In the evening of the same day, Duke Cassius and Rachel returned from a business trip to the northern capital. This visit was the result of recent news.

It turned out that one of the minor nobles living on the northern border had been robbing grain storage and other food warehouses all this time. For a lot of money, he resold resources to the Southerners, thereby causing his own people to suffer. This problem has become especially acute in the current winter period, when ordinary people were forced to starve because of the actions of the baron. To solve this, they were not even afraid to complain to Duke Cassius.

The duke, who suppressed any manifestation of corruption on his land, immediately took action and treated the guilty nobleman harshly. Having deprived him of all his acquired property, he drove him away from the northern capital, before forcing him to pay huge compensation to the peasants. Needless to say, after that his life was completely destroyed?

Meanwhile, with this decision, the duke made all the other nobles shudder that in the future none of them dared to do something like this. It was this way of management that allowed the man to keep his people in tight reins.

Rachel, who was to become the next Duchess of Cassia, often attended similar events with her father. To show his daughter how to conduct business, the duke began to involve Rachel in her further duties now. In addition to attending work trips, the girl also took on some part of the responsibilities. Although, due to her young age, there weren't that many of them.

Anyway, in order to solve all the problems caused by the baron, Duke Cassius really had to spend a whole day on it. They returned to the manor only in the evening, when it was time for dinner.

The servants immediately organized a sumptuous meal for the hosts, and everything seemed to be going as usual. Except for one thing.

After taking a little breath after the trip, Rachel and her father sat down at the table, but there was no one else among them. She frowned. It had been more than ten minutes since their return, but Leriana had not come out to meet them.

She didn't come down for dinner either, which was even more strange. Rachel knew better than anyone how much the girl loved to eat, and would never miss a meal without a reason.

In this regard, even her usual mask of indifference wavered. She called one of the maids to her, and asked:

"Where is Lady Ashford?"

The girl reacted a little excitedly.

—L-Lady Ashford?" She went for a walk around the duchy with her maid…

"So late?" Rachel raised an eyebrow, "Why hasn't she come back yet?"

— Well... it's…

The maid was frightened and even afraid to say a word when the mistress looked at her with such a terrible look. The atmosphere around him was getting darker by the second.

— Answer me, I'm asking you!

The girl was about to start shouting at her, but at that moment the main entrance door opened and a tearful Melinda ran inside. When she saw that the owners had returned, she turned even whiter.

Duke Cassius looked at her calmly.

"Where is Lady Ashford?" "Did she come back with you?" he asked.

The maid trembled, unable to raise her eyes to the gentleman. But instead of her, Rachel did it.

She walked up to the girl and grabbed her chin with an iron jerk, forcing her to look straight into her eyes. Melinda's legs buckled with fear.

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— Speak while you're still alive!

The maid shuddered, but could not continue to stay away. Her mistress's patience was already running out. Therefore, she forced herself to say:

—P-please spare me!"

— What are you talking about?

Melinda sobbed.

—L-Lady Ashford... I... lost her."

She closed her eyes, afraid of Rachel's further reaction.

It happened this afternoon. Melinda left for just a couple of minutes to arrange with the overseer to visit the nursery. He gave the go-ahead, but when the maid returned to inform the lady, she was no longer there. No matter how much she searched, everything turned out to be to no avail. And in the end, after many hours of searching, Melinda had to return, expecting that she could be executed for such a misdemeanor.

When the maid confessed that a guest of their estate had disappeared, she could not lift a finger.

Rachel stared at her with a furious look, continuing to cause her face more and more pain. After this, red marks will probably remain on the skin.

— What did you say?!

"G—madam, it was an accident! I only went away for a little while, and then…

The next second, Melinda fell because Rachel hit her in the face. She had such a distorted expression, as if she was about to finish off the unfortunate maid.

Duke Cassius closed his eyes to this scene. He had long since put down the cutlery and was watching his daughter. It was the first time the Duke had seen her in such a state. It seemed that Rachel was in such a rage that she could kill anyone who was involved in this case. Even those innocent servants who did not sound the alarm in time when Leriana did not return for so long.

— Useless girl...! Rachel barked as the maid trembled on the floor in front of her, "How could you lose her so easily? Not capable of anything at all?!

Melinda was holding back tears, unable to utter a word in her defense. Her left cheek was burning from the blow she had received.

"Since you can't even handle it, maybe I should just kill you?!"

There was a dead silence in the dining room. The servants froze in fright, while the duke did not interfere in what was happening. If Rachel really wants to kill this maid, no one will stop her.

But the girl herself was not up to it.

Looking at her watch, she felt a strong excitement. It was already nine o'clock in the evening. It was pitch dark and a blizzard outside the window, and somewhere out there Leriana was all alone. And instead of following her, Rachel was wasting valuable time on some useless insect.

She exhaled and clenched her teeth. Lowering her hand, which had already been hovering over the maid, Rachel changed her mind.

— You... — the girl hissed, measuring her with a piercing look, — If I don't find her, or something happens to her…

Melinda froze.

"...I will make sure that you and your family perish in terrible agony!"

Spitting out these words, Rachel threw on the first coat she came across and ran out into the street. The Duke got up from the table to stop her, but it was too late.

***

The last thing I clearly remembered before I lost consciousness was that the rabbit I was chasing disappeared into the thicket of the forest. Then everything became a blur, because at one point I tripped over some branch and hit my head hard.

When I regained consciousness a couple of hours later, there was already solid darkness around. It's hard to know how much time has passed, but I probably lay in a snowdrift for several hours.

All my limbs were numb from the cold, and my head was splitting. The rabbit that started it all has long since disappeared from sight.

I tried to get up, but I had enough strength, just to lean on my elbows. Because of the blow, my mind was thinking hard, and I couldn't even come up with a plan to save myself.

The situation was really not very good. If Duke Cassius doesn't send someone to look for me, I'll really freeze. At least, I hoped that the people at the manor had already found out about my disappearance. Melinda should have told them.

This poor girl… She's probably scared to death by now.

Despite the fact that I myself was in a deplorable situation, I still thought about it. Duke Cassius wouldn't punish her too much for that, would he?

There wasn't a single thought in my head about Rachel. After all, she probably didn't even notice that I was missing somewhere.

Sighing, I realized that I would not be able to get anywhere on my own. On my own two feet, I won't even have the strength to get out of the woods. All that remained was to call for help.

Hoping that some hunter or forester was passing by and could hear me, I called hoarsely:

— P-help!

I kept screaming as long as I had the chance. Soon, and it will be difficult to talk.

I held on with the last of my strength so as not to fall asleep.

The snowstorm was pounding furiously, and already began to resemble a blizzard. If I stay here for a long time, I'll just fall asleep. This is going to be a really terrible end.

I barely audibly called for help for several minutes, until the body finally failed. Realizing that I was losing consciousness, meanwhile, I couldn't do anything.

Barely moving my lips, I fell face down into the snow, while at last I heard the crunch of branches under the sole and someone's footsteps.

Before I completely closed my eyes, someone turned me over and tried to revive me.

— Hey, idiot, can you hear me?!

As if I had gone to heaven, I smiled. The last thing that flashed in front of me were excited bright scarlet irises.