“If the door doesn’t open in ten minutes, I’ll carry you out of here in my arms.”
"..."
Adaline was ready to sink into the ground from shame.
“What am I, some kind of thing to you?”
“It would be better if you really were a thing.”
"..."
“Then I would just lock you in the closet and you wouldn’t be able to do any crazy things.”
"You're scaring..."
Shane smiled wryly, and it was clear from his face that he was not joking. Adaline felt that laughing was inappropriate here.
“See?” - Edwin said, crossing his arms. “I told you: she locked herself up like in a fortress. She didn't even open the door for me. Do you think your voice will be responded to?”
"You seem to be quite close with Genevieve, Your Highness."
"We see each other often." - Edwin shrugged.
Adaline looked closely at his face, but it was almost impossible to read emotions from such a masterfully constructed mask.
[If he really had feelings for Genevieve, would he have allowed her to marry a simple knight?]
[Although, as always, other people's feelings remain a mystery.]
[He's probably really attached to her. Since he dropped everything for her when he heard about the attack, it means she is not a stranger to him.]
Adaline took a step forward.
“I'll call her again. If it doesn’t open, I’ll be back tomorrow.”
She deliberately raised her voice so that Genevieve could hear her.
“You know how to threaten.” - Edwin chuckled. “Who taught you this?”
“One of your...close ones, Your Highness.”
“Remind me, how many years have you been married? Maybe you just have natural talent.”
“Bad habits take root quickly.”
Adaline took a deep breath, knocked and shouted with all her might:
"Genevieve, I know you're there!"
Her tone came out quite…harsh.
“If you don’t want to go out, I understand! But we still can’t avoid meeting!”
Now it sounded like a full-fledged threat.
“If you don’t open it, I won’t eat!” I'll starve!
[An empty threat, intended only for Shane. And it’s not a fact that it will work.]
[Lucky that he didn't lock her up and force-feed her like the day they met again.]
[What am I even doing...?]
Adaline felt awkward, she was already causing Genevieve pain, and now she was also putting pressure on her.
[After all, she has someone to support her - her husband, Edwin... Even if she was angry with me, this does not mean at all that she is obliged to talk about it with me. That's actually good.]
Just as Adaline was about to give up and tell Shane to leave, the door opened slightly.
Genevieve’s quiet voice came from the crack:
"You're unfair, Adaline..."
“Can I come in, Genevieve?”
"…Fine."
Adaline smiled and squeezed the hand extended to her tightly.
Edwin's face at that moment was a real picture of betrayal.
---Genevieve was in her nightgown.
From the moment they met, Adaline had never seen her in anything other than perfectly coordinated outfits.
The loose, ankle-length dress went well with her slightly tousled blonde hair.
Platinum blonde, the same as Adaline's, seemed much brighter and purer.
And her rare violet eyes resembled precious stones, unlike Adaline’s most common green ones.
In every way, Genevieve was a version of Adaline, only better.
[The role of the villain in the story is to emphasize the strengths of the main character.]
[Comparison works especially strongly if both sides are similar, but one is slightly superior to the other.]
[Adaline was not embarrassed by this, she did not need to compete with Genevieve for Shane’s love, as her “alter ego” did.]
[But if such a necessity existed, envy would become inevitable.]
[This is the nature of the plot.]
[Similarity and contrast, giving rise to a feeling of inferiority.]
"I...just didn't feel well." - Genevieve finally whispered.
“Fatigue accumulated, and I didn’t want to tell anyone about it. It’s not that I don’t love you.”
“So you weren’t angry with me?”
"..."
“But she was still angry, right?”
Genevieve pursed her lips and lowered her gaze. Adaline understood everything without words.
“Did I do something wrong?”
"..."
“Is this again because I did something you asked me not to do?”
"..."
“This time I didn’t intend to...”
“I asked! I begged you not to do that!”
Genevieve suddenly raised her voice.
Adaline stared at her in amazement, and Genevieve met her gaze, tears in her eyes. Deep, full of pain.
“I asked you! I begged!”
"Oh…"