Chapter Twenty-Three

Weston couldn't begin to speak. Nothing came forth. Nothing that could justify all Juliet had heard.

"Am I a replacement?" Juliet asked, afraid of whatever her husband was going to say.

"Of course not. This is only a lame attempt from my mother to get into my head."

Juliet said nothing. She wanted to believe him. She desperately wanted to.

"Juliet, please." Weston called and tried to reach for her hands. She stepped back. He froze, staring at her.

"I am never going to be good enough, am I?"

"What are you talking about?"

"At first, I had presumed she would warm up to me down the line, but she won't."

"She will. I will give her no choice."

Suddenly, a glaring weariness crashed into her. She had grown tired. All of it was beginning to exhaust her. She was tired of having to remain silent as her mother-in-law lashed the worst of insults at her, of having to put on a straight face whenever she got ambushed. She was tired of having to retire to the garden every time she needed to breathe, having to change her dresses because Beatrice didn't like them. It all became clear to her, just how much she'd had to endure.

She wasn't going to do that anymore.

"I can't." The words had come out of her mouth in a horrid whisper.

"Juliet—" Weston called and tried to reach for her again. She recoiled even further.

"I cannot do this anymore." Her voice was clear like glass. She did not wait for Weston to reply before heading up to her room. She needed a break. An escape. She needed more solace than the garden could provide her. Estelle turned to look at her in surprise as she pushed her bedroom door open and closed it behind her.

"Milady?" Estelle called, watching her slowly slide down to the floor, hot tears cascading down her cheeks.

"What happened?" Estelle asked, growing worried. She joined her mistress on the floor and held her shoulder. Juliet started to sob quietly, letting the tears flow freely.

"Milady." Estelle called again. Juliet said nothing. She remained in that state, staring into space. Slowly, an idea formed.

"Go ask one of the footmen to get a carriage ready."

"Where are you going?" Estelle asked.

"Away from here. I cannot bear to stay here any longer. I need to leave."

Estelle curtsied and headed out of the room. She knew better than to ask Juliet any questions. Whatever happened to her must have been great for it to warrant leaving the manor. Juliet remained behind the door, contemplating her choices. Even as Weston came to knock over and over, asking her to let him in, she remained there.

"Look, I know I owe you an explanation, and I can do that if you just let me in." He had said from the door. Juliet had refused to answer. He waited a few more minutes, and it wasn't until Juliet could hear his footsteps disappear from the door that she rose from the floor and headed to her wardrobe. She started to take out some of her dresses. She couldn't go home. Lord knows she would be subjected to even more ridicule. As she laid her gowns on her bed, she continued thinking long and hard about where she would head. Soon, it hit her.

Her Aunt Grace's.

Estelle returned a few moments later with news that the carriage was ready.

"I am leaving for my Aunt Grace. Will you come with me?"

"Without question." Estelle replied. There was nothing for her at Estfield if Juliet left. She hurried to her corner and packed a few of her clothes as well. Soon, they were both out of the manor, in the carriage, and on their way into town.

Memories of the past few hours continued to haunt Juliet's mind. She had never been enough.

"Hey! Slow down the horses. This is a rough patch." Estelle had yelled to the footman driving the horses. The carriage continued to skip over hard stones and broken tree branches. Soon, Estfield became a giant speck on the horizon. The farther Juliet got from it, the lighter her heart became. She exhaled loudly as the horses brayed, almost in response.

"Control your horses. I am warning you." Estelle yelled again.

Juliet reached for her maid's hand. "You do not need to do that."

"He is being reckless." Estelle replied. Juliet smiled. The one thing she had always counted on throughout her tumultuous journey was her maid's loyalty. She was grateful for it way more than Estelle would ever realize.

"Thank you." She said, not knowing what to say after. She had a lot of things to be grateful for, and naming them would only seem rather strange. Estelle gave her an encouraging nod.

"Why did we have to leave? What exactly happened?" Estelle asked again.

Juliet exhaled. She had no idea where to start. Was it the betrayal? The disdain Beatrice felt for her? The pain she felt as she listened to her husband's conversation with his mother? The fact that all of this happened only an hour after she received her long-awaited roses from Mr Brown? For a second, she wondered what her mother would think if she was alive. Would she be mad that her daughter was succumbing to pressure and escaping the house?

Milady? Estelle called again, looking into Juliet's eyes. "What happened?"

Juliet shook the damning thoughts out of her mind. She might as well start somewhere. As she opened her mouth to speak, immensely loud braying from the horses permeated the atmosphere. Estelle frowned in confusion.

"What is happening?" Juliet asked. Like a shockingly unfortunate answer to her question, the carriage started to shake vehemently. Juliet tried hard to find something to hold onto. Estelle, on the other hand, tried to hold her weight. Juliet looked outside through the shielded window. The horses had steered off course, and they were now headed straight for the woods. The carriage descended further, hitting almost every tall tree in its way.

Like a nightmare moment, time began to slow down for Juliet. Every chipped wood around the carriage started to disappear. She saw it, in the corner of her eye, even before she could fully register it, that they were headed for a giant tree, and the horses didn't seem like they were ready to stop. Splinters of wood flew past her face as her lips slowly parted. Before she could find the energy to scream, the tree had stopped the carriage in its tracks, crushing it on impact. Juliet was thrown against the tree as the last of the carriage scattered across the crunchy leaves. She slammed her head against the hard bark, and before her body could hit the ground, her consciousness had disappeared, and everything had utterly gone blank.