"For me?" Maria glared at Calla; she couldn't find any answers for what Calla just said.
"Yes, I am here for you." Calla tapped the table slowly.
Then Garrett slowly came into the room. He looked at Calla and spoke in a deep, hoarse voice, "What do you mean?"
Even injured, he was still someone who held strength in his voice. The men looked at Calla over their shoulders.
"Give us some private time; it's just family talk from now on."
The men left, and Calla took a deep breath.
The tension in the room was dense enough to crush a fly. Calla had a faint smile, while Maria and Garrett's faces had wrinkles on them.
"I want Maria to return to the county. With my brother still comatose, there is no one to take on the county.
I can't return to the county now, and my father is stuck on passing it on to my brother. But what good is a rotten log good for?"
Calla said coldly. She had the composure of a noble. The face of motherhood in Calla only poured out when Violet was in the room.
Garrett and Maria's eyes gaped in dismay. Maria, as soon as she heard about the county, the memories flooded back into her head.
Garrett held her tight and glared at Calla.
"Go back where she was thrown as meat for those dogs!" Garrett raised his voice.
Calla sighed. "Listen, I can explain why I want to—" Calla closed her eyes in confidence.
"No." Maria spoke. Calla's smile suddenly felt stiff. She slowly opened her eyes and looked at Maria.
"What?" Calla said.
"No, I won't go," Maria said sternly. Her eyes were clouded with memories of the past.
"Maria, after everything I did for you, you're just going to refuse me? I am doing you a favor here. You can be an official daughter with a noble status." Calla's eyes furrowed, but the smile was still there. This time, though, it had something else—rage.
"I am thankful for everything you did for me and Violet, but this is where I draw the line. I don't need any favor; I just need peace." Maria averted her eyes, released her grip on Garrett, and stood tall.
"Maria—" Calla was about to say something, but then Sam brought Violet in her arms. The door of the cottage slowly opened, and Sam entered nonchalantly.
"Violet's mama, Violet is tired, so I brought her back." Sam came inside and looked at the tense situation. Since being the eldest in the friend circle, she was the big sister of the group. She understood she needed to get out of there as soon as possible.
"Mother?" Violet looked at Calla, and her face lit up. She tried to stand up and slowly tread toward Calla. Her steps were wobbly and weak.
But Maria immediately took her in her arms and told her not to force herself. She took her inside and laid her in bed.
"Wait here, little bird." Maria kissed her forehead and then walked out.
"I see, that's how it is, then. I guess it's time to end the responsibility I've forced upon you. I'll just cut all the ties and leave you be—" Calla turned her back to them.
"You won't take Violet anywhere," Maria said.
Calla's fist tightened, and she turned in a flash.
"What? What did you just say?" Calla glared at Maria and slowly exhaled.
"Forgive me, I've lost my composure there." She stood still and then controlled her breath.
"Maria, you can't take my daughter. I am more thankful than words can describe, but you don't have any right to take my daughter away," Calla said. Her calm returned.
"I know you must be thankful, but what about the pain you caused her..."
---
Then the conversation went on for a while. The hushed words were said and told. Calla walked out with her face tightened.
She paced fast and walked to the carriage.
"She really wants to play chess with me? She thinks she can hold my daughter's happiness hostage and tell me what I should and shouldn't do? What's wrong with some sacrifices for the child you promised the world to?" Calla exhaled.
The two guards showed up in front of her and asked, "What now, Lady Calla?"
"How is it going about the 2nd prince?" Calla asked.
"It'll be updated soon. The probability of the mission being successful is high. The 2nd prince's conquest is absolute victory," the man said.
"I see... I have another mission for you today," Calla said, and her eyes narrowed.
Soon dusk arrived along with dark clouds.
---
Maria's POV
I can't believe it. Everything I believed about Calla was false. I need to focus on Violet. From now on, things will get difficult.
I don't know what Calla will do. Even after the accusations, she does have an obsession with Violet.
She'll be fourteen in two weeks.
I need to protect her...
Garrett came inside and then looked at me. Then he came up to me with the cane.
He looked at me, opened the window, and pointed outside.
I looked out and saw a few wolves with a sleigh.
"Just because I can't walk doesn't mean I lost strength." Garrett chuckled. "Let's leave tonight, far away from Calla's eyes. We'll make sure to treat Violet and make a proper home," Garrett said in a low tone.
All this time, he was fighting too. He didn't stop working.
He tried his best and made sure to keep us protected. Sometimes I forget that I am supposed to protect him now, but in the end, I always end up with his arms around me and Violet.
I took a breath of relief. He was right. We need to get out of here as soon as possible.
We packed up hurriedly. We mostly took Violet's things, food, and some important items.
I walked into the bedroom and saw Violet looking at the book Calla brought her from the capital.
She slowly raised her eyes, and I realized she had heard something she shouldn't.
"Does Mother hate me? I will never leave her, then why does she think I will leave—" I hugged her. This innocent child doesn't know the depth of obsession.
If that's what you call it, but I know it wasn't that.
Calla said that she gave the medicine to Violet to make sure that she never leaves her side, calling it her motherly love.
But the next sentence she said confirmed my deepest fear.
"I'll do anything for my daughter. She has asked for the world, and I promised I'll give it to her." At that moment, I realized something...
It wasn't Violet that drove her. It was something else. Her words felt like they weren't for Violet, because at that moment her love felt... true.
I pulled Violet up in my arms and wrapped her with layers of blankets. She stayed silent, but maybe she knew the questions would only end up hurting each other.
Garrett loaded the sleigh, and then Violet tugged my skirt.
"Mama, can we at least say goodbye to my friends?" She looked at me with her bright eyes. I think this is her first time being selfish.
I've lived my life with regrets and chains, while Violet with pain and agony. Maybe I can start spoiling her.
I knelt and picked her up in my arms and held her close.
"Let's do it. Once you meet them, tell them that one day you'll meet them again." I can at least assure her that.
The mountain of difficulties can never stand forever, and as long as the rope of struggle is there, you can pull up any weight tied to you and conquer the heights you thought were impossible.
Those were the words of the man I loved, and I engraved them in my heart.
I told Garrett about the plan, and he nodded. He patted Violet's head and said, "Tell them that one day you'll meet them again."
Me and Violet burst into laughter, and Garrett tilted his head in confusion.
"Did I say something funny?" I got outside.
I looked at the sky. The moon was hiding behind the dark clouds. The cold winds were no longer here, but the stale air replaced them.
That was summer here. I slowly walked to the first home. It was the home of Sam,
the elder sister of their little troop. The light shone bright through the window.
Her mother came with me to hunt. She had lost her husband that night, but she was one of the most determined and responsible women.
Maybe I wanted to say my farewell too. The snow beneath my feet had a subtle sound of being crushed due to the eerie silence in the village.
I walked to their door and knocked on it.
"Sam? Beretta?" I said gently, but no one answered.
I knocked again, but still no answer. It was weird. Something in my chest twisted, and I walked to the window.
I only saw the empty fireplace and no sound. My worries grew deep, and I broke the window and went inside. There was no one.
"Sam? Beretta?" I yelled, and Violet stood outside. I looked in every corner of the room and near the fireplace.
But when I opened the door of their bedroom, the sight churned my stomach.
Blood was pooling on the floor with their throats slit. I realized the gears had started moving, and I ran outside to pick up Violet...
But she wasn't there...