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LOS 51
Giles Hessen woke up early, as he always did. Seeing the faint blue light seeping through the curtains, he knew the dimness of early dawn had just passed.
Anna had not yet awakened. She was still holding the hand he had grasped the previous night. Fortunately, she was sleeping soundly, free from nightmares.
When would she wake up? He didn't want to wake her before she woke up on her own. Giles had to go to work, and it seemed he would have to leave the house without saying goodbye.
Intending to prepare a simple breakfast before leaving, he carefully unlinked their fingers.
There were eggs in the kitchen. There were many dishes he could make with eggs. He set some toast aside and poured beaten eggs onto a heated pan. As he stirred the pan with a spatula, he became lost in thought.
The conversation they had last night continued to weigh on his mind. If, for any reason, Anna's position became precarious... Of course, such a thing should not happen, but Anna wasn't wrong. Simply ignoring it was not a solution.
The problem was Vincent's twisted interest in Anna. The fact that Vincent had been left to indifference even when showing open defiance was now coming back in this manner.
Persuasion or threats would obviously not work. The only solution was to divert the attention that had begun to shift toward Anna back to himself.
He had to make it so that Vincent could not focus on Anna.
If he could just deal with Vincent, Anna would be safe for the time being. Because no one would ever imagine that Eloise Bismarck was still alive.
The youngest daughter of a fallen count's house had long been forgotten by everyone's memory. No one would suspect. No one would even care.
Who, after all, would want to drag down a rookie pianist playing beautiful music on a shining stage?
The scrambled eggs were finished. It would be best to eat them while they were warm, but he didn't want to wake Anna just for an egg. Giles plated two moderately toasted slices of bread and the freshly cooked eggs, then placed them on the dining table.
Just as he was about to leave after putting on his uniform, Giles happened to glance toward the only window without curtains.
His eyes met someone's.
The moment he realized this, the curtains on the other side were drawn. Now, there was no one left spying on them, but Giles could not move from his spot.
It certainly wasn't a mistake.
Was he being watched? At the very least, there was someone who held an unwanted interest in them. No, more accurately, in Anna.
Did she know this as well?
Whether she knew it or not, the fact was clear.
Anna was not safe.
Anna was being threatened.
Who was it? Giles could not shake the thought of what he had witnessed this morning all day. Though it was only for a split second, Giles could not forget the gaze of that stranger, whose face he couldn't even recall.
Normally, he might have dismissed it as a trivial matter and forgotten it quickly. After all, nothing could be concluded simply from the fact that he had accidentally locked eyes with a neighbor.
But Anna was not an ordinary person. She was someone for whom it wouldn't be strange to be under surveillance at any time. Of course, the possibility that someone had discovered Anna's identity was slim, but she was still the daughter of a noble. As she had said, there was no guarantee she would never be caught.
Furthermore, if it had been a coincidence, why did the person lower the curtains the moment they locked eyes with Giles? The stranger watching them did not want their identity revealed. Would an ordinary neighbor try to hide themselves so thoroughly?
Thoughts followed one after another... If the Revolutionary Army suspected Anna, why go through the trouble of attaching a watcher instead of arresting her immediately? Especially if there were clear pieces of evidence to suspect her. This was not how the Revolutionary Army operated.
Giles thought about other forces that might harbor hostility toward Anna besides the Revolutionary Army.
He recalled the fact that Anna was closely involved in the Orient Express Operation. She had been a key tool for the operation. However, she had betrayed Albert Lehmann for Giles, and the Beldam Intelligence Agency's operation to kidnap Giles had ended in a disastrous failure.
What if Anna had become a new target because of that? Or, what if the Beldam side, having confirmed that he loved Anna, had not yet given up on her?
His head began to ache at the thought that something bad could happen to Anna at any moment. He didn't even want to imagine losing her. If that happened, he felt he wouldn't be able to go on living. The only reason he continued to survive without giving up was because of Anna.
Someone knocked on the office door. Giles, who had been pacing around his desk, sat down and answered.
