# 12
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Scarlett had a terrible night full of disturbing emotions.
The next morning, Scarlett went to the bakery next door, as she did every morning, to buy bread for Issac.
As soon as she appeared, Liv, the bakery owner's daughter, ran up to her, shouting: “Scarlet Crimson!”
Scarlett gasped in surprise, opened her eyes and said: “The whole neighborhood will hear you!”
“What happened yesterday? Why did the Marines come?”
“How did you know?”
"There was a sea cart in front of the watch shop. Everyone who came to the bakery today asked about it!"
"It wasn't anything big," Scarlett replied as she examined the bread inside the glass display case.
"It was nothing?! Did a thief break into your store?"
“Not that...give me more apple cake and fig bread. My brother likes that.”
Scarlett tried to change the subject, but Liv took out three loaves of fig bread, put them on a wooden board, cut them evenly, and pressed them again: “Was it a thief?”
“…my ex-husband”
"What? Your ex-husband!"
At Lev's voice, all the bakery's customers turned to them.
Scarlett's face turned red and she hit Liv's arm.
“Lower your voice!”
“How do I calm down in a situation like this? Everyone had thousands of questions about the leader, but they were bearing it!”
As Liv prepared to fire off a barrage of questions, Scarlett waved to the bakery owners in the back: “Ma’am and Sir, Liv don’t give me bread!”
"Oh, I can't stand it! Sorry, Miss Scarlett!"
Liv's mother came over, put the fig bread in a paper bag, added cream for the spread, and then asked quietly before handing it over: “So, your ex-husband came over?”
"my lady!"
“Oh, no! I heard from there...”
Scarlett sighed deeply, took the bread and said, “Next time.”
Leaf shouted, "Next time? Tell me as soon as you get back from the Crimson House!"
Under pressure, Scarlett nodded obligingly and left the bakery. The Seventh Street merchants were very friendly, and were eager to know the details of her personal life.
Scarlett put the box of cookies in her bicycle basket, the paper bag on top of it, and muttered: “If only the bread was bad...”
Then she got on her bike and headed to Crimson's house.
***
In the attic room, Isaac sat on the bed, and fumbled with papers that the Domfelt family estate manager had left on his bed.
When the door opened, he smiled warmly: “Scarlett.”
Seeing his joyful expression, marking everyone's steps, Scarlett laughed loudly, approached lightly and asked, “What are these papers?”
“I don’t know. The Domfelt property manager said it was yours.”
Isaac handed her the papers, and Scarlett frowned.
The papers were from Gregory Domfelt. Since Victor knew of her ordeal in the convent and the fever that nearly killed her, he considered that she had violated the confidentiality agreement, and demanded the return of the money he had given her.
Scarlett's expression became serious, but Isaac did not notice, and looked at the source of the sound of the leaves.
Isaac asked: “What are you saying?”
“Oh, they're asking for my signature to confirm receipt of the money from the divorce. I can't pretend I didn't receive it.”
“I understand”
Isaac nodded in agreement.
Scarlett shoved the papers into her bag, and took out the cookies and bread.
“Let's eat this”
“Okay”
Isaac nodded and got up.
As he walked over to the wooden table, Scarlett joked, "There's only so much left until we buy our house. Stop growing."
“What?”
He tilted his head in wonder, and Scarlett looked at the ceiling and said, “If we die a little more, your head will hit the ceiling.”
“Really?”
“Men of the Crimson Family are usually tall, but you are especially tall.”
Isaac raised his hand, and when it touched the ceiling, he stopped in shock.
Scarlett looked at him with wide eyes and asked, “Issac, did you really not know that you were tall?”
“…I never knew.”
“It is unbelievable”
“Everyone was taking care of me, so I felt psychologically small...”
He muttered as if to himf, then put his arm around Scarlett's shoulders. He touched her shoulder, and stopped talking in shock.
Scarlett was always the one who grabbed him first. Even today, she pulled his arm and said, “Come on, sit down. Fig bread...”
While she was speaking, the door suddenly opened, and Arnold entered.
He shouted at Scarlett angrily: “You vixen! You said the store was everything, but you hid the money you got from the divorce?”
It seems that the intervention of the Domfelt family made him know.
Scarlett quickly ran to him: “I’ll talk outside…”
But Arnold grabbed her thin neck and pressed her against the wall.
“You do not know gratitude even after your upbringing. This is how you deserve to be punished for your malicious heart.”
“Sorry...”
As usual, she did not make a sound for fear of disturbing Issac, and she apologized in a gentle tone, thinking that this would calm Arnold and reassure Issac.
Isaac approached, holding his cane, and shook his hand in the air to grab Arnold's arm and asked, “Arnold, what do you mean?”
"This girl broke an agreement, so Domfelt demanded that she return the money. The amount is huge! She said she was broke and just opened her shop, but she deceived you and me! I'm fine, but how can she deceive her full brother?"
Arnold threatened Scarlett again, but Isaac grabbed his arm and pulled him away from his sister.
It was a great force. Realizing that Isaac could easily control him, Arnold began to get confused.
“Issac, you...”
Isaac pulled Arnold out of the room, smiled and said, “I’ll ask her myf.”
Arnold, who always thought Isaac was cute, realized that physical exercise was the only thing he could do in the attic.
Arnold said in a gentler tone, "Isaac, don't be fooled by that vixen. You know we're on your side."
Issac raised his head and smiled slowly: “Of course, I know. I’m also on your side.”
Isaac closed the door and said to Scarlett: “How much did the medicine for my eyes cost?”
“Just a little”
“How much?”
“Why do you want to know that? Let’s eat bread and cake.”
Many times Isaac thought that he should disappear for Scarlett's sake, but sometimes he felt that his presence, even if unnoticed, might be better for his poor sister.
But on days like today, he wished the wind would sweep him away. Because he was a hostage, she was treated like a slave, but she always tried to improve his mood, pretending that violence left no traces.
'If I hadn't been here, this wouldn't have happened.'
Isaac thought that his desire to live was what made things this way.
He grabbed Scarlett's thin arm, who was cutting cake for him, and felt her arm almost disappear in his hand. He didn't know it was so long and that she was so fragile.
He felt like a cuckoo, and he hated himf so much.
Scarlett looked at his sullen expression, and said in a bright tone:
“I didn't tell you because it's not a big deal, but you worry too much. There was a misunderstanding. Don't worry.”
She cut the cake neatly, put it on a plate, handed it over with a cup of milk, and said, “I will solve the matter quickly, so don’t worry.”
Scarlett spoke confidently to calm Isaac down.