CHAPTER 184: DOWNFALL (3)

In town, Erin closed her doors since it was pointless to remain open. There were still customers coming by to get dresses, but there were many more who only came by to question her about the murders.

"I am closing for the day," Erin informed Dale. "I can’t listen to any of their questions. I will open bright and early tomorrow."

"You should remain closed. They are chattering fools," Dale said, pissed that he was dragged into this mess.

"If I stay closed forever, it might look like we are guilty of something. I will claim your innocence-"

"Mine?" Dale spoke over Erin.

"Well, I was not friends with Simon. My name is becoming attached to this because your brother was friends with Simon. I have not done anything wrong, yet my shop is affected," Erin said, angry that the town was turning on her.

"I have not done anything wrong, and neither has my brother. We’ve already addressed this long ago when they thought we knew what Simon was doing. They are spewing nonsense now," Dale argued.

"It doesn’t matter. Until the culprit is found, they will think you know something, and my shop will be affected. This is the time when I make the most of my money. I can’t go through the season without more customers," Erin said, worried about her business.

"Do not say just me, it is us. We are married, so they suspect us both. Honestly, this feels to be the work of the duke," Dale said, pacing back and forth.

Dale refused to return the money Edgar asked for, so this had to be Edgar’s way of ruining him.

"I do not think this is Edgar’s doing-"

"You must stop thinking that they are your friends," said Dale. "All the duke and duchess care about is money."

"That is not true. No matter the wealth the duke has, Alessandra has never cared for it. She is not like that," Erin spoke on Alessandra’s behalf.

Dale scoffed. "You are still trying to be her friend. Didn’t I already tell you what to do?"

"Yes, you have. I put my business first, and now look at the state of it. If there ever was the chance that this was Edgar’s doing, we deserve it," Erin said.

They were experiencing what Penelope did, and they too would have people turn their backs on them.

"What?" Dale replied, staring at Erin like she had grown another head. "What did you say? We deserved this?"

Erin gulped, but this time, she had to stand her ground. "Yes, we do. I should have stood on Alessandra’s side. It was easy for you to suggest that I turn my back on her because you don’t know her well. You and Edgar have never tried to get close to each other."

"And rightfully so," Dale answered.

Edgar Collins was not a man Dale ever wanted to get close to. His brother Kyle felt the same way.

"That is what made it hard for us to sit together. Over twenty years have gone by, yet you have never tried to get to know Alessandra. It was my fault for not pushing it," Erin said, regretting plenty.

"She’s the sister of the woman who married Simon for his title, and I never needed to get close to a duchess. I’m a man. What business do I have getting close to a woman unless I want to bed her?" Dale asked.

Erin placed her hands on her hips. "I have gotten close to Edgar and the other husbands of my friends."

Dale walked up to Erin to point his finger in her face and said, "I have never liked it. Men and women don’t have any business being friends. You are lucky that I have trusted you enough to never believe that you would lie with another man."

"I am offended simply by what you say now. Those are the husbands of my friends. No one has ever looked at anyone’s spouse. I truly don’t think this is Alessandra or Edgar’s doing. It is because of the deaths," Erin said, trying to reason with Dale.

Erin thought they were lucky that Kyle’s friendship with Simon in the past had not affected her business right away when she married Dale. It was only coming about now because some people believed Simon was alive.

Dale shook his head. "I did what was needed to protect your business, and you are not grateful. Those young ladies and their mothers would have avoided you for having Penelope as a customer. What person wants to go anywhere that serves a cursed woman?"

"You mustn’t forget that is how I got my start. If not for Alessandra, I would have been in my mother’s shop, where she wouldn’t let me make anything. Then I wouldn’t be able to take care of myself and marry you," Erin reminded Dale.

"Your family wasn’t so welcoming of me, and my mother thought that I could do better. It was thanks to my start with Alessandra that I became this," Erin said, pointing at her shop. "I owe her."

"You must stop thinking about her and think about how we are going to survive this. I helped build you up," said Dale.

Erin laughed. "Did you? When did you spend hours here making a dress or finding talented ladies who could do as you wanted? When did you put on a dress and flaunt what I could do? Do your fingers bleed because of how you overwork yourself?"

"There are other things that go into this shop. I have always handled your money for you," Dale said.

"I’ve learned over the years how to handle my business myself. I have friends who have businesses, and we learned together. I was doing fine before I let you work here. I loved your help, but you did not build me up," said Erin.

Dale had always been near, encouraging her, but Erin worked hard by herself.

"I think," Erin said, stopping to look at the floor. "I think for this shop to keep up with customers for the season, you should go back to your old work. I only hired you to please our families, but it isn’t working."

"Erin!" Dale snapped.

"This isn’t working for our marriage. Dressmaking is what I love. Before this shop, I was under my mother’s control, but now I have control here. I want to make all the decisions for my shop. If you stay here, our marriage will be affected," Erin said, thinking of the future.

They couldn’t go on like this any longer.

"You want me to leave until this blows over?" Dale asked.

"No," Erin shook her head. "I mean forever. This will remain my shop, and I will be the only one to work here."

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