"Come in."
Surprisingly, Vincent Monagan appeared through the gap in the door. With a cold, expressionless face, he gave a formal salute and closed the door.
Giles took the documents Vincent handed him.
It was a request for interrogation permission.
"Is there still something left to hear from those Beldam Agents?"
"What can I do? Please consider my position, having to linger over a matter that would have been cleanly finished already if the Captain hadn't personally gifted death to that Lehmann bastard."
"The repatriation date is drawing near; what more do you intend to do at this point?"
"You speak as if you don't want me to interrogate them."
Giles did not respond. To be honest, it was true that he felt uncomfortable. Though he shouldn't, he secretly hoped the Beldam Agents involved in this case would return to their home country as soon as possible.
The fact that Vincent, of all people, was in charge of their interrogation also made him anxious. He worried that Anna might be caught in a slip-up. Giles had even wondered if the reason Vincent was suddenly picking on Anna was because of this operation.
After all, it was a fact that Anna had boarded the train to cooperate with Albert Lehmann.
"Why do you think I want to show them mercy? This is already a closed case. It was concluded that those attempting to sneak into Beldam would be repatriated."
"There's still time left."
"The agents are included in the repatriation list. Beldam wants them to return safely."
"Don't worry, I'll leave their limbs intact."
It seemed he had no intention of giving up. What on earth did he want to hear more of? Perhaps because of what happened this morning, even the request for permission lying before him felt like a potential threat to Anna.
However, he couldn't exactly refuse the permission. He had no justification to do so. If he sent him back, there was no telling what kind of unreasonable demands Vincent might make to the superiors.
Inevitably, Giles picked up his pen.
"...Do not use torture."
"Those times have already passed."
Giles looked up at Vincent, surprised by the unexpected remark. Meanwhile, Vincent took the signed document and curled one corner of his mouth into a smile.
"By the way, I apologize for what happened last time."
"What are you talking about?"
"For being rude to Miss Anna. And to you, Captain."
"I have nothing more to say about that."
"What's the harm in just saying it's alright?"
It was so absurd that Giles didn't even want to answer. It was just as he was about to send Vincent away.
"Please tell Miss Anna for me as well. Tell her I'm sorry for doubting her for a moment."
With those words, he turned to leave the office. What did he mean? Unable to let Vincent leave as he was, Giles called him back.
"What is that supposed to mean?"
"As you know, Captain, Miss Anna isn't entirely unrelated to this case. If anything, she was on the closer side of involvement. And I must investigate every single point of doubt without exception."
"Are you saying you investigated Anna?"
"I simply wondered if Miss Anna was one of those trying to sneak into Beldam along with the passengers."
"Monagan."
"It was also quite suspicious how she suddenly stuck to the Captain's side and wouldn't leave after that incident."
"Anna was not a subject of investigation from the start."
"Even so, if I neglect my duties, it'll be hard to handle the aftermath later. If Miss Anna had deceived the Captain and sided with that Lehmann bastard to go to Beldam, but then clung to the Captain again to fake her innocence when it seemed it wouldn't work, who would take responsibility for that?"
The anger that had flared up momentarily cooled down. Giles couldn't be sure if Vincent was saying he truly believed Anna now, or if he was using irony to test his reaction.
It wasn't a wild guess; he was speaking something very close to the truth. In reality, Anna had boarded the train intending to leave for a foreign country. Although she didn't know that country was Beldam, she had indeed been complicit with Albert Lehmann.
"...Have you been harboring those thoughts in your head every time you met Anna until now?"
"There's no harm in looking at things with suspicion."
"Why didn't you tell me that from the beginning?"
"I intended to tell you once the facts became clear. I was a bit concerned that the Captain is in a relationship with Miss Anna. Anyway, now that I know she's not, all that's left is to put my mind at ease."
Vincent, who was striding toward the door, asked once more.
"Do you truly love Miss Anna?"
"Get out."
He merely shrugged his shoulders and left through the door without complaining.
Soon, the door closed.
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