Chapter 32BRIANNA’S POVAmelia ended up making the coffee for Catherine. When I asked her if Catherine was still angry with me for what happened, she said she was and had given her strict warning never to do my chores in place of me.She made the fourth rule clear to her which stated that I was to continue with my chores and tasks even when the maids got back from their leave. They may lend a helping hand by showing me how to do it or the way to go about it since I was a novice. But I was to do the majority of the work.And with that being said, Amelia couldn’t cover for me. But it was nice of her to be considerate. And she also made me promise to never hesitate in asking her or any of the maids for help when I needed it.Stepping out of the kitchen, I could see Catherine thudding down the stairs angrily, her blue eyes roaming around as she screamed my name.She was wearing a one-shoulder turquoise dress with a little slit just above the side of her waist. The dress was short. So sho
Chapter 33BRIANNA’S POV*****Outside, the downpour was descending heavily. I stood by the window, my breath creating a small mist on the glass as I peered outside. The rhythmic tap-tap of raindrops against the windowpane created a soothing melody that evoked nostalgic memories in me.When I was little, I liked to go out in the rain and play. I loved the sensation of the wet grasses beneath my feet as I danced around in the open space. I loved the fresh scent of the purified air in my nostrils. I loved the way the cool droplets landed on my skin, sending shivers all over me but at the same time washing away my worries and troubles. I loved the joy and freedom. I loved it all.But after all that, I always came down with a cold. My mom will scream at me, ground little me for weeks and threaten not to make pancakes which were my favourite then ever again. Father just laughed it out saying, “Leave her. She’s just a kid.”Anyways, I still went out to play in the rain when Mom wasn’t aroun
Chapter 34BRIANNA’S POV(CONT’D FROM PREVIOUS CHAPTER)I was so startled by Lily’s words, I took a moment to breathe it in. She didn’t turn out to be a snitch like I had thought. But a saviour. A saviour that’ll save me from this hellhole I was stuck in. Thank goodness! Tonight, I'll leave this place.In an instant, I took the breakfast tray from her hands and rushed to drop it on the nightstand. Holding her hands, I guarded her as we sat on the edge of the bed. “You’re sure you didn’t tell him?” I scooted closer to her, my voice husky even though I knew the guards outside my room door couldn’t hear us.“Yes,” she nodded vehemently. “Alpha Hermes is a monster. I have seen what he did to the other girls before you. It was bad. Very bad. And I wouldn’t want to see you continue suffering like you are. I would have resigned and left this castle a long time ago. But I have nowhere to go. So I had to stay back.”Hearing what she said triggered quick, disturbing thoughts in me. Hermes had
Chapter 35BRIANNA’S POV(CONT’D FROM PREVIOUS CHAPTER)“Wake up sleeping beauty,” a hoarse whisper echoed in my head and I felt moist lips stamp tight against my forehead. “Your prince charming needs you awake.”My eyelids slowly unfurled to see the blurry image of Hermes’s devilish features so close to me, his warm breath tinged with a faint scent of alcohol brushing against my face.The moment my vision cleared and his image appeared in full view right in front of me, I recoiled in shock. As I swung slightly, metals clinked and that was when I realized that I was suspended, my body weighed down by heavy chains that bound my wrists and ankles.I freaked out even more when I realized I had no clothes on. That realization alone was enough to shake off the remaining drowsiness in me, making me instantly wide awake.“Where am I?” I muttered with a weak whisper as my head suddenly grew heavy from the struggles and back-and-forth swings I did. “Where are my clothes?...please let me down. U
Chapter 36BRIANNA’S POVMy heavy eyelids fluttered open, my head throbbing with a dull ache. As my vision cleared, I found myself on my bed in my room which was fairly bright with the dipping rays of the sun pouring in from the open window.Sebastian was standing by the bedside, his gaze intent on me. The moment our eyes met, he offered me a smile equal in warmth and brightness as the rays pouring in.A slight wince escaped my lips as I cradled my head, trying to remember how I got here in such a state. The last thing I remembered was crashing into the table where a flower vase was and falling unconscious after Catherine had hit me on the side of my face with her crystal-studded purse, making the headache I was managing spiral out of control.Fuck! I muttered with a raspy breath as I tried but unsuccessfully to sit up on the headboard of my bed. My muscles were so sore and tense from all the sleeping I could barely raise an arm.“Wait,” Sebastian reached out in an instant and stocked
Chapter 37SEBASTIAN’S POVI was still brooding over what Catherine did to Brianna and how she had walked out on me when Amelia and some of the other maids barged into my room to inform me that Brianna had collapsed.Seeing her like that, unconscious, almost breathless with her skin as pale as freshly fallen snow made fear and panic riot inside me. I had never been afraid like that for a long time. The only time that happened was when my parents died.First, it was my dad. He died of a chronic cardiovascular disease. It happened a few months after my marriage to Catherine. I was there, holding his hand tight, hot tears steaming my vision as he said his last words on his deathbed before giving up the ghost. I broke down to the extent that I found it hard to eat amd think clearly for days, the scenario replaying like a horror movie in my head. Catherine had to invite my mum to come over and intervene. If not I would have died of sorrow and starvation.A few weeks later, while I was havi
Chapter 38SEBASTIAN’S POV“Breathe with me, Catherine,” my voice was calm and soothing as I held her in my arms. “Like before, take in deep breaths and let them out slowly.”She was as pale as a wilting flower. Her skin was almost as white as snow – just like Brianna’s this morning when she was unconscious. Catherine was struggling to keep her eyes open, flickering them like candle lights amid a gentle breeze, to the extent I thought she’ll pass out at any second.The only time I had seen her like that was during her father’s funeral. That was when she had her first panic attack.Her father’s casket was opened for friends and family to come and pay their last respect and say their final goodbyes. When it was our turn, she suddenly broke down. Her skin was cold and turned red as she struggled to breathe. It took me and the paramedics that arrived more than twenty minutes to stabilize her and make her feel better.Ever since she hadn’t had any other case until today.As I demonstrated
Chapter 39BRIANNA’S POVThe night was drawing close. Clad in my nightgown, I paced my room in swift, troubled strides, biting hard on my lower lip till it throbbed like my pulse, trying but all to no avail to steady the erratic thumping of my heart against my chest.Who knew what Catherine might think seeing me in bed with her husband?She might think we were making out. Think we have been sleeping together whenever she wasn’t around. But that wasn’t the case.I had just broken her last and most important rule which stated that I was to never talk, go close to or engage in any form of activity with Sebastian.Fuck! Fuck!! Fuck!!! Fuck!!!! Fuck!!!!!I stamped my foot against the base of my bed. Falling on the bed, I cradled it as the painful sensation stung me like an electric shock. I had seen how she reacted like an enraged bull the other night she saw Sebastian checking out the lip bruise I had sustained from that bastard Alpha king at that cocktail party. Now, she'll surely bite m