3. Love Letter (10)
Vincent's eyes widened. I sprang to my feet. The candle flames flickered. His face, illuminated by the wavering light, looked dazed. He seemed to be struggling to grasp the meaning of my words.
"I don't need a fancy dress, jewels, or everyone's blessings. We don't need anything. I didn't expect to be blessed from the start. Because you love me, and I love you too. As long as our hearts are the same, that's enough."
I smiled more joyfully than ever before and reached my hand out toward the one I loved.
Even though I still had nothing, I could at least offer this. Compared to what Vincent had given me all this time, it might be a very small thing. But even so, I wanted to make him happy. Just as he wanted to give me something, I wanted to give him something too.
If you wish for it, I don't mind getting engaged right now.
Vincent, watching me like that, reached out as if possessed. Just as his fingertips were about to touch mine, something I had forgotten came to mind. I quickly closed my hand.
"Ah, we need a ring, right?"
I remembered hearing that you exchange rings when holding an engagement ceremony. But in a situation like this, there was no way a ring would have been prepared. Come to think of it, my appearance too... I swept my eyes over myself and sheepishly rubbed the back of my neck. Somehow, it felt like I had brought it up for nothing. I said I didn't need anything, but holding an engagement ceremony looking like this was definitely unreasonable.
As I belatedly tried to take back my words, Vincent suddenly frowned. As I looked at him in wonder, Vincent rummaged through his inner jacket pocket and pulled out a small box. After hesitating very briefly, Vincent opened the box.
Inside the box was a pair of rings. I opened my eyes wide.
"That's..."
"I didn't want to give it to you in a situation like this."
Vincent muttered softly as he stood up. My head tilted back involuntarily. He reached out and enveloped my hand in his. Then, he took out the smaller of the two rings and slipped it onto my finger. The ring fit my finger perfectly.
I gazed quietly at the ring on my finger. The ring sparkling in the light looked entirely unfamiliar to my eyes. Vincent lifted my hand and pressed it against his lips. His hot body heat pressed into me like a brand.
The eyes that had been slightly lowered were raised.
"I will love only you for the rest of my life, and I will forever keep this heart from changing."
I could feel his lips moving against the ring. My heart raced madly at the ticklish sensation. I inhaled sharply. It's... just like a marriage vow.
Vincent's eyes curved into a smile as he released my hand. I felt somehow dazed. After staring down at the ring for a long time, I reached out and snatched the box from him. Then, I took out the remaining ring and grasped his hand. I slipped the ring onto his finger and, just as he had done, held his hand in both of mine and firmly pressed my lips against the ring. Perhaps I was unknowingly tense, but I could feel my lips trembling.
"I, too, will love only you for the rest of my life, and I will forever keep this heart from changing."
'And we will be happy together for the rest of our lives.'
I whispered a small promise in my heart.
After staying like that for a moment, I raised my head. Vincent, who had been looking at the ring on his hand, smiled joyfully. Vincent looked happy. His affectionate gaze turned to me without hesitation. The fact that I had made him happy made me the happiest of all.
"I'm not sure if I'm doing this right."
"It's enough."
He reached out and clasped his hands with mine. The two rings on our fingers flashed brilliantly. A warm passion filled my heart. To exaggerate a little, it felt like we could overcome anything that came our way in the future.
"It feels like a marriage vow."
"We'll get married someday, so think of it as doing it in advance."
"Marriage is still a long way off."
Even holding an engagement took this long, so I didn't know how much time it would take until the wedding. Ethan would definitely not let it slide easily. Perhaps Vincent realized that fact too, as his smiling face contorted oddly. He must have thought the process until our marriage wouldn't be smooth sailing.
While I was smiling softly, imagining that day, the door to the chapel suddenly creaked open. Vincent quickly pulled me into an embrace and blew out the candles. Then, he crouched down and hid behind the pews.
The inside of the chapel grew dark again. Heavy footsteps approached from inside. I saw Vincent draw the gun he had tucked into his waistband. I also visually measured the location of the gun I had placed on the floor. I was ready to grab the gun and shoot if necessary.
We watched the direction the footsteps were coming from with wary eyes. The steps drawing closer thud by thud came right up to our noses. Soon, a light flooded in.
"What are you doing here?"
In the spot where the light spread brightly stood a middle-aged priest. Discovering strangers, he paused, then examined our appearances and asked in surprise. Vincent and I looked at each other once before facing the priest again.
After explaining the situation to the priest, we received his help. Fortunately, people came to rescue us before the day broke.
I returned to the Christopher estate with Vincent. Ethan, who had been waiting for me in the grand mansion, breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing me safe. Then, he suddenly made an exhausted expression and rubbed his face with dry hands. Seeing that, I realized that Ethan had been extremely worried about me.
However, perhaps because he quickly collected himself, Ethan lowered his hands and returned to his usual state.
"Are you hurt anywhere?"
I adjusted the blanket the maids had quickly draped over me and nodded. However, Ethan's eyes had already scanned my condition faster than ever before. Naturally, the place his gaze lingered the longest was my neck. He turned to look at a servant nearby.
"Call a doctor at once."
