Chapter 10 The Secret Of The Attic

Tia took the cleaning tools and arrived at the small attic on the top floor of the villa. This small attic seemed somewhat out of place within the villa. It was constructed from red bricks, resembling a flower standing atop a white tower. The iron door had become somewhat weathered. It creaked when it was opened. Tia pushed the door and entered, the smell of dust making her nose twitch as she waved her hand to clear the air. The attic was about a dozen square meters in size, with walls covered in paintings of grass and flowers. Many pure white cabinets were placed in the corners. Tia looked around and blinked. Her gaze eventually fell on a white cloth in the center of the room. There seemed to be something covered underneath the white cloth. Curious, Tia slowly lifted the white cloth, revealing a sculpture beneath it. It lacked any detailed facial features. The figure had a slender body, with long hair flowing down to the waist and an elegant neck. Even without distinct features, it was evident that this was an extremely beautiful woman. The sculpture was entirely white, except for a small red mole behind the right ear, which gave it a playful charm. Smiling, Tia reached out to touch the sculpture’s face. “Although I’ve never met you, I can feel that you were a beautiful and kind-hearted woman. “But that bastard, Aaron Caius, is unworthy of someone as perfect as you.” Tia pouted, thinking of Aaron's unpleasant demeanor. “But I still hope you find happiness in heaven.” Tia’s eyes were filled with sadness as she unconsciously touched the spot above the sculpture’s eyebrows and the small mole behind its ear. As she continued to touch it, a strange feeling suddenly welled up within her. “Why does this feel somewhat familiar?” Tia murmured to herself, “But first, let’s clean up the place.” Thus, Tia covered the sculpture again and earnestly began cleaning the attic. She opened a cabinet, intending to give it a thorough cleaning. However, what she found inside were numerous notebooks. Though she felt somewhat uneasy about it, Tia could not resist her curiosity and picked one up. She flipped it open. The handwriting inside was bold, neat, and appeared to be written by a man to his beloved woman. The diary began with records of the man and woman’s daily life, with words filled with happiness and contentment. Even the smallest details reflected how the man cherished the woman. This included the woman’s favorite color, her preferred flowers, her favorite foods, her sleeping habits, and her unique fragrance. They were all meticulously documented by the man. As long as the woman was by his side, the man felt at ease. He had prayed to the heavens countless times, asking for them to let him and the woman live together forever. The man and woman had shared a period of great happiness. However, it seemed that the woman had left at some point, and the man began to obsessively long for his beloved. He was tormented by anguish every day. Later on, the woman returned, and the man was overjoyed. However, there appeared to be subtle changes in the woman. The man sensed that the woman he loved deeply had become somewhat different. Toward the end of the diary entries, the woman met with an accident, which drove the man to madness and despair. He became despondent. Almost every night, he dreamed of the woman crying and calling out his name in agony. After each dream, the man could no longer see his beloved nor hear her voice. He began collecting everything the woman ever owned during her lifetime, trying to find traces of her. Yet he found nothing. The departure of his beloved dealt a massive blow to the man. He had contemplated joining his beloved countless times, but she would always appear in his dreams, urging him to continue living. Thus, the man struggled in his personal hell each day. Tia gazed at the distorted words, feeling as if she could feel the man’s pain. She could feel her heart being gripped tightly. What kind of pain was it to lose one’s dearest love? Back when Tia was in a relationship with Vick, she could not exactly say she had loved him deeply. It was more of a fondness. She thought they had compatible personalities and family backgrounds. Vick was also considerate, which was why she had considered the idea of spending her life with him. Hence, Tia could not truly comprehend the feeling of losing one’s most beloved person. One of the notebooks seemed more worn out than the others. Tia opened it, and inside were drawings of the same silhouette. It was the silhouette of a woman. It appeared to be the same person the sculpture was modeled after. The last few pages of the notebook bore the name of the same person—Ramona. Tia was taken aback. It turned out that all these things belonged to Aaron. This place was his dedicated space to commemorate his deceased fiancée. The feeling of warmth that Tia had just experienced turned into disgust. In her eyes, Aaron was nothing more than a hypocritical, cunning, and ruthless man. While it was true that her father had indirectly caused the death of his fiancéee, did Aaron truly bear no responsibility at all? If he were a true man, would he not have been able to refuse the arranged marriage with the Celeste family, given his position within the Caius family? Did the head of the Caius family not have any involvement in his fiancée’s death as well? Why did he pin all the blame on her and her father? The more Tia thought about it, the angrier she became. What did she have to do with his fiancée’s death? Even if she were guilty, did he not already imprison her for seven years? Was that not enough?! “Aaron Caius, you bastard!” Tia gritted her teeth in anger and drew a comical stick figure of Aaron on the last page of the notebook, alongside his name. Satisfied with her creation, Tia quickly finished cleaning the attic and went downstairs. In the afternoon before dark, Aaron, who had not been back to the villa for a long time, came back with a woman by his side. “Mr. Aaron is back!” Janelle shouted loudly from the doorway. Tia, who was in the yard, glanced over. Her eyes were ablaze with fury because the woman accompanying Aaron was her good ol’ sister, Angelica. Aaron and Angelica entered the villa, and Aaron wearily leaned on the couch. “Why aren’t you guys making refreshments to sober up your boss? Can’t you see that Aaron isn’t feeling well?” Angelica assumed the manner of the lady of the house. She looked somewhat displeased as she glared at the nearby maid. Tia was in the kitchen at the time, washing vegetables. That was when she heard Janelle shout loudly, “Hurry up and prepare something to help Mr. Aaron sober up!” “Drinking himself into a stupor every day, isn’t he afraid of dying from alcohol poisoning?” Tia muttered angrily. “Why isn’t it ready yet?” Angelica seemed impatient, likely because she had been waiting for a while. She entered the kitchen in her high heels, and her eyes widened as soon as she saw the familiar face. “Tia? What are you doing here?!”