chapter 65
Frank still hadn’t come to his senses.
‘I almost lost my head because I got greedy. What do I do? How can I get out of this room?’
He had tried to escape dozens of times and failed every time, yet Frank still couldn’t give up his futile dreams and gnawed at his nails.
‘I’ve got a few pieces of saved-up gold and some jewels! I can’t die like this!’
Just as he was about to throw himself out of the fifth-floor window with nothing on, someone shouted.
“Hey? Oh—Frank! Frank! I heard Siena woke up!”
Janeka, who had been eavesdropping with her ear against the door, cried out with delight.
“That’s a relief. Thank goodness. Oh, my God—”
Alfred sprang up and exclaimed, crossing himself.
“Frank! Let’s stop this and go back to the family! We’ve done what we can! I’m so scared I can’t stay here another second!”
At Alfred’s words, Janeka eagerly echoed him.
“Let’s leave and never set foot here again!”
Right — they had to leave this place as soon as possible, just like their parents had said.
With Siena awake, the immediate danger of being killed by Noah’s hand had passed, but…
‘After she switched the medicine, would she really let us go without doing anything?’
They might not kill them if they played the sympathy card and mentioned the dead mother, but they might not avoid prison.
A glint came into Dongtae’s eyes.
“As soon as we’re released, let’s go to our rooms, grab our things, and leave immediately. Whether we flee in the dead of night or whatever, we must leave as quickly as possible.”
Just then, Frank got up and brushed himself off.
“No need for that.”
“Si—Siena…”
The door opened and Siena appeared.
“If that’s what you want, I’ll let you out right now.”
Siena, smiling gently, looked like an angel of death.
I, who had been blocking the door, stepped aside politely and spoke to the three who stood dazed.
“What are you doing? Are you planning to stay locked up here forever?”
“Huh? Ah, no!”
They all bolted out as if shoved. At my single sentence, they seemed to realize their fate depended on it, their eyes rolling as they watched me.
“You said you want to go back to the Kurz mansion. Hurry and get ready. If you don’t leave now, it’ll be too late.”
Frank asked cautiously.
“…You’re just going to let us go?”
“Do you think I’ll kill you or something?”
I laughed and waved my hand.
“Oh, come on, uncle. You know I hate getting my hands dirty.”
“So you really—?”
“Yes, go.”
Speaking in the same calm voice as always, without anger, seemed to reassure them. They dashed down the corridor toward Frank’s room.
Clearly they were going to fetch the jewels they’d stolen.
Watching their retreating backs, I whispered softly.
“Go, if you can.”
Someone emerged at the end of the corridor. Frank recognized him and stopped in panic.
“Gasp!”
“Well, they’re still my grandparents and my uncle. I can’t just let them go. I’ve called someone to escort them.”
I turned and smiled broadly at the three who were looking back.
“These people will take you there safely.”
“Hey, Frank. Long time no see.”
Charles waved a bear-paw–like hand and grinned crookedly.
Frank, ashen, backed away.
“Charles… why are you here…?”
“Why do you think? The repayment date came up and I came to collect the money.”
“Th—that’s…”
Frank glanced at me.
“Oh, uncle. Don’t worry. I already paid it back.”
“You did? Did you know about this?”
He left the rest of the sentence unsaid—did I have forged his name to borrow money?—and I answered softly.
“Of course. That’s why I repaid it.”
“B-But why…?”
“It was your debt to begin with.”
I gestured to Charles, who pulled a paper from his coat and handed it to Frank.
When Frank recognized what the paper was, he gulped.
Sensing something wrong, Janeka and Alfred snatched the document.
“Two hundred and twenty million gold?!” they cried.
“Frank! What is the meaning of this?!”
“Siena! What did you do?!”
“What did I do? I just returned what your uncle did to you.”
I drew nearer to Frank and pulled out another document, shaking it.
“And you also had something interesting.”
It was the inheritance paperwork I’d taken from Frank’s room.
