Her Graceful War Song

In the end, I had no choice but to keep watch in secret and follow Rhea closely.

The person who murdered her entire family must have had a reason. Such cruelty -could it have been for love, hatred, or money? In any case, it must have been for something.

Rhea was still alive. Would the killer truly walk away so easily? Was it possible that once things quieted down, he might return to finish the deed? It was a fair guess, though truth be told, I had no other lead to pursue.

Mr. Salter had first arranged for an older woman to care for Rhea, but she feared all strangers. In the end, he had no choice but to ask the neighbors to

occasionally look in on her and bring her food. Stephen's mother would come every other day to help bathe her and keep her clean.

I noticed the Lane family still treated Rhea well, though Stephen himself had not visited. For one, he had returned to his studies at the academy. For another, he may still hold some resentment. After all, it was Rhea's accusation that landed him in jail, even if only for a short while.

Young scholars often carried some pride. I was sure he couldn't swallow such an insult.noveldrama

And besides, if he were to return, Rhea might accuse him as the murderer again. That would only stir up more gossip among the neighbors, which would be bad.

Claire and I took turns keeping watch-she during the day, and I at night.

The Brook family's residence had several side rooms. Since Rhea refused to let anyone else stay there, it was quite convenient for us to guard the place. We had space to sleep both day and night.

I chose the room next to Rhea's, which had once been her younger sister's chambers. The night the murders occurred, that poor girl had been killed in her sleep. Having seen the court files, I knew how her bed had been soaked in blood. Now, laying in that room, I fancied I could still smell the scent of it.

Of course, I didn't sleep in the bed. I had brought a thin quilt from the estate and made myself a place on the cushioned chair. From there, I could hear the faintest sound coming from Rhea's room.

Though I couldn't light a lamp, there was a small hole in the wall. If I pressed my eye to it, I could just manage to see into Rhea's room. So, whenever there was any disturbance, I would quietly go and have a look.

Every night, she let out muffled sobs. Listening to her cry like that made my own heart ache.

Yes, she had lost her mind, but she still remembered that her whole family had died. Even a madwoman could grieve.

I kept watch like that for half a month, but didn't discover anything.

One night, I was tired, so I ended up drifting off to sleep as I listened to Rhea's quiet weeping. In the haze of slumber, I seemed to hear the creak of the front gate, followed by soft footsteps.

The steps were light-it wasn't Rhea.

At once, I woke fully. I rose quickly and crept to the door, peeking through the narrow gap. The courtyard was pitch dark, but under the faint glow of the moon, I

could just make out a figure walking straight towards Rhea's room.

Her door had no bolt. Mr. Salter had had he

taken it off on purpose, in case something happened and someone needed to enter quickly. As for the front gate, Mr. Salter and the three neighboring households each had a key. As long as the bolt had not been drawn from the inside, one could unlock it.

Hearing the door to Rhea's room creak open, hurried back to my place and looked through the small hole in the wall. She was already asleep, but a small lamp was still lit inside, casting just enough glow for me to see who the intruder was. Cóntent

It was Stephen!

He stood beside her bed and swiftly clapped a hand over her mouth just as she stirred awake. His eyes were full of hatred-so different from the refined, gentle scholar he had once seemed like.

In a low and vicious voice, he said, "Don't scream. Or I'll kill you too and send you down to join your family."

Rhea made muffled sounds, but as she had her back to me, I couldn't see her face. I could only see Stephen's cruel expression.

I was stunned. It truly was Stephen. Was he here to silence her?

Just as I thought to rush out, I heard him darkly say, "Your whole family deserved to die. You've no one to blame but yourself. You were the cause of it all. You should have been the first to die. Why didn't you? Your mother is calling for you-don't you hear her? Go to her. Just hurry up and die already."

Rhea let out louder sobs, shaking her head in pain and terror.