Chapter 2
The scream I'd expected never came.
Instead, there was a metallic clang and a low grunt from a man.
I cautiously opened my eyes just a sliver.
The masked man's knife dropped to the ground.
A jet-black, flat-tipped hairpin was lodged deep in his wrist.
It was the very one Mother had used to tidy up her sewing kit.
The pin was buried deep in his flesh, blood dripping down his wrist in fat drops.
Mother had struck.
She hadn't put me down.
In a split second, she reversed her hand, pulled the pin from her hair, and hurled it at an unbelievable angle.
It was fast, precise, and ruthless.
The guards around us were stunned, so shocked they forgot to react.
Father was frozen in place, staring at the steel knife lying only three inches from his neck, his legs turning to jelly with fear.
The masked man clutched his bleeding wrist, glaring fiercely at Mother.
"You bitch!" he spat. Then he turned and tried to make a run for it.
Mother's voice was icy, tinged with a bloodthirsty edge. She stared at the masked man and said, "Trying to run? Too late."
Before she finished speaking, she tapped the ground lightly with her toe and, with a sharp metallic sound, snatched a saber from the scabbard hanging at a guard's waist.
The guard hadn't realized what had happened. His hand was suddenly empty.
Mother gripped the blade, her movements swift as a phantom. In a single step, she appeared behind the masked man.
She swung the blade down without hesitation.
The masked man's head hit the ground and rolled away.
Blood splattered everywhere, soaking the stone street in crimson.
The entire street went dead silent in an instant.
Everyone was frozen, stunned by the bloody and efficient display before them.
The onlookers let out a chorus of terrified screams and stumbled backward.
The guards were just as shocked, their hands trembling on their blades.
They'd probably never seen a marquis's wife, unarmed and supposedly helpless, kill someone right in the street, and do it so cleanly and ruthlessly.
Father was scared stiff. He slumped to the ground, pointing at Mother, his lips trembling for what felt like forever, unable to say a single word.
The look in his eyes was far more terrified than the moment he learned Mother had found out about Vivian and William. It was like he was staring at a monster he'd never seen before.
Mother had just killed a man, but her expression didn't change at all. She flicked the blade in her hand, sending the blood splattering off in a casual flourish.
Then, she strode over to the guard captain and handed the blade back to him. "Officer, your blade."
The guard captain finally snapped out of it, his hands trembling as he took the blade back, his eyes filled with pure awe and fear as he looked at Mother. "M-Madam."
"He was a thug, attacking people in broad daylight and trying to break out a prisoner. I killed him. Any objections, officer?" Charlotte said, her voice calm as ever.
"N-No objections. Well done, Madam. Well done," the guard captain stammered, nodding repeatedly.
He thought, 'Her skills are terrifying. Anyone can see she's a trained expert. If I said "no" to her, my head would probably be the next one rolling on the ground.'
Mother nodded in satisfaction. Her gaze swept over the guards, who stood frozen, silent as statues, too scared to make a sound.
"Officers," she said, her voice polite but carrying an undeniable authority, "it's a long journey ahead, and bandits are everywhere. I'm but a woman, traveling with my child and a husband who's as helpless as can be. Our lives are in your hands now.
"But you all saw what went down just now. There are always idiots out there who think they can take out my whole family. I don't have much else going for me. I'm fast, that's all.
"If something like this happens again, and I need to protect myself, my blade might not only be for the bad guys."
Her gaze raked across the face of every single guard, sharp as a knife. "If any of you officers happen to get hurt by accident, well, that's just too bad," she said, her tone casual but the threat crystal clear.
The guards went pale, sweat pouring down their faces as they nodded so hard it looked like they'd never stop.
They got the message loud and clear.
Mother was warning them that on the road to exile, they'd better keep their eyes peeled. If anyone tried to play dirty or pretend to help while secretly scheming against them, she wouldn't hesitate to make them pay.
Establishing her dominance was her purpose from the very beginning. She asserted her authority in the most direct and brutal way, right in front of the guards escorting them.
She wanted everyone to know that even if she was shackled and disgraced, she would never let herself be trampled on.
She had the skills and the courage to defend herself and anyone she cared about.