To The Traitor in My Bed - Chapter 34

“What are you thinking about, Deirdre?”

At Frederick’s question, she casually responded.

“About Captain Cottenham.”

The lantern light in her husband’s hand flickered wildly.

Deirdre, puzzled by why her husband had suddenly stopped, soon smiled bitterly as she watched a snow deer approach.

The snow deer scattered snow from its antlers into the air as it ran between the trees. Turning back toward her husband, Deirdre said,

“Snow deer don’t harm people, Frederick.”

“I know. But they approach silently.”

Despite his disgust, he clearly wasn’t planning to drive the snow deer out of the estate. The reason they kept coming was that the estate’s owner, the Count, implicitly allowed the servants to feed them.

“Still, you’re not really going to do anything, are you? I don’t like Captain Cottenham coming to Rochepolie. I certainly don’t want him coming to our house.”

Frederick seemed to have completely forgotten that he had once mentioned transferring Captain Cottenham to Rochepolie.

“I couldn’t place why the name Cottenham sounded familiar, but it turns out Jonas Cottenham borrowed money from me.”

The Fairchild Bank had branches in Swinton and Rochepolie, primarily serving nobles and wealthy merchants. As long as you had credit, you could borrow a large sum at a reasonable interest rate, and the bank quickly gained many customers.

“He was looking to buy a house in Swinton. The business he’s in seemed unprofitable, so the branch manager was reluctant to approve the loan. But I figured if he used the house as collateral, at least the principal would be covered, so I told him to go ahead. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be able to marry.”

And that house would probably end up housing Rosina.

At the party, Captain Cottenham never acknowledged Rosina. In the end, it was Rosina who hesitated and then approached him to greet him, which Deirdre saw from a distance.

Rosina was the daughter of a Marquis and she would be a part of the Cottenham family regardless.

Deirdre was upset that her friend was being treated like that by the captain.

“What kind of business is Lord Jonas Cottenham in?”

“Wool distribution in Knox. The quality is decent, but there’s too much money tied up in distribution.”

And the Highland breed of sheep wool, commonly found in Knox, had fallen out of fashion. The wool that was popular in Swinton recently was from the Farslan breed, a type of cashmere that Deirdre had started the trend for.

Dorian liked anything that came from Farslan, and he would buy anything from that country’s animals and goods whenever he had the chance. The best of what he bought he would give to his younger sister. If Deirdre liked something, it immediately became a trend.

“Where is the house he bought?”

Frederick named a street in Swinton. It wasn’t a particularly expensive neighborhood, even though it was in the heart of the capital.

Near the Monterey River, the scenery was beautiful, but the stench of the sewers was overwhelming, so Deirdre would always close the carriage window whenever they passed by.

She finally expressed her displeasure.

“It’s such a shame for Rosina… she has someone she likes so much.”

Even before leaving, Rosina had repeatedly thanked both Frederick and Deirdre. Her face looked somewhat relieved, as if she had made up her mind about something.

“It’s really a shame for the Lady.”

Frederick replied indifferently.

In noble marriages, the status and financial conditions of the partners were important. No one wanted to make a bad deal, so once a marriage was agreed upon, even if one side appeared to have the upper hand, both families had usually come to an agreement.

“Is the Campbell family really struggling that much? Lord Landyke is your client, right?”

“It seems like it’s been difficult for them to arrange funds recently. Even after I extended their payment deadlines twice.”

“…Then what about County Darnell?”

“They’re probably one of the wealthiest in the area. The Upper Isle is a key transportation hub, and the Lord of the Upper Isle has an excellent talent for real estate investment.”

If Ian Darnell hadn’t published the anti-government newspaper, the position of the Lord of the Upper Isle and estate would have gone entirely to him. But once the allegations against Ian were proven, Count Darnell publicly severed ties with his son and removed Ian’s name from his will, making all that irrelevant.

It was good to have a husband who would answer any question without thinking, and quickly forget it. This allowed Deirdre to ask even the most trivial questions without worry.

“If… Viscount Darnell hadn’t been arrested, and Rosina had debuted in society and they started officially courting,….would Lord Landyke have had Rosina marry the Viscount instead of Jonas Cottenham?”

Frederick smiled.

“Of course, Deirdre. The eldest son of the Count versus the second son, a rich man versus a regular person.”

Deirdre felt strangely empty. Even after witnessing the lovers’ touching moment, it seemed Frederick hadn’t felt anything. But then again, she thought, who was she to complain after marrying the wealthiest of the wealthy, Count Fairchild?

She said teasingly.

“Then I must have had the best marriage. My husband is already a count and has so much money.”

“Oh, that’s right, Deirdre. Speaking of which, your rich husband needs to go back to Swinton.”

He then went on for a while about year-end accounting and financial records. Deirdre nodded absentmindedly as her thoughts were drifting.

‘Is there any way to make Marquis Campbell reconsider his daughter’s engagement?’

She wondered.

Somehow, it seemed like she couldn’t bear to see how proud and confident that man, Lysander Cottenham, had become.