Chapter 17

The house doctor shook his head, picked up his medical box, and left.

Nicolas stepped into the room, feeling at a loss for the first time, unsure of what to say.

At that moment, Athena woke up.

Nicolas turned his gaze away, hesitated for a moment, then asked, his voice strained, “How did you get such a serious injury to your leg? Why didn’t you tell anyone in the family?”

Seeing the concern in his eyes, Athena couldn’t help but let out a cold laugh.

In fact, she even laughed aloud. “Lord Nicolas, is this your idea of giving carrot and stick?”

Nicolas’s eyes widened in shock, ready to respond.

But before he could speak, Athena’s calm voice cut through again. “You’ve never believed me. Even if I told you, you’d think I was just trying to win your favor. Just like last night–when I tried to explain, all I got was a beating.

“So what difference does it make whether I say something or not?”

Her voice was so light, but it felt like a knife to Nicolas’s heart. He hadn’t realized how much resentment Athena held against him.

Then, as he thought it over, he realized that Athena had grown up in a family like that–no wonder she had picked up such habits. It didn’t matter if she resented him now; eventually, she would thank him.

The knot in Nicolas’s chest loosened. He took a deep breath and finally spoke, “I won’t pursue the matter with Willow any further. Just focus on getting better.”

At the core of it, though, he still didn’t believe her.

Almost instantly, a bitter smile curved at the corner of Athena’s mouth.

Whenever it came to Willow, no one around her seemed to have any clarity. They were all like people under a spell, blindly defending Willow.

She closed her eyes lightly, no longer looking at Nicolas frowned, his face darkening. But the guilt he felt stopped him from leaving immediately. “I’ll be outside. If you need anything, just let me know.”

But Athena kept her eyes closed, offering no sign. Seeing this, Nicolas turned and left the room.

He wanted to prove to Athena that he was fair.

He went outside, called for a servant, and ordered him to bring all his official papers to the Snowdrop Wing.

Before long, the servant returned with the documents.

True to his word, Nicolas sat in the outer room, reviewing his papers while keeping an eye on Athena.

The soft sound of pages turning came from the other room, making Athena furrow her brow slightly.

But even then, her heart remained untouched. It had died long ago.

Perhaps it was the medicine, but Athena slowly started to feel drowsy.

Just as she was about to fall asleep, she heard the butler’s voice from outside. “Lord Nicolas, Lady Willow is coughing badly. Lady Eloise requests that you come at once.”

Nicolas immediately sat up, his voice filled with urgency. “What happened? Why has her condition worsened again?”

“It’s probably because she got caught in the rain and caught a chill,” the butler explained, his face full of worry. “Lady Willow refuses to take any medicine when she coughs, and only you can convince her. Lady Eloise doesn’t know what else to do but ask you to come.”

Nicolas hesitated, torn. He had just decided to stay by Athena’s side.

But Willow was also ill, and as her older brother, he couldn’t favor one over the other. He couldn’t just look after Athena and neglect Willow’s condition.

He turned to Siena. “Has Athena fallen asleep?”

Seeing Athena lying on her side, Siena nodded. “Yes, Lord Nicolas, Lady Athena is asleep.”

Nicolas sighed in relief. “Take good care of her. I’ll be back shortly.”

Both servants responded in unison, “Yes, Lord Nicolas.”

Athena had thought she wouldn’t be able to sleep, but in her groggy state, she drifted back into slumber.

Perhaps because of the medicine, she slept deeply.

When she finally woke up again, the room was empty except for Aliza.

She heard the sound of a servant outside. “Lady Willow is very ill. Lord Nicolas is occupied, so he sent me to fetch the documents.”

It seemed that Siena was helping the servant with some tasks, as a faint rustling sound came from outside.

Aliza, not wanting to disturb Athena’s rest, turned around and met her gaze just as Athena opened her eyes.

With a small, apologetic smile, Aliza approached her and said, “My lady, you’re finally awake.”

Athena gave a soft acknowledgment and touched her cheek. It wasn’t hot anymore, and her body no longer alternated between chills and fever. Though her head still felt a little dizzy and her body remained weak, most of the symptoms had eased.

Aliza helped her sit up.

Athena asked, “How is Grandmother?”

There had been such a commotion last night, and she worried that Margaret might have overheard something. Margaret was fragile and couldn’t handle too much disturbance.

Aliza replied, “There’s been no noise from Margaret’s room. It seems we managed to keep it from her.”

Athena let out a relieved sigh. “Help me change my clothes. I need to see Grandmother.”

She felt uneasy not being able to see Margaret.