Chapter 332 - Why Did You Do This!?

Tiptoeing and pausing at every corner of each corridor, Yvonne finally discovered the location where her parents were trying to reach.

'The Back garden!' She deduced and then ran in the opposite direction.

She could not use the same exit as they had, hence she decided to use the back exit meant for the servants from which they could enter and exit the Mansion.

'This way, they will be unaware of my presence.' She surmised and ran to keep up with their pace.

She had no idea what must have taken place for the entire Mansion to be deserted but she was thankful as she did not have to be careful and ladylike in her actions.

The weariness of the long trip had faded away and now all she wished was to get to the bottom of this matter.

'Those maids!' Her feet came to a screeching halt when she recalled that the two maids from earlier had announced that they would be in the Kitchen before they left them.

Scowling at this roadblock in her path, she stood next to the door of the Kitchen while hiding her presence behind the wall.

One would need to walk across the kitchen's door to reach the back exit of this Mansion.

'What if they see me?' She wondered and decided to take a peek inside.

Her tiny body was hidden by the wall as she stole a quick peek before returning to her former position.

'Clear!' She rejoiced that the Kitchen was just as deserted as the rest of the Mansion.

She did not bother thinking about the slacking servants who were not present where they were supposed to be and ran towards the back exit.

Making sure not to be too loud, Yvonne pushed the door open and sneaked out of the Mansion.

There were bushes surrounding the exterior of the Mansion with trees planted at regular intervals.

Using these shrubs and bushes as her cover, the little girl made her way towards the source of the sounds she could hear.

As she moved ahead while making sure to not alert anyone of her presence, the voices were getting clearer which indicated that she was getting closer to them.

"Why?" Yvonne's feet halted when she heard her mother's voice.

'Let's stop here.' She decided when she reached the end of the wall.

A huge tree was standing tall at this corner which the little girl chose as her hiding spot.

While the back entrance of the Mansion was at the posterior side of the building, she was right now at the end of that wall.

Making the turn would bring her to the side of the Mansion where the garden was located.

Therefore, she concluded that this was a safe spot to hide and watch the show without making her presence known to everyone.

Peeking her head out from behind the wide trunk of the tree, her eyes widened at the sight ahead of her.

At a considerable distance away from her was the group that she had been following all along.

However, there were more people added to this group now.

Rutherford stood next to his wife while his Butler stood a few steps away from them.

There were also the two maids who had helped the Countess and Young Miss alight from the carriage earlier, the same maids who were supposed to be in the Kitchen.

However, the little girl who was watching this scene from a distance had her eyes fixed on another person.

The maid whom she and the Butler wished to expose before her mother was standing on the opposite side of this group.

Raylene did not shift her gaze away but continued to watch the one woman whom she had trusted in this Mansion entirely.

"Why did you do this?" She repeated her earlier question which had not yet been answered.

Her eyes fell on the tight-fitted uniform of the maid, causing her brows to furrow and a frown to appear on her lips.

She recalled that she had asked the seamstress to stitch a new set of uniform for her personal maid, she had also asked her maid to get it done according to her wishes.

However, she did not expect that the maid would take advantage of her trust and get such a vulgar dress tailored for herself.

The dress clung to her chest, making it seem as the buttons at the front would pop if she took a deeper breath than usual.

The dress's material adhered to her curves, accentuating them but it would restrict free movement which was contradictory to the purpose of the loose-fitted uniforms that they were supposed to wear.

'She prepared well.' Yvonne nodded after scrutinizing her attire for the day.

Raylene averted her eyes from her maid's body and shifted them to her face.

Though Paula was a beauty in her own right, she certainly paled before her Mistress.

This was especially apparent now that they stood on opposite sides of each other.

Raylene looks elegant and calm with her beautiful dress in proper condition but the same could not be said for her maid.

Paula's hair which she had fastened with the help of a single clasp had failed to withstand the events of this day as her hair was scattered everywhere, making her look more haggard than usual.

Her forehead was dotted with numerous beads of sweat as she clutched her hands together.

There was nervous apprehension in her eyes which she deflected when she made eye contact with her Mistress.

"Answer me!" Raylene snapped, at the end of her limited patience after the things she had heard from her husband today.

Paula flinched for a second at this sudden outburst which resulted in her looking up.

Everyone faded in their eyes as the Mistress and Maid finally held their eye contact.

"After all the years we spent together. After everything that I did for you… Why did you do this?" Raylene's voice softened into a choke as she held in the tears in her eyes.

Rutherford stepped closer to her and rubbed her shoulder to comfort her which only pricked the maid's eyes.

Paula gritted her teeth when she caught the pitiful appearance of her Mistress, fueling her rage which she had pressed down on account of the man standing next to her.

However, when she took a moment to analyze her present situation, she threw caution to the wind and glared at the woman she called her Mistress.

"Why, you ask!? Don't you know why I did what I did?" She sneered, not concealing the animosity in her expressions.

Her outburst surprised the two maids who were furthest away from everyone and they covered their mouths to muffle the gasp that escaped their lips.

Butler Limo glared at Paula for her impudence while the Earl and Countess blinked in silence.

Paula dropped all pretense of respect she maintained for the Countess as she stood upright with her chest puffed out.

At first, she had decided to pretend to be oblivious to the allegations that were being placed on her head but when she recalled the Earl's and the Butler's presence, she realized she had no chances of lying her way through the mess she had created.

Therefore, she decided to finally confront her Mistress about the grievances that had been building up in her heart for the past few years which had festered and burst right before their eyes at this very moment.

"Speak clearly." Raylene commanded in a stern tone which made her maid let out a low chuckle.

While Paula's chuckle echoed in the silence, the little girl who was witnessing this scene from afar was beginning to put together the pieces of the puzzle.

Confusion was fading from her mind as she began comprehending what was going on.

'Mama is not mad at Papa but at the maid…' She declared this conclusion which her mind had reached after watching what had taken place upon reaching this hiding spot.

It was now clear to her that the main crux of her plan, which was to expose the maid's wicked thoughts, was already unfolding right now before she could do anything to initiate it.

This pleased her immensely as it lowered the efforts which she needed to put in to achieve this result.

Her eyes then turned towards the man who even now was staring at his wife with eyes filled with concern and worry, calming the child's troubled heart.

But soon her line of sight returned to the maid who had finally stopped her laughter.

"You say that as if you do not know why I took this step." Paula sneered but cowered when she felt the menacing aura of the Earl hitting her.

"Watch your words when you speak to my wife." He snarled, detesting the way his Ray was being spoken to by a mere maid.

The anger in his voice and the hatred on his face made Paula tremble but the little girl watching this sight smiled.

'Looks like I was wrong once again…' She mocked herself for the conclusion she had arrived at when they had returned to the Mansion and was glad that she was wrong this time.

Based on what she had just seen, the ominous thoughts in her head about her father had lessened by a tiny percentage.

However, now was not the right time to rejoice at this news so she focused her amethyst eyes on the maid whose head was lowered while her fists were clenched into tight balls as they rested at her sides.

'I wonder what her excuse for what she did would be…' She wondered and paid attention in order to not miss any details.