God Child ch 4- Black Sheep

(Page)
Black Sheep
Merryweather: Baa baa black sheep
Have you any wool?
Yes sir, yes sir, three bags full.
One for the master, one for the dame
And one for the little boy who cries in the lane
Cain: The one black sheep in a flock of white ones
That's exactly what I am

(Page)
Rif: Did you say something?
Is there some bad news?
Cain: No. But I heard Kent Stayne died in prison. It's been years...
The Stayne who was assistant butler when we were at the castle in Cornwall...
Rif: Ah yes, that one. I remember him well.
It's really been five years since then? Have I been serving you that long?
Rif: (thinks) Yes. But there are memories that won't disappear even over the course of years

(Page)
Rif: Like the scars on Cain-sama's back, like a criminal's
The marks of the cruelty he experienced every night at his father's hands
That castle in Cornwall where I met him- where his father had secluded him from the world out of hatred
Because he was the bastard child his father Alexis had had with his own sister
Alexis: (flashback) No-one will ever love you, all your life.
You'll die as you lived- all alone!
Cain- you bear the name of the first man to slay his own kin
Rif: Alexis-sama threw himself to his death as Cain-sama watched
I resolved then that I'd protect my young master forever

(Page)
Rif: That was five years ago. And six months after that--
Neil: You're going to appoint *him* to replace the steward who retired last month?
He's had no training at all! He's a young pup who's only just arrived here
Cain: I know you're my relation and my guardian, Uncle Neil, but it still makes no difference if you're not in favor of this.
Neil: Fool!
A steward is the most important and the most difficult of all a servant's positions! He must direct both the household and your large estates, and he has to look after his master's personal needs as well. This man is only a former medical student who was taken up by your father after he lost his own family.

(Page)
Cain: By the way, how do you like the tea?
Neil: Hm? Oh, it's very good.
Cain: Isn't it?
By now I can't drink any tea unless Rif makes it.
F/X crash!
Rif: It would seem you've made him angry again.
Cain: If I let him alone he'd only come back with a steward who'd be more like a guard. I'm not letting my family do as it pleases.

(Page)
Cain: Rif?
F/X door swinging open
Rif: Who is it?
F/X someone falling
Voice: Non!

(Page)
Rif: Non? You're French?
Stayne: Chiffon!
Oh, I beg your pardon. This maid has just arrived from France
Rif: Mr. Stayne
I'd heard we were short-staffed. You hired this woman in your capacity as assistant butler?
Stayne: No, certainly not. I believe the former butler did. I don't have the authority.
But even if she doesn't speak English, we can't very well send her back to France, can we?
Rif: No. But in future please keep me informed in detail about these matters.

(Page)
Stayne: Certainly. Now if you'll excuse us... Come, Chiffon.
Rif: For Cain-sama's sake I can't let questionable people near him.
That lot have enough wealth and power of their own, but they're already trying to get at my beautiful master.
Maid: Say, have you heard? The gossip about that Frenchwoman and Rif-sama who just became head butler?

(Page)
Maid 2: I heard. You mean Chiffon?
Maid: That's right! She's constantly following Rif-sama around and trying to get close to him, even in public!
Maid 3: How disgusting!
Maid 4: But since she doesn't understand English very well, I doubt he'll go along with it.
Cain: You're quite the heart-breaker.
I suppose she doesn't know that our servants are forbidden to have love affirs with each other. Or maybe she doesn't mind losing her position if she can get you?
And maybe this is a chance for you to get free of this hard physical work you're not used to?
Why don't you two elope together?

(Page)
Cain: I don't care if you go.
I'll just go back to the way I was before I met you.
(thinks) To the time when I used to cry all alone
(Cain runs away)
Rif: Cain-sama!

(Page)
Rif: Chiffon!
Are you following me again! Don't you have work to do!
(Chiffon kisses him)
F/X Rif shoves her away
Cain: Rif!
Come, Rif. There's a hereditary task our stewards must do.
I'm about to entrust you with the care of the Hargreaves family's secret chamber.

(Page)
Cain: There's lots of places here like this, besides my family's poison cabinet.
Rif: Cain-sama?
This is... amazing. This mural of Prince Edward is your family's hidden treasure?
Cain: Look over here, Rif.

(Page)
Cain: It's a black sheep.
Like me, basically.
Rif: A black sheep...
Yes, I see.
Cain: If you press the black sheep, there's a hidden mechanism.

Rif: What?
F/X touch
F/X rumble of door opening
Rif: What is it???

(Page)
Cain: My ancestor was given this by the King to honor his martial exploits.
'The White Lily baptismal font.'
If you sold it you'd get the worth of all my land for it.
Rif: It's that valuable?!
Cain: This castle has many ancestral works of art and hidden treasures like that. It's your job to protect them and see they're well taken care of.
Not that you need to worry.
The black sheep
And this armor from Henry VIII's reign will protect the font.

