To Love a Shadow, To Be the Sun novel Chapter 28

But Mr. Vincent never even considered doing that.

Yves Caldwell could see it clearly: even if his wife made a terrible mistake, at most she'd end up locked in a room for a while. Mr. Vincent simply couldn't bring himself to punish her more harshly.

Brian came downstairs for breakfast. Mrs. Archer, glancing nervously at him several times, finally summoned the courage to ask, "Should I bring Mrs. Vincent something to eat?"

"She didn't have any dinner last night," she added quietly.

For a moment, Brian's resolve wavered. But then he remembered just how outrageous her behavior had been these past few days.

He steeled himself. "There's drinking water in the basement. Missing a couple of meals won't hurt her."

Worry creased Mrs. Archer's face. "Maybe she realizes she was wrong…"

Brian gave a short, sardonic laugh. "She doesn't need to apologize. If you want her out, just go to the old estate and find my grandmother. Someone will let her out for sure."

Mrs. Archer froze, a warning clear in his words.

But if someone else was the one to let Mrs. Vincent out, there'd never be a way to fix things between the two of them.

"I won't tell the lady of the house," she promised softly.

Brian could tell—she was truly worried about Elara.

"In this family, not knowing your place is dangerous," he said quietly. "If she doesn't learn her lesson now, next time she ends up in someone else's hands, she might not survive. She can hate me all she wants. Every lesson I teach her is meant to keep her alive."

"But she's only just gotten out of the hospital, and the basement is cold and damp…" Mrs. Archer's voice faltered, concern etched across her face.

Brian's gaze flickered, a hint of guilt surfacing.

Just then, Yves Caldwell came rushing into the dining room, phone in hand. "Mr. Vincent, they just pulled a woman's body from the river near Alderburg Hospital. Her face was destroyed, but her build is similar to Miss Vincent's. They're running a DNA test now."

Mrs. Archer's hands tightened around the corner of her apron.

Brian pressed his lips together in a hard, thin line, but after a few seconds, his expression relaxed.

"Keep looking until it's confirmed," he ordered.

He recalled how Elara had been avoiding even the slightest touch from him these past days…

Standing in the shade, Brian's hair fell over his dark, unreadable eyes, his lips pressed into a brooding line.

"The day I went to Alderburg—did Mrs. Vincent act strange at all?" he asked.

Mrs. Archer thought back carefully. "Not long after you left the hospital, Mrs. Vincent went out for a bit."

Yves Caldwell's eyes widened. "She ended my call that day before I could finish speaking. I visited her afterward—wasn't she asleep then?"

"She came back before you saw her," Mrs. Archer replied. "And when she returned, she was soaking wet. When I asked, she wouldn't say a word. That evening, Ms. Winters tried to provoke her with one of those wedding photos—one of Mr. Vincent and Miss Vincent, photoshopped together…"

She shot Brian a nervous glance.

Brian's jaw tightened, the muscles standing out sharply.

"…Mrs. Vincent threw up blood. She wouldn't let me call a doctor—said she'd just accidentally swallowed some seawater."