CWMBR 129

Chapter 129

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Wayna, who had been observing Bridget's somewhat weary face, casually broke the silence.

"Looks like your conversation ended well."

Bridget, who had stood in front of the entrance for a while after Mrs. Callaway left, rubbed her forehead and turned away.

"Well, I'm not sure if it really ended well..."

Her voice was uncertain. After all, Mrs. Callaway was clearly an aristocrat with a formidable presence. Compared to her, Bridget, though she'd been trying lately to act more resolute, was naturally gentle and quiet. 

Even without that, forcing herself to act against her nature must have been exhausting. Trying to get what she wanted from Mrs. Callaway would have frayed her nerves even more. Perhaps just sitting across from her and continuing the conversation had drained her completely.

Wayna looked at Bridget with a sympathetic gaze. Though they hadn't known each other long, their brief time together had shown Bridget to be someone who avoided getting involved in incidents or arguing with others. Seeing her now, trying so hard to do this and that in her own way, was heartbreaking to Wayna. Her frail appearance only made it worse.

 "Well, Mrs. Callaway didn't seem to have a bad expression on her face."

Perhaps because she was trying to comfort her, Wayna's words came out with genuine sincerity. Bridget glanced at her and gave a faint smile.

"I'm glad she didn't."

Truthfully, even as she wrote to Mrs. Callaway, Bridget hadn't been certain she'd come in person. If the Callaways were a family that sponsored artists for money, they wouldn't easily let go of a popular playwright.

Still, she'd stirred things up with the mindset that she had nothing to lose, because she was still publicly 'Madame Wise'. The fact that Ain and Bridget were on the verge of divorce hadn't been made public yet. So to others, Bridget would appear as Madame Wise, wrongfully persecuted and now reclaiming her rightful place.

An appeal from 'Bridget Pennington' wouldn't have worked, but an appeal from 'Bridget Wise' couldn't be ignored.

She benefited from the position of 'Madame Wise'. Ain's words about 'the advantages one gains as Madame Wise' were objectively true. It would also be correct that their divorce would disadvantage only her.

"But what did you discuss? Are they compensating you for the manuscript Finn Emerson stole?"

"... I didn't demand compensation. His attempt to take my manuscript was unsuccessful, after all. I merely suggested that proper verification would be advisable, since someone out there might be suffering in silence after having their work stolen."

"Mrs. Callaway seemed so proud. I'm surprised she didn't storm out."

Wayna, who knew well how foul-tempered high-and-mighty aristocrats could be, murmured in admiration. Bridget shrugged at her.

"The Callaway family is like a beacon of hope for all artists. Getting their patronage changes your life, so it's only natural."

The Callaway family's patronage encompassed the arts broadly. Their history was long, and many talents had blossomed under their support.

"That long history couldn't be sustained by money alone. At least, that's what I believe, and so I appealed to the conviction of loving and enjoying art."

Wayna seemed not quite to grasp what Bridget meant. She tilted her head, then suddenly seemed to remember something and asked,

"But why did she suddenly bring up the Glynford Grand Theater?"

"I don't know."

That was something Bridget wondered about too. While it was common knowledge that Madame Wise owned the Glynford Grand Theater —a fact easily found in a few newspapers—there had been no reason for the theater to come up in her conversation with Mrs. Callaway. Had the theatre's role in some broader artistic patronage sparked her interest?

Bridget, replaying her last conversation with Mrs. Callaway, suddenly turned to Wayna.

"Wayna. Do you happen to..."

She knew she was asking the wrong person, but Wayna was the only one she could ask, so she ended up asking anyway.

"Wayna, you don't know what Ain't been up to lately, do you?"

"Well, I'm always by the lady's side. Naturally."

"………………I see."

Bridget gave an awkward smile and looked away.

“I wondered why that money-obsessed man would antagonize people and cause a ruckus in the center……… Seems he was paving the way for his wife.”

