Chapter 19: Oscar

For the past four years it seemed like Camilla and I had made a truce.

But that might all change today.

“Mom, you were right, it’s dangerous out there, I found that little boy alone in the forest and brought him here,” Ivan said.

By forest he meant the large green area behind the three mansions.

What was Camilla’s son doing out there all by himself?

“Where’s your nanny?” I asked quietly, trying to get him back as soon as possible.

“Mom, he can not talk” Ivan said as the little boy hid behind Ivan.

He must have sensed that I wasn’t happy to have him here.

I looked closer and the boy looked a bit thin, his clothes were dirty and there were some scratches on his hand probably from tree branches.

‘What I am i doing, he’s just a little boy,’ I reminded myself.

“Are you two hungry?” I asked them with a smile, trying to make the little boy feel comfortable.

“Yes, today we have sausages and mash, you’ll love it,” Ivan told the boy.

I could understand why Ivan was so excited, this was the first time he had played with someone close to his age, and fortunately the boy didn’t seem afraid of Ivan’s appearance.

“Come on,” Ivan said as he showed him the way to the kitchen.

I looked down and they were still holding hands.

Maybe… just maybe if Camelia wasn’t so dangerous our sons would be close.

But I know for sure that’s impossible.

We sat down to eat and Ivan finished his plate in 5 minutes as usual while the little boy barely ate anything.

“Madam, can I talk to you?” one of the servants said to me.

“Eat your food, I’ll be back in a second.”

When I came out, the boy’s nanny was waiting for me in a panic.

“Madam, is little Master Oscar here?” I asked nervously.

“Yes,” i replied.

Her face lit up. “Can I take him back?”

“No, he’s eating, come back in an hour or so.”

“But Lady Camellia—”

I stopped her mid-sentence “Just come back in a few hours or I’ll send my maid to inform Camellia that you’ve lost the Duke’s heir in the forest.”

Her face turned pale and she bowed “Please keep this a secret, ma’am.”

“Where is Camellia anyway?” I asked.

“The lady is on a shopping trip in Paris with her friends.”

“And Rymon—I mean the Duke?”

The lord went to Mont Lazur on a personal mission.

I got angry when I heard that they left the child alone but it wasn’t the nanny’s fault so I tried to calm down a bit.

“When will they be back?”

“The lady will be back in four days but I don’t know about the Duke’s arrival.”

“Well you can go now.”

I went back inside and as I tried to open the door I saw that Ivan was trying to help Oscar eat by telling him how much he loved this dish.

So I closed the door to give them more time together.

A few minutes later I returned to them.

“Okay now boys it’s time to change your dirty clothes,” I said as I led them to Ivan’s room.

When it was Oscar’s turn to change he looked very uncomfortable.

I knelt down and held his little hands “It’s okay, I would never hurt you, you’re my son’s friend.”

As I was changing his clothes, I realized that he had wounds on the back of his legs.

I pretended not to see so as not to scare Oscar and dressed him in Ivan’s clothes.

Although the age difference between them wasn’t that big, the clothes were too big for him.

The two of them started playing again, and I was lost in my thoughts.

I knew that hitting the back of the leg was a common punishment for noble children by their teachers, but something was wrong.

When the nanny finally arrived, I asked to speak to her in private.

“Why did Camilla hurt Oscar so badly?” I asked.

She looked surprised. “How did you know?”

“The wounds are so deep that I doubt any teacher would have the nerve to hurt the heir to the duke in this way.”

"The young master had some trouble speaking and pronouncing words.

At first, Lady Camilla didn't care.

But when another noble boy made fun of the way the master spoke, she got angry with him.

This was the first time she hurt him.

But instead of getting better, the young master got worse and stopped talking.

Then the punishments got worse, like not giving him a meal or the wounds I saw."

I was angry for little Oscar.

"Does the duke know?"

"No, because no one dares to upset Lady Camilla and tell him the truth."

"It's okay, thanks for telling me." I said with a sigh.

Then she left with Oscar.

The situation seemed very complicated and I wanted to stay away.

Because this was the only way to keep me and my child safe.

But since that day, Oscar started sneaking out whenever he had the chance to play with Ivan.