ILIOTS 22

Chapter 22

Giles Hessen stared at the picture of the woman in the newspaper. A woman with light-colored hair. Anna Keating. At first glance, it sounded like an ordinary name, but to him it was more special than any other. Giles knew exactly who she was.

Though her hair color had lightened and her name had changed, her face was still unmistakable.

Not long ago, he had gone to listen to Lily’s—no, Anna’s—performance. It had been a recital for prizewinners. Because it was a prestigious competition, the audience turnout was considerable, enough to fill a large hall of nearly three thousand seats.

He had gone there to confirm her identity. He already had clues about the name Anna, but even then he hadn’t been certain—at least not until he saw the blonde woman in a white dress step onto the stage.

The woman who had clearly been on the run had suddenly reappeared before the public as a famous pianist?

It didn’t make sense.

He had to find out if she was truly the one he knew.

Anna sat down at the piano, wrapped in white, soft fabric. After composing herself and gazing down at the keys for a moment, she finally began to play.

Her performance was imbued with emotions as deep as an abyss. That was what set Anna apart from others. Hearing the delicate yet storm-like cascade of notes, Giles allowed himself the faintest of smiles.

Through her music, he was certain. Ah, it really is her.

But while he had hesitated, she had vanished from the mansion. She must have been in danger while he was away. Why had she been forced to flee without even having the chance to alert him?

Had someone broken into the mansion and tried to harm her?

If so, who?

Giles managed to track Anna down in a nearby town. But she fled again, without giving him the chance to even speak to her.

Convinced she was in serious danger, Giles decided to change his approach. Rather than risk startling her with direct contact, he began investigating the people around her. He tracked her movements, placed watchers, and drew on the resources of the wiretapping center.

One man stood out: Albert Shaw. Judging from the circumstances, he seemed to be her sponsor. Their relationship appeared close. Anna relied heavily on him.

For some reason, Giles felt compelled to dig deeper into Albert. He began gathering every piece of information available. On paper, Albert was a wealthy businessman who had lived abroad before recently moving to Ipswin.

But whenever Giles tried to probe further, the trail abruptly ended, as if by design. It was as though Albert was under someone’s protection.

Suspicious, but with no decisive proof, Giles stood to meet the covert agent he had assigned to shadow Albert. The agent was waiting nearby.

From inside his coat, the agent pulled something out and handed it over.

A wiretap transcript.

“Would you like to listen to the recordings yourself, sir?”

“No, let me read it first.”

Giles scanned the transcript. An invitation sent to Anna. Vettelsden. A ticket for a foreign-bound express train… the Orient Express.

“Are you certain he said ‘Montreal station’?”

The agent nodded.

“It’s transcribed verbatim.”

If so, this was serious. Montreal Station had recently closed due to financial collapse. Because of bombings, international train service was limited, and tourism in Ipswin had declined in the wake of the revolution. The central station had barely survived, but the smaller suburban stations had not escaped closure.

There were too many suspicious details.

“The Orient Express, you said?”

“Yes. A luxury train that began service before the war. But I doubt such a train would stop at a closed station.”

“…Has anyone purchased tickets for this train recently?”

“No. In fact, no such train even runs through Ipswin. Which means no such tickets are sold. The Vettelsden-bound ticket he mentioned doesn’t exist.”

Feeling his nerves tighten, Giles pulled a photo from the envelope—a picture of Albert Shaw on his way somewhere.

After studying the man’s face in silence, Giles nodded and dismissed the agent.

A nonexistent ticket. A closed station. Albert was trying to take Anna somewhere.

Now Giles finally understood the nature of the danger surrounding her.

He had to warn her. Albert Shaw’s true identity was unclear, but one thing was certain: he was weaving a secret plot around Anna.

Why had Anna, who had been so cautious that she even changed her name, failed to suspect Albert? Had his easygoing demeanor disarmed her? Why had she trusted him?

Slipping the envelope into his coat, Giles turned away. He could have asked his comrades for help, but when it came to Anna, he wanted to resolve things himself.

Even with her new identity, Anna was still the daughter of Beldam nobility. He couldn’t let others investigate her. That would be pushing her into deeper peril in the name of helping.

