Chapter 28 - I Know What To Do!

Eloise’s POV



The guards threw us into our bedroom and locked the door. Xavier only gave us a day to pack our belongings and we were expected to leave by tomorrow morning.



Instead of packing, I curled up in the bed’s blankets. I took a pillow to my face and began screaming and crying.



Maybe I should’ve stayed in Witches Land… I shouldn’t have gone to Normand. I shouldn’t have gotten married into the Leonard family… What went wrong?



I knew that our marriage was supposed to be nothing more than a contract and I knew I was only there to kill Xavier. But I felt so hurt and betrayed by the whole situation.



Why wouldn’t Xavier listen to me? Why didn’t he at least try to talk to me to get my side of the story? He didn’t even give me the benefit of a doubt!



I thought about the things that happened between us and how our intimacy had grown. Did it mean nothing to him? The way he had treated me lately and the way he was so gentle, I refused to believe that there wasn’t something there.



I laid in bed and thought about the whole argument and what led up to the moment that I was about to be thrown out of Xavier’s life. There had to have been something I missed. I was determined to get to the bottom of who truly cursed Mrs. Leonard and clear my name!



Mrs. Leonard said that she was in the warehouse retrieving other gifts. It wasn’t her that found it but someone else…



Then I realized something.



Wait a minute…



I suddenly sat up on the bed with a new excitement in my heart.



Nora, who was sulking on the bed next to me, perked her head up at my movements. “Is something wrong, Lady Eloise?”



“Do you know anything about Belinda’s maid, Mia?”



Nora shook her head as she wiped her eyes. “Not really. I only met her a few times in the kitchen but aside from that, we never really talked.”



“When you were near her, were you able to sense anything about her?”



“Like how I could practically feel Xavier’s alpha energy from the moment I saw him?” She gave me a cautious smile, knowing that it hurt to hear his name. “Now that you mention it, I haven’t been able to feel anything from her. I’m sure she’s nothing more than a pup–an inexperienced werewolf.”



Nora paused for a moment. “Is something wrong?”



“Well, at first I thought that maybe Mia was the one who placed the curse on the bracelet in order to frame me. But if she’s only a little low-leveled pup, then the only thing I can think of is that she somehow replaced my bracelet with the cursed one.”



“But how are we supposed to prove that the bracelet wasn’t yours…?” Nora gave me a worried look.



I let out a sigh and rubbed my temples. I paced around the room and got my mind busy. I needed to find a way to prove myself and make sure that my marriage to Xavier stays intact.



A lightbulb went off in my head.



I ran to the closet and pulled out a box that had a butterfly engraving on it. When I was a child, other children always liked to take my things because they were so nice. Ever since then, I would make sure that everything I owned was marked with a butterfly engraving.



“Nora…” I called out to her. “Do you remember why I chose to engrave my belongings with the butterfly mark?”



“Because you were tired of people taking what was supposed to be yours,” she answered with a confused look on her face.



“Right! Well, do you remember seeing my butterfly mark on the bracelet we gave to Belinda?”



Nora paused for a moment as she tried to think back. Suddenly, her eyes lit up with a realization of where I was going with that question. “No! I don’t remember seeing it at all, Lady Eloise!”



“That’s it then!” I clapped my hands together. “Tomorrow, I will prove my innocence to Xavier and Mrs. Leonard!”



––––––



“Miss Eloise, it’s time for you to leave.” Adrian was outside of the bedroom trying to get the door open.



“No! Not until I see Lord Xavier one last time!” I held the door tightly shut.



“Miss Eloise,” Adrian sighed. “You broke your promise to Lord Xavier and betrayed the Leonard family. It is the greatest act of mercy that my Lord is allowing you to leave Noah unscathed. So please, I need you to cooperate.”



I held onto the door as tight as I could. I wasn’t going anywhere, especially now that I knew exactly how to prove my innocence and expose the truth behind who cursed Mrs. Leonard.



“What’s going on?” I heard a familiar voice ask on the other side of the door.



My heart stopped beating. Xavier… Despite how much it hurt to hear his voice, I knew I had to push my emotions to the side and prove myself to him and his mother.



I immediately opened the door and bolted for Xavier.



Xavier let out a sigh and ran his hand down his face. “Why haven’t you left? I thought I made myself perfectly clear that you are no longer welcome here.” A frown pulled down his lips.



It honestly did hurt that Xavier wouldn’t believe me. Despite his attitude towards me when we first met, I thought the past several days we spent together changed how he felt about me.



Regardless, I approached him with confidence. I’m going to prove you wrong!



“I have found a way to prove my innocence, Lord Xavier. Surely, a wise and just Lord wouldn’t make such a rash decision knowing there’s new evidence to investigate, right? Please, just give me a chance.” I requested sincerely.



Xavier went silent and looked at Adrian. It looked like the two were exchanging a silent conversation. After a few moments, Xavier looked back at me. “And what new evidence do you have?”



“I’ll explain when we get there. I just need you to please take me to Mrs. Leonard’s room.”



Xavier squinted his eyes at me suspiciously.



“If I’m wrong about this evidence, then I’ll be more than glad to accept any punishment.” I stood up tall and straightened my back.



After a few more moments of silent thinking, he finally agreed. “Let’s go then. You better not be wasting my time.”



Xavier knocked at Belinda’s door as I fidgeted with my fingers beside him. I tried to avoid looking up at him but every so often, I would. I tried not to think about how if I actually wasn’t able to prove myself, that I would end up missing him.



Whatever goes down, I can’t lie to myself and say that I didn’t enjoy the last few days we spent in each other’s company.



