Chapter 10

Violet couldn't shake the feeling of Ophelia's lingering gaze. There was something unsettling about the way she had stood there in the corridor, watching, before silently walking away. But Violet forced herself to move past it. If she acted as if nothing was wrong, then perhaps nothing would be wrong.

The next day, she resumed lessons with Clara and Theo. Clara, who had been bright and engaged the day before, now seemed withdrawn again. She was quieter than usual, her responses more hesitant, and her gaze often distant, as though her thoughts were elsewhere. There was a tenseness in her posture, the way she held her shoulders slightly hunched, and Violet noticed how she barely met Theo's eyes.

Violet took extra care in her approach, praising the young girl when she answered correctly and gently guiding her when she struggled. "You're improving every day," Violet told her with an encouraging smile. "You just need to have confidence in yourself."

Clara gave her a small, fleeting smile, but it didn't reach her eyes. She traced the edge of her notebook absentmindedly, her fingers fidgeting with the corner of the page. Something was weighing on her, but whether it was school-related or something deeper, Violet couldn't be sure. She caught Theo watching Clara again, that same quiet concern in his eyes, though he said nothing.

At lunch, Felix found her once more, launching into a rapid-fire conversation that bounced between topics so quickly that Violet had trouble keeping up. He started with an enthusiastic discussion about books, detailing his favourite adventure novel and how he wished life were as exciting as the stories he read. Then, without warning, he shifted to recounting a peculiar bird he had seen in the garden that morning—its feathers a strange mix of colours, almost shimmering in the sunlight. "Have you ever seen anything like that before?" he asked eagerly, barely waiting for an answer before launching into a theory about rare bird species. His mind seemed to run a mile a minute, and the more he spoke, the more Violet became certain—Felix likely had ADHD. He wasn't just talkative; he was restless, unable to sit still, constantly moving or fidgeting, his fingers tapping against the table in an erratic rhythm.

At one point, he leaned forward and asked, "So, Miss Rowe, do you think this house is strange?" His tone was light, almost playful, but his gaze held something sharper.

Violet hesitated. "It's… different from what I'm used to."

Felix smirked. "That's a polite way of putting it."

Before Violet could respond, Everette's voice cut in smoothly. "Felix, you really must learn to curb your curiosity." He leaned lazily against the doorway, arms crossed. "Gossiping about the family isn't very becoming."

Felix made a face but said nothing more, shifting his attention to his plate. Across the table, Ophelia sat with an air of detached disinterest, idly swirling her spoon in her dessert, though her eyes flickered toward Felix and Everette more than once. Violet noted the way Everette watched his younger brother, not in anger but with something that felt like warning. The meal itself was, as always, a grand affair—roasted lamb with rosemary, buttered vegetables, and fresh-baked bread, followed by a delicate lemon tart for dessert. But despite the richness of the food, Violet found it difficult to enjoy. The absence of Augustus at the table only added to the underlying tension, an unspoken presence even in his absence.

Later that afternoon, as she walked the halls, Violet found herself debating whether or not to return to the greenhouse. The feeling of curiosity and unease warred inside her. Someone had hidden the stolen jewelry there. If it was truly Lysandra's missing heirloom, why had it never been found? Had it been meant to stay hidden? The thought sent a shiver down her spine. She wondered who in this household might have known about it. Was it a long-buried secret, or had someone only recently placed it there? The estate was filled with shadows of the past, and the more she uncovered, the more it seemed that not everything was meant to be found.

Finally, she gave in and made her way back. The air inside the greenhouse was thick and warm, the scent of damp earth filling her lungs. Sunlight streamed through the glass panes, illuminating the foliage in gold and green hues. She moved carefully to the farthest part of the structure, her heart pounding slightly.

She scanned the area first, searching for the exact spot where she had glimpsed the jewel before. Her eyes darted over the ground, taking in the slight shifts in the dirt, the plants that had been subtly disturbed. 

It was gone.

The dirt where it had been was disturbed, as if someone had hastily dug into the ground. Someone had seen what she had seen. Someone had known she had been there.

A chill ran down her spine. Who had taken it? One of the family members? A servant? Why? The only people who knew she had been there were the siblings. Had one of them come to retrieve it? Had they always known it was there? Or had someone been watching her?

Her pulse quickened, and she forced herself to look around, searching for anything else out of place. That was when she saw it—half-hidden beneath a pot of overgrown ivy, a leather-bound book.

Curiosity overrode her fear, and she picked it up, brushing the dust from its worn cover. A journal.

Violet glanced around, a sudden sense of urgency overtaking her. She tucked the journal under her arm and quickly made her way out of the greenhouse, her mind racing. Someone had taken the jewelry—but they had left this.

What secrets lay within its pages?

She didn't know, but she intended to find out.