A Fate Stirred With Blood

She quickly shakes the feeling off with a question, “Does she listen to instructions?”

Ziason nods. “Very well.”

“And her mother?”

“She left me with Kaicha and left.”

“She wasn’t prepared for motherhood, eh?”

Ziason shrugs. “I will have her maid bring food for you as well. The maid will also prepare your bath and every other thing you may need.”

“Is this the last time I’ll see you for a while?” Heaven asks. She doesn’t know why she did, but, for some reason, she feels bad at the thought that she may not see Ziason again for a long time.

“I come by the tower often,” Ziason replies, “you will see more of me.”

That is the most positive answer Heaven has gotten today, and a refreshing feeling of filtered delight courses through her at the thought that of seeing Ziason often.

“So, will you show me where the dance practice room is?” she asks with eyes rounded by joy.

“The ballroom, you mean? It’s on the floor before the ground floor. Come.”

The two adults board the stairs again. That’s when a brief thought comes across Heaven’s mind—the fact that she would walk to and fro these stairs every day with the child for practice. But then it could also serve as warm up for dances to keep them both fit. That’s probably a good thing, right?

When they reach the second floor, Ziason brings Heaven to a hall introduced through the very first door in the floor. It’s smaller than the bottom hall, yet Heaven can already feel her feet itching to slide on its appropriately slick floors.

“It’s my first time seeing a medieval ballroom,” she giggles.

Ziason huffs while leaning against the wall. “It is empty, Heaven, and the floors were modified recently to fit your practice. You do not think these floors existed back then, do you?”

“Well, what do I know?”

“Besides, most content of this tower have either been destroyed or given away. If this room still had its matters, you would have been absolutely astonished by its whole look.”

“Why did you give away the ones that weren’t destroyed, then?”

Ziason pushes himself from the wall and leaves the hall, heading for the stairs. “To forget past memories.”

Heaven jogs to catch up with him. “I won’t ask about the memories, so how about the kind of dance you want me to teach Kaicha? We haven’t clarified that.”

“Any type that speaks to the soul.”

“Oh…” Heaven stops at the stair landing and watches Ziason hurry down the remaining steps to the bottom hall.

Since ballet broke her heart, she’s taking a break from it for now. So she’ll teach contemporary instead.

“As this has been settled, sir, is it okay for you release my family now?” the man in brown suit, still standing close to the stairs, asks Ziason who had already rushed past him.

“Oh, right! How could I have forgotten that?” Ziason mutters as he suddenly turns back and approaches the man. “You were such a patient lawyer, David, and a good one. It will be so sad to lose you.”

“What?” Panic strikes across David’s expression that instant, confusing Heaven again as he raps breathlessly, “I swear, I don’t know this lady or why you need her! I don’t know a single thing and neither does my family! Please, let us go, I’m begging you!”

Ziason nonchalantly pauses in front of David, his hands resting in his pants pockets as he tilts his head down to stare intently at the lawyer. “I WILL… let your family go,” he whispers with a tight smile.

David doesn’t seem to buy it. “Alpha, pleas—”

Ziason waves his right hand closely across the man’s neck with a sharp movement. Heaven would swear she saw the long nail of Ziason’s index finger slice through the man’s throat right before blood gushes out. But, even at that moment, she’s gobsmacked at David’s last words.

“You— you’re an Alpha?” she whispers to Ziason who merely glances up at her before making for the door again.

Heaven dashes after him. However, before she could fully clear the stairs, Ziason was already out.

She tries to open the door and discovers it’s locked. Banging on it doesn’t even solve a thing.

It dawns on her only then that she really is a captive in this tower for five freaking years. But, also, Ziason is an Alpha. And he killed the lawyer without even batting an eyelid.

How can she be certain he would not kill her as well?

“Oh my god…” she mutters while leaning against the door and sliding down to a crouch.

Deceit. That’s what this is.

All this while, Ziason deceived her. He made her believe this job offer wall full of roses, but now she’s seeing all the dark patches in it.

She should have known it would amount to no good when he bought her freedom. Killing the lawyer, then being an Alpha, is what opened her senses to the stink of true danger.

How come she didn’t smell that in his essence—wasn’t an Alpha’s aura supposed to be heady? Or is it true what the books say that an Alpha can mask his aura?

Heaven can’t help but retract her thoughts to when she first met Ziason at the bridge. If only she had looked closer or listened to the quiet voice that tried to defy her decision, she would not have fallen into this trap.

Now, recalling his absolute gentleness to Kaicha earlier feels weird to her. Because how on earth can a person swiftly switch from softhearted to hardhearted in such a small period of time?

Who knows what he’ll do next—not paying her for the entire five years, and then killing her? And the girl, why’s he taking so much measures just to teach her dance? Why would he kill the lawyer, or even capture the lawyer’s family?

Unless… Ziason did not plan to follow the contract, which could have been a ploy to lure Heaven into compliance. Since he succeeded in bringing her here, he then had to kill the lawyer, who was the only other person who seemed to know about the contract.

Speaking of the contract, it’s there in the pool of the lawyer’s blood. Sinking in the fluid. Reduced to a mere paper.

And Heaven wonders, what if this man’s fate ends up being hers?