The Gap Between You and Me - Chapter 78

Bernard stood next to Herietta and looked down at her quietly. Although she was so skinny and her complexion was pale, her figure as she fell asleep looked calm. It couldn’t compare to when she was awake.

Herietta Mackenzie. Mackenzie’s eldest daughter, who has gone missing.

Found in a place where she shouldn’t be, she might be the only key that will tell him how to solve this troubling riddle. At the same time, she was also the woman who dared to lie to him skillfully.

‘If you’re going to cheat, do it right.’

Bernard thought with a displeased look.

‘Why did you tell a lie that will soon be revealed after a little investigation?’

When the name Dolmoran was mentioned, Herietta always showed a sign of discomfort. Like she’s forcing herself to wear clothes that don’t fit her.

In her letter to her loved ones, she also sent them to Philioche, a place far away from Chelsea where Dolmoran mansion is located. She was subconsciously mentioning that her family lived there.

Bernard took a long breath in and exhaled. She said that Mackenzie was the only noble family that resided in Philioche. This was a puzzle that even a child who was not good at reasoning could easily solve. Herietta, did she really believe that he wouldn’t doubt her in the slightest?

He felt complicated. Whatever the reason, Herietta deceived the Velicia royal family. And as a member of the royal family, it was his duty to condemn her for such a crime and to give her the due punishment.

He would normally have acted without hesitation, but this time for some reason he couldn’t make decisions easily.

Funnily enough, he also wished she wouldn’t wake up for a long time like this.

“N…… no.”

Herietta, lying still on the bed, muttered quietly. He wondered if she had woken up, so he glanced over to see if she had woken up, but her eyes were tightly closed. She seemed to be talking in her sleep.

“No…… no…… Don’t, don’t come. Don’t…….”

Herietta continued to mutter. The peaceful expression on her face grew more and more distorted, and she finally began to cry. Her breathing became rough and cold sweat ran down her forehead. She seemed to run out of breath if left like this.

Bernard decided he had to wake up Herietta. The moment he approached her, her eyes flashed.

“Aaaah!”

Herietta let out a shriek and jumped to her feet. She then scrambled her hands and feet and tried to stand up.

“Calm down.”

Bernard quickly stopped Herietta from doing such a thing. Her eyes were out of focus because she didn’t seem completely awake yet.

“Calm down, Herietta.”

Bernard once again ordered her. But Herietta couldn’t hear him, and she kept trying to get her body up. No matter how she was, it was of no use talking to her. It was astonishing to see where this energy came from in her half-dead appearance. He forced his hand to press down on her shoulder.

“Ah…….”

Herietta frowned, perhaps the place where he had pressed hurt a little. She sees Bernard’s hand that rests on her shoulder. She then looked at his face as she moved her gaze along his hands, arms and shoulders, as naturally as flowing water.

Bernard’s face was reflected in Herietta’s eyes, which had faded with a hazy gleam. She rolled her eyes and looked at him blankly. Soon, surprise began to spread across her face.

“Edwin…… ?”

Herietta’s lips twitched and she called out an unfamiliar name.

“Edwin? Edwin, right?”

Her slightly chapped lips trembled as the emotions swelled up. She grabbed Bernard’s clothes with both hands. It was a very earnest touch, as if it was a lifeline lowered down the cliff.

“Where have you been?”

The tears that had stopped for a moment burst again.

“While you’re away, it’s been hard for me to be alone.”

Herietta lowered her head helplessly and rested her forehead on Bernard’s arms. Her fever seemed to have risen again, he could feel a burning sensation.

‘You must be looking at things because of your high fever.’

Bernard brought the drooping Herietta into his arms a little.

“Herietta. I…….”

“Edwin, what do I do? What would be better”

As Bernard was about to remind her of the truth, Herietta began to weep bitterly.

“He clinged to me and begged. I don’t want to die. I want to live. That child, that child with strong self-esteem…….”

“…….”

“It is no coincidence that Father and Mother became like that. All must have been planned by them in advance. From the moment I came to Philioche, they had already planned to do that.”

Herietta’s body shook as if the anger could burst out just thinking about it. Although it was gibberish, she didn’t seem to be talking nonsense. Soon, Bernard noticed that she was talking about her now dead family.

“I should have died, not them.”

As she gasped for breath, she scolded herself. Tears flowed non-stop on her reddened cheeks.

“It’s my fault. It’s all my fault that they died…….”

“It’s not your fault.”

Bernard said without realizing it. It seemed that he would not be able to forgive himself for not giving her a single word of comfort after seeing her who was in so much pain and was trying to destroy herself.

“Shh. It’s not your fault.”

Bernard whispered to Herietta in a much softer voice than before. He wiped the tears from her cheeks with a careful hand.

“Close your eyes and get some rest. Because the day is still far away.”

“But I am scared. If I close my eyes…… their…… Their appearance…….”

“It’s okay. There is nothing here that can hurt you.”

As Herietta became visibly restless, Bernard tensed his voice to give her confidence.

“As long as you are here, you are under my protection. So you will be safe. Herietta. I promise.”

“…….”

Herietta looked up at Bernard without a word. There was still an anxious look in her eyes, but somehow she had calmed down, and she no longer tried to stand up. The strength drained from her rigid body.

Herietta brought her face closer to Bernard’s hand caressing her cheek. A cool sensation was felt on the heated skin.

“Edwin.”

Herietta closed her eyes.

“You can’t go anywhere. You can’t go away again……leaving me alone.”

A sigh-like exhalation flowed through Herietta’s lips. Bernard looked down at her. It was a brief moment, but ten thousand emotions crossed over. She still mistook him for someone else, but he didn’t feel bad about it at all. Rather, he was relieved to see her managing to find rest because of that illusion.

“Yes. I’ll stay by your side until you fall asleep.”

He gently stroked Herietta’s hair and promised quietly.

* * *

When Herietta regained consciousness, she had no memory of what had happened that night.

Bernard was a little saddened by that fact, but at the same time he felt that it was for the better. It was sad that she cried and struggled with shame, so he thought that he had gone too far with his actions.

So he decided to bury what happened that night deep in his heart.

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