The General's Wife Wants to Leave-Chapter 245: The feeling of emptiness

Joanna met Canillas’ eyes, which were directed at hers. For a moment she could not look away until her gaze shifted to the black carriage that was parked in the front yard, a few meters away behind his back.

She did not know how long she cast her gaze there. She only knew a tear escaped from her welled-up eyes when she brought her eyes to look back at Canillas, and it rolled down her wet cheek when they stared at each other.

One tear after another. His eyes were never leaving hers. Yet it made her feel more suffocated as time passed. She felt a lump grow in her throat, getting bigger and bigger, which made her shift her eyes away so that she could breathe, releasing the knot that squeezed her heart.

Joanna then opened her lips to speak but closed them back when her brother offered her a handkerchief. Taking the handkerchief while looking up at her brother, Joanna dabbed the tears on her flushed and wet cheeks while glancing at Canillas, which in turn made her shudder as she found him still staring at her, not removing his gaze from her bloodshot and teary eyes.

Gripping the kerchief in her hand to unruffle the uneasiness in her heart, without looking straight at him, she said, "This is my brother Phillip de Lara." After introducing her brother to Canillas with a snuffle voice, she turned to see her brother. "This is General Canillas von Rodega."

Canillas waited for Joanna to speak more to introduce him to her brother, but when he did not hear more information that he thought to be substantial coming from her and found her with her eyes downcast, Canillas moved his gaze toward Phillip.

After the simple introduction, Phillip lifted his hand, which wrapped around Joanna’s shoulder. Stretching it forward, he initiated the handshake with the young man across from him. "What a pleasure to meet you, General von Rodega," Phillip greeted with a smile that did not reach his eyes.

"It’s a pleasure to meet you too, Mr. de Lara." Canillas returned the greeting while taking the hand of his brother-in-law for the handshake. No smile he offered as he faced the man before him with a usual stony expression on his face.

Phillip’s shoulders shook as he chuckled. "Please don’t call me that. You can just call me Phillip," he said.

"Then you may please call me Canillas," came the reply from Canillas.

"Sure, why not?" responded Phillip nonchalantly, shrugging his shoulders with a smile that reached his eyes this time. "It is an honor for me to call a great general like General von Rodega just by his first name." Phillip grinned, unable to tell if it was a sarcastic or sincere remark by both Joanna and the Duke.

"So, since we have made a deal, shall we get inside to enjoy an afternoon tea, Canillas?"

Gaining a positive answer from Canillas, the Duke of Barasca was the first to step inside his dwelling place, followed by Joanna and her brother, leaving Canillas, who took one step late behind with the feeling of emptiness in his hands as his warmth was before him, walking side by side but not with him by her side.

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Inside the dining room in the de Lara mansion, Duke John was seated at the head of the long rectangular dining table. On his right side, his son, the successor of his title, was seated, while on his left side, his daughter took a seat next to her husband.

After taking a long conversation that was filled with mixed feelings and emotions among the family, along with the continuity of the introduction between the in-law, Duke John, and his family, they decided to take a brief rest before they gathered again at the dinner.

The aroma that stimulated appetite filled the room when servants appeared one by one with meals that had been prepared by the cook. The menu was quite extravagant compared to the other days, as today, the Duke’s core family gathered again after being separated by distance and obligation in life.

The chandelier that hung from the ceiling and several candles that were lit on the candlestick on the table illuminated a soft, warm glow, more than enough to brighten the dining room that was occupied by the family who shared a warm smile with each other, except for one who kept his gaze fixed on the empty plate before him.

Just when the Duke gave a gesture to his family to start the dinner, there was a commotion on the outside of the room that took them by surprise, making them turn toward where the door was located in unison.

"Oh my... We are sorry for being late. Lady Leticia is indeed a very talkative person, forbidding us to take our leave too early."

Upon hearing the coming voice, Joanna’s brows furrowed when her gaze fell on the speaking person who stepped across the room, making her way toward where her father was seated with a broad smile on her face.

"It’s been a while, John. How have you been doing?" The person who greeted Duke de Lara landed a fleeting peck on his cheek. "Well, it seems that Phillip wanted to make a surprise by not telling you about me being here. Naughty Phillip, as always," came a remark from the same person, who glared at the smiling Phillip when she found the surprised look drawn on the face of the master of the house.

"Well, it seems that this naughty Phillip’s priority is still for his little sister," Phillip replied in a nonchalant tone, knowing that the person did not seriously complain to him. "I believe we have the same priority, right, Father?" Phillip grinned at the seemingly confused Duke, who was in the middle of grasping the sudden infiltration. And before he could give his response, the person moved toward Joanna, who sat still on the chair in a daze.