Mrs. Callaway must have misunderstood something. She didn't know what Ain was up to, but whatever he was doing, it certainly wasn't for her sake. He had no reason to do so.

"I didn't think you were stupid. I was... just worried."

Bridget pushed Ain’s voice, tinged with melancholy, from her mind. Those words couldn't have been sincere either.

Because he had absolutely no reason to worry about her.

***

Clink.

Mrs. Callaway set down her teacup and let out a hollow laugh.

"You were recently attacked, and you say Finn Emerson is behind it?"

"Yes. In fact, we caught the perpetrator yesterday and got a confession. I was worried how to break the news to you, but since you came all the way down to Glynford yourself, that's one less thing to worry about."

Ain responded indifferently, then thrust the doctor's diagnosis report forward as if to show it off. It detailed precisely how critical Ain's condition had been, how long recovery was expected to take, and what risks of lasting complications existed.

This was a report that would normally be treated as top-secret. Presenting it so openly was tantamount to declaring he intended to use it as a pretext for anything and everything.

"I understand your affection for Finn Emerson, Madam, but if you wish to avoid a nasty spectacle, it would be best not to get further entangled."

Mrs. Callaway looked at the diagnosis with a wary eye.

She had simply come to the office thinking that since she was already in Glynford, she might as well meet with Ain Wise before leaving. Ain had briefly associated with Finn Emerson a few months ago, hadn't he? She had even considered holding him accountable, thinking the sharp-witted Ain surely couldn't have missed Finn’s antics. Instead, she'd received utterly shocking news.

Ain continued in an indifferent tone, facing Mrs. Callaway's troubled expression.

"The coffee house you agreed to build for that scoundrel—you haven't started construction yet, have you?"

"………I just got back from being thoroughly threatened by the Lady, and now you too are threatening me in exactly the same way."

Mrs. Callaway gave a soft smile. Yet the irritation lingering at the end of her words couldn't be concealed. Ain narrowed his brows and looked at Mrs. Callaway.

"Bridget?"

As if hearing utter nonsense, Ain shook his head and retorted coldly.

"You say you were threatened by Bridget? You must be joking. She's the last person to threaten anyone. She's the one who's had to bear all kinds of absurd threats her whole life."

"How peculiar. I was just coming from meeting Madame Wise a moment ago. Are we even talking about the same person?"

"Mrs. Callaway, I advise you not to pick on Bridget. Otherwise, I won't be able to warn you as politely as this."

Mrs. Callaway's expression turned sour, like she'd just bitten into a bitter persimmon. Two clearly intelligent, mature individuals were conversing, yet she couldn't fathom why it felt like they weren't communicating. Mrs. Callaway glanced at Declan, seated beside Ain, as if seeking help.

"Lord Wise seems to have deteriorated since we last saw him. Is it because of that scandalous affair in the papers?"

Declan, seated beside Ain, pulled his lips into an awkward smile. That smile alone conveyed the confusion and anguish he'd been through.

Mrs. Callaway, who had been looking at Ain strangely, muttered as if to herself.

"After all that fuss in the press, it seems the ground has hardened after the rain?"

"Hard? The rain washed everything away, leaving a sheer cliff."

Declan's careless reply made him immediately cover his mouth with an oops expression. He'd been carefully guarding his sharp tongue lately, mindful of Ain's increasingly fragile state.

Fortunately, Ain didn't seem to have heard Declan's words. He breathed a sigh of relief. Mrs. Callaway, who had been watching the strange atmosphere between the two with a puzzled look, soon withdrew her gaze indifferently.

"Well, other people's family matters aren't my concern."

What business was it of hers what went on between the Wises?

More important than that was the fate of Finn Emerson, whom she had intended to raise. She had invested so much effort in him, even shielding him from the royal family's fierce investigation, but if the situation had deteriorated this badly, even Mrs. Callaway could no longer protect him.