five

“Yes.” Bella said solemnly.

“What did she say to you?”

“That power comes with many faces,” Bella replied, still confused about whatever that meant.

Andre’s lips thinned. “She likes to confuse people.”

“So do you.” she said to herself under her breath.

The air thickened as it appeared her words were too loud and he must have heard.

Andre stepped closer. “You will not play games with me, Bella. Not here. Not ever.”

“I am not playing,” she said, her voice steady despite the fear pounding in her chest.

His gaze flicked again, lingering this time on her shoulder. His eyes narrowed.

“What is that?” He asked.

Bella’s heart skipped. “A clasp,” she said. “It came with the dress.”

Andre stared at it for a long moment. Then he scoffed. “Remove it.”

Her fingers curled slightly at her sides stubbornly. “Why?”

“Because I said so.”

The silence stretched for a while between the two and Bella did not move.

Andre’s expression darkened as he made a motion as though he might've grabbed it off her. Then, abruptly, he stepped back.

“Later,” he said flatly. “We will discuss this later.”

When he left her alone, Bella’s legs nearly gave out beneath her.

She did not remove the cufflink but instead sank to the bed sighing in relief.

“That was close.”

She stripped out of the cloth before carefully making her way to the bathroom.

Her fingers trail a long line over the white polished ceramic frame of the bath tub before finally turning the water on.

“Crazy afternoon…” she muttered to herself before stepping into the stall.

A silhouette reflects over the curtain watching before disappearing into the shadows as her full body sank in.

********************************

It was evening when she stepped out. A cold wind blew through the curtains making her lips quiver as she grabbed her towel first then her robe.

Bella did not notice the quiet at first that filled the void in her room.

Her gaze only turned to the fire that had burned low by the time she returned, the embers breathing a dull red glow.

Her door was exactly as she had left it, closed but not locked, the handle cool beneath her palm as she touched it barely before changing her mind.

It was only when she stepped fully inside that she saw it: The note that laid on the bed.

Her chest tightened.

“This is weird." She muttered to herself.

Bella closed the bathroom door slowly behind her, the click of the latch sounding far too loud in the stillness.

She did not move toward the bed right away. Instead, she crossed the room to the window and drew the curtain back a fraction, letting moonlight spill across the floor.

The garden beyond was quiet, with nothing unusual. Only then did she turn.

The note was written on cream paper with her name written across it in a handwriting she did not recognize.

She reached for it at last, lifting it between two fingers as though it might burn her skin.

Bella opens the paper and reads through it for a minute. The next moment, she turned and walked to the fireplace.

The paper trