A Beast's Tale

Chapter 68

"So, how did you meet Mr. Attentive? I heard you found him like a lost puppy." Clavis laughed, the bright, cheery sound ringing out in the silent carriage. Outside, horses' hooves thudded and carriage wheels rumbled on packed dirt, and inside, I turned a page in my book. Belle shifted on the seat next to me.

"Well, I guess you could think about it that way," she said, forcing a laugh. Gilbert's presence made her uncomfortable. "Three years ago, I found him injured in the woods. He's forgotten everything before that. I took care of him until he was well enough to get a job and his own place, and we've been best friends ever since."

"Hm. Well, that brings up more questions than it answers, doesn't it?" Clavis mused. "Especially since the Four-Eyed Fiend did a thorough background check before hiring him and couldn't find out who he is. Are you sure about his name?"

"No, I'm not. I thought I heard him say 'Rio' before he passed out, but it was raining, and he was so weak. He couldn't even remember that much when he woke up later."

"And he had nothing on him that could identify him?"

"No. After I got him settled at my place, I went back to the woods where I'd found him to look around some more, and there was a carriage wreck at the bottom of a nearby cliff. It must have fallen from the road above."

"No driver or horses?" Gilbert asked.

Belle paused. "Now that you mention it, no."

"Were there any personal effects in the carriage?" Clavis asked.

"Well... yes. But when I tried showing them to him later, he got really upset and refused to look at them, so I put them away."

"People generally dislike memories of assassination attempts—and the people who hate them enough to kill them," Gilbert said in his usual light, casual tone.

I turned another page and saw Belle stiffen out of the corner of my eye.

"What?"

"It only makes sense," Clavis explained, a smile in his voice and, I knew, on his face. "If there was no driver and there were no horses, then the accident was deliberate. The driver probably cut the horses' traces and jumped free before the carriage toppled over the cliff. Ha ha! How diabolical!"

"Then... someone tried to kill Rio?" Belle asked, breathless.

"Luckily, they think they succeeded," Clavis replied.

"Why do you say that?"

"Because there have been no further attempts over the past three years. Have there?"

"No, not that I know of. Rio got into a few scuffles with some townspeople at first, but that was just them being overprotective of me. I told them to leave him alone, and that stopped it."

Gilbert chuckled. "That was rather naïve of you to take in a strange man, sight unseen."

"He needed my help!" Belle protested.

"Well, you're still alive, so it worked out," Clavis said, dismissing that issue. "What did you find in the carriage wreck?"

There was a pause. "I'm not sure I should tell anybody without his permission," Belle said. I knew she was looking to me for direction, but I held my silence and continued reading. If Gilbert wanted to know, he would find out, with or without her assistance. The decision was hers to make.

"Hm, wouldn't it be a shame if whoever wanted him dead came to the palace and recognized him?" Gilbert muttered, as if speaking to himself. He sighed and probably shrugged. I didn't look up from my book to confirm, but such gestures would have aided in his manipulation of Belle's emotions. "Of course, without knowing who he is, there's no way to prepare for such an event."