After a long while, Leona’s sobs finally quieted. Her eyes were completely red, swollen from crying, and her nose was flushed a deep pink.
She looked utterly pitiful.like a child who had been lost in the forest and finally found her way ho.
But beneath that pitiful exterior, there was sothing else.
A glow in her eyes. A lightness in her expression. She looked like soone who had finally received sothing she had been needing for a very, very long ti.
She then beca aware of Luca looking down at her. He had been holding her the entire ti—his arms wrapped around her, his chest her pillow, his heartbeat a steady rhythm beneath her ear.
She had cried into him, soaked his shirt, probably left a ss of tears and snot all over him.
She expected to feel embarrassed. Mortified, even. The Matriarch of the village, reduced to a sobbing ss in a man’s arms?
But the embarrassnt never ca.
Instead, she felt only comfort. Safety. The knowledge that she could do anything in front of this man—cry, scream, laugh, be ridiculous—and he wouldn’t judge her.
He wouldn’t think less of her. He would just be there, holding her, making it better.
She was glad it was him. Anyone else, and she would have died of sha.
"Are you okay, Leona?" Luca studied her face, checking to see if she was alright. "Or do you need another round of crying?"
Leona managed a small, watery smile and shook her head.
"I’m alright, Luca." She said, her voice still a little hoarse. "And even if I wanted to cry more, I don’t think I have any tears left." She chuckled. "I think I cried myself dry today to the extent that I’m really thirsty right now."
Hearing that, Luca imdiately reached into one of his pouches and pulled out a water bottle. He opened it and handed it to her without a word.
She blinked, surprised by his preparedness, but took it gratefully. She drank slowly, the cool water soothing her raw throat, while Luca pulled out a handkerchief and began gently wiping the tears from her face.
He dabbed at her cheeks, her nose, the corners of her eyes, working with careful tenderness.
She watched him through half-lidded eyes, feeling like a cat being grood by its owner.
It was strangely pleasant. She could get used to this.
In fact, she decided then and there that if she ever needed to cry again—and she probably would, given how much emotion she had been suppressing for forty years—she would definitely co to Luca.
Just so he would take care of her like this.
When her throat felt better and her face was mostly dry, she looked at him with curiosity.
"Luca." She said slowly. "How exactly did you find that letter? The way my mother wrote it...it seed like she never intended to give it to anyone. How did you get it?"
Luca looked up at the stars for a mont, his expression thoughtful. When he spoke, his voice was soft.
"Yesterday, I was searching for clues. About Julius. About you. About what’s been happening in this village." He paused. "I wanted to check your mother’s room too. See if she left anything behind that might help."
Leona’s expression flickered, but she didn’t interrupt.
"I got the keys from Nyx." He continued. "And I went snooping around and I found so old baby clothes—yours, I assu. They were tiny."
He glanced at her with a small smile.
"You’ve grown quite a bit since then."
She blushed, looking away.
"And then." He said. "I found this letter. Hidden between the pages of a book. It’s actually what gave the idea to collect letters from everyone in the village."
He looked at her aningfully as he added,
"I also found your mother’s diary. She wrote about you a lot. So many entries, so many thoughts. If you haven’t read it yet, you might want to."
Leona’s eyes went wide. "Her diary? You found her diary too?!"
He nodded.
Her face lit up with sheer, unbridled joy.
"Not only do I have these letters from everyone, but I also have my mother’s diary? I can read her thoughts, her mories, her feelings about ?"
She clutched the letter to her chest.
"This is—this is incredible! I can’t wait to read everything! I want to stay up all night and just—"
"Leona." Luca’s voice was gentle but firm. "I don’t think you should do that."
She stopped, confused.
"These letters." He said. "They give you happiness, right? A boost of good feelings?"
She nodded.
"Then don’t use them all at once. If you read everything tonight, you’ll have nothing left for tomorrow. Or the day after. Or the day you’re feeling sad and need sothing to lift your spirits."
He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
"Read one letter a day. Savor them. Let them last. And when you’re feeling down, go back to your mother’s diary. Let her words comfort you."
Leona considered this, then nodded slowly.
"That makes sense. I’d be so disappointed after I finished them all. I could reread them, but it wouldn’t be the sa as the first ti."
She looked at him gratefully. "You’re right. I’ll pace myself."
She suddenly blushed a little, as if rembering sothing.
"Luca...when I was crying, I think I saw Nyx. She popped out from the bushes and then disappeared. Did she see ? Crying like that?"
Luca nodded. "She saw."
Leona’s face crumpled with worry. "I should go explain myself. I should tell her—"
"There’s no need." He pulled her back down when she tried to stand. "I already handled it. She won’t ask any questions."
