Chapter 185

Chapter 185

And your family?

Carynne, thinking of Nancy, tried to sound affectionately nostalgic. She was like family, after all. And shes already dead, too.

I lived with wandering gypsies. Theyve all passed away.

Hah!

Verdic scoffed and grasped Carynnes chin. Her cheek was pressed in his hand. Verdic glared at her, almost trembling with rage as he spoke.

You think Im a complete fool.

Its true. I come from a nomadic background and owe a great debt to Sir Raymond

Take off her shoes. And untie her.

One of his men, confused, asked,

Sir?

Hurry up. Dont tell me you think this woman alone is dangerous.

Ah, yes. Yes, of course, Master.

His master was impatient.

What are you doing?

Regardless of Carynnes confusion, the man removed her shoes.

And the socks too.

Yes.

What What exactly are you

Her bare, pale feet were revealed. And so were Carynnes delicate, unblemished hands. Carynne realized why he had done this. It was immediately apparent that her lie wasnt well-crafted.

A wandering gypsy servant girl? With hands that look like theyve never lifted anything heavier than a book? And feet without a single callus?

Verdic pointed at Carynnes hands and feet as he spoke.

Lord Raymond has been very helpful to me.

A noble helping a maid!

Hes different from the likes of you.

Carynne raised her head and stared directly into Verdics blazing eyes. Thinking about it, she had nothing more to fear. And she didnt want to fear. Whether he believed her or not didnt matter.

And she somewhat understood why Raymond had done this.

Carynne found it amusing to see Verdic so helplessly furious. And she had no intention of telling him the truth.

Yes. I was a wanderer, with no one to rely on. Only Lord Raymond showed me kindness.

Carynne, you must be Carynne.

I cannot give you an answer, so theres nothing I can do. Your Lordship, you should go back and seek the truth.

Lind looked back at Verdic with a troubled expression. Verdic Evans nodded.

Tell her. That woman is definitely Carynne Hare.

Understood.

The man lowered his voice.

Miss Carynne Hare, your father has passed away.

Lord Hare couldnt overcome the grief of your disappearance. You must return.

Miss, please answer. Are you Carynne Hare? We believe that you are. And you must leave this place with us. You should see Lord Hares face one last time before his burial.

Carynne was taken aback by this unexpected news.

After such a long time, here was a familiar dilemma.

She had to think about what expression to wear, what reaction to choose. It was hard to know what she was feeling at the moment. It was a sense of detachment from the world, once again.

I am.

To maintain her response so far, Carynne had to only show the mask of Carrie, not Carynne.

No matter how much Verdic disbelieved and rebuked her, she had to stick to that attitude.

She had no father. She was raised by nomadic gypsies. Her only family was Raymond.

But Verdic did not believe her. He was convinced she was Carynne. She knew it too. But she had to continue with this lie that he wouldnt believe.

Without Raymond here, she didnt know what else to say. She could only repeat the same thing over and over. Should she now reveal herself as Carynne?

But was she sad now? However, Carynne wasnt sad. It was difficult to suddenly mourn her fathers death for the nth time. He had died too often. To her, the father was just a character in a book. It had been so for too long. Mourning his death felt too unnatural.

You will fall in love, and all your hardships will come to an end.

She was never someones child but always someones lover, enemy, or the scorned. Carynne felt more familiar with Verdic than her own father.

What meaning did her fathers death hold for Carynne, suddenly? His death was merely another plot device to more easily gain sympathy from Raymond.

But these men did not know the kind of woman Carynne was.

So, they were treating her like a normal, love-struck, somewhat reckless, maybe even slightly mad teenage girl.

Carynne looked at Lind, who was trying to soothe her. He was speaking as if he were addressing Isella.

Lord Hare wandered in search of you, weary from sorrow, and passed away. This is not a lie. If you come downtown with us and send a telegram to the Hare estate, they will respond. Or, by tomorrow, this news will likely be published in the local newspaper. We can bring that to you.

Carynne shook her head.

Im not saying that youre lying. Im just saying that I am not the person you think I am. I am not Carynne Hare. I am Carrie. And the only person who matters to me is Lord Raymond.