Chapter 5
“Actually, Baroness Pendence asked me to take on some additional minor tasks. I was planning to tell you once the dates were confirmed, but since you seem worried, I thought I’d mention it now.”
“Really?”
“Yes. So we don’t have to sell this.”
Liv smiled and gently patted Corida’s head. Corida looked at her sister with a doubtful expression, but she had no way of verifying Liv’s words.
Feigning calmness, Liv turned with an exaggerated, busy gesture.
“Alright then, let’s have something delicious to lift our spirits! Today, your sister will show off her cooking skills!”
Corida fiddled with the music box for a while longer before slowly setting it down again. Liv watched her out of the corner of her eye, and only when she saw Corida’s expression relax did she let out a sigh of relief.
Liv planned to calculate their living expenses for the month after Corida fell asleep.
***
Usually, Brad was the one to ask Liv for modeling, and she would respond accordingly. But with her circumstances suddenly becoming urgent, Liv had no choice but to find Brad first.
Liv hurriedly climbed the stairs, pulling her hood down as far as it would go. She checked behind her several times, then carefully knocked on the studio door. From inside came a crashing sound.
“Yes, come in!”
Liv had worried that he might not be there, but thankfully, he was. Relieved, she opened the door.
The previously fresh scent had vanished, replaced by the overwhelming smell of paint. The studio was in disarray, with empty paint cans scattered all over the uncleaned floor.
“Liv?”
Brad, who was standing in front of a canvas covered with a white cloth, looked at Liv with wide eyes. He appeared completely unprepared for her visit.
“What brings you here?”
“Brad, I have a favor to ask…”
Liv rubbed her anxious hands together, but then hesitated. Something about Brad’s demeanor seemed off. He was standing nervously, blocking the canvas behind him.
“Is that a painting behind you?”
“Oh? Uh, yes.”
“A finished nude painting?”
Occasionally, Brad would proudly show her his completed works. It was both a display of his craftsmanship and a way of assuring her that he kept his promises.
But today, he seemed particularly reluctant to show this one. Suspiciously so.
“…Can I see it?” Liv asked quietly.
Brad averted his eyes, clearing his throat awkwardly. “I’m really sorry, but it’s already sold, so I shouldn’t… show it carelessly…”
Trying to avoid the situation, Brad reacted too late to Liv’s quick movements.
“Liv, wait…!”
The white cloth slipped from his grasp, revealing the painting that filled the canvas. Brad quickly moved in front of the wooden easel, but Liv had already seen the finished nude.
“Brad!”
A sharp scream erupted from Liv’s lips. Brad, sweating profusely, frantically waved his hands.
“No, listen. Let me explain.”
“You promised not to include my face!”
The woman was sitting with her back turned, her head partially turned. A fully nude woman, her face partially obscured by her shoulder, was unmistakably Liv.
“Well, I did paint it a bit differently. Besides, it’s just the silhouette of your profile, so no one will recognize you.”
Realizing it was pointless to hide, Brad hurriedly pointed to the painted side profile, stammering excuses—saying he had changed some features or altered the eye color.
Liv, staring at him with eyes gone pale, cut off his words firmly, “I still don’t like it!”
“Liv, I already got paid.”
“You said Corida’s birthday is coming up, right?
“Don’t tell me the extra money you gave me then was…”
She had thought it was unlike him, but perhaps it was all connected. Liv bit her lip. She had been so focused on Corida’s birthday present that she hadn’t properly checked the source of the money.
“It’s not just that. They said they’d pay extra once I handed over the finished work. Of course, you’d get your share. Just by showing a bit of your profile, we can earn twice as much as before!”
“This is a breach of contract. I never agreed to this.”
“Then you’d have to return all the money. Can you do that?”
“I…”
Her words came out strong but faltered before the end. Technically, she could report Brad for violating the contract and avoid taking responsibility for the value of the painting. But that would mean confessing that she was the model for the nude to a magistrate, maybe even to other officers.
Which parents in this city would entrust their child’s education to a woman who had worked as a nude model?