In the end, this responsibility was his alone.

After a long wait, it was finally time to see Anna again.

I really had meant it when I decided to stock up on food and avoid going out as much as possible. Carrying a large bag, I walked around the market. I pulled my scarf up over my nose to keep anyone from recognizing me.

I avoided perishable items, choosing only things that would last. I filled my bag with those. I could have asked Albert for help, but he already did too much for me. This, at least, I wanted to do on my own.

But when my eyes met those of patrolling policemen, I regretted my choice. Damn it. They were coming toward me. A woman hiding her face and carrying a large bag must have looked suspicious.

I knew well that running would only make things worse.

“Hey, miss.”

One of them bent down, baton in hand, and looked me straight in the eye.

I forced my voice to sound as innocent as possible.

“What is it?”

“Just a routine check.”

He held out his hand.

“ID.”

I pulled out an ID from my coat. It was officially issued, but the information on it was entirely fake. I tried not to let my hand shake.

The officer looked at it, then exchanged a strange glance with his partner.

“Your name is Anna Keating?”

“That’s right.”

“Take off the scarf.”

I had no choice. I lowered it. When they saw my face, their eyes lit up like they’d found treasure, and they burst out laughing.

“It really is her! The pianist!”

“Do you have any idea how much buzz you’ve caused in our town? My girlfriend is obsessed with your achievements. If I’d known, I’d have learned piano myself.”

“Anna Keating, shopping here at the local market?”

Just as I feared. They were making a fuss over the surprise of meeting me here. I felt everyone’s eyes on me and answered vaguely.

“Uh… yes.”

“You look even better in person. That photographer should be fired. Never mind that, how about an autograph? When else will we get a chance like this?”

To get rid of them as quickly as possible, I cooperated. I already wanted to go home. They looked pleased with the scrawled signature in their notebook.

“Sorry for bothering you. Who would’ve thought it was really you? Turns out stopping you was the right call.”

“Why were you covering your face with a scarf?”

“I think I’m coming down with a cold,” I lied.

“Don’t do that again. Makes you look suspicious. Though, thanks to it, we did get to meet a celebrity.”

They gave a polite nod and walked off, chatting among themselves. I tucked the ID back into my coat and raised the scarf again.

Shopping was done enough; time to go home. Hugging my bag, I lowered my head and hurried away from the crowd.

Just as I was turning down a familiar street, someone shoved me into an alley. I staggered badly. Hot, foul breath pressed close.

“If you don’t want to get hurt, hand over everything you’ve got.”

A man held a knife to my throat. Rage flared up instantly. What a miserably unlucky day. And of course, the police who had been pestering me for an autograph earlier were nowhere to be seen now.

I wanted to give him what he wanted and be done with it, but that would mean handing over both the money and the groceries in my bag.

No way. That would mean another trip to the market. I was supposed to avoid going out. I couldn’t shake the thought that I should have asked Albert to come with me.

At least when a man was around, things like this didn’t happen.

I tried to bargain.

“I’ll give you half of what I have.”

Predictably, he wasn’t having it.

“All of it.”

“Oh, come on! It’s barely worth anything!”

“You looking to die? I told you, if you don’t want to get hurt—”

I shoved him with my bag and ran as hard as I could. But he was stronger and quicker than I’d expected. He grabbed me by the hair in an instant. Hugging my bag to my chest, I dropped to the ground and resisted with all my strength.

“Get away! It’s really nothing valuable! Just potatoes and bread!”

“Crazy woman! Hand it over already!”

I struggled desperately against him trying to rip the bag from me. It was true—there really were only potatoes and bread inside. But he acted like I was hiding gold in there.

Crying out of sheer frustration at fighting over potatoes in a deserted alley, I thought, I really need to leave for Vettelsden soon…

Suddenly the man released me. He was on the ground, being pummeled by a soldier. The uniformed man beat him soundly, then hauled him up with one hand and kicked him away.

“Get lost, you bastard.”

The thief adjusted his hat and stumbled off. I straightened my clothes and stood up. Bowing my head to the soldier, I said:

“Thank you.”

“You all right?”

He was speaking to me as though he knew me. What? I lifted my head and looked at the soldier’s face.