Eileen vividly remembered her childhood, especially the moments with Cesare. For her, they were all happy memories.
But one memory stood out among them, clear and distinct.
"Eileen."
When her eyes adjusted to the sudden light, she saw Cesare standing there, before her.
At that moment, twelve-year-old Eileen experienced the most complex and overwhelming emotions of her short life. Unable to organize the turbulent thoughts in her mind, she blurted out a strange question.
"Why did you come...?"
Instead of a simple "thank you," his response was a disconcerting question. Faced with that nonsensical inquiry, Cesare blinked slowly.
"And truth…"
He looked at Eileen as if she were an enigma. Her calm, red irises shone with emotions unknown to young Eileen. Cesare murmured to himself, seemingly unable to comprehend.
"Why did I come?"
After a moment of contemplation, he sat down in silence, untied Eileen's bound hands, and enveloped her in an embrace. Eileen clung to Cesare with all her might.
Her hands, weakened from being tied for so long, lacked strength. She gripped the boy's clothes with trembling fingers. Although she believed she was holding on firmly, in reality, she was only scratching the fabric.
Cesare gently cupped Eileen's trembling hand, which was slipping, and spoke casually, comforting her:
"Let's go home."
She had heard that the Crown Prince had gone to war. How had he managed to get there? Neither her parents nor the police had been able to find her, so how had he? This made her wonder how much she meant to him, to the point of traveling so far to rescue her.
She had many questions she wanted to ask, but she couldn't get any of them out. She fainted for a moment and, when she regained consciousness, she was back home.
I later learned that Cesare had been reprimanded in the palace and then returned to the battlefield. I worried about whether it was safe for him to wander around during the war, but the young man offered no explanation, not even when the soldiers were asked.
With unanswered questions lingering in her mind, Eileen recorded the day's events in her diary, accompanied by detailed drawings. She depicted the Crown Prince as the brilliance of a star illuminating the darkness.
— Crown Prince…
Eileen murmured as she woke with a groan. But everything around her was blurry. She blinked several times, trying to see better.
Gradually, he began to make out the surroundings. It was an old house, probably abandoned for a long time. The furniture was covered with white cloths, and the floor was dusty. Only the moonlight coming through the window and a small oil lamp, placed some distance away, illuminated the place.
Eileen put her hand to her forehead, feeling a slight dizziness. She had learned from medical books that compression of the carotid artery could cause fainting, but she didn't believe it would happen to her.
Touching her forehead, she realized something was missing from her face. Her glasses were gone. They must have fallen somewhere when they brought her here. She felt the shield that protected her had vanished.
His chest ached with tension and fear. Then, amidst loud voices, the door swung open, and nearly a dozen men entered the small house.
Are you awake?
The man who appeared to be the leader smiled at Eileen. With a frivolous demeanor, he approached her arrogantly. Eileen, sitting on the floor, looked up and said:
— … I don't know what you want.
She tried to speak clearly, without stuttering, pronouncing each word distinctly.
"You must know, don't you? His Grace is a rational man. No matter how much I become an Archduchess, he will not negotiate at the cost of irrational losses. He would rather accept another woman as his wife than suffer such a detriment."
Eileen declared her worth to Cesare's sworn enemy.
I am a worthless hostage.
The man sniffed, wiped his nose, and leaned toward her.
I thought so too, but it seems not.
He mumbled something incomprehensible.
— They said that the reason the Archduke deserted once was because of you.
Did he desert?
Eileen's eyes widened at the unfamiliar word, but the man didn't bother to explain. He continued talking, sniffling the whole time.
— To be honest, I don't want anything. I just want to cause chaos.
He crouched down, spitting on the ground.
My life was ruined because of him, so he should lose something too, to be fair.
His eyes, overflowing with malice, were consumed by an abnormal madness.
"So Eileen..."
Eileen remembered Cesare and the lessons she had learned after her kidnapping at age twelve.
" If you feel danger when being captured, don't resist, just stay quiet."
He warned against provoking the kidnappers, as this could lead to something worse than injuries—such as death or irreparable damage.
Unlike the many threats she had already faced, Cesare's words always ended with a gentle promise:
"But I promise, that won't happen. If you wait quietly, I'll come and save you."
He instructed her not to act impulsively, but to trust that he would arrive in time to prevent any harm. Eileen repeated Cesare's words to herself, trembling all over.
'He will surely come. If I wait quietly, he will come to save me.'
Contrary to her firm belief, her body was already completely consumed by fear. The man pushed Eileen back, causing her to fall, and began to loosen her pants.
A torrent of curses poured from the man's mouth as he fiddled with his belt. He looked at Eileen with disdain.
"Damn it ," he spat. " Cesare, that son of a bitch, has refined taste. Even in that... he gets what he wants."
He shouted an order to the others:
— Move her hair away from her face. Let's see who we're dealing with.
Two figures appeared beside Eileen, brutally grabbing her arms. They pulled her up, violently shoving her hair.
— …
At that moment, the interior of the old house fell silent. Eileen instinctively turned her face away, only to have her chin gripped tightly by the man.
In a trance, he stared at her in disbelief, as if he had temporarily lost his sanity, and then murmured:
So there was a reason for him to protect you so much!
The movement of his hand, now caressing her chin, changed strangely. He ran his fingers along her cheek and traced the curve of her ear. A mischievous smile appeared on his lips.
Don't cry, okay? We'll comfort each other in these circumstances.
Eileen pressed her lower lip together and shot a furious look at the man. Just in case, even though it was unlikely, even if Cesare couldn't save her…
He decided that he would never do or say anything that would dishonor him. There would be no reaction that would give them the satisfaction of humiliating the Grand Duke's wife.
Eileen clenched her jaw, a silent scream trapped in her throat. When the man let out a guttural groan, his face inches from hers, a voice cut through the air.
Eileen.
She heard a voice, as if it were an auditory hallucination. Eileen gathered all her strength and called out for Cesare:
— Your Grace…
Her voice, trembling with fear, sounded like that of a twelve-year-old girl. Though weak and low, it was enough.
Bang!
Breaking the silence, a burst of gunfire erupted. Successively, the kidnappers fell like puppets with their strings cut. The old house, once silent, was transformed into a chaotic scene of terror. Screams echoed as those shot in the legs writhed on the blood-stained floor, their groans forming a grotesque chorus.
The men holding Eileen convulsed in a horrific dance, their hands releasing her like dying flies.
The only one who remained unharmed was the man in front of Eileen.
— Damn it!
He quickly grabbed Eileen, using her as a shield and forcing her to retreat. Shortly after, the gunfire ceased, replaced by the sound of approaching footsteps.
With a bang, the bullet-riddled door was forced open and fell. A long shadow outside enveloped Eileen and the man.
It was Cesare, his figure framed by the moonlight as he stood in the doorway.
To be continued…