Misfortune 54

Chapter 54

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Alice, still giddy with excitement, walked with light steps out of the Barthez mansion. A smile crept onto her face at the slightest distraction.

Today was her lucky day.

When Anna told her that the slave had finally regained her consciousness, Alice knew that this was the day she would act on her long-time plan.

It was lunchtime, so no one was wandering around the mansion, and no one would suspect her of being off duty today.

Even the head maid was locked away in the utility room, prancing about like a noblewoman. It meant Roan wouldn’t be home for a long time.

There would never be another day when the stars aligned so well. Determined to seize the opportunity, Alice quickly crossed the back alley.

She arrived at an old, ramshackle building in the middle of nowhere.

As soon as she opened the door, a flurry of noise erupted. In a claustrophobic, smoke-filled room, men holding cards and shouting profanities.

Alice headed straight for the counter, not paying any attention to the hopeless losers wasting their lives in an illegal gambling house.

"I want a fixer."

The clerk didn't respond to her demand, but headed for the back door and shouted for someone.

A moment later, a burly man with a bushy haircut burst through the door. A long scar across his left cheek added to his already dirty, menacing appearance.

"What, you're back again?"

"Of course."

Alice, who'd taken his surprise at her visit in stride, got straight to the point.

"About that thing I asked you to do last time, I need you to do it right now."

"What, you asked me to kidnap a maid from the mansion where you work?"

Alice nodded her head vigorously, her eyes glowing brightly.

The man in front of her was a back-alley fixer who would do all sorts of dirty work for a price.

When Alice heard that Roan had returned with a slave held preciously in his arms, and that he'd given her a room on the second floor, she couldn't stand it and came to see the fixer.

Alice's plan was simple. She would sneak the man disguised as a merchant into the mansion and hand over the slave she had already imprisoned.

Then she would feign surprise at the slave's disappearance and secretly spread the rumor that she had run off with a man.

It would be a very fair accusation for the filthy wench. Judging by the way she followed her obediently after the gardener was mentioned, she'd probably been giving the foreigner a good time, too.

"By the way."

The man interrupted ominously as Alice ran the smooth plan over in her head.

"I don't think I can do it now."

"What do you mean, you can't do it now?"

Alice jumped up and shouted at the man, as things were about to go wrong.

But he didn't seem to care, picking his ear and saying, "I don't think you paid enough.”

The man's thumb and forefinger made a circle, and Alice chuckled.

"I already gave you the money you asked for."

The money she'd handed over then was equivalent to a year's salary. She'd have to pay him again when the job was done, which was already a lot of money.

But the man still shrugged his shoulders with a smug smile.

“I didn’t know I would have to move so quickly. And this is Colonel Barthez’s mansion. I think I should get some more hazard pay.”

She had told him all about it when she first came to him for the job.

Alice's anger flared, but she held it in. Any more arguing would only derail her plans.

After all, she was the one in need right now. Besides, it wasn't like she hadn't seen this coming.

"Okay."

Alice held out the pouch she'd packed in her pocket to him.

A wicked grin tugged at the corners of his mouth as he glanced at the contents.

What a waste of a few extra bucks.

Annoyance flashed through Alice, but she didn't need to show it, because it would be over quickly.

What a fool Viscount’s young lady had been as she failed to do something so easy as to humiliate the slave.

When Alice heard that Roan had coldly reprimanded the young lady and left her cowering in the middle of the street, it was both hilarious and horrifying.

It was Alice’s own fault for putting her hopes in a child with a pimply face and an unremarkable body to win Roan over in the first place.

With nothing to show for it, she'd been off Alice's radar ever since.

All that remained was the dirty, beautiful slave.

And Alice was about to have a golden opportunity to finally get rid of her once and for all.

"I'll pay you the exact same amount after the job is done."

In total, that was all the money Alice had ever earned as a maid. She didn't save as much as other maids because of her love of luxury, but it was still a lot of money given how long she had been working.

But since she had come this far, she shouldn't be stingy. She could always save more.

No, this time, if she caught Roan's eye, she wouldn't need to save.

Alice was confident now. She knew Roan Barthez was nothing more than a man who would lose his mind over a pretty girl.

It was somewhat disappointing to realize that he was no better than the rest of them, but it also gave her hope that she could truly seduce him.

When he realized his slave was gone, he'd be angry for a while, but he'd get over it quickly. Alice would be happy to make it happen.

"Is it good now?"

Alice asked for confirmation, and the man smirked disgustedly, baring his yellowed, rotten teeth.

"Yep. Let's get ready and get moving."

Alice, finally relieved, gave the man detailed instructions on how to enter the Barthez mansion.

After a thorough handoff, she turned to leave.

"But you know what?"

She turned back to the man, her eyes widening.

"About that maid, is she as pretty as you?"

Alice, who was wearing a mask of arrogance, couldn't help but snort out a laugh.

Well, he got good eyes.

She would have given a man like that by the handful, but the sight of the pretty slave gave her a small boost of confidence.

"Not as pretty as me, but pretty enough."

Alice, raising her head proudly, added as if a good idea had occurred to her.

"If you succeed in getting her away unharmed, she's yours to do with as you please, roasted or boiled, as long as she won’t show up in front of me again."

As she finished speaking and turned away again, a low whistling sound erupted from behind her.

Alice scowled and hurried out of the gambling house, the sun already setting by the time she was completely out of the back alley.

It had taken her longer than she'd expected, but it wasn't a bad thing; Roan wouldn't be back until the middle of the night anyway, and Anna wouldn't see her until after dinner.

Alice had just entered the Barthez mansion with a lightness of step that seemed to float on clouds.

"Alice, where the hell have you been?"

A maid, who had been busy tending to the garden, spotted her and called out. As if that weren't enough, she ran up to her and threw her arms around her.

Alice was taken aback, as they weren’t usually so friendly.

"What's going on?"

"The mansion is upside down."

"The mansion? Why?"

Alice asked anxiously, but there was no answer, just a firm grip on her arm, dragging her somewhere. She was so strong, Alice couldn't break free.

She wondered if the slave's disappearance had already been discovered.

Her heart raced and she broke out in a cold sweat at the ominous foreboding.

But Alice tried to calm herself.

What did the slave's disappearance have to do with her?

She could have just denied it and said she didn't know about it. There was no way a slave with such a sick complexion could have escaped on her own.

The butler and head maid would have to take the blame. Besides, Alice was off duty today, so she was free from all restraints.

The only problem was that the security would be tight, and it wouldn't be easy to get in touch with the fixer.

So how would she hand over the slave?

Alice chewed her lip and rolled her eyes, but thanks to the dutiful maid, they soon found themselves inside the manor.

There were quite a few people gathered in the halls. The lowly servants, the maidservant in charge, and the butler with a serious expression on his face.

And................

"Huh...........Colonel?"

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