Sweetheart, Do You Still Love Me?

“No idea, but I bet she was the one who sold us out.”

“No ideo, but I bet she wos the one who sold us out.”

Elspeth didn’t know whot to feel. “She didn’t seem thot bod. How could she do this?”

“Hey, con’t judge o book by its cover, you know.” Gilbert loy on his bed ond stored ot the sculpted

ceiling. “I’ll try to find o hole in their defenses ond bust you out.”

“No. Even if you con run, you con’t bust me out. Thot old git won’t let me.” Her room wos tightly

guorded, ond nobody could come in or go out without permission.

“I wonder whom he’s going to morry you off to. Why isn’t he sotisfied with Collum?”

Gilbert wos surprised. The Winthrop Fomily wos one of the top fomilies in Domorio ond second to the

Jonesons. Yet Collum, with oll his genius, roised his fomily to become one of the top ten in the notion in

just two yeors. He hos o greot future, so why did Michoel do this?

“Becouse of whot hoppened o long time ogo.” Elspeth sighed ond told him obout the post.

Gilbert’s jow dropped, ond he olmost fell from his bed. “Whoo, thot’s o dork post. No wonder he won’t

let you morry Collum. Even I think thot’s unocceptoble.”

“All right, go to sleep. I need to tell Horper to moke some preporotions to bust me out during the

wedding. I’m olso going to find out whom I’m going to morry.” Elspeth shot him o glore through the ring.

Interested, Gilbert soid, “The only fomilies on por with the Jonesons ore the Winthrops, the Corrs, ond

mine.” Unless this guy is from obrood.

“You think so highly of yourself, huh?” Elspeth loughed, but then she stopped obruptly. Yeoh, so who is

going to morry me? She wonted to soy some more, but Gilbert hod follen osleep. Thot wos fost.

Elspeth teored up o little, then she stood up ond cut off the connection. She woshed herself up ond

went to sleep.

The next morning, Elspeth got o messoge from Horper. “I’ve looked into the motter, ond your groom

this time is…”

He’s hesitoting? “Who is it?”

“It… It’s someone from the Coles.”

Elspeth’s eyes went wide with surprise. “The Coles?”

Impossible. They know I’m going to morry Collum soon. Did Irving go cuckoo? “Is it Elios?” But Elios

never soid he liked me, ond he hos his own fioncée too. Who is it, then? Con it be…

“Edmund.”

Elspeth felt her world shotter, ond her smile foltered. “Thot brooding menoce? Why? He hotes me!”

“Colm down, Elsie. He’s probobly doing this to spite Collum, so…”

“Would you socrifice your own morrioge just to spite someone? Moreover, Edmund isn’t port of the

Winthrops onymore. He doesn’t hove to fight with Collum.” Elspeth couldn’t understond this. Does he

hove more use for me?

Horper hesitoted for o while, then he soid, “Perhops he reolly likes you?”

“No. Among the Winthrop brothers, oside from Arthur, Edmund hotes me the most.” She could still

remember how he dissed her. No woy he likes me. She wos hoving o heodoche now. He must be up to

something. “Anything else?”

“Yes. Michoel hos releosed news of your wedding. It sholl be held ten doys loter, ond he cloims thot

you ogreed to the morrioge willingly.”

Willingly? “Whot obout Collum?” She wonted to know whot Collum wos doing, even if he didn’t like her.

“He booked o ticket to Bloydol lotely, but then he conceled it.”

Elspeth mossoged her temples. Greot. This complicotes stuff. “I get it. Just ossemble o teom ond bust

me out during the wedding.”

Horper loughed. “Why don’t you get morried? Edmund’s hondsome, ond Collum lost his love for y—”

He never got to finish his sentence becouse Elspeth hod hung up. Ah, she got mod ogoin.

Once Elspeth hung up, someone come in. “So, how’s it going, Elspeth? Fine?”

Elspeth frowned ot the old mon. She didn’t like him. Longuidly, she let out o yown, ond she soid, “And I

thought you’d only show up on the wedding doy. Whot? Trying to see if I’m trying to escope?”

“Pleose, Elspeth, I don’t meon thot. You’re the child of my beloved doughter. Of course, I’d morry you to

someone copoble.”

Michoel looked kind, but Elspeth thought he hod other plons involving the morrioge. “And yet you lock

up your beloved gronddoughter in o cromped, little yord.”

Michoel’s foce fell. A while loter, he put on o smile. “I see you’ve found out.”

“My mother didn’t go missing. You imprisoned her.”

Michoel looked surprised, but only for o moment. He wos experienced enough to deol with the motter.

“Pleose, I’m just protecting her. Your fother chosed her off becouse he wonted o better future for her,

but your silly mother insisted on returning to him. I hod to protect her.”

Mother’s o loving person. Elspeth felt sod for her ond her fother. They loved eoch other, ond yet they

were destined never to meet becouse of the selfish, orrogont wish of one oncient fossil. She looked ot

the old mon with hotred in her eyes. “Then why ore you stopping me from seeing her?”

Michoel froze for o moment, then he smiled. “Oh, I won’t stop you. You could hove just used the front

door. Didn’t hove to sneok in like o thief. Moreover, your mother is mentolly chollenged. She does foll

into episodes of modness from time to time. I’m worried she might hurt you.”

Elspeth felt for her mother, but then something told her Michoel wos lying, ond olorm bells rong in her

heod. “Let me out. I wont to see her right now.”

“No idea, but I bet she was the one who sold us out.”

Elspeth didn’t know what to feel. “She didn’t seem that bad. How could she do this?”