Caius names her Selene Ardent

Selene's POV

"Selene."

As though it had been spoken to someone else, the word echoed in the eerie silence of the room. It was a name, but it didn't seem like mine. I could practically taste it on my tongue since it was that unpleasant.

"Selene," he said in a smooth, commanding, yet gentle, voice.

I slowly turned my head to make sense of the odd noise. His calm, focused, and commanding presence filled the room like a shadow. He sat in a chair across from my bed, the soft glow of a modest light bulb half-lighting his face. I found myself unable to look away from it.

To get my brain to work, I blinked. "What do you mean?" My voice broke, sounding almost as lost as I felt.

Without turning away, he replied, "You are Selene Ardent." "Your name is that." You're awake now, and you'll regain your memories eventually.

His comments, which I heard last, seemed overly polished and well-rehearsed, as though they had been repeated a hundred times. I felt sick to my stomach as he spoke with such assurance. Which of my memories? I had nothing at all, and what ought to have been my past was a black void.

"I don't understand," I said as my hands trembled and I wrapped the thin blanket closely over me. The sheets were warm compared to the cold that had gripped my chest. "Who am I? I'm not sure. How I got here is a mystery to me.

He rose slowly, his presence growing in the room as he approached. "You were found, lost. We brought you here. This is where you ought to be. His voice grew lower as he concluded, but it was no comfort. Instead, it gave me the chills.

Who are you? Before I could stop myself, I blurted out the question. I didn't know why, but I felt the words had meaning. More important than everything else. I had the impression that the answer would show something about myself.

His lips twitched, barely noticeable. "Caius Laurent," he replied, the name slipping like a heavy stone into the still air. I was the one who found you.

Laurent Caius. The name meant nothing to me. Nothing. It seemed as though he had painstakingly planned every element of his appearance because of how precise and faultless his face, manner, and handling of himself were. But beyond that controlled exterior, there was a frightening flare in his eyes. For a minute, all I saw were glimpses of something evil, hidden deep, hidden beneath a façade of calm indifference.

And this place? I gestured weakly around the opulent space, taking in the vast paintings on the walls, the velvet curtains, and the golden accents that shone in the dim light. It was beautiful, but it seemed wrong.

His voice was firm and low as he said, "This is my home." "And now, for however long you need it, it is also yours."

My chest became more constricted. I didn't like something about it. I was in a setting that felt too perfect, even though I had no name, no memories, nothing. It felt almost like I was meant to be here. I didn't belong, though. I was unable to.

But truly, who am I? I mumbled, feeling more isolated than ever.

He slightly lowered his gaze. You have the name Selene Ardent. You are who you are. And that's all you need to know right now."

My name. The name hung on my shoulders like a badly fitted garment and didn't seem right. This is not how I felt. This didn't seem plausible. However, I was left with no choice but to have faith in him.

I raised my hand to my brow and tried to think. I said, "I… I don't understand," in a whisper. "Why can't I remember anything?"

Caius moved in closer, his shadow enveloping me like a protective veil. He said, "Memory loss isn't uncommon after such an accident," in a firm but gentle tone, "It will eventually return." But now is the time for rest. You've been through a lot.

He reached out and placed his fingers on the back of my hand in an almost intimate gesture. It was a bit too long to touch. I tried to be composed, but I couldn't help but feel drawn to him and a spark that made me want to get to know and trust him. Something didn't seem right. It had no significance.

His touch was light, but it was assertive. The space between us appeared to belong to him.

With a voice so quiet I almost missed it, he whispered, "You're safe here." "I'll take care of everything."

Take care of everything. That's what I wanted? Instead, was that what I needed?

I inhaled deeply, my heart racing and my throat dry. "What happened to me?" The words escaped my lips before I could stop them.

His face tensed a little, the first crack in his calm exterior. Then he said harshly, "It's not important." "What matters is that you're here now."

But there was the glimmer of something he didn't want to convey, the hesitation, in his gaze. He was hiding something. Something important. And the hunger it was eating at me was too strong to ignore.

I tried to stifle it. "Okay," I murmured in a whisper, not sure I believed him.

He stared at me for a few more seconds before turning and walking to the door. He said, "Get some rest, Selene," over his shoulder. "I'll have someone bring you food shortly."

Then he disappeared. Likewise.

As I sat alone in the room, his presence still weighed heavily on me. He sounded as though he was well-prepared. He seemed to be playing a role that wasn't his. But more than anything else, I kept getting the impression that someone was watching me. Even now I was being monitored.

There was a problem. I could feel it in my gut.

The name he had given me, Selene Ardent, didn't seem like me. As though it were a disguise. A lie. But why?

I closed my eyes, trying to force the feeling that had gripped my chest away. Just for a little while. I needed to sleep. to escape. But even when I dozed off restlessly, I continued to feel as though I was being watched.