She Is Mine

Heidi listens to the rattle of dishes in the sink while washing the stack of tableware from lunch, relying on the blues playing in her head to drown out the chatter in the kitchen.

“The man is handsome. I’ll keep saying it to the grave,” one of those who’d served lunch, a woman in her thirties, remarks.

“I wonder who his girlfriend is. She has to be very lucky,” another adds with a smile. “…and really hot.”

Heidi swallows her throat when she realizes who they are gossiping about.

She had hoped she could toughen up and move on after the bathroom incident.

But anything that relates to Hunter still seems to unravel her completely. Even now, her unsteady hands struggle to hold the plates.

She spends what feels like an eternity finishing the dishes, her mind filled with the thought of a well-deserved nap.

Yet, her hopes are dashed when she makes her way down the hallway, only to find Saturn standing there, casually leaning against the doorway to the servants' quarters.

“Ah, Heidi. There you are!” She calls out, pushes herself out of the wall, and reaches for Heidi with a mischievous grin. “Come here.”

Heidi follows Saturn while feeling a tangle of curiosity and unease.

She soon finds herself in the girl’s lavishly decorated bathroom, where the bright light reflects off smooth marble surfaces.

“My lipstick dropped in there,” Saturn says, pointing to the toilet bowl. “Get it for me.”

Heidi stoops and lets her gaze fall to the waterlogged object at the bottom of the toilet. She then exhales and rises to her full height.

“It’s bloody soaked,” she mutters. “You have hundreds of others. Use them.”

Her response is met with a cold stare, as Saturn clearly isn’t taking no for an answer. 

When Heidi tries to leave, she blocks her path, arms crossed. “I don’t want to repeat myself, Heidi, you know I’m not good at that.” 

Having seen enough drama for one day and feeling more exhausted than on heavy-duty days, Heidi reluctantly kneels beside the toilet bowl and reaches into the chilly water, not caring that it soaks her sleeve.

She grasps the stick.

But before she can pull back, she’s met with a sudden, forceful shove that plunges her face into the toilet water.

She gasps as the taste of the water fills her mouth, her mind reeling in panic.

“My brother, huh? Was that your backup plan to glory, oh, Fallen Angel?” Saturn barks in a voice laced with scorn.

Heidi’s attempts to resist are futile; gasping, grunting, and losing in the battle against the other’s cruel grip.

“There! Let’s see if you have the guts to seduce him again with ‘shame’ etched across your forehead!” Saturn snarls before yanking her to her feet.

The sudden movement sends a wave of dizziness through Heidi’s head, her vision blurring as she struggles to regain her balance.

Saturn wastes no time.

She slams Heidi’s back against the cold wall, and the impact sends a shock wave of pain through her body while leaving her breathless.

“Unlock this!” she demands as she waves Heidi’s phone in her face.

Ragged breaths echo across the bathroom, chest heaving in Heidi’s struggle to recover.

Her eyes dart between the phone and the fury blazing in Saturn’s gaze, each second stretching endlessly as her mind runs in frantic circles.

Then she spits out a mouthful of water, which she held in her mouth when Saturn shoved her head into the toilet bowl.

The droplets splatter across the phone’s screen and onto Saturn’s face, causing the latter to recoil in disgust.

“Yuck!” She groans as her face contorts.

In that brief moment of distraction, her grip on Heidi loosens, and the girl seizes the opportunity.

She kicks the side of Saturn’s right leg, knocking her off balance and sending her to the floor.

She then snatches her phone and bolts for the bathroom door.

But before she can escape, Saturn’s hand clamps onto her leg and drags her down.

Heidi hit the ground hard, pain radiating through her body.

“Ho ho! You don’t want to fight me, Heidi!” Saturn screams, and Heidi sees the madness flashing in the girl’s eyes.

“Oh yes, I do!” She shoots back. Her fury is evident. “What the fuck is your problem, bitch? Why don’t you stay out of my damn way?”

“Because you’re in MY way, honey.” Saturn punctuates her words with emphasis on ‘my.’ “You have nothing here! Not even yourself. You belong to the White family, to use as we please!”

Both girls scramble to their feet, their bodies tense, ready for another clash.

Saturn reaches out her hand. “Give me the phone.”

“Or fuck what?” Heidi retorts, glancing behind her, her mind working fast.

The door’s right there. If she stalls for just a moment, she may make it out.

As she’s ready to dash, to lock Saturn inside and deal with the consequences later, she flings the door open.

But her escape is cut short when she stumbles forward, into the waiting arms of three maids stationed on the other side of the door.

Behind her, Saturn lets out a triumphant cackle. “Now, you’ll unlock your shit and hand it over, or I promise you, these girls will drag you straight to Dad Griffin,” she hisses breathlessly. “And we both know how quickly he’ll get this sorted before throwing you to the wolves.”

Heidi’s heart sinks, as Saturn’s words hit her like a cold wave.

She hadn’t fully considered the implications of anyone else finding out about her relationship with Hunter.

But Saturn has it all figured out. “Dad Griffin’s rules are ironclad, and having any relationship with commoners is a blunt no. In this case, baby girl, you are the commoner. You’ve seen him dole out harsh punishments for far less.”

“You can’t be certain I have a relationship with Hunter,” Heidi retorts. After all, Saturn had only seen a single picture, nothing more.

The latter lets out a laugh. “Dad wouldn’t ask for evidence now, would he? He just needs my word, girl—a White’s word against a mere servant. How’s that?”

Heidi’s face contorts in disgust. “Bitch,” she snarls, putting more smiles on Saturn’s face.

