Chapter 2.21: We Are Unforgivable

"Hi, Oriane. I'd like to ask you about the tea you had sent to my sister and I's cabin earlier today?"

The redhead stewardess looked like someone had punched her in the gut. Her wide, bloodshot eyes flew from the dark-haired noblewoman to the older man. He had stood right by her side, despite the situation at hand. For a moment, she looked as if she wanted to ask him what was going on. But as she took in the panic and stress that painted his actions, she stayed silent. Her hands anxiously grabbed at the sleeves of the coat she wore, Oriane shuffling back and forth in place. It must have taken all her willpower not to make a break for it. Leila found herself facing a cowering fawn who was the exact opposite of a skilled assassin. The heiress found her expression darkening as she slowly let out a tense exhale. No, this wouldn't do at all. The two needed privacy if she was going to get anything out of her without causing a ruckus or, worse, retaliation.

Looking back and forth at the two uninvolved train staff, she spoke in a soft tone. "May I speak to her alone for a few minutes? I don't want it to seem like I'm ambushing her with this suddenly?"

At the mention of being alone with the killer, the ginger froze up and her pupils became thin pinpricks. She looked over at the older man and started to protest, stammering. "Grandfather! Wait! Please let me–"

"It'll be alright, Oriane. Just speak to the noblewoman alone and answer questions she has. Don't cause any more trouble than you already have." Leila could only watch as the older man's words chilled the girl to her core. She gaped at him, her panic worsening.

"Oriane." This feeling became worse as the other stewardess agreed. Leila could hear the disappointment in her voice as she chided the ginger woman like she was a misbehaving child. "He's right. Tampering with a guest's food even as a joke is too far for even you."

Food tampering was good to mention as it made the redhead sweat even more. The young woman looked like a squealing pig, scrambling in their messy pen as she shook. Leila, who had decades of Cleo’s knowledge on assassination and manipulation, could see how sloppy Oriane’s work was. It was obvious the stewardess was the culprit and no amount of begging could change that. It would look better for her case to just accept what she had done and speak to the noblewoman. Defeated, the ginger nodded her head and waved the two uninvolved parties out of the room. The heiress tried to meet her eyes, but the ginger kept looking away at the wall or above the jade-eyed woman’s head. Her hands twitched by her left skirt pocket and Leila started to consider that she might be hiding a weapon.

The dark-haired woman nodded at her, with a curious look dancing in her cold eyes. “What’s wrong? All I want is to ask what you gave my sister and me to drink. That’s all.” She sounded like a concerned sibling instead of an enraged killer, which was good. Leila’s mind was filled with hidden jabs and verbal attacks.

“I-I didn’t bring you guys anything to drink.” The redhead’s words were not an exact lie. She hadn’t handed the teapot over to Lili herself, but she was behind the action itself. “You’re mistaken.”

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“I am? Well, just tell me who had the tea and we’ll all taste it ourselves.” The rapidly paling face of Oriane contrasted with her apologetic tone.

Whatever was in that tea, she didn’t want a drop of it entering her mouth. Leila assumed it drove her mad with what had to be fear. Oriane must be thinking that the woman was going to kill her. That she would walk right up to her and slit her throat. Or stab a knife deep into her side, then move it across to the other so that she had cut her open like you would a pig. The heiress hoped it didn't come down to that. She would be then forced to hide the body or hope her powers could work on two people at once. If not, well, she could easily knock them out long enough to get her and Liliko'i off to the next stop. Either way, she was banking on the redhead just confessing everything without making the heiress get her hands dirty. With this in mind, she looked pointedly at the woman, waiting for any response.

"I just put some herbs for sleeping," Oriane muttered as she moved back a step. The heiress had started to walk closer, making the ginger sweat. "I swear I'm telling the truth! It will just make her sleep a little."

With her eyes narrowed, the long-haired noblewoman pointed at the pot. "Well then. Drink some, like I said earlier." She allowed herself to grin when the redhead paled, looking like she would faint.

Oriane stuttered, with large droplets of sweat falling down the side of her face. "Y-You want me to have tea? That's all you want? Don't you want to call the others back now that you believe me?" She was shaking now.

"No, we don't have to call them back yet. I think you should drink some of the tea and prove you're telling the truth. After you finish a cup, we can tell them it was all a misunderstanding. I'll even apologize." Leila spoke with confidence as the redhead stewardess shook her head unconsciously to save herself.

The dark-haired woman bent down to pour the scared ginger girl some of the tea into a nearby mug. This forced her to drink more of the awful, potent liquid. It smelled putrid as her jade eyes watered from being so close. Even if it was just a sleep aid and the stewardess was just scared, she wanted her to drink it all. The heiress wanted her to squirm as she was given the poison that she had used against the blonde. Once the mug was full enough not to spill, she stopped and turned back to face the redhead. The liquid sloshed around the mug as Leila held it out to her. A smile sat on her face as the stewardess looked suddenly nauseous. It would be a lie to say the heiress was enjoying this.

"Here you go. If you drink at least half and are fine, I'll apologize to everyone I slandered you to. I can even pay you a month's worth of your salary right after," Leila reassured Oriane as the stewardess tried to look away.

The redhead fidgeted."No, thank you." Her voice sounded meek.

“What? I offered to apologize and to pay you for your trouble. If the tea is fine, why can’t you drink it?”

Oriane continued to refuse the request, even though Leila was speaking with a harsher, more aggressive attitude. “I don’t want to drink it. I swear it’s fine. I’m sorry for adding in the tea leaves.”

‘Okay. No more games.’ The heiress thought to herself as she took the cup and stomped over. Her shoes echoed loudly in the room as the redhead stumbled backward. Before she could slip away, the dark-haired woman grabbed the stewardess’ arm. Her nails dug into her pale skin as she kept her from running.

The noblewoman held the mug to her closed lips. “Drink it or I’ll ruin your life. Everyone will know you’ve poisoned a pregnant noblewoman and attempted to blackmail me to keep quiet.” She was dead serious.

“W-Wait, I didn’t try-” A mouthful of hot tea poured past her lips and down her throat, surprising the redhead. Instantly her eyes widened in panic and she began to cough some up. “MMRPH!”