Chapter 27

Athena suddenly turned to him, her icy stare making Matthew freeze. He had never seen her look like this before—so fierce, so wild. She looked a cornered animal, small but unyielding, baring her claws in defiance.

While he was still caught off guard, Athena lunged at him.

By the time Matthew came to his senses, her hands were already clamped tightly around his throat. Her knee pressed hard into his chest, pinning him down.

Maybe it happened too fast, or maybe he just hadn’t expected it from her—but for a long moment, Matthew simply stared at her in stunned silence, forgetting to fight back. His face quickly flushed red.

From nearby, Willow’s panicked scream rang out. “Athena, no—stop!”

She cried out as she grabbed Athena around the waist, trying with all her strength to pull her back.

Siena and Aliza were stunned for a beat, then rushed forward—though not to help Athena. Instead, they pleaded with her frantically. “My lady, please let go! You’ll choke Lord Matthew to death!”

In desperation, Aliza even tried to pry Athena’s hands apart.

“Out of my way,” Athena snapped, her voice sharp as ice.

The two maids froze, too frightened to make another move.

She looked determined to kill Matthew. No matter how hard Willow pulled, Athena refused to loosen her grip. Matthew’s eyes began to roll back.

Suddenly, Willow seemed to remember something and cried out, “Joseph! Help! Matthew’s going to die—Athena’s killing him!”

Joseph finally snapped out of his daze and rushed forward—but when he saw the scene in front of him, he froze, not knowing how to intervene.

In a panic, his eyes landed on a vase on the table. He grabbed it, raised it over his head, and shouted at Willow, “Move!”

Startled, Willow let out a scream and yanked her hands away.

Crash! The vase shattered against Matthew’s head—just as Athena rolled away at the last second, narrowly dodging the blow.

Matthew didn’t make a sound. He slumped to the floor, unconscious.

Willow and Joseph both stood frozen in shock. Blood began to trickle from Matthew’s forehead. Joseph’s face went white.

He pointed a trembling finger at Athena, his eyes filled with fear and disgust. “You… you wicked woman! How could you just dodge like that?”

Athena spat out a mouthful of blood, laughing wildly. “Lord Joseph, instead of wasting time blaming me, maybe start thinking how you’re going to explain this to Lord Henry. House rules clearly forbid fighting. You just smashed a vase over Lord Matthew’s head. Pretty sure that means you’re in for a beating.”

“I—I didn’t mean to…” Joseph’s voice trembled, and he looked like he might burst into tears.

He dropped to his knees beside Matthew, hands shaking as he tried to stop the bleeding. “Matthew, don’t die… please don’t die… I didn’t mean to hurt you…”

Willow was crying too, her face streaked with tears. She turned to Athena, heartbroken. “Athena, how could you do this? Even if Matthew was wrong, you didn’t have to choke him! Joseph only hit him by accident while trying to save him!”

“Who said I choked him?” Athena looked up slowly, her tone calm and cool. “Do you have proof?”

Willow froze, clearly caught off guard. She looked at Athena with a mixture of fear and disbelief, her voice trembling. “…Joseph and I both saw it.”

“Oh, you saw it?” Athena let out a cold laugh. “What exactly did you see? Did you see Lord Matthew storm into my courtyard and beat me until I spat up blood? Or was it when he smashed my table to pieces?

“Maybe you’re mistaken. Maybe what really happened was that Joseph and Matthew were fighting over that vase in my room. Joseph accidentally hit Matthew. Isn’t that right?”

Her smile sent a chill down Willow’s spine. She bit down hard on her lip, her eyes rimmed red. Her fingers, clutching her handkerchief, had gone completely white.

Athena was threatening her.

There was a big difference between a fight and roughhousing. Fighting broke the family rules—and the punishment was harsh. Willow wouldn’t walk away clean.

But roughhousing? That was just siblings messing around. One was a crime; the other, a misunderstanding. The weight of each would be judged accordingly.

Willow dug her nails into her palm, wavering.

Just then, a deep, authoritative voice rang out, “What on earth is going on here?”

Henry and Eloise entered the courtyard one after the other.

The moment Joseph saw Henry, he went pale like a mouse spotting a cat. He immediately ducked behind Eloise, clinging to her like a lifeline. “Mother, help me, please!”

Eloise shielded him instinctively, but when her eyes landed on Matthew, bloodied and unconscious on the ground, her legs nearly gave out.

“Someone get the physician! Now!” Henry barked, his voice trembling. “Take Lord Matthew back to his courtyard, quickly!”

Servants scrambled to lift Matthew and carry him off. More maids came in to clean up the wreckage.

Once the room had been put back in order, Henry called the three of them forward.

His sharp gaze swept across their faces. His voice was dark with anger. “None of you can be left alone for a moment without causing trouble. Fighting? In broad daylight? Explain yourselves!”

Eloise turned toward Athena, her eyes red and full of silent accusation. She didn’t even know the full story, but she was already ready to place the blame.

Athena stood quietly, saying nothing.

Willow, however, had already put on a new face, smiling sweetly as she stepped forward. “Father, don’t be angry. We were all just engaging in a bit of playful scuffling. Matthew and Joseph both liked the vase in Athena’s room—they were just playing around. Joseph accidentally hit Matthew. That’s all.”

Henry frowned, clearly unconvinced. The room was a wreck. That didn’t look like playful scuffling. He turned to Athena. “You, speak.”

Athena’s lips curled ever so slightly as she looked at Willow. The blood drained from Willow’s face. She didn’t even dare breathe, her eyes filled with silent pleading, terrified Athena might say something different.

Eloise tensed too, sensing that something was off.

Athena looked at them both and almost laughed. She thought, ‘Sibling love? What a joke!’

To save herself, Willow hadn’t hesitated to throw Joseph under the bus.

Athena gave a faint, icy smile, and under their anxious stares, she simply said, “That’s right.”

Joseph’s eyes widened in disbelief. He looked like he’d swallowed a fly. He thought, ‘She was the one to attack Matthew—and now she is just going to get away with it!’

Henry still looked suspicious, but with both girls backing the same story, there wasn’t much he could say. If this could be passed off as innocent mischief, then better to let it go. After all, the three had roughhoused plenty as children.

Eloise let out a quiet breath of relief and quickly stepped in to smooth things over. “You’re all grown up now—still acting like children. This kind of behavior can’t continue.”

“Yes, Mother,” Joseph said quickly.

Henry’s expression finally eased a little. Eloise glanced at Athena, whose face was unreadable, and offered a seemingly kind gesture. “What a shame about your table. Have them bring another one from my room to replace it.”

Henry, clearly tired of the whole scene, waved them off. “That’s enough. Go.”

With that, he turned and left, his face still thundercloud-dark.

Joseph shot Athena a glare full of warning, clenched his jaw, and led Willow away without another word.

Once they were gone, the room fell silent. Athena’s body, which she’d held upright through sheer will, finally gave out. She collapsed to the floor.

When she woke again, the room was heavy with the bitter scent of medicinal herbs.

At her bedside, Eloise sat quietly dabbing at her eyes with a handkerchief.

As she saw Athena awake, a flicker of relief crossed her face. “Athena, you’re awake. Are you feeling any pain? Anywhere uncomfortable?”

She reached out to touch her, but Athena knew her body well. It had been broken for a long time. Matthew’s kick had just been the final blow.

She looked at Eloise with a calm, distant gaze, lips curling into a cold, mocking smile. “Lady Eloise, if you have something to say—just say it.”