With no other options, Heidi knows she has to unlock her phone and hand it over.

She can’t risk finding out what Dad Griffin may do to her.

If there’s something she wants even more than her relationship with Hunter, it’s maintaining the distance Dad Griffin has kept from her since she became a servant.

That has been her only shield from his fucking bloody talons.

Saturn’s face lights up with triumph as she emerges from the bathroom.

She points to the floor, her eyes fixed on Heidi.

“Sit,” she orders, and the girl complies without hesitation.

Water drips from her soaked bonnet, and a dull ache pulses in her head from the struggle as she watches Saturn primping in front of the mirror.

Then with a bright, taunting smile, the latter glances at Heidi, who rolls her eyes and looks away.

Saturn doesn’t seem to mind. She settles on her bed, scrolling through Heidi’s phone.

“Big brother did take these past few years to live out some grand adventure,” she murmurs, “Including dating an outcast.” She chuckled softly. “Imagine his face when he finds out that the girl he’s been texting these cheesy things to is just a failure who’s his slave all along.”

The room’s silent, save for her occasional giggles as her fingers dance across the screen, perusing the lovers’ conversations.

“He’s quite the romantic, and popular too. How did I not come across his profile before?” She mumbles and reaches for her phone.

Typing something, she drawls under her breath, “At… General… Yosvolec…”

Then she looks at Heidi with a questioning expression. “What kind of username is that, anyway? Is he obsessed with VR or something?”

“You’ve gotten what you want. Can I go now?”

“Oh, have I?” Saturn replies with mock surprise. “I didn’t realize. We still have something else to take care of.”

Her eyes gleam with mischief as she watches Heidi, expecting a reaction. But the girl gives away nothing.

“Don’t you think Hunter deserves to know who you are?” she says with a smirk. She knows those words will get a rise out of Heidi, and they do.

“What the fuck? That’s not for you to decide. You can’t make me do that!” The girl retorts.

Saturn shrugs. “That’s only if you have a choice. But I have this…” she waves Heidi’s phone in the air before nodding toward the maids. “And I have them. So, it’s your call: go quietly, or with a lot of noise.”

Heidi falls silent, the weight of her situation pressing down on her.

She can’t bring herself to appear in front of Hunter again. And not while she’s looking like a sheep beaten by rain.

But Saturn’s patience is wearing thin. 

“Grab her,” she orders the maids, who immediately hauls Heidi to her feet.

She tries to resist, but there’s no way she could fight off three larger girls with her sloppy combat skills.

“Fine. I’ll walk on my own,” She concedes.

Still, Saturn signals the maids to proceed.

They drag Heidi down the stairs and through the hallways, past maids and guests who all turn to stare.

In moments like this, she deeply regrets not taking her combat training seriously.

As Saturn leads them down a winding staircase into the dim, musty basement, the air grows thick with the mellow, earthy aroma of wine.

Towering racks line the walls, and their dark glass bottles shimmer faintly in the low light.

At the end of the room, Hunter moves slowly along one of these racks; his back turned to the girls, while Dad Griffin sits on a wooden stool; leaning casually on a bar table as his gaze follows Hunter.

His cold, scrutinizing gray eyes shift toward the girls that have just come in, his gray Verdi beard and furrowed brows painting him a formidable image.

His stare lingers on Heidi for a moment before moving to Saturn. “What’s going on?” he utters in a voice that sounds like a rumbling threat.

The girl greets him with a smile. “Don’t worry, Daddy. I just forgot to introduce our former family member to Big Brother.” Her gaze turns to Hunter. “Brother, you probably haven’t met Heidi, formerly Heidi White…”

She drones on about Heidi’s subsequent failures at White Cosmetics.

Meanwhile, Heidi’s eyes follow Hunter, who, with his tuxedo jacket removed, reveals a taut, white shirt defining his muscular frame, his high-waisted pants emphasizing his torso curves.

His movements are composed, giving the impression that he’s either engrossed in his task or knowingly ignoring everything else.

After some time, however, he turns to Heidi’s direction. 

Her heart skips a beat as she instinctively lowers her head.

“I’ll take her,” Hunter declares, his sonorous voice cutting through Saturn’s words. It brings her chatter to a halt before she blinks, stunned by his announcement.

She glances at Dad Griffin, who’s watching with mild interest. Then back at Hunter. “Take her? For what, Brother?”

He doesn’t answer. Instead, his gaze remains fixed on Heidi.

“You…” he says quietly, “Look up.”

Heidi feels a force compelling her to obey, as she lifts her eyes to meet Hunter’s piercing ones.

He approaches her with a steady gait, his footsteps echoing in the silent room.

His majestic height casts a shadow over her, and his sandalwood with a hint of leather scent envelopes her senses.

As his presence dominates the room, each footstep stealing a beat of Heidi’s heart, her body tenses, eyes locked on his.

She feels a jolt of nervousness when he stands in front of her, her knees trembling, and her stomach churning as she tilts her head back to meet his expressionless face.

Until moments ago, it had been her dream to stand before Hunter, to feel his breath on her face, touch his arms, and embrace him.

But now, as her heart urges her to reach out, her mind is filled with doubt.

Hunter’s hand rests firmly on her shoulder, and the unexpected contact causes her to flinch.

“From now on, she is mine…” he growls, his gaze lingering on her before shifting to Saturn. “...Father.” He flicks his eyes toward Dad Griffin, who nods casually.

Then Hunter brushes past Heidi, Saturn, and the three maids.

He exits the hall.