Receiving his order, the servant quickly turned away. Ethan told me to go to my room and rest for today, saying we'd talk again when the sun came up, and gave the maids a look. They immediately approached me and led me to my room. As I walked with them, I looked at Vincent, who was talking with Ethan. When our eyes met, Vincent gave me a slight smile, telling me to rest well.
Returning to my room, I checked the mirror, and it was a complete disaster. To anyone, I looked like someone who had been through a terrible ordeal. The hand marks on my neck were particularly vivid. I could understand why Vincent and Ethan had stared at my neck like that.
I went into the bathroom, washed my body, and changed into my nightgown. Not long after, the doctor visited my room and examined me. Seeing the hand marks left on my neck, the doctor said they would bruise. He prescribed a good ointment to get rid of the bruise marks and added the earnest advice to get plenty of rest for the time being.
After the doctor left, I lay down on the bed. I rubbed my cheek against the soft bedsheets. Only then did the tension leave my entire body. The maids covered me up to my chin with the sheet and left. The door closed, and I was left alone in the room, but I wasn't scared like I had been running through the forest.
I felt the touch of the ring on my left hand. It felt unfamiliar, as if it wasn't mine, yet the thought that it was indeed mine made me keep touching it. I fiddled with the ring with my thumb and closed my eyes. It felt like I had truly returned to my sanctuary.
Ethan had said we'd talk again when the sun came up, but because I slept like the dead for a full day, I couldn't have a conversation with him. It seemed that once the tension was released, all the suppressed fatigue had poured out. When I opened my eyes the next day, my whole body ached. I came to take the doctor's advice seriously.
I heard the full story of the kidnapping through Ethan.
The woman who had been kidnapped alongside me had fortunately arrived safely at the village. Thanks to her delivering the news to the Baron's family, Ethan was able to send people, and in the process, they caught the kidnappers who were searching for me. A few got away, but he said they would soon track down their whereabouts. The Baron's youngest son was fortunately safe as well.
Afterwards, the captured kidnappers confessed that they had been commissioned by someone who held a grudge against the Baron's family. He said they were still investigating who had hired them.
I inwardly breathed a sigh of relief at the news. It had been a highly dangerous situation, but I was glad it seemed to be resolved well. I took a sip of fragrant tea and caught my breath.
"I have something to say."
Vincent opened his mouth just as the conversation was wrapping up. It had been two days since he left right after dawn the day after we returned to the mansion. Sitting in the drawing-room with Vincent, who had come to check on my condition, we were leisurely drinking tea.
"We had our engagement ceremony."
Vincent abruptly grabbed my shoulder and announced the news of our engagement. Ethan spit out his tea right then and burst into a coughing fit. Frowning at the saliva sprayed all around, Vincent picked up a nearby cloth and handed it to him. Taking it and wiping the tea dripping from his chin, Ethan gaped.
"Who decided that?"
"By the will of the two of us."
Ethan immediately looked at me. At his gaze asking if it was true, I reluctantly nodded. Vincent confidently demanded beside me.
"Send the engagement contract."
"Then what about your engagement ceremony?"
"We don't need it."
Vincent had been displeased with the engagement being delayed under the pretext of preparing for the ceremony. With a face that said this was a good opportunity, he held up the rings on his and my hands. Seeing the rings, Ethan couldn't speak any further.
Ethan had been putting a huge amount of care into preparing our engagement ceremony. For us to just up and hold the ceremony on our own, how must he have felt? Wearing an expression of sheer disbelief, Ethan only repeated incomprehensible words like, "Hey, you, hey." I couldn't dare say that I was the one who initiated it, so I quietly just sipped my tea.
Then, something came to mind.
"Did they say the woman who was kidnapped with me is alright?"
Ethan, who had been rubbing his forehead, glanced at me and answered with a sigh.
"They said she is. Aside from some minor bruises, she's fine."
"That's a relief."
"If you're worried, go visit her."
I shook my head. It wasn't exactly a good memory, and as long as she was safe, that was enough. I only hoped that the events of that day wouldn't remain as a scar for her.
The brief kidnapping incident quickly stabilized. I would have to refrain from attending parties for a while, but other than that, I lived no differently than usual. The difference from before was that the news of my engagement to Vincent had been announced. And the news seemed to be circulating quite noisily among people, and more curious gazes followed me, but I decided not to mind it. However, the problem was that my eyes kept drifting to the ring on my finger.
I woke up as usual, lightly washed, and changed my clothes. I went to the dining room, ate my meal, and barged into Ethan's office. Ethan was busy these days, so he mostly ate in his office. Only by doing this could I at least see his face. Ethan accepted my behavior as if he was used to it.
I sat slumped on the sofa placed to one side of the office. They said the remaining fugitives who had escaped yesterday were caught. As soon as I heard the news, the lingering discomfort that had vexed me washed away. I was simply satisfied by the fact that their struggles had averted the worst outcome.
Reading the newspaper that arrived today, there was a huge article splashed across the front page about the criminals involved in the case targeting the ransoms of noble heirs, which had recently stirred up the city, being caught. A continuous stream of good news.
As I crunched on the cookies served for refreshments and finished reading the paper, Ethan, who was perched on the armrest of the sofa looking over documents, asked as if he had suddenly remembered something.
"By the way, Paula, what happened to the love letter?"
Huh?