Chapter 84 –
“Do you think Aisha… could really give up on me?”
Ian finally opened his mouth. But the words that came out after such a long pause were worse than silence. Even Graham looked speechless, lowering the glass of wine he had been about to sip with a hollow laugh.
“Of course Aisha liked you a lot, so she’ll cry—cry for days, maybe even months or years. But living with someone who doesn’t love her would be more painful than that. So it doesn’t matter. Now be honest with me—do you not have any feelings left for her?”
Graham’s sharp tone made Ian quickly shake his head. Stammering, he slowly began to spill the feelings he had buried inside.
“No. That’s not it. I… Aisha… I’ve always…”
His flushed face wasn’t just from the alcohol. His voice grew smaller, and his head lowered with each word. It was awkward enough to make one cringe, but Graham waited patiently for Ian to finish.
“…I liked her. I still do.”
How much time passed after that, no one could say. But the tension in Ian’s shoulders finally dropped as if the weight of the feelings he’d long ignored had slipped off all at once.
‘Did I really… Aisha…’
Even Ian seemed unable to believe the words he’d just spoken, his eyes wide in disbelief. He panted like someone who had just run a marathon, and Graham silently offered him a drink. Ian didn’t refuse—he downed it all in one go. It was strong enough to make him dizzy, and as the alcohol clouded his vision, Aisha’s face surfaced hazily in his mind.
‘Aisha…’
When something is unclear, it’s hard to grasp how much it means to you. But now that Ian had admitted his feelings about Aisha to someone else, he could finally understand the nature of his own fear—and just how big that fear had been, the one that had made him ride off to the Parden estate.
‘I need to see her. I have to explain everything and clear up the misunderstanding.’
Ian suddenly raised his head. Without even thinking to tidy his disheveled appearance, he turned to Graham and pleaded.
“Sir. I came here tonight to see Aisha. I know it’s late, but I have to see her. I… Aisha…”
“It’s not about the time, Ian. It’s only natural Aisha wouldn’t want to see you. I’m angry at you too—so imagine how she feels. Maybe give it some time—”
“No. I need to explain things to her tonight. No, I need to apologize.”
“…”
“Please. Just once—help me.”
Graham stared at Ian, who looked completely different than usual, then let out a deep sigh and nodded.
“…Just this once. I’ll help you.”
Hope returned to Ian’s face, which had been filled with despair. Seeing that expression, Graham felt both bitter and relieved as he stood up and called for a servant.
“Bring Aisha here.”
The servant bowed and quickly left the room. Ian anxiously watched the door, worried the servant might walk too slowly and not deliver Graham’s order properly.
“I’ll leave you now. Talk to her—really talk.”
Graham rose, looking at Ian who was anxiously staring at the door and hadn’t even glanced in his direction. Embarrassed, Ian started to rise too.
“It’s fine. Stay seated.”
Graham gestured for Ian to sit and walked toward the door. Ian turned away awkwardly, trying to collect himself.
‘What’s that…’
His eyes fell on a small hourglass on a shelf. It was easy to miss—tiny and surrounded by much flashier decorations. But as soon as Ian saw it, his eyes widened, then turned cold.
‘Ian. That’s the graduation gift Graham gave your father. See the acacia leaves engraved on the side? He said they symbolize friendship. Kind of girly for a guy, huh…’
‘Cliff! Watch your mouth around the child!’
A memory from childhood suddenly surfaced, and Ian’s gaze shifted again—this time to Graham, whose hand was just about to reach the doorknob. Ian stared at his back and blurted out impulsively:
“Sir… You and my father met at the academy, right?”
The question came out of nowhere, and Ian’s voice was noticeably calmer—no trace of the anxiety from earlier. Instead, there was a chill in his tone that made Graham pause and look back, puzzled.
Then their eyes met—and a shiver ran down Graham’s spine. There was no emotion in Ian’s eyes. That same eerie feeling from earlier when Ian had asked why Graham was so kind to him—it crawled up Graham’s legs once more.
“Yes, we knew each other from the academy.”
Graham replied, unable to hide the discomfort in his voice. Ian nodded. Then, after a moment of hesitation, he asked another question.
“Then… when did you meet my mother?”