I clenched my fists. And regardless… I will carry out my plans. If I can’t prove my innocence, well, that’ll make things harder but not impossible.



I shook the thoughts from my head as soon as Belinda answered the door.



Her eyebrows knitted together as red consumed her face. “You dare you show your face here?” She pointed her finger at my face. “I thought it was made clear that you were to leave and never come back! Or have you come to accept your punishment to rot in a jail cell?”



I took a few deep breaths and held back my emotions so I could explain everything calmly. “Mrs. Leonard, I was framed. I came here to reveal the truth about what happened.”



Before Belinda could start yelling again, Xavier held up his hand. “I brought her here, mother. If what she’s saying is true, then that means there’s someone else out there who’s trying to curse you. If you don’t hear her out, there’s a possibility that you may be putting yourself in more danger.”



Xavier looked down at me as I mouthed a silent “thank you” to him. He said nothing back and looked back at his mother.



Belinda looked up and down at me before she crossed her arms. “Sure. Fine. Let’s hear her out then.”



We stepped into her room and closed the door behind us. I looked at the corner of her room and saw Mia standing there with her gaze on the floor.



I turned to Belinda. “Mrs. Leonard, do you still have the bracelet I gave you?”



“You don’t think I actually kept such a dangerous item so close to me, do you?” She scoffed. “I let Sir Adrian deal with it.”



I turned to Adrian.



“Where is the bracelet?” Xavier asked.



“I delivered it to the Sacrificial Hall to be sealed away by the priest,” Adrian replied.



“Please go get it.”



“Yes, my Lord.”



After a few minutes of waiting, Adrian quickly returned with a box.



I took it from him and opened it. Black magic swirled around the bracelet, causing my vision to blur slightly.



Direct contact with any type of curse can cause harm to the body. However, I didn’t care. I was eager to prove my innocence.



I took the bracelet out of the box and squeezed it in my hand. The black magic that was imbued on the piece of jewelry right into my hand. Although the cursed magic began to burn my hand, I could see that because I was absorbing the spell, it allowed the bracelet to show its original appearance.



I looked at Xavier as he looked down at my hand and frowned.



I held up the bracelet so everyone could see it clearly.



“Mrs. Leonard accused me of cursing her with a bracelet I gave her for her birthday. However, this isn’t the bracelet I gave her.”



“How are we supposed to believe that? It’s easy for you or anyone to claim that something isn’t theirs,” Belinda scoffed.



“All of my belongings have an exclusive mark on them that shows which items truly belong to me. My maid, Nora, can vouch for me, and so can Xavier.”



Belinda looked at Nora through squinted eyes.



Nora nodded her head in agreement. “It’s true, Mrs. Leonard. Lady Eloise has had a very specific marking on all of her belongings since she was a child.”



Then Belinda looked at Xavier.



Xavier also nodded his head in agreement. “I can also attest to this, mother. After Eloise moved into my castle at Normand, all of her belongings were confiscated to ensure that she wasn’t bringing anything dangerous or other types of contraband. I’ve noticed a specific engraving on all of her chests, luggage, and boxes. Even clothing tags and other jewelry.”



I gave Belinda a warm smile. “See? I’m not the one who cursed you after all.” I then pointed to her floor-length mirror that sat in the corner of her room. “You can see it for yourself, too.”



Belinda rushed to her mirror and observed her appearance. Her gasp could be heard throughout the entire room.



“Because I absorbed the curse, her appearance will return to normal in no time.” I smiled.



Belinda touched all over her face as her skin became smooth again. Then she ran her fingers through her hair to see if any would fall out, but none did.



Belinda turned around to look at me. “Well, the fact of the matter is that the real bracelet is still missing. Where is it if the one I was given was a fake?”



She could at least thank me for uplifting her curse…



I scanned the room. “Someone in the room has it. Someone who has had access to your gifts…”



Suddenly, Mia, who was standing in the corner of the room the entire time, ran for the door.



Nora acted quickly and grabbed Mia’s arms. Adrian also rushed to hold her down.



The two searched Mia’s arms and found the bracelet on her arm. They turned it over to reveal my butterfly mark.



Nora took the bracelet from her and tossed it to me.



“I wouldn’t have noticed anything, you know.” I looked up at Mia. “But all yesterday, you kept covering your arm. At first, I thought you had gotten injured but then I overheard that you were relaxing in your room all day. I suspected it was you because your arms are far too skinny to hold a bracelet of this size.”



“Tell me they’re lying, Mia!” Belinda shouted. “You couldn’t have done this! Right?”



Mia looked at Belinda with sad eyes and shook her head. “Lady Eloise is right… I was the one that replaced her gift with the cursed bracelet…”



“Mia!” Belinda gasped. “Why would you do this? You were my most trusted maid! How could you betray me like this?”



Mia couldn’t hold back the tears that flooded her face. Her body shook violently as she cried. “I’m so, so sorry, Mrs. Leonard. I’m sorry to you, too, Lady Eloise. Believe me when I say that I never wanted this to happen!”



“You have much to answer for,” Lord Xavier spoke up with a cold tone. “You dare place a curse on my own mother? Who made you do this and why?”



“I-I’m so sorry, Lord Xavier… I cannot tell you…” Mia avoided everyone’s eyes.



“What do you mean–”



“If I say anything else, my Lord will…”



Before Belinda could get another word in, Mia suddenly fell to the ground.



Mia’s body spasmed violently on the floor as blood came out of her mouth and trickled out of her eyes.



Had it not been for Adrian rushing to Belinda’s side, she would've fainted from the sight of the blood.



Nora rushed to Mia’s body and pressed her fingers against her neck. “She’s dead!”