suspicious in the kitchen today.
"As for the pastries Lady Abigail ate, I've never even heard of such things before."
Russ's face went deathly pale in an instant.
Abigail, lying on the bed, suddenly stared wide-eyed, all the color draining from her face.
Laura's words hit everyone like an invisible hammer, striking hard at their hearts.
The room was dead silent.
Abigail's face drained of color right before our eyes.
Her eyes, once filled with smugness and scheming, now showed nothing but endless fear.
She looked at me, then at Laura, and finally at Russ, her lips trembling, unable to get a single word out.
Russ's face went from deathly pale to a dark, stormy shade, anger and disbelief flickering in his eyes.
Russ wasn't stupid.
In that split second, he instantly figured it all out.
This was all a setup.
I had orchestrated this whole thing. Even his mother quietly allowed it to happen.
He'd been played by his mother, whom he respected the most, and me.
I had been obsessed with his eyes for the past five years. Now, they locked onto me like blades, piercing right through me.
If looks could kill, I'd be full of holes by now.
But I didn't even lift an eyelid.
I kept up that frail, innocent facade, as if I were stunned by the scene unfolding before me.
I asked softly, finally breaking the suffocating silence, "What's going on?
"Laura, what brings you here?"
Laura gave me a slight bow, her manner respectful but never overstepping.
She replied, "Lady Jane was worried about your well-being and didn't want you tiring yourself out in the kitchen, so she sent me to look after you.
"Partly to help you out, and partly to keep the rumors at bay in the family.
"This way, no one can twist things and claim the Marrow residence is mistreating its rightful lady."
Laura's words were airtight, leaving no room for doubt.
She explained why she was here, and without even making a fuss, boosted my standing in the family.
At the same time, she put Abigail down hard.
A concubine dared to frame the official wife.
In any noble family, that was an unforgivable crime.
"No, that's not true..." Abigail finally managed to speak, her voice trembling as she frantically scrambled off the bed and clung to Russ's sleeve.
Abigail cried desperately, "General, please, you have to believe me. She's the one who set me up.
"She must have planned that poison all along.
"Laura is on her side. They're plotting together to hurt our baby and me!"
She screamed herself hoarse, looking like a lunatic, there wasn't a trace of her old sweetness left.
Russ stared at her, his expression conflicted.
There was anger, disappointment, but above all, a raw sense of betrayal and humiliation.
He yanked her hand off him.
"Enough!"
His voice was forced out through clenched teeth.
"Isn't this embarrassing enough for you?"
Just then, a commanding voice rang out from the doorway.
"Yeah, this is plenty embarrassing."
Everyone turned to look.
Jane, holding a string of rosary, walked in slowly, supported by Laura and another maid.
Her gaze swept over everyone in the room.
Finally, her eyes settled on Abigail, who was kneeling on the floor.
Her eyes were icy, completely devoid of warmth.
"the General's Estate is strict about discipline. We have no room for someone who dares to defy their betters with such malice."
Russ's face changed, and he hurried forward.
"Mother, this might be a misunderstanding. Abigail is pregnant..." Russ pleaded.
Jane snapped, "Enough.
"I'm not senile yet.
"You've let that vixen cloud your judgment, and now you've turned the whole Marrow family upside down.
"As a dancer of dubious origin, she actually dares to lord it over the rightful lady of this house.
"If she can frame Lady Luna today, what's stopping her from poisoning you tomorrow, General?"
Every word Jane spoke cut straight to the heart.
Russ's face flushed red, then turned pale, and he was left speechless.
Abigail collapsed to the floor, her face ashen, like all hope had drained from her.
She knew that she was finished.
Jane couldn't even be bothered to spare her another glance.
She ordered coldly, "Guards, drag this disgraceful wench out and give her thirty strokes with the paddle!"