I accept Augustin's invitation for a walk. He is the man whom I have decided to avoid since the last time we met. I have not given him any chance since then, but this time I break the rule. Perhaps, deep down, I also hope for some favour to end all the suffering that my family is enduring. Do not call me crazy when I am merely fulfilling the obligation of a daughter in a family. I only use what, in my opinion, is the most valuable thing on this body, the ideal of a desirable woman.

"You didn't reply to my letter," he says.

"I feel very sorry," I reply hastily but also dare not be forceful. "Please think that it is because I am still too stubborn."

"Can I consider this conversation as proof that you have forgiven me?" Augustin asks quietly.

I really want to ask forgiveness for what, but I am not in a high enough position to be obstinate. Instead, I just smile lightly and nod. We continue to walk in the hazy sunlight without saying a word to each other. I can even hear the ticking sound of the pocket watch in his coat pocket.

After a while, Augustin tightens his grip on my hand and stops me. As if he has rehearsed many times, Augustin looks directly into my reluctant eyes and says:

"I know you do not love me, but I truly have a heartbeat on you, Fiona."

"I am terribly sorry if I have planted wrong feelings in your heart," I shake my head and say. If I have misled him with the way I talk or behave, then I have truly committed a crime.

"I want to marry you, Fiona. I have wanted to marry you since the first time we met."

"Why do you want me, sir?" I awkwardly refuse. "I am no one. I am just a country girl. And now everything has become even more difficult for us."

"Because I love you, Fiona. You give me a feeling that I have never felt with anyone else."

"But I do not love you, Augustin," I exclaim in a high-pitched voice to emphasise my refusal. "I do not love you. You will not be happy marrying someone who never holds a place in her heart for you."

Augustin is stunned for a moment, as if he did not anticipate that he would still not be able to have me at this point, and I am even more resolute than ever. But who knows, the more I refuse, the more the desire to possess the man is heightened.

Augustin loses patience and says in anger:

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

"You should think of your family before letting your dignity cloud your judgement."

"What do you mean?" I try to suppress my shock.

Augustin steps closer to me without hesitation and tries to force me against the nearby oak tree. I can smell the expensive perfume on him, but why does it cause discomfort and disgust to this extent? Augustin growls and whispers in my ear:

"Your father is selling this estate. Your family will have nothing left. Everything will be gone. We are one of your family's last resorts, and marrying me is the biggest opportunity you can seize."

I am dumbfounded and at a loss for words. At this moment, I am completely powerless before him. Augustin is like a wealthy landowner, and I am just a powerless and unresisting maid. I suppress my anger and tears inside. I do not know what crime I have committed to be involved with someone like Augustin. He does not love me, that is for sure. What he loves is just the flesh and bones that will grow old in a few years. What he loves is a wife who can make him proud in front of his friends. He does not love me, he will never be able to love me like Enzo did, or even with the respect and admiration that Andermis had for me.

I tip-toe to give him a kiss on the lips. It's not a kiss of love. It's a snarl, a disgust, and a destruction. Augustin indulges in that kiss without realising that he has stepped into the trap of this female wolf. I bite his lip hard. Blood oozes out, soaking his white shirt and me. Augustin pushes me away, hastily grabbing a perfumed handkerchief from his pocket to wipe his mouth. He thought his mountain of gold could buy me, but he was wrong. I am not an item to be purchased, and I have no intention of becoming one.

I quickly lift my dress and run away. Before I am out of sight, Augustin yells after me, proposing a deal:

"Fiona, if you marry me, the title deed will be in your name. Think about it!"

"Do you think I would marry you just to keep this thing?" I yell back in disgust.

"I will wait for you, Fiona."

"Then I hope you live long enough to wait for that day!"

I do not deign to care about the pile of ceremonies and I turn my face straight and leave. He does not chase after me, and that is what he should do. I would punch him, scratch him, even bite him if I have to. I hurry to go inside. He was wrong to think that I could be bought with those words. That I would agree to sell myself for this "debt". But the moment I step on the third step of the castle's staircase, I stop, turn around and look at every inch of the vast and lush green land, my heart suddenly skips a beat. Was it my lightness or did Augustine really see through my mind?

A sparrow flies by, dropping a few drops of sunlight.

Everyone is bustling around me. The sound of a piano echoes. Laughter. The sound of clinking glasses. Applause. The sound of a car horn driving away. Satine's nails scratching. The faint noise of mice under the floor. Suddenly, I have a new superpower. I seem to hear every kind of sound around me. But is that a blessing or a curse?

The cake is in front of me, and twenty candles are burning brightly in a challenging way. I soullessly blow them all out. Applause echoes again. The piano follows the congratulatory singing. There are only a few people in the house, but why does it become so crowded in a crazy way? If there is a high-speed train passing by, I will leave all my luggage behind and go there. I will go far away from this crazy crowd! I will go far, far away and never look back.