Chapter 59

I stared at the familiar door. I wasn't scared as I was so used to being. I wasn't sure if that was because of my resolution to fix this mess, or the three men who would magically appear the moment I said the word 'help'.

That was what they said anyway. Whether it was true or not…

I shook my head.

I won't be needing to call anyone.

Before I had raised my hand to knock I heard his voice, clear and crisp, loud enough to be heard from behind the door.

"Come in".

I froze.

Was he speaking to me? Is there a chance he might be speaking to someone else? Maybe he was expecting some-

"Isabelle".

I couldn't put my finger on why I loved it when he said my name. It made my name sound musical.

I opened the door confidently.

When he came to view I soaked in the sight of him.

The sun made his hair look angelic and the color of his red eyes was breathtaking. His face, however, was serious. There was no smile. Even the usual warmness he would look at me with was dimmed. I knew that looked well. Well enough to smile reassuringly at him.

He was scared.

I wasn't sure why, but there was this need to tell him everything was alright. That I would be there. That I would always...

"Cain"-

"Take a seat" he glanced to the chair in front of him.

Before I might have hesitated, now I strode forward and took a seat. I stared at my clasped hands for a moment in fear. But then I took a breath and looked up at him.

He wore a smile.

It was a fake one.

"Cain. You know why I'm here don't you?" I saw his smile minimize which gave me my answer.

"Isabelle" his voice was smooth, calming my senses, "You should know that I know of everything that happens in my household".

I flinched at that.

How much did he know?

"I'm sure you do" I replied, voice feigning calm. He knew that I was pretending. I think we both knew each other like the palm of our hands.

"When you were Seventeen years old, Angela had met her now-husband. If I recall they had broken up several times, but back when they first met they were quite smitten weren't they?" His words played like a story, but I found myself furrowing my brows deeper as he continued, "She would fuss about not being able to spend enough time with him. You disliked him. You always disliked all of the boys who came near her. That made her quite angry didn't it?" His lips lifted in a transition between a smile and a sneer.

"What are you?"- he cut me off by lifting a finger and pressing it on my lips, holding it there a second too long.

"Then one night. The third day of a nasty storm. She ran out. She knew you would run after her, which you did", I could feel sweat building up in my palms, "She spent the night in the stables servants' quarters with the boy, and since you couldn't return, you spent it..."

I could barely breathe. I remembered the day he mentioned. Like a memory that was vivid because it was an out-of-the-ordinary day. It stood out against my bland memories of routine work. But how would he know about it? Nobody had realized. It was the dead of night.

"Why don't you say where you spent that night. Tell me." He looked away, eyes broiling in anger.

"I had no choice- I'm sorry there was nobody else I could trust"-

"Say it".

"In Justin's room" I muttered quietly.

Justin wouldn't have let me stay if it were under any other circumstances. The quarters outside were mainly for men and the storm was at one point water and then the next hailstone. So fast It had caused a cut around my arms when I had chased after Angela. If she hadn't already had one hit her forehead and bruise her, it might've been my fist that had left the mark.

We hadn't slept a wink that night. We had chatted throughout it all. The occasional roar of thunder had drowned us out at times but that hadn't discouraged us. I enjoyed it. Instead of the sound of my bickering with Angela, it was a conversation I could enjoy. Since becoming a slave I barely had any free time, so seeing Justin was just something I did while walking by, usually a wave or a simple greeting. I had enjoyed that night so much that I...

"You could've stopped after that night you know" I felt the accusation on his tongue.

Had he known since that long ago?

Angela had continued to spend an odd night over at Alex's. And when she did... I would spend some time with Justin. Not the whole night of course, just for an hour or two. Just to distract me for a bit. To pretend I was living back in the time the Duchess was still alive.

"You don't know how hard it was" I swallowed, looking away. I could feel shame filling my entire core.

"I did" He corrected softly, his hand reaching for mine across the desk, covering it completely. "You could've at least visited the nights. Father drank himself to sleep every night. He wouldn't notice a bomb go off in the room next to him".

"I couldn't risk it" I hated that he was right. I really could have gone by Cain, but back then, the only care I had was making sure Angela was safe. Cain was always on my mind, but mostly as a threat to her safety.

"You could have" He cleared his throat and pulled his hand away, "Nobody told me about what happened. Nobody had to inform me because I knew everything. I saw it all".

My eyes snapped towards him in surprise, but he was gone. There was no trace of that gold hair for a moment and I had blinked a few times. It was only when I reached forward, questioning whether I had truly gone mad that I felt a face. I could only see an empty chair but I held his face. My fingers traveled along his features. His jaw. His chin. His eyes. His lips... They were there.

But he... wasn't...

Slowly, as if my sight blurred he appeared in front of me. His face nuzzled my hand. Now completely visible.

"You... You were a mage?" I stammered, my hand not moving from his face.

His lips tilted up and there was amusement dancing in those red eyes.

"Oh, my sweet Isabelle. I am so much worse".