“You planned to take all my assets if I died, didn’t you?”
“What?”
Noah, who had been watching me with a look of amusement, ran over and took the documents.
“Hah. You’re insane.”
His gaze toward Frank was full of murderous intent.
“I thought stealing the medicine was a mistake, but it was intentional? You wanted to kill Siena and seize her property?”
“N-No! Look! There’s no seal on it!”
Frank, desperately denying it, faltered.
“No. I was wrong. You’re right!”
Oh, so that’s the line he’s going to take?
Kneeling, Frank crawled over and clung to my leg.
“Right, yes! I tried to take Siena’s assets. I falsified the papers. So throw me in prison right now! I deserve to rot there!”
Ah, so that’s how you’ll play it.
Frank preferred prison to following Charles; life with Charles would be worse than death, so he thought to hide in jail.
‘He’s crafty with his schemes.’
Do I plan to leave it like that?
“Please, how could I sue my ‘family’?”
Crackle.
Right in front of Frank’s eyes I tore the papers to pieces.
“In the name of family ties, I’ll forget it ever happened.”
No sooner had I finished speaking than Charles stepped forward and put his hand on Frank’s shoulder.
“Well then, since prison’s off the table, why don’t we discuss the rest with me?”
“No, please—”
Frank, white as a sheet, clutched at the hem of my skirt as if it were a lifeline.
“Siena! It wasn’t my intention from the start. That woman fed me the information that you were dying and egged me on! I was tempted, but I never wanted to hurt you! It’s true!”
“That woman?”
“She told me to go to an auction and even gave me an admission ticket to the underground auction! But I didn’t go. You know that—you haven’t left the mansion since you came in.”
Frank babbled defensively about how wronged he was, but that wasn’t the point.
“Why would that person tell you to participate in the auction?”
“She asked me to bid on an item… it was some kind of bracelet, but I can’t remember well—”
“‘The Devil’s Bracelet’?”
“Yes! That’s it! That’s it!”
I felt my blood drain from my limbs.
Sending Frank to my side wasn’t merely to torment me.
‘It felt like a trick to make sure I ended up with the Devil’s Bracelet.’
It seemed like someone wanted to pull me back into the original story I’d strayed from.
I grabbed Frank’s collar and demanded,
“Who is that person?”
“…I don’t know. They had a robe on, so I couldn’t see them. Their voice was distorted, so I couldn’t tell their gender. But they were definitely a woman. I can swear to that!”
“So in the end you don’t know anything at all.”
That was enough; I waved my hand to have them take him away. Frank sprang up.
“Wait! There’s a distinctive mark! Two dots lined up on the index finger of their right hand!”
A mole… That wasn’t very much to go on, but it would do for now.
More importantly, Frank seemed to know nothing else.
If he knew more, he’d be spilling everything and begging for his life by now.
‘I’ll have to investigate separately.’
I caught Noah’s eye; he nodded in agreement.
“I’ll take care of that, so you three go.”
At my look, Charles grabbed Frank’s arm.
“Let go! Let go!”
“How dare you touch someone’s body!”
Behind Frank, Janeka and Alfred were dragged out by the debt collectors.
“I’ll forgive my grandmother and grandfather, so go carefully with the people I hired.”
“Siena! You damn—fall into hell!”
“That’s high praise.”
I waved at the ones being dragged away.
“It was a pleasure to meet you; let’s never see each other again!”
Their screams grew fainter as they were pulled away, and I shook my hands free.
“What a relief.”
But the relief lasted only a moment.
Thinking of the mysterious person who had targeted me made my chest tighten.
“Brother, strengthen the mansion’s security. And please, release a few people.”
“Don’t worry. No one will be allowed to lay a hand on you.”
“All right, Sisi. I’ll take care of any suspicious people.”
With Noah on my left and Herace on my right, I wasn’t worried.
But, aside from that, I remained unsettled.
I had to find that person and find out exactly what their purpose was.
Who could want to drag me into hell?
And why were they trying to pull me in?
