Mistake

Upon arrival, the couple hastily exited the black carriage and dashed straight for the entrance, seeking shelter from the bitter cold. The old butler who was patiently waiting their arrival, kindly brought them towels and offered to take their coats whilst suggesting for them to clean themselves up before dinner. With Forrest being in a troubled state, he stormed up the marble staircase whereas Cordelia let herself take a breath, leaning her body against the tall doors.

"The roses, though dripping wet, seem to still be in pristine condition, Madam." The old butler spoke softly, earning himself a subtle smile from Cordelia.

"How pleasant to hear." She sighed, staring at the small puddle forming at her feet, "Though I wonder if they'll last in these conditions." Cordelia pushed away her thoughts at the sound of yelling and crashes upstairs...or was it downstairs? With the sounds only growing louder, failing to calm down and let peaceful silence take over once more, Cordelia picked up the heavy fabric of her drenched skirt and sprinted upstairs. Somewhere along the way, she had kicked off her boots, more sound added to the unknown chaos taking place in her own house.

Her heart pounding, and feet trampling the thistle-colored carpet lining the halls, Cordelia burst through the cracked door.

...

"Mr. Austin, a pleasure to meet you." She greeted politely. All evening, the young lady had been shaking hands and exchanging off smiles with so many. Everyone congratulated her, complimented her, or gave her advice for, well, her honeymoon. Kind they were, calm and composed as they should be, but far too...invested. Cordelia was no fool. She was what every other well-brought-up girl ought to be; being thrown around all the while others threw their rubbish at her, showering her with silver and gold as if she'd die of dissatisfaction without it. It was, for lack of a better word, quite bothersome. Bothersome! But the price of wealth, especially with her constantly being surrounded by such money-driven nobles, was to keep on a straight face and just play her part in the great circus that was her life.

When would it end? She didn't know. No one does. An answer for a question like that can't be found in any text nor can it easily slip from another's tongue, as unfortunate as that may be.

"How happy you must be, being the wife of The Forrest Gage Hockley!"

Did it matter to these people? Of course not. Yet Mr. Austin, a friend of Forrest's late father, constantly pushed it. Since the recently held wedding, Cordelia had recalled being asked that from Mr. Austin nearly ten times! And every time those twelve words came from his mouth, his eyes would flicker with something...something Cordelia had always caught but never cared to investigate.

Clearly, she had made a mistake then.

...

Cordelia knew the man whom she had made those vows to. She knew what angered him, what broke him down, what would leave him in a pitiful state of perpetual torment. Early on in the marriage, she had learned all of this. In fact, she learned it all way before the idea of marriage had even been born.

A detail to remember was that short temper of his, as that was the common cause of so much unwanted violence in a whole myriad of ways.

In a fight between a million men all armed with arrogant smirks and icy fists, she knew who would remain standing. So between her husband who seemed to love the fight like an enticing drug, and a pathetic old geezer; let's just say she just wasted all her energy on her way here.

"If my prediction is correct, dinner will be ready in about fifteen minutes. You best wash your hands, Forrest." Cordelia spoke nonchalantly. The sight of maroon splatters on the carpet were not only ruining the entire aesthetic of the room, but she had never been fond of cleaning after her husband's messes. She'd never leave the job to any of the maids-she would never do something so cruel- but even with her experience, blood stains were as stubborn as the man causing them.

But her husband remained silent and all she got in response was hysterical laughter coming from Mr. Austin. The very sound of his hoarse voice echoing within the walls of the room disgusted the young couple. Cordelia had to pry off her husband from the man, causing the latter to fall on his knees with a loud thud. While holding Forrest back, Cordelia watched through narrow eyes as the man dared to raise his head after breaking and entering her home. Moreover, her bedroom.

"Mr. Austin, we weren't expecting a visit from you."

"Cordelia! Bless your soul, young one! Had you been only a few seconds late, your husband would have snapped my neck!!" She watched as Mr. Austin rubbed his beefy neck which had grown visibly red.

"It be best you don't surprise him like that, Mr. Austin. The consequences...tend to be rather severe." Mr. Austin laughed at that. When he finally stood back up and straightened up his collar, he stepped forwards just enough to lift Cordelia's hand, placing a gentle kiss on her ring. Had she not been holding her short-tempered husband back, Mr. Austin would have been tossed back and undoubtedly stuck in the wall.

Luckily for at least two of them, nothing of the sort had taken place and instead, Mr. Austin straightened up and gave the two a toothy grin, revealing a silver tooth on the bottom row, fourth from the middle.

"Until next time, my dear."