Leona was about to insist that she still talked with her. She felt really embarrassed and wanted to clear things up with her sister.
But Luca suddenly grinned at her with a rather hungry gaze that made her shiver all over, like he wanted to devour her whole.
"Instead of talking to Nyx..."
He said, voice dropping lower.
"...I think it’s about ti to receive your punishnt, Leona."
Leona was completely caught off guard.
"Punishnt? What punishnt? What did I do?"
She protested, looking flustered.
"Only bad girls get punished, Luca! I’ve been nothing but good! I helped the entire village today! I’ve been helping the village for forty years! I’m practically a saint!"
Luca chuckled, reaching out to pat her head like she was a well-behaved dog.
"You have been such a good girl." He admitted, his hand warm on her hair. "Very good. Exemplary, even."
She preened under the praise, leaning into his touch.
Then his expression darkened.
"But your husband Julius." He said, his voice dropping. "He’s been very, very bad."
Leona’s face went slightly pale.
"Ever since I arrived in this village, he’s been nothing but trouble. Constantly annoying . Scheming against . Trying to undermine everything I do."
Luca’s jaw tightened.
"I’ve taken it all. I’ve held back because of the restrictions, because I can’t touch him. But I’ve had enough."
He looked at her, his eyes burning.
"I need to vent my anger. I need to punish soone for what he’s done. And since I can’t touch him..."
He stroked her cheek slowly.
"I’m going to take it out on you instead."
Leona’s breath caught. Her heart raced. But instead of fear, she felt sothing else—a strange, thrilling excitent.
"B-But Luca." She said, her voice coming out softer than she intended. "I didn’t do anything. It’s Julius who’s been annoying you. Why should I be punished for his actions?"
Luca’s smile was slow and dangerous. "Because you’re his wife. And a wife bears responsibility for her husband’s misdeeds. The punishnt ant for him falls to you."
He pinched her cheek gently, tilting her face up to et his gaze.
"So what do you say, Leona?" His voice was a low purr. "Are you ready to be thoroughly punished tonight?"
Leona blushed furiously, but instead of arguing further, a bright, eager look appeared on her face.
"Okay, Luca...I’ll do it." She said softly, almost shyly. "I’ll take the punishnt for the sake of Julius."
Luca froze, staring at her in utter dismay.
"Wait—what? You’re okay with it? You’re okay with punishing you?" He asked in confusion.
Leona enthusiastically nodded her head.
"Of course, Luca! As his wife, I bear the responsibility as well for letting my husband act the way he is."
"So, I’ll take anything from you for his sake."
Luca was baffled.
He had been prepared for argunts. For denials. For her to push back, to make him work for it, to play the reluctant maiden he had to convince.
But she had agreed imdiately. Eagerly, even. Like she was looking forward to being punished.
He didn’t understand. But Leona did.
She knew that beneath the teasing, the threat of punishnt, the villainous act—he was worried about her.
He didn’t want her to go ho alone tonight, to lie in her bed and brood over her mother’s letter, to cry herself to sleep in the darkness.
He wanted to keep her close, to distract her, to make sure she didn’t spiral into despair.
And she loved him for it.
Not to ntion that Leona had been lonely for so long, and now that she had finally found soone she loved, soone she trusted completely—she didn’t want to waste a single mont.
She wanted to be close to him. To give herself to him. To let him take whatever he wanted, because his warmth and affection were worth more to her than anything else in the world.
To her, this wasn’t punishnt. It was an opportunity.
anwhile, Luca’s face went through a complicated series of emotions.
Confusion. Frustration. Annoyance. He had wanted to be the villain, to tease her into submission, to enjoy her flustered protests.
Instead, he felt like the one being pushed around.
He didn’t like it.
Fine. If she was going to be so eager, he would just have to punish her so thoroughly that she changed her mind. By the ti he was done with her, she would be begging for rcy.
He smiled, but there was steel beneath it.
"Then let’s go." He said, standing and pulling her to her feet.
He grabbed the basket of letters with one hand and her waist with the other.
"We’re going back to my house. And I’ll show you exactly what kind of punishnt I have in mind."
Leona blushed furiously, her ears turning crimson.
She knew what was coming. She had heard the sounds from his house last night—the moans, the screams, the desperate pleas. She knew what he was capable of.
And yet, she smiled. A small, secret, eager smile.
She was looking forward to it.
They walked through the dark forest together, the basket swinging between them, the stars watching overhead.
One of them fully intent on punishing the other, determined to make her regret her eagerness.
And the other...simply happy to be with him. Ready to accept whatever he gave, because anything from him was a gift.
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