Chapter 4
Alexis started dropping by the Harrison residence a lot, always saying he was just "paying respects and talking military business with General Harrison".
But around this time in Vanessa's previous life, he hardly ever visited the Harrisons except for the holidays—he stayed away to avoid gossip.
All the little things pointed to the one possibility she dreaded most.
Alexis really had been back.
He'd come back to the past, haunted by the overwhelming guilt and obsession he'd carried for Ida in his previous life.
His goal in this life was never to build a life with Vanessa. It was to make up for his past mistakes and protect his unattainable love, Ida—the one he could never let go of.
All that tenderness, all those thoughtful gestures, all that affection everyone in Oxton saw—they were nothing but a carefully crafted act.
He wanted the whole world to see Vanessa as his biggest weakness, the perfect bait for all his political enemies to take aim at. That way, while everyone was distracted, he could secretly shield Ida from any harm.
He needed Vanessa to be utterly devoted to him, so trusting that she'd let her guard down completely. Then, when the kidnapping happened again, he could save Ida without hesitation, not worrying about anything else.
Vanessa was sitting on the swing in the courtyard, watching the spring flowers bloom all around her, when everything suddenly made sense.
But instead of feeling the warmth of the season, it was like she'd been dropped into an ice pit—chills ran from the top of her head all the way down to her toes.
The spring breeze carried the sweet scent of blossoms, but to Vanessa, it felt like a knife scraping across her face, making her skin sting painfully.
'For five years in my previous life, I thought Alexis simply didn't love me,' Vanessa thought. 'I believed he was just wracked with guilt over Ida.
'I always told myself that when he chose to save me back then, there had to be at least a shred of real affection behind it.
'But now I finally see it—right from the start, I was nothing but a chess piece. Just a tool for him to shield Ida, someone he always meant to sacrifice when the time came.
'Maybe he saved me in that previous life not out of love, but because I was the prime minister's legitimate daughter, a pawn he needed to keep alive to secure his power.
'But Ida's death became the greatest regret of his life—the obsession that gnawed at him, his personal demon he could never escape.
'That's why he was back, to come back and set that 'mistake' right.
'And me, the woman who meant nothing to him, the source of his "wrong choice" in his previous life, naturally became someone he had to manipulate, use, and could discard at any moment if it served his plans.'
Tears crashed down out of nowhere, splashing onto the back of her hand, cold as ice.
She'd crossed into this world, lived two lifetimes, and spent a total of seven years here.
She'd poured her heart into loving him for seven years, only to discover she was nothing more than a supporting character in his story—a tool meant to highlight his devotion to Ida, a pitiful clown meant for everyone's entertainment.
She wasn't going to just let it go.
She needed to know the truth.
She had to see for herself what Alexis was really plotting—and what she actually meant to him.
She remembered that in her previous life, Alexis had a secret chamber hidden in a concealed compartment of his study. No one was ever allowed inside, not even his most trusted lieutenant, Robin Pascall.
After Ida died, he spent nearly all his time holed up in that chamber, surrounded by nothing but her things.
If he really had been back and was scheming something, that was definitely where he'd be hiding it.
Vanessa wiped the tears from her face, her eyes turning colder and colder.
The innocent, hopeful Vanessa who once believed in love—she was gone in that instant.
She was heading straight for that secret chamber, determined to see for herself the truth behind this gentle lie.
The opportunity came even sooner than Vanessa had expected.
In mid-April, urgent news arrived from the border—the northern barbarian tribes had crossed over and were harassing the frontier.
The King ordered Alexis to tour the camps at the border and steady the soldiers' nerves. The round trip would take at least three days.
The night before he left, Alexis was acting all loving as always, holding her close and whispering softly in her ear.
He told her to take good care of herself while he was gone, not to go running around, and to find Robin if anything happened—he'd already arranged for people to keep watch over the estate.
His chin rested on the top of her head, his voice so soft it was almost liquid.
"Vanessa, when I get back, I'll take you to our villa on Mount Spring for a few days. The roses should be in bloom by then—you love those, don't you?"
Vanessa nestled in his arms, her fingers gripping his collar so tightly as she buried her face in his chest, making sure he couldn't catch the icy, sarcastic glint in her eyes.
'Love those?' Vanessa sneered to herself.
'That villa was never meant for me. It was built for his precious Ida—a sanctuary for her when she was ill. How could I ever like it?'
She looked up at him, giving him a gentle smile tinged with longing, slipped her arms around his neck, and whispered in a low voice.
"Alright, I'll be here waiting for you. Take care on your journey, stay safe. I'll be at home, waiting for you."
She matched his act perfectly, just as flawless as his.