Even the kind baroness of Pendence would hand Liv her dismissal notice immediately.
If she couldn’t report Brad, her only option was to return the model fee and prevent the sale of the painting, even if she couldn’t return the full amount immediately.
“I’ll find a way to return the money. Just contact them and tell them they can’t have the painting yet.”
“But Liv…”
Their conversation came to an abrupt halt. Footsteps could be heard coming up the stairs. Liv hurriedly covered the canvas again with the cloth. In the meantime, Brad nervously opened the door.
Standing outside was a man in a neat servant’s uniform. Liv instinctively realized that this man must be the servant of the person who had bought the painting.
“I’ve come to collect the ordered item.”
“I’m afraid it can’t be sold.”
Before Brad could say anything, Liv quickly spoke up.
“The painting hasn’t been agreed upon by the model.”
The servant hesitated momentarily at her words before turning back to Brad and speaking indifferently, “I’ve come as per my master’s request to collect the painting. Matters beyond that are not within my authority.”
“Then who should I speak to? I can’t hand over the painting right now.”
Liv replied again, but the servant’s gaze remained fixed on Brad.
“Mr. Brad, didn’t you say I could collect it today? My master is waiting in the carriage right now.”
“Y-yes… That’s true, but…”
Brad stammered, glancing nervously between Liv and the servant.
“I-It will take a bit more time to come to an agreement with the model, so if you could just give us a few days…”
“Brad!”
Liv, shocked, tried to correct Brad’s statement, but the servant calmly nodded before she could.
“I’ll convey that to my master for now.”
Liv watched in stunned silence as the servant turned to leave. Brad, drenched in sweat, kept wiping his face with a handkerchief, trying in vain to persuade Liv. But his words fell on deaf ears.
She had managed to stop the painting from being taken for now, but the thought of having to return the model fee loomed large in her mind.
How much money did she have left right now?
Even if she gathered it all, it would be far from enough. Should she search for sewing work again?
But then what about the extra rent for this month?
“Liv, listen! Maybe if we just… Oh, oh no. Why have you come back?”
Liv, lost in confusion and despair, suddenly looked up. The servant who had just left was now standing in the doorway again.
“My master wishes to speak directly.”
He had mentioned that his master was waiting in the carriage. It seemed that the change in plans had irritated the buyer. A mix of complexity and hopelessness spread across Liv’s face.
Liv had no idea who the servant’s master was, but considering that most buyers of paintings came from the upper wealthy class, it was likely this one did too. If they were angry and sought accountability, she would be completely at their mercy.
Brad, too, seemed to sense the potential trouble, hurriedly grabbing his coat with a pale face.
“Oh, y-yes! Right away…”
“Not you, Mr. Brad.”
The servant, cutting Brad off bluntly, turned his gaze to Liv.
“My master would like to hear the reason for the refusal directly from the model. He also added that he will keep the model’s identity confidential, considering the nature of the work. Will that be possible?”
Liv’s shoulders stiffened. She stood frozen, unable to even make a sound. Brad awkwardly intervened on her behalf.
“T-the model prefers not to be seen…”
The servant frowned, letting out a sigh, his indifferent tone revealing his growing annoyance.
“If that’s not possible, then the payment for the painting should be refunded immediately. Otherwise, proceed as originally agreed.”
The painting was out of the question.
The thought that flashed through her mind loosened her tongue.
“How much was the painting?”
“Wait!”
Brad urgently grabbed Liv’s arm and pulled her aside, speaking in a hushed voice, “I don’t have the money right now. It’s all gone.”
“What?”
“There was an urgent need…”
“Did you gamble again?”
Judging from Brad’s evasive response, Liv didn’t need to hear more to understand. With a look of disbelief, she turned to glance back at the servant, who now indifferently held out a note.
“My master cannot be kept waiting any longer. Visit before evening.”
This time, the servant truly left. Liv stood there in a daze, staring at the note he had left behind for a long time.
The note only had an address, somewhere unfamiliar to her.
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