Chapter 8

Back in the Demitria estate, the atmosphere around it is thick with gloominess and heavy tension. Every person in that place is moving as if they are on thin ice. They refuse to let out a sound and scared that it will make them the center of attention in this palpable situation and earns the anger from their master.

Fernando, who locked himself in his room for two days now, is too wasted. He lay his body flat on his bed and ignores the scent of alchohol and cigarettes in the air. His head is pounding hard and his body is too heavy that he cannot even stand on his own.

But no matter how much alcohol he drinks or cigarettes he smokes, these are not enough for him to stop his mind from replaying the things that happened the day when his wife returned in their mansion. It's like a plague that stays on his mind and refuses to let him have a peace of mind. Whenever he simply closes his eyes, the things that happened on that day will instantly replay.

-//-//-

When Viviane's figure disappeared beyond the gates while holding Cordelia in her arms, all Fernando could do was stood there and watched them disappear from his sight. The noise coming from the horse hooves echoed in his ears and each thudding sound of it was pounding into his chest like a physical blow. Viviane's words and the evidence of the Dagger of Truth kept swirling in his mind and rendering him speechless.

Finnick, who was standing next to him, trembled in both fear and surprise. His eyes were wide open and fixatedly staring on the empty path where Viviane and Cordelia had disappeared to. When he looked at his father, Finnick swallowed first before his voice cracked as he finally spoke. The panic in his voice was breaking through the tense silence around them.

"Father..." Finnick called. "I-Is it true? Is she... Is she really our sister? Cordelia... is she...?"

Fernando turned to his eldest son and opened his mouth to speak. But there was no words came out from it. The truth behind Cordelia's birth that haunted him for years was confirmed by Viviane and even proved her innocence to him.

These things were looming over him and his traitous mind still refused to process it. The shame and guilt he felt was starting to suffocating him and it left him incapable of answering his son. Fernando's head kept spinning as the implications of the past two years was becoming a weight in his heart.

When he didn't received any answers, Finnick's panic grew and raised his voice. He saw how his mother showed them the truth. He also witnessed how his mother looked at them with pure hatred, disappointment and sadness swimming in her eyes when she discovered what happened to Cordelia.

"Father, please!" Finnick desperately said. "P-Please say something! Is Cordelia our real sister or not?!"

"Enough!" Fernando snapped angrily although his voice sounded like he would crumble into pieces any time soon. "I... I don't know. I really..."

The uncertainty in his answer broke something inside Finnick's chest. His step faltered and his shoulders sagged. Then he looked at his father as his complexion turning pale every second.

"How... How could you not know?" Finnick whispered. "Cordelia... She is our family. She is your daughter. She is my sister. How could you not know?! Why are you still denying it?!"

Fernando turned away and refused to look at his son in the meantime. He closed his eyes and did his best to regain control of his emotions. Taking a deep breath, Fernando strode toward the entrance of the mansion and called for their butler in a loud and angry voice.

"Summon all the servants in this mansion. Now!"

The butler hesitated for a moment. He already heard what happened earlier and his master's order was clearly making him feel uneasy. But still, the butler bowed his head and hurried to fulfill his master's order.

Minutes later, the entire staff and servants gathered in the grand hall. Their heads were lowered to hide the expression on their faces. Some of them also heard what happened this morning and they could already guessed the reason why they were gathered here. Fernando stood at the top of the staircase with his piercing gaze sweeping over them. The fury and despair in his chest was too overwhelming and making the air around them heavy and palpable.

"I have one question." Fernando started in a lowly but deadly voice. "Have any of you abused Cordelia?"

The silence that followed his question was suffocating. No one dared to speak a word. No one moved on their spots. The servants exchanged nervous glances with each other only to see the same fear on their faces.

Seeing this, Fernando tightened his grip on the bannister until his knuckles turned white.

"Answer me!" He thundered.

Still, no one dared to speak. But their lowered their eyes and trembling hands told Fernando everything he needed to know. His stomach flipped in rage and self-loathing.

"Who hurt her?" Fernando demanded again although his voice was breaking slowly. "Who among you all dared to harm my daughter?!"

'My daughter.'

Cordelia is his daughter.

These words sounded familiar and foreign in his ears at the same time.

The servants were obviously oblivious with his feelings. Instead, they flinched at his words and some of them hiccuped in fear. A few of them looked as if they wanted to speak but decided to stop themselves.

Seeing the servants' reaction, Fernando's fury boiled over.

"You cowards! Do you think your silence will save you? If I find out any of you laid a hand on her, you will regret it for the rest of your lives!"

The butler, who had been standing off to the side, finally stepped forward and looked at Fernando with a grim look on his face.

"My lord." he cautiously started. "I... I fear that some among the staff may have treated Lady Cordelia poorly. But..."

"But what?!" Fernando barked.

The butler looked at him and hesitated for a second. But he then lowered his head and continued.

"But none of us thought to intervene."

"What do you mean?!"

"My lord, you... You told us not to see Lady Cordelia as one of your family anymore and instead treat her as one of the family's servant."

Fernando felt the air leave his lungs when he heard those words. Did he? Did he really said those words? Seeing the look on his butler's face, Fernando knew he was speaking the truth.

Because of it, Fernando staggered back a step. His grip on the bannister was the only thing that was stopping him falling. His knees felt weak as the meaning of the butler's words washed over him.

They had treated Cordelia so cruelly because they were only following his order.

Finnick, who followed his father inside and had been listening silently behind his father, spoke up.

"Father... You... Did you... Did you really ordered them?"

Fernando's head snapped toward his son and looked at him with an expression that couldn't easily described.

"No!" Fernando shouted. "I never wanted this! I... I..."

He stopped himself and feel his throat tightening.

His mind raced back to every cold glance he gave to that child. He remembered all of his dismissive words to her. His heart is now throbbing in pain every time he remembered failing the little girl who had clung to him and seek the love and warmth she always wanted.

And yet, in his heart, he knew that his silence and indifference were as damning as any order he could have given.

The servants shifted uneasily under his gaze, their fear mixed with confusion. They had never seen the Marquis like this before. He looks so unguarded and broken.

Fernando then turned his back on the assembled staff. His voice sounds quieter now, but it is still commanding.

"From now on, anyone who attempts to harm Cordelia, physically or otherwise, will face far worse consequences than you can imagine."

Those words are enough to send shivers through the room. The servants bowed their heads in unison while murmuring their agreement. Fernando dismissed them with a wave of his hand, and they quickly filed out of the hall. Only the butler stays and watches his master with a mixture of sympathy and unease on his face.

Fernando collapses onto the staircase and buries his face in his hands as the last servant walks away. The weight of his actions and inaction is now pressing down on him. It is now threatening to completely crush him. Finnick, who follows his father, paused a moment before approaching him.

"Father..."

"Leave me." Fernando muttered and muffled by his hands.

"But..."

"I said leave me!"

Finnick flinches but still obeys his father. With a short nod, he quietly leaves and retreats to his own quarters.

For the first time in years, Fernando can feel nothing but his guilt and the echoes of his family's pain.