Graham’s eyes widened ever so slightly. His heart pounded with unease as he forced himself to answer.
“I… met your mother after she married your father.”
‘Lies.’
Ian stared at the door the Count of Parden had exited and muttered to himself. His face was full of suspicion, his eyes scanning as if he were being hunted. The Count had clearly been flustered. Recalling his reaction, Ian clenched his jaw.
He had only meant to test the waters… but the outcome was not what he hoped.
“…I won’t give up.”
Ian spoke aloud, trying to steady his shaken heart. But the unease remained.
‘Ian, I will protect you and your sister.’
Even if the Count of Parden turned out to be his enemy, it didn’t erase the kindness he’d shown. That’s why even with growing certainty, Ian kept putting off his revenge, using the excuse of needing proof.
‘Aisha…’
And now there was another problem. Now that he had admitted his feelings for Aisha, he didn’t know what to do with them.
‘She was just a child back then. She didn’t know anything—I saw it myself. So she shouldn’t suffer.’
Excluding Aisha from his revenge was easy. They had shared years together, and it was easy to forgive her. But could he really punish only one person in the Parden family?
Ian shook his head. If only Aisha didn’t get along with her family… but she had a deep bond with them. They were so close that it made Ian envious.
‘No. Aisha loves me. Even if she suffers, she’ll choose me.’
Feeling suffocated, Ian tried to convince himself. But the comfort didn’t last even seconds. After nodding to himself a few times, he ended up clenching his fists, face hardened.
‘What if I give up now? Go back to how things were, pretending I never knew anything…?’
The thought of giving up crept in. But it was too late. He thought of the report on his parents—the strangulation, the broken bones… The memory made his blood run cold.
Knock knock.
Ian was still trapped in those thoughts when a knock came. Then the door opened with a soft clunk.
Ian jumped up.
And just then, through the open doorway, Aisha entered the parlor—her hair down, dressed in light clothes.
Aisha’s expression was as calm as her simple clothes and loosely worn hair. Her blue-gray eyes were unreadable, her lips drawn in a straight line. Ian swallowed hard as he looked at her.
‘Just as I thought…’
While Ian was visibly nervous, Aisha was composed. She had anticipated this. Ever since her father summoned her at such an odd hour, she had suspected Ian would be waiting. So on the way to the parlor, she had already calmed her expression and sorted through her thoughts.
‘Father! Mother! Come quickly! Edward, too!’
Yesterday afternoon, as soon as Daniel arrived home, he gathered the entire family—everyone except Arthur, who was still at the academy. Then, in front of them all, he recounted everything that had happened at the Marquisate of Lloyd.
Aisha, unlike usual, sat quietly with her hands folded as her brother spoke in a rage. She didn’t stop him, nor did she try to defend Ian.
‘I can’t stand watching Aisha be humiliated like this any longer! She needs to break off the engagement!’
‘Daniel’s right. We can’t let this go.’
‘I agree with the children. Graham.’
The family took the incident very seriously. Marisa and Edward, normally calm, spoke of breaking the engagement with solemn expressions.
‘…This isn’t something we can decide quickly. We need time. We can’t let emotions make the decision.’
But there was one person who didn’t speak of breaking the engagement. The head of the Parden family, the one with the final say—Graham. He didn’t defend Ian, but he clearly didn’t support the idea of a breakup either.
‘You said it yourself, Daniel. There was something strange about Ian and that woman’s behavior. Let’s think things through.’
‘Why should I? The fact remains—they kissed! If I’d known you’d react like this, I wouldn’t have even told you!’
‘Watch your tone, boy. I’ve told you before—just raising your voice doesn’t make you right.’
‘Damn it! Stop trying to silence your grown son with that crap. Ugh… Are you really our father? If you love Ian and Sophia so much, just go to them already! Stop making us feel like trash!’
“You!”
Daniel completely lost it—and ended up saying the one thing Graham couldn’t tolerate. As soon as he questioned who Graham’s real children were, Graham shot up, looking like he was about to strike him.
“Father, please. Daniel, go upstairs.”
Thankfully, Edward stepped in quickly to prevent the situation from escalating into violence. But the atmosphere was already beyond repair, and the sudden family meeting ended in chaos.
