Her Majestic Battle Cry

This was Zoey’s first time seeing Viola after everything that had happened recently.

Viola lay in bed, her face hidden beneath a thin blanket. Her posture sent a clear message- she didn’t want to see anyone. From beneath the blanket, she trembled slightly as a servant brought over a chair, setting it next to the bed for Zoey to sit.

“Now that we’ve reached this point, what do you plan to do?” asked Zoey, getting straight to the point.

Her voice was firm as she explained, “Avoiding the situation won’t help. It must be dealt with. Mother wants me to go to Mrs. Lewis and ask her to clarify things on your behalf. I don’t know if she’ll agree.

“As for Barrett, I went to Valor Estate today. He said he’d known about your situation for some time but never mentioned it. He said if you agree to stay married, everything can be forgotten and you’ll live together as before. But there’s one condition–he insists on returning to the army.‘

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The blanket shifted, revealing Viola’s swollen, pitiful face. Her eyes, red from crying, were still puffy. They were barely open and filled with a tremor of disbelief.

“He can’t have known. How could he possibly know? What does he want in exchange for not divorcing me?” she asked.

“I told you–he said he’s going to return to the army,” Zoey replied.

“He wants me to live as the wife of a lowly soldier?” Viola’s eyes filled with tears again. “I might as well return to my family. Mom said she would take care of me. No matter what, I’m still the third daughter of the Earl of Silverstone’s family. My dowry will be enough for me to live on for the rest of my life. Why should I endure such hardship, struggling through days mired in poverty?”

She lay there on the bed, her neck still bearing faint red marks, tears trickling from the corners of her eyes as her breath came thick and heavy through her nose.

“I know you all look down on me, but I’ve thought it through again and again–where have I erred? Is it wrong to make plans for myself and to consider my own future? In your eyes, that makes me selfish, but who among us is not?

“Is it such a crime to want a better life and refuse to suffer in silence? I was born into an earl’s household and blessed with better fortune than most. With such fortune and the strength of my family behind me, why should I abase myself?”

She took a breath, her voice trembling as she continued, “And I know what you think, even if you don’t say it out loud. You think I’m always comparing myself to Carissa and Kayla, but who doesn’t compare themselves to others? Who doesn’t have a little vanity? I’m a

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woman who was once divorced and remarried, just like Carissa. Why can’t I compare myself to her?

“Besides, it’s not like I didn’t want a peaceful life after marrying Barrett. Not only did he have Aurora, he also couldn’t let go of Carissa. He didn’t have a shred of affection left for me. Isn’t it strange, Zoey? Even after finding out about me and Silas, he doesn’t care and is still fine with staying married to me.

“What does that mean? It means I don’t matter to him at all. Perhaps I matter even less to him than that cursed Aurora! What have I done so terribly wrong for him to treat me like this? And for all of you to treat me like this?”

After she finished speaking, Viola buried her face in the blanket and began to sob uncontrollably.

Zoey remained calm as she listened quietly.

People always tried to justify their actions, to make sense of what they’d done, or else life would be unbearable.

She let the crying go on until the sounds faded, then asked, “Answer me one thing. Were you going to buy Snowdrop Pills for Mother, or were you planning to meet Mr. Lewis? Tell me the truth. If you lie, I’ll find out.”

The sobbing stopped abruptly. Viola threw the blanket off, staring at Zoey in shock.

Her lips trembled with anger. “How could you think that of me? Has someone said something?” novelbin

“No one has said anything,” Zoey replied coolly “But I know how you think. All these years, I’ve covered for you. You have no strategy or foresight. You simply act on impulse and do whatever comes to your mind.”

“Are you truly trying to drive me to my death?” said Viola, who could hardly believe that Zoey would think like that.

After pouring her heart out, she had gained not even a shred of sympathy or empathy.

Zoey continued, “No one is trying to kill you–you’re doing it to yourself. Why hang yourself at all? If you must, why not do it quietly at night? Why make a spectacle of it in broad daylight with so many people around?

“Those bruises on your neck aren’t even deep enough. If you were truly serious, you would have tied a proper noose. You should take life seriously, and if you choose to end it, you should do it properly as well. Otherwise, what’s the point of all this drama?

“You caused a commotion in the household, and for what? Just so you can mutter about how everyone is selfish? Was Mr. Lewis the one who forced you? Did Barrett force you to marry him? Didn’t you know about his divorce before you wed? Didn’t

wed? Didn’t you know Aurora

was already in the estate?”

Viola’s self–justifications crumbled under Zoey’s words. She could only pull the blanket back over her head and cry again.