Chapter 7

The more I spoke, the colder I felt.

In my last life, when Bernard went to Ballyway City for the exams, he insisted on taking my husband's books with him.

Back then, I thought he loved writing. I thought he was a good man.

Later, he became the Top Imperial Scholar. He wrote a few papers that made his name. When I heard them, something about them felt familiar. I didn't understand why until right before I died.

He had never taken old books. He had taken my husband's work.

I let out a quiet laugh. I thought I had good judgment. I thought I had found a genius.

But what I found was a thief.

Bernard's expression tightened. He looked uneasy. "I only saw that some of the old papers were well written. I wanted to borrow them to read."

"Borrow?" I laughed. "You borrow things by climbing through windows, huh?"

My voice turned sharper. "And when you want to invite a guest, you plan to kidnap them in the middle of the night, huh?"

As soon as I said that, the faces in the room changed instantly.

Ralph's face turned pale. He tried to explain, "No, we were only—"

"Only what?" I turned and fixed him with a stare. "You were following the Cobbett family's orders. You waited by the river to trap my daughter.

"When that failed, you came here to steal my land deed and my husband's papers. You wanted to force me into a corner."

Ralph had never seen me like this before. Fear showed clearly in his eyes.

Celia stood behind me. She had already pieced most of it together, and her whole body shook. "Mom, are they really here to hurt us?"

I didn't turn around.

I was afraid that if I did, the first thing I would see would be the fear in her eyes. I could not bear that.

Hector had Bernard pinned with one hand and kept Ralph down under his foot. His voice was cold. "Turn them over to the officials?"

My heart skipped a beat.

In my last life, nothing scared me more than dealing with officials.

When poor people crossed paths with them, it rarely ended well. I had always believed it was better to keep my head down, to endure what I could, to avoid trouble at all costs.

But that way of thinking had pushed Celia and me step by step into a dead end.

This time, I did not hesitate. "Send them."

I looked straight at Bernard and spoke each word clearly. "Theft. Breaking into a private home at night. Working with the Cobbett family to do harm. That is more than enough to get him in serious trouble."

Bernard's face darkened. For the first time, he looked rattled. "How dare you! You are a widow. If you make this public, do you still want Celia to have a good name?"

There it was, the real him.

He always wore that polite mask and talked about dignity and reputation, but when it came down to it, he used the dirtiest threats, the kind that cut straight at a woman.

I walked over to him, slow and steady, and met his eyes. "Bernard, remember this. My daughter's name is not something you get to use against me.

"If anyone dares to talk nonsense about her, I will make sure they regret opening their mouth."

Then I turned to Celia. "Go call a few of the village elders. What happened tonight will not be hidden. I will lay everything out in front of everyone."

Celia froze for a moment.

I knew what she feared.

A young girl did not want her name tied to things like a break-in at night, rumors, or kidnapping.

But hiding filth only made it rot. In the end, it always got pinned on the woman.

I looked at her, my voice softening. "Go. I want everyone to know you did nothing wrong. Someone else came here on purpose to harm us."

Her eyes turned red at once.

She nodded hard, then turned and ran.

That night, I had Hector keep Bernard and Ralph pinned in the yard. I lit the lamps and threw the doors to the west wing wide open.

When the villagers arrived, they were shocked. When they saw Bernard and Ralph pressed to the ground, the shock turned into a buzz of excitement.

"What's going on here?"

"Sneaking into a widow's yard in the middle of the night? That is serious."

"Isn't Bernard a scholar? How could he do something like this?"

I did not let them guess. I told everything, exactly as it had happened.

I told them about the Cobbett family's failed proposal, the lies they spread during the day, the trap by the river that evening, and the attempt to steal the chest at night. I left nothing out.

Theo was dragged over in the middle of the night. His face looked grim.

Winona was brought too. The moment she saw Ralph on the ground, her legs almost gave out.

She still tried to play dumb, but I opened the wooden chest right in front of everyone.

Inside were old books, manuscripts, land deeds, and one letter, its paper slightly yellowed.

That letter had fallen from Bernard's sleeve the night before, when he passed out in the kitchen.

At first, I hadn't planned to read it. But when I saw the words "To the Cobbett family" on the envelope, everything clicked.

I shook the letter open in front of the crowd.

The words inside were clear and undeniable.

[If the kidnapping at the riverbank fails tonight, take the Titterington family's land deeds and the late husband's manuscripts.

[Sally will panic. Once she panics, Celia will never recover. That will give Mr. Jim Cobbett an explanation.]

Bernard's name was signed.

The yard fell dead silent. Even Theo froze.

Celia stood in the crowd, her face as pale as paper. The light in her eyes faded bit by bit.