Anna had always understood her mistress. She knew her every sigh, every glance, every slight tremble in her hands when she tried to suppress her emotions. And now, more than ever, she could see that Vivian had reached her breaking point.
Anna had always believed that no matter how strong something was, if too much pressure was applied, it would eventually shatter. It didn't matter how much her mistress loved the duke, years of cold indifference, of emotional neglect, of watching him treat her as though she was nothing, had worn her down. And now, the final blow, the ultimate betrayal, had been struck.
The duke had successfully broken her.
Anna had been utterly shocked when she heard what had happened last night. It was impossible to imagine her mistress, the same soft-hearted, naive, and innocent woman who could barely raise her voice in anger, being what people had described.
Her ever-smiling mistress, who never even knew how to hold a grudge, had scolded someone.
No, not just scolded. She had acted with a chilling, sinister air, using her power to instill fear.
She had done what she hated most in the world, using her power to suppress others.
Anna could hardly believe it.
It wasn't that she thought Vivian was incapable of emotions like anger or pain, she is a human being so it's normal for her to feel those emotions, it just she had simply never witnessed her acting on them.
Vivian was the type to bear her burdens in silence, to smile even when she was hurting, and to forgive even when she had every right not to. And yet, last night, she had reached a place where even she had changed.
That was probably why she had been so quiet this morning.
Anna hadn't even been there for her when she needed someone the most. She had let her mistress endure such a terrible moment alone.
Her heart clenched in guilt.
Anna hated the duke. She hated Isla.
If it weren't for them, her mistress wouldn't have suffered like this.
She clenched her fists tightly as her eyes filled with cold determination.
No one, absolutely no one, would be allowed to hurt Vivian like this again, and for those that have, she will make sure to it that they regret their actions.
Vivian had always wanted to be loved by her husband. She had given everything to the duke, every part of herself, only to be tossed aside like she was nothing.
Since his love and affection were what she sought, then love and affection were what she would never receive from that man, that heartless man made sure of it.
And now that he has done his own, karma will definitely come for him.
Because Anna would make sure of it.
"Vivian…" Anna's voice was weak, laced with worry.
Vivian turned to look at her, her beautiful red eyes shimmering with unshed tears.
Anna's heart twisted painfully at the sight.
Vivian had always been stunning, but now she looked heartbreakingly fragile. She was holding in her tears stubbornly, as though refusing to let them fall was the only way to keep herself from completely falling apart.
But Anna saw through it.
Her mistress was just trying to be brave when she wasn't.
"You know," Anna whispered gently, stepping closer. "If you want to cry, you can cry now." She smiled softly, her warm hands reaching out. "Your big sister is here to wipe your tears."
Vivian's lips quivered.
"You don't have to act brave anymore, Vivian. Big sis is here to protect you."
The moment the words left Anna's lips, Vivian broke.
A shudder ran through her body as she let out a choked sob, then another.
Before she knew it, she was crying, no, weeping, into Anna's arms, her body shaking violently as she clung to her.
It was the first time Vivian had ever let herself be this vulnerable.
And she hated it.
She hated how weak she felt.
She hated how, even now, her heart was aching for a love that the original host would never receive.
"Big sister," she sobbed, her voice raw with emotion. "I'm sorry… but I'm tired."
Anna's heart ached as she gently rubbed her back.
"I don't want to continue like this," Vivian whimpered, her hands clutching tightly at Anna's clothes as if she were afraid to let go.
"Why can't he just love me? Why must he be so cruel? Does he even know how I felt? Seeing another woman in his arms when that should have been me?"
Anna's expression darkened.
Of course, he knew.
He knew, and he didn't care.
Vivian continued to cry, her words pouring out like a flood, everything she had held inside for so long, everything she had never dared to say aloud.
"Why must I live like this?" she whispered brokenly. "Is it really that hard? Am I not enough as a woman?"
Anna clenched her jaw, forcing down the fury that threatened to spill over.
Vivian had given everything to that man, and yet he treated her as though she were nothing.
"I don't want to be a wicked woman," Vivian sobbed, her fingers trembling. "I just want to live. I just want to be happy. Big sister, I'm so tired. I just want to go home… I'm so tired."
Anna closed her eyes for a moment, inhaling deeply.
Then, she tightened her hold on Vivian and whispered, "You will be happy, Vivian."
Vivian hiccupped, burying her face into Anna's shoulder.
"I swear it," Anna murmured, her voice filled with quiet determination.
As she continued to hold her mistress, a cold fire burned deep within her chest.
She would not let this continue.
Her mistress had suffered enough.
Anna's fingers twitched, her mind racing with thoughts of the people who had caused Vivian's suffering.
The duke.
Isla.
Anna's eyes darkened.
The lowly seductress had dared to go against her mistress.
She would regret it.
Anna would make sure that Isla understood the consequences of touching something that did not belong to her.
And Isla's parents?
They had failed to raise their daughter properly.
She would make them wish for death before she was finished with them.
The world had been too kind to them for too long.
They had lived without consequences, but that would end now.
Anna would teach them a lesson, one they would never forget.
And the duke?
Her hatred for him burned the brightest.
Anna had always tolerated him for her mistress's sake. But now?
Now, she no longer had to.
He had broken her mistress.
Now, it was only fair that she returned the favor.
Vivian sniffled against her, slowly calming down.
Anna gently brushed her fingers through her mistress's soft hair.
"It's okay," she whispered soothingly. "Cry as much as you need. But know this, Vivian…"
She gently tilted her mistress's chin up, looking her straight in the eyes.
"This isn't the end for you. You are more than this."
Vivian blinked up at her, eyes wide with uncertainty.
Anna smiled gently, but there was something dangerous beneath it.
"I promise you, my dear mistress," she murmured, stroking her cheek. "You will have your happiness."
And if that meant making the duke and Isla pay the price?
Then so be it.