~Chapter 120~
“Hide it? What do you mean?”
Of all people, Ancia had wanted to tell Richard about the pregnancy first.
When Richard had found her, she was so overwhelmed with surprise, joy, and sorrow that she hadn’t been able to say it. And then on the way back to the Duke’s estate, days had passed.
But traveling in a carriage while pregnant had brought unbearable nausea.
Her motion sickness never eased, yet her will to return home was stronger. She had vomited again and again, on an empty stomach, until she nearly fainted — only to be carried along in the carriage.
Now that they were finally alone, she had been preparing to share the happy news. But Richard’s reaction was alarming.
She knew how precious this news should be. She hadn’t wanted to throw it out carelessly — she had wanted the right moment. But this sharp suspicion? What was this?
Richard’s attitude — starting with doubt instead of joy — was shocking.
Hurt and unfairness surged up inside her.
“I spent the whole ride vomiting, unable to talk. What exactly do you think I’ve been hiding?”
She was already embarrassed at being stripped bare so suddenly, but she hadn’t even gotten angry at him for it. And yet, he spoke to her like an interrogator.
“If you weren’t trying to hide it, then…”
“No, Duke. You would’ve had to ask me something for me to hide it. All you said during the journey was, ‘Will you eat?’ and I said, ‘No, I’ll throw up.’ That was it.”
Saying it out loud made her feel even more wronged.
During breaks, when she had finally gathered the strength to look at Richard’s face, he would step away to keep watch. She had only been able to see her beloved husband through the carriage window.
“Yes, I’m pregnant. I thought you would be the happiest to know and congratulate me first. But why are you questioning me like this, making the air so heavy?”
As her anger spilled out, she suddenly wondered if this reaction was because of rumors he had heard in the village. He had already been wary of Nathan.
A chilling thought struck her — could this unease be about her pregnancy?
“Oh… no way.”
Could he really be doubting that?
“You think… I had something with my brother?”
Richard’s silence was an answer.
Ancia’s stomach turned.
Nathan and Bianca had taken care of everything for her all winter, sacrificing their own rest while she, weak as always, had been a burden. Even Nathan, a nobleman, had shared all the household work with Bianca. She had been endlessly grateful.
For Richard to doubt them like this — it made her furious.
“Nathan and Bianca worked tirelessly every single day for me. I was nothing but a burden, yet they never once complained. They only tried to protect me. And you suspect them now?”
Even if he could misunderstand many things — this was the one thing he must never misunderstand.
“I cried every day because I missed you. But the one thing that let me smile was the belief that I would see you again. Do you doubt that?”
“I don’t doubt you. I’ve said it many times — I do not doubt you.”
“Then you’re saying you doubt Nathan. That he and I committed some sin.”
Richard gave no reply.
Ancia felt like ice water was pouring over her.
Some rumors could be explained away. Even planted, if necessary. But not this. She and Richard had shared a deep bond, the kind only true husband and wife could know. That was why she had endured the separation longing for him.
This — this was something he could never doubt.
“Are you doubting the child in my womb?”
The shock in her face made Richard want to throw away every testimony and piece of evidence he had collected. None of it mattered when she was here, safe.
But to prevent this nightmare from repeating, he needed to be thorough.
Her absence had been a hell he never wanted to experience again.
And so the news of her pregnancy was deeply confusing to him.
It had been nearly four months since Ancia’s disappearance. Yet her belly looked no more than three or four months pregnant.
Richard struggled. For months he had lain with her, but she had never conceived. And now — after being with Nathan — she was pregnant. He could not ignore it.
The coachman’s testimony echoed in his mind. He almost wished he had never heard it.
And yet, even so, Richard believed Ancia. Believed the woman smiling at him now, reaching out her hand.
At least, he wanted to tell her that.
“You…”
“So that’s why you kept calling me ‘you’? Because I wasn’t fit to be called your Duchess?”
Ancia’s words pierced him.
Since meeting Nathan, Richard had referred to her as his wife in front of others. But in front of Ancia herself, he had only ever said “you” or her name.
“Did I…?”
His eyes shook in surprise.
He realized that though he said he trusted her, he had unconsciously failed to.
‘So it was unconscious after all.’
She had once thought his way of calling her was simply affectionate. Now, realizing otherwise, Ancia bit her lip to hold back tears.
“You don’t trust me.”
“No, I trust you — my wife.”
But the way he corrected his words only hurt her more.
Even in the warmth of the bath chamber, her skin grew cold, her body shivering. When she stayed silent, trembling, Richard grew restless.
She resented him — and yet seeing his sunken cheeks, the deep shadows under his eyes, she softened.
He looked ready to collapse, and yet his desperate gaze was fixed only on her. She could imagine, in part, the torment he had endured.
Though angry at his suspicion, she steadied her heart.
“I’ll take an examination. Call a physician.”
If it was confirmed she was five months along, his doubt would vanish. Then she would make him pay for today’s hurt twice over.
“And call a personal maid.”
“Ancia.”
“Don’t call me that.”
She had meant to dismiss him gently, but hearing her name made her anger flare again. She couldn’t control her tone.
“Right now, hearing my name from you is painful, Duke.”
Her voice came out cold and curt.
“Please leave. I need time to calm down.”
Her grip on the towel slackened. Even being shy before him felt impossible now.
When Richard still stood there, silent, she snapped.
“Or do you need to check my body more?”
“…I’ll call a maid.”
As he turned, his broad back looked strangely small to her, and it pained her. Still, she couldn’t simply accept a husband who did not trust her. Not when Nathan’s honor was involved too.
Left alone, Ancia rubbed her trembling arms and stepped into the bath.
“Ahh… it feels like all the fatigue is washing away.”
Sinking into the steaming water made her sigh with relief.
“Milady!”
“Oh, Ellie. You haven’t been well, have you?”
Ellie, face streaked with tears, rushed in and collapsed by the tub, sobbing loudly.
“My lady, I thought you were gone forever… sob, sob…”
“I worried too, wondering what happened to the carriage you were on. I’m glad you’re safe.”
Seeing her maid’s pain, Ancia patted her shoulder gently. Ellie clutched Ancia’s hand and wept again.
“How could your hands have become this rough, my lady? I’ll take care of them until they’re soft again.”
“Thank you, Ellie. But where’s Bianca? Resting?”
Ancia meant to ask about her personal maid. But Ellie’s lips tightened.
“What is it?”
After a pause, Ellie whispered nervously.
“Bianca is… being questioned right now.”
“What? Why Bianca?”
Ellie clammed up again. Ancia sat up so suddenly that water spilled over the tub.
“Milady!”
“I have to go. Why would Bianca be interrogated?”
“Please wait, my lady! Just a moment!”
Ellie hurried to wrap her in a towel, trying to keep her seated. Ancia resisted stubbornly, confused by her maid’s behavior.
Ellie glanced at the door, then suddenly moved behind Ancia.
“My lady, there’s so much you need to know. I’ll explain while you bathe calmly.”
As she fixed Ancia’s hair, she whispered faintly.
“There are guards outside. I’m being watched too.”
What was going on?
Still, Ancia felt she could trust Ellie’s loyalty, so she settled back in the bath.
“The water’s cooling. I’ll add warm water.”
Ellie turned the faucet, filling the room with sound. Then she returned to Ancia’s side and began to speak quietly.
She told her everything — about the misunderstandings since the abduction, about the guard’s body being found, about the coachman’s testimony, about Richard’s visit to the Count’s house, and even about the recently discovered missing carrier pigeons that might have been planted.
