Chapter 366: Stay With You

To be honest, Claire didn’t know why she’d believed Arthur when he said he loved her. Maybe it was because he’d given her so many reasons why he loved her. Or perhaps it was because the look in his eyes when he listed those reasons was so achingly familiar. It was almost identical to the look in her own eyes when she’d first confessed her love to Frederick. Or maybe she was just desperate for an excuse to leave Frederick.

Not long after her release from prison, when Frederick had brought her back to Halfmoon Manor to torture her, she’d tried to escape once. Frederick hadn’t even managed to find her. In the end, it was Arthur who’d brought her back. That incident alone proved how capable Arthur was, even more formidable than Frederick. So, with Arthur’s help, wouldn’t leaving Frederick be a piece of cake?

But thinking back to her escape attempt, Claire suddenly felt doubts creeping in.

“Arthur, what you just said was genuinely touching, and I almost believed you. But you seem to have forgotten that not long ago, when I’d just gotten out of prison and was being tormented by Frederick, I tried to escape in my car. You were the one who caught me.”

“You handed me back to Frederick. You even tried to use me to blackmail him. Now you’re telling me you have feelings for me. How do you explain that?” Claire stared directly at Arthur, waiting for his explanation.

Arthur paused for a moment, seemingly caught off guard by Claire bringing up this incident. He gave a wry smile. “Claire, before I answer your question, I’d like to ask you something first.”

Claire raised an eyebrow. “Go ahead.”

“Tell me, if you saw a butterfly that you absolutely adored, would you capture it and break its wings to keep it by your side forever?” Arthur took a deep breath as he spoke.

“What are you trying to say?” Claire furrowed her brow, unable to grasp what Arthur was getting at.

Arthur suddenly looked up at her, his eyes filled with sorrow. “Claire, we grew up together. I know better than anyone, even better than you, just how much you loved Frederick. I saw everything you did. At his birthdays, you were always the first to suggest throwing a party. When he was sick, you were always the first one there, whether it was bringing medicine or taking him to the hospital. Always the first! Whenever he wanted something, you were always the first to stand up and fight for him. You even learned so many things just to help him, to be his support in the future. Never mind the dancing, painting, and social etiquette lessons. You, a privileged young lady who never had to lift a finger, even went as far as learning boxing and shooting for him. You’d never known hardship in your life. Boxing and shooting require unimaginable dedication and effort. Yet, for Frederick, you persevered through it all. I know all of this. To me, you were like a beautiful butterfly, and Frederick was your freedom. How could I claim to love you while asking you to give up your freedom? To clip your wings and keep you by my side? Actually, when I discovered you were trying to escape, I was genuinely happy. I hoped you would indeed get away, but before I could find you, Frederick had already tracked you down. What choice did I have in that situation? Force you to stay with me? In the end, I could only send you back to Frederick. After all, you loved him so deeply for so many years. Even when he sent you to prison, even with death between you, you still loved him so much! I finally realized that between us lies an entire world apart. And that world… is Frederick…”

By the end of his speech, Arthur’s face was contorted with pain. But Claire still didn’t believe him. “Is that so? Arthur, if everything is as you say, then why do you want me to stay by your side now?”

“Because your life is in danger because this time, I’m terrified. Scared that if you stay with Frederick, you’ll end up dead. Afraid that there will no longer be a woman named Claire in this world. Besides, all of this seems like God destined it. You survived the car crash, but the fully loaded oil tanker that hit you exploded and burned continuously. Nothing was left of the truck driver. And now, Frederick believes you met the same fate as that truck driver, nothing but ashes. Think about it. What better opportunity could there be? He thinks you’re dead, and you can finally break free from him altogether. The day I rescued you, I made up my mind to keep you here. I can’t bear the thought of you facing death like that again,” Arthur spoke with such genuine emotion that his eyes turned red with tears.

Claire finally stopped doubting his intentions. At this point, whether she trusted Arthur or not wasn’t really important anymore. What mattered was that Frederick believed she was dead. When would there be a better chance to escape than now? Never!

She said, “Arthur, I can stay with you, but you must agree to several conditions.”