Julian found her coldness unnerving. If he didn't speak up now, Evelyn would head to the post office, find the ledger, and likely march straight to the police station to report a theft—against him.

"Evelyn," he began tentatively. "Have you eaten yet?"

She didn't give him the satisfaction of a polite look, merely flicking her eyes toward him with weary disdain. "No."

"Let me take you to the restaurant in town," Julian offered quickly.

Evelyn felt a cold laugh bubbling in her chest. A single meal in exchange for all my supplies? "I’m not interested."

Julian pressed on, desperation bleeding into his voice. "Braised pork, steamed fish, ribs—whatever you want, it’s on me!"

"What exactly did you do that was so wicked you're offering a bribe?" Evelyn’s smile was as sharp as a jagged piece of ice. "Let me guess. When you took your parcels yesterday, Serafina 'accidentally' claimed mine too?"

Panic flared in Julian’s chest. How did she know? How could she have guessed it so perfectly—down to the fact that it had been Serafina’s idea?

Evelyn stood up, her shadow falling over him. "And let me guess the rest: you lost it. My parcel is gone, isn't it?"

Julian took a step back, flinching under her murderous gaze. "I... I can replace it. I’ll give you everything back."

Evelyn narrowed her eyes until they were dangerous slits. "With what? And when?"

Julian opened his mouth to say as soon as possible, but the look on her face forced a concrete answer. "Within a month. I’ll have my family send more."

"A month?" she scoffed. "I’ll be a frozen corpse in a month!"

"Two weeks then!" Julian countered. He’d have to find a way through the black market. If the town's market was dry, he’d go to the county seat. It was larger, riskier, but surely someone there was selling cotton.

"Seven days," Evelyn stated, her voice leaving no room for negotiation. "I want it in seven days."

Knowing he was entirely in the wrong, Julian could only grit his teeth and nod.

Evelyn went inside and emerged with a sheet of paper. She had listed every item—the exact weight of the quilts, the specifications of the jackets and trousers. She added a clause: if the debt wasn't settled in seven days, he would owe her five times the total value in cash.

Julian’s face soured. "You don't trust me?"

Evelyn simply arched an eyebrow, her silence screaming, Why should I? "Are you signing or not?"

"Evelyn, this is heartless," he said, pointing at the paper. "We grew up together. Is this really how you see me?"

"Do you want to sign, or are you too scared to put your name to your word?"

Julian’s jaw muscles tightened until they pulsed. Without another word, he snatched the pen and scrawled his signature. "There. Satisfied?" He glared at her, his eyes burning with a frustrated rage.

Evelyn tucked the IOU away, utterly unmoved by his tantrum. "Satisfied. Now, get lost."

Julian stormed back to the lodgings, where Serafina was already preparing dinner. One look at his face told her exactly how the encounter had gone.

Dominic looked up from the table. "Another row with Evelyn?"

Julian rubbed his throbbing temples. "Don't even start." He knew his afternoon would be spent trekking back toward the black market.

Meanwhile, no sooner had Julian left than Evelyn was summoned to the village office for a phone call.

After Julian had left with the supplies, Adrian had found himself unable to shake a nagging doubt. He knew the murky nature of Julian’s relationship with Serafina, and he knew how easily the Ward brothers were swayed. Would the gear he’d intended for Evelyn actually reach her? He couldn't risk her freezing because of his cousin's incompetence.

When Evelyn picked up the receiver and heard Adrian mention he’d already given a full set of winter gear to Julian to "replace" her lost parcel, she felt like her hair might actually catch fire from the sheer heat of her rage.

"He didn't give me a thing!" she hissed into the phone. "Give it to me? That was like throwing meat to a stray dog—it’s gone! He just stood in front of me and promised he'd find replacements in a week!"

There was a long, heavy silence on the other end of the line. Adrian had suspected Julian might be weak, but to lie so brazenly to both of them was a new low. He adjusted his glasses, a dark, dangerous shadow crossing his eyes.

"I’ll go get it back," Adrian said, his voice clipped.

"No," Evelyn countered. "I’ll get it myself. But let me be clear, Brother Adrian—don't be angry with me regardless of what I do to your cousin."

Adrian’s almond-shaped eyes narrowed into an icy, unfeeling curve. "Just leave him with his life."

Evelyn’s lips curled into a grim smile. "Deal."

She marched straight to the lodgings. "Julian!"

Inside, the group was mid-meal. "Is that Evelyn?" Dominic asked, surprised.

Julian felt a flicker of hope—perhaps she had come to soften the terms? But Serafina felt a jolt of pure dread. She knew that tone.

"Julian! Get your lying hide out here!"

Julian’s face darkened. He was tired of her "scenes." Dominic and Caleb followed him out, both looking confused. "What is it now, Evelyn? We have a deal. The seven days haven't passed!"

Serafina noticed the other villagers emerging from their rooms, bowls in hand, ready for the show. She tried to grab Evelyn’s arm to pull her inside. "Let’s talk privately."

"Don't touch me!" Evelyn snapped, shoving her away. Serafina stumbled back several steps, her face turning ashen.

"Evelyn, enough!" Julian shouted, his protective instincts for Serafina flaring. "You're being—"

His sentence was cut short by Evelyn’s boot. It was a swift, brutal kick delivered with practiced precision. Caleb, who had been about to speak, took a sharp breath of cold air and swallowed it hard.

Every man in the yard instinctively crossed their legs.

Julian collapsed, clutching his groin, his face and neck turning a violent shade of purple. His breath hitched in ragged, agonized gasps as he doubled over. Dominic and Caleb retreated a step—they both knew that particular brand of agony all too well.

Serafina rushed to Julian’s side, screaming at Evelyn. "How could you! After everything we've been through, you just keep bullying him! You've gone too far! We are not friends anymore!"

Evelyn looked at her with bone-deep boredom. "We stopped being friends a long time ago, Serafina. Stop acting like your presence doesn't make me nauseous."

She turned her icy gaze back down to the heaving, broken form of Julian. "Julian! Where is the gear you took from your cousin in my name?"