A Father's Redemption

Who was he supposed to believe? He was confused. What had been told by a complete stranger defied what he had known for almost nineteen years.

The old door creaked open. The air was stuffy. The dust had piled up, but not too thick, as if, it was only few month being left unattended.

Although the furniture was old and almost crumbled down, it was still neatly arranged. There was traces of someone living in here. The question was, who?

Even the lowest rank of maids and servants were provided with their own room. Slavery was banned thus there should be no slave. Even if there was, they would still be provided with a proper room, no matter how small.

He opened the drawer of the small table beside the bed. There was nothing. He sighed in relief. He paused. He remembered that his late wife had a habit of hiding things in the pillowcase.

Hesitation on his face. Regardless, he look into the pillowcase and there was two books. Both of them had one word written on the cover, ‘Yvonne.’

His memory flashed through. The conversation he had yesterday was still fresh in his mind.

“I don’t know whether it was still there, but try to go to the attic and searched for her diary, and then you will see.”

His hand was trembling. Raynard was in dilemma. He gritted his teeth and opened the book.

The earliest entry was when she was four. Her writing was messy and it only improved a bit as the time goes by.

All of her life experiences was crammed into two journal book. When he wanted to stop, his conversation with Caesar would popped into his mind, forcing him to keep reading.

He plopped down on the floor. “I’m sorry,” he mumbled repeatedly followed with an ugly sobbed. He clutched the books close to his chest.

All the residents of the mansion were taken aback by the sudden roar and the pitiful wailing that could be heard from the attic. Although they do not knew why, some of them was frantically quivering in fear.

***

Raynard scrutinized the faces of all the workers of the mansion. He had all of them gathered in the hall. His aide who was standing by his side could only shook his head.

“I am sure none of you could imagine how amazed I was when I knew, how my daughter had been treated all these years.”

The maids, the butlers and the servants, all flinched. The thing they had least expected was the fact that Duke Leander care for his daughter’s business.

“I have heard all those rumors, and I thought she owed apology to all of you, for her spoiled behavior. However, little did I knew. It was you lot, who should be begging on your knee, pleading for apology.”

Black shadow squirming on the floor, shaping itself into numerous of tentacles, before shooting out from the ground and strangling every workers in that hall, except for few knights, and the aide beside him.

Screaming and wailing of pain echoed through the wide hall. Tears streaming down their cheeks. Their throat was choked painfully, their body was strangulated, yet with every little strength they had, they begged for mercy.

Just before they lose their life, the shadow retreated. They gasped for air and fell on their knee. They prostrated themselves on the bare floor of the hall, pleading to be forgiven.

Raynard scoffed. “Have my wife or I ever treated any of you unfairly? Have my wife or I abused any of you? Have we neglected our duty as your master? Why? TELL ME! TELL ME WHY!” he scream his heart out.

None of them could spoke. They had no word to utter, realizing the mistake they had done. It was a foolish mistake. They had commit blasphemy toward their own master who had shown nothing but kindness to them.

But, one person. One person who had her face covered in tears and snot refused to acknowledge her mistake.

No.

She just thought, she had never commit any mistake. She was not wrong. All that she have done was giving proper education for the neglected child.

“Your Grace! I was not wrong! I have never commit any wrongdoing! I have never done anything wrong! I only acted accordingly to your behavior toward the girl!”

“W—what did you just say?”

“That girl was undeserving of your love! Didn’t you abandoned her because you blamed her for her mother’s death? Your Grace! I punished her for her sin in your stead! It was not as if I had killed her. She, took her own life!”

The absurd accusation brought forth his fury. The wide hall reverberated with sorrowful laughter.

“How dare you! Have you forgotten how my wife had treated you all those years? You paid her kindness with such atrocious cruelties! How dare you to put your word in my mouth!”

He desired nothing but to kill her this instance. However, how could a quick death be enough to grant her absolution for her sin.

The other servants had one thought, if their master had never meant to neglect the young lady, thus, all their deeds till now, was violation of their duty as the one who should serve the young lady with respect and care.

She lost her mind. “Your Grace… You were the one… You had never said anything before. Why now? She is dead!”

“You—! My wife treated you like her own friend, but you treated her child with heinous hand!”

Deep down in his heart, he already knew. It was his negligence that caused everything to happen. But, his negligence was not the ticket for the servant to treat his daughter as they wished!

“Lock her in ‘that’ room!” he glanced at the other servants, “and lock the rest in the dungeon.”

“My Lord, will you killed all these people?” his aide asked for confirmation.

“Investigate who messed with my daughter first. I want a detailed report. Don’t missed a single thing.”

“Yes, My Lord.”

He strode off and locked himself in his own room. He just wanted to run away. His foolishness, was the cause for his daughter’s misery. Everything was his fault.

He vowed, no matter what status they might hold, what power they wielded, each and every person who was involved in his daughter’s suffering and death, will received his wrath.

“This foolish father of yours could only beg for forgiveness. I’m sorry. Truly…”

He spent the whole night crying, uttering the word of apology. Even if he knew, she was not there anymore to listen to his entreaty, what else could he do but to keep chanting his regrets.