Maylily - Chapter 126

A solo portrait of Dylan taken at the studio not long ago. And in the frame beside it was an old newspaper photo. It was a picture of Maylily and the Count of Everscourt walking side by side in Windays Park during the flower show two years ago.

Why is this photo….

It was a season that felt even more cruel because the scenery, filled with blooming flowers in full color, was so beautiful. As if there had been something more than mere falsehood within it.

When Maylily slowly closed and opened her eyes to calm the heat gathering around them, a familiar small sea came into her blurred vision. The landscape painting she left behind at her home in the Cryer district was hanging on the wall above the bedside table.

Under the quiet glow of the gas lamp, creases that hadn’t been there before stood out clearly on the canvas. As if time of hardship had piled up over the once endlessly peaceful sea.

The things Maylily tried to abandon, the Count of Everscourt had stubbornly held onto alone all this time. And so she resented the man who made it impossible for her not to look back on the past she tried so hard to forget.

She tried neither to forgive nor to resent him.

Yet just the thought that those gray-blue eyes, so vivid even when she closed her own, might never reflect her again stirred such violent emotions within her heart. How could it not? Maylily finally realized it had been an impossible resolution from the beginning.

To Maylily, the Count of Everscourt was the man who shared all the first moments of love with her. Feelings she had never experienced before: excitement, overwhelming emotion, joy, and happiness all flowed from him.

But the Count scattered fragments of lies across the time Maylily walked with a sincere heart, and that wounded her.

Warm gazes, gentle touches, innocent smiles, a voice filled with concern…. She knew that at times there had been genuine feelings within them. But trying to distinguish the real from the false, trying to measure the sincerity of the Count’s heart, was exhausting and painful.

So Maylily refused to let him back into her life despite his apologies and persuasion. She feared that because of a man she couldn’t fully trust, her heart, her dreams, her life might once again be shaken to the core. So she buried her feelings and kept pushing him away whenever he approached.

But how could she continue to doubt the sincerity of a man who risked death to save her?

Suddenly, she regretted not giving the Count the photo she took with Dylan. It might have been his last request…. Her sky-blue eyes, turning toward the Count lying motionless, filled with clear tears.

“Please….”

The sorrow brought on by emotions she could no longer avoid tightened her throat. But she forced it down, afraid that if she broke into tears now, it might truly be the end. Letting out a long breath, Maylily barely steadied herself and pressed her face into the Count’s palm, which refused to grow warm.

“Please open your eyes, Count.”

There’s something I really want to tell you. The desperate whisper that couldn’t reach him sank into the slowly passing darkness of the night.

***

Dylan came to the mansion in Mrs. Keaton’s arms. Alice followed beside her, carrying a bag filled with baby supplies.

After receiving the news, Maylily briefly entrusted the care of the Count of Everscourt to the attendant waiting outside the door and went to see the three of them. They were in the guest bedroom where Maylily had changed her clothes.

On the way, Mrs. Keaton and Alice, who heard the situation from David, looked at her with concern. Maylily tried to put on a brave smile, but it didn’t come easily, as if a heavy weight hung at the corners of her lips.

Dylan, whom she took from Mrs. Keaton, rubbed his half-closed eyes and burrowed into her arms.

“I fed him before we came, so he won’t be hungry.”

“Thank you, Mrs. Keaton. I’m sorry for bringing you both here so suddenly. It’s late, so you must be tired, but please take care of Dylan just for tonight. I think I need to stay by the Count’s side….”

“On a day like this, of course we should look after Dylan. Don’t worry about anything here and go quickly.”

“Yes, I’ll just put Dylan to sleep and then go.”

Standing by the window overlooking the moonlit street, Maylily looked down at the child in her arms. His deep blue eyes blinked quietly, as if checking his mother’s condition, and today, more than ever, they resembled the Count’s eyes.

“You may not know this, but it’s very rare for noble lords to spend time with their nursing children. They usually leave childcare entirely to a nanny and only check in occasionally. The Count of Everscourt is showing Dylan an unusually deep level of interest and affection.”

Those were the words Mrs. Keaton once said as she watched the Count of Everscourt visit without fail on the days Maylily went to the theater. And though Maylily didn’t show it, she was very happy to hear them. She hoped Dylan would grow up receiving abundant attention and love from his father, just as he was now, without ever knowing the kind of lack she experienced.

She was sure it would be that way….

Thinking of the Count, who still hadn’t regained consciousness after several hours, brought tears to her eyes. Maylily tried to calm her restless heart by singing a lullaby to the child.

After putting the child to sleep and entrusting him to Mrs. Keaton, Maylily returned to the Count’s bedroom. And she stayed by his side, spending the night without closing her eyes.

It was near dawn when his body temperature, which had shown no particular symptoms, rose sharply. The people in the mansion grew busy, and the doctor was urgently summoned.

“Maylily….”

The Count’s unfocused eyes, flushed with fever, stared at the ceiling. It’s all over. It’s alright, Maylily. As if wandering through the memory of the shooting, he murmured in a faint, barely audible voice before closing his eyes again.

While the doctor slowly poured fever medicine diluted in water into the Count’s mouth, Maylily diligently wiped his body with a wet cloth. As he began to break into a cold sweat, his temperature gradually went down.

After checking the injured area, the doctor replaced the bandage with a new one and spoke.

[Fortunately, there’s no sign of inflammation. It seems he has passed the critical phase for now. The bleeding is well controlled, and his pulse is stabilizing, so let’s wait a little longer.]

The doctor said he would return once the Count regained consciousness and then withdrew. The servants who had gathered around the bedroom throughout the night also returned to their respective places.

“Please get some rest for a while, Miss Aile. I’ll take care of the Count.”

“I’m fine. It’s more comforting for me to stay here…. You didn’t sleep all night either, Mr. Curren, so please get some rest. I’ll let you know right away when the Count wakes up.”

There wasn’t anything David could particularly help with by staying. Rather, he thought it would only make Maylily uncomfortable, so he stood up without protest.

“Then… I’ll leave it to you.”

As David withdrew, the bedroom fell into silence. Maylily wrung out the cloth, now lukewarm, and began wiping the Count’s face and body again, his temperature nearly back to normal. She wanted to do anything she could for him. Only then did it feel like he might open his eyes even a moment sooner.

So much time passed that she couldn’t remember how many times she had rinsed the cloth. Before she knew it, bright morning light filled the sky outside the window. When she opened it to let in fresh air, birdsong drifted in with the crisp breeze.

Carefully tucking the blanket around him so he wouldn’t feel cold, Maylily brushed his damp hair back from his forehead. His well-defined, smooth features shone pale in the morning light. Gently tracing his thick, long black lashes with her fingertips, Maylily whispered softly.

“Wake up. I miss you.”

“….”

At that moment, the Count’s eyelids slowly lifted. Eyes the color of the sea reflected Maylily. The longest night of her life finally came to an end. An indescribable surge of emotion rose to the top of her head. Without realizing it, Maylily spoke in a trembling voice.

“Are you… conscious?”

“Say it again.”

A playful smile that didn’t suit someone who had just returned from the brink of death formed at the corners of the Count’s lips. He must have heard what she said just now. Belated embarrassment flushed Maylily’s face down to her neck.

“I, I’ll call someone.”

As she hurried to stand, Hugh gently held her and made her sit back down. The expression on Maylily’s face as she looked at him with tear-filled eyes was unclear, whether it was a smile or a cry, but one thing was certain.

His Maylily was safe, and she was beautiful no matter what expression she wore. Hugh, who had worried about her safety even in his dreams all night, could finally feel at ease. A faint color returned to his lips as they curved softly.

“I missed you too.”