The ride back to the manor was a silent one, the kind where the air was tightened with a certain amount of pressure closing in on you, and made everything suffocating.

I didn’t know how long I could deal and sit as still as a statue. I could feel Zade’s eyes occasionally flickering to me, but I was determined to keep my gaze on the window, hoping the view of the sunset and the warm orange spilling across the sky could make me feel... okay.

But it doesn’t... after what happened, there was a shift I couldn’t explain. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

It wasn’t just the murderous intensity that gnawed at my insides with a mix of fear... There was something else, and I had no intention of figuring out what the fuck that was.

At the sudden stop, I realized we had arrived. I could already feel my body moving, but it took two seconds to realize that I hadn’t.

Whatever strength left I could muster... I undid my seatbelts, opened the door, and stepped out.

I winced, pure pain shooting across my body, the intense urge to cry from even the smallest amount of it made my steps unsteady.

I forced it right back, swallowing a thick lump down my throat. Now wasn’t the time to show that I was affected, especially now he was watching my every move.

As I walked up the stone steps, the heaviness compelled me to throw a look over my shoulder.

Zade leaned against the car, his dark gaze pinned on me as if he could read every single thing I thought about. That moment in the restaurant flashed before my eyes as if reliving it again.

Chewing the inside of my mouth, I looked away, determined to get away.

If I thought those judgmental stares I got at the academy were worse... then I was very, very wrong. Nothing amounts to those fucking hollowed eyes that bleed into your soul.

It was the longest journey ever before I reached my destination. My room door opened as Cynthia stepped out with her cleaning supplies.

"How did you get in?" I asked.

She looked up to me, smiling. "Good evening, madam. I’m assigned to your room, so I have a key."

"Oh..."

From my tone, her smile faltered.

"I-I could return the key if you like... I’d only come in if you’re around."

"It’s okay..." I murmured. "But I have a request if it’s not too much trouble."

"Anything, madam.."

"Can the locks be changed? I think it’s kinda faulty."

"Faulty? It was alright when I used it..." She raised her key as if to prove her point.

"It’s not... it keeps getting stuck."

"I see... I’ll get Andre... he does most of the fixing. He can get one ready in no time."

"Let it have just two keys. One for you and me only. Is that possible?"

"O-Of course. I’ll get him right to it. Give me an hour."

I forced a smile, nodding as I stepped into my room. "Thank you, Cynthia."

"Forgive me, Madam... I’m yet to find the bracelet. I cleaned strictly just to find it. Should I keep searching? I’m happy to."

I paused, standing for way too long. Right... I had asked her to keep looking for it.

"Madam?" she asked, worried almost as if she could discern something was wrong.

"Don’t search for it anymore. It was just a random piece of jewelry I got attached to..."

"But..." She trailed. "I thought it was important."

I managed a strained smile. "It wasn’t."

I closed the door before she could say anything else. I leaned against the frame, stiff for over a minute before I pushed off it.

The closer I got to my vanity table, a wave of disgust sank into me when I saw my reflection, and the urge to vomit was so overwhelming it made my gut twist.

I walked straight to the bathroom for a fucking shower to rid myself of the lingering sensation of his hands on me.

~☆~

It was midnight when I awoke, breaking in cold sweat. A throbbing spread throughout my entire body. It hurts so much that moving came with quivers.

I pulled the covers more to me, a chilly cold seizing my spine. I wrapped myself up until I was basically a burrito, trying to sleep through it. It was probably a fever.

I was suddenly reminded of the time I had one like this... Jacob tended to me throughout the night and slept by my side; just thinking about those moments worsened the chills.

I couldn’t even begin to imagine it was the same Jacob who blatantly said I meant nothing to him and treated me the way he did.

I’m torn between facing the truth and dwelling on times when I was over the moon whenever he was nearby, how my heart would race so fast that it felt like it’d combust, the happiness that came with holding his hand, and how much I miss the sound of my own laugh.

I was happy.

Ever since Annabeth died, it felt like the colors of my life had washed away. There was only so much I could do to just... keep going.

Jacob made me keep going, and now that is gone, what else do I have left to endure this existence?

I felt the covers peel off me, but I was too weak to open my eyes, curling up like a ball as I was exposed.

I groaned when my front pressed against the bed, hissing as I felt a hand stroking my ass, a cooling feeling spreading across my flesh as if something was applied.

I clenched the sheets hard. "Fuck off..."

"Having a fever makes you feisty as hell, little kitten."

That voice... Zade?

I was turned onto my side. Opening my eyes took all my strength. It had to be Zade. He was the one who called me that.

"You did this to me..." I murmured, sinking into the mattress, already exhausted. "Shove a stick up your ass and fuck yourself with it."