(Page)
F/X Wind blowing
F/X door shuts
Rif: (reading note) Chiffon?
'To my beloved butler', is it? If she's calling me out in the middle of the night like this, I have to go see her.
And tell her plainly what's what.

(Page)
Rif: Chiffon?
(Sees Chiffon's body with a spear through her back.)
Stayne: Oh!!
Rif: Mr. Stayne!!
Stayne: M-murderer!!
The butler has murdered Chiffon!!

(Page)
F/X grab
Cain: Yes, it *is* Chiffon.
The murder weapon was the spear from the armor. One thrust from behind.
Stayne: I was doing my night rounds and came in here. I thought I saw someone... but it was after Rif-sama had already killed her.
Rif: Wait a moment, Mr. Stayne! When I arrived she was already dead...

(Page)
Stayne: But everyone was about to find out that you and Chiffon had a particular relationship
Today you had a tryst with her here, and you gave her a push in the middle of a quarrel, isn't that right?
Rif: No, I didn't!
Please look at this.
It's a note from her that she left in my room! Telling me to come here at a certain time.
In the first place it was she who pursued me. I never returned her feelings. I came here to tell her to stop....
Stayne: But she writes 'to my beloved butler.' 'Come to the chapel as usual.'
Isn't this obvious proof of your relationship! Call the police!

(Page)
Cain: Wait, Stayne.
Leave that note here.
Stayne: But I have to give it to the police...
Cain: You really think she wrote that note?
Stayne: Of course. This intimate way of writing proves for certain that these two had a close relationship.
Cain: This is a strange story. Allie--
Allie: Uh- yes--

(Page)
Cain: Chiffon couldn't write.
Allie: When she came here I signed her contract for her. She'd had no real education in France...
Our previous butler was a distant relation. He said she begged and begged him into letting her come.
F/X Cain grabs note
Cain: I suppose you meant to take it away and destroy it before I could analyze the handwriting?

(Page)
Cain: You wrote it, didn't you, Stayne?
You couldn't have known this until everyone was together and had been counted
So why when you came here did you say right away 'Chiffon is dead'?
Stayne: But that's because... I saw the maid's body and...
Cain: How many maids do you think we have here?
There was something odd about her. Why did she express her love for a fellow servant in front of people, when ordinarily she should have hidden it?
You were trying to become the steward here, right?

(Page)
Cain: After the old butler retired you thought you'd be nextin line. Rif was an obstacle in your way that you hadn't counted on. When this fascinating Frenchwoman appeared, you concocted a plan.
She was having a hard time of it here. You tempted her- try to make Rif surrender to her charms... Even if she failed, when their forbidden relationship was discovered they'd both get the sack.
But she was dazzled by the treasure here. When she came to steal the White Lily Font, there was a struggle and you killed her.
Then you decided to use the gossip about them to make Rif look like the murderer. You wrote this note and left it in Rif's room.
F/X Stayne snatches the note
F/x it goes up in flames in the candle

(Page)
Cain: So now you've shown your true colors.
There's no point in doing that.
It was just a folded piece of paper.
I switched them about in my pocket. Rif, take charge of this.
Rif: Yes, sir.
Stayne: Aaaghhh!
You! If not for you--!
I didn't serve here for thirty years just to work under a youngster like you! *I'm* the next steward---!!

(Page)
Stayne: (screaming as he's taken into custody)
Cain: What a pity. Now you've lost your last chance to get free of me.
Rif: There's no other place for me but here.
Thank you for saving me- my master.

(Page)
Rif: Really? So Stayne died in prison...
He admitted writing the note but he always denied having killed Chiffon
He said she was already dead when he arrived...
When he looked the spear was still with the armor, but stained with blood... He was afraid of being suspected, so he thrust it into her body to make it look as if someone had just killed her.
Then he put the note in my room to make me look like the culprit.
But...

(Page)
Rif: I had the feeling that he wasn't lying.
But if not him, who else could have killed her?
Cain: That's obvious. The black sheep.
Let's suppose that she was spying on us when we opened the room where the White Lily Font is
We said that the mechanism to open the room was in the black sheep.
'A black sheep' means a prodigal son. Here it refers to Prince Edward in the mural.
But she was French and didn't know that expression.

(Page)
Cain: Supposing she thought the black sheep meant the black sheep standing among the white ones- she would have pressed the wrong switch by mistake.
Cain (in flashback): This armor will protect it.
Cain: It was an old device of my ancestors' to guard our treasure. It would have brought Heaven's punishment on a foolish thief.

(Page)
(voice) Baa baa black sheep
Have you any wool?
Cain: Of course, this is all 'what if.'
But I don't want to drink tea that still smells of her.
(voice) One for the master
One for the dame
Cain: And I wouldn't want a man like that helping me to dress

(Page)
(voice) And one for the little boy who cries in the lane
Cain: You're the only one I don't mind touching these scars of mine, Rif
Rif: (thinks) I'm the one who's been taken prisoner.

Ch. 5 Scold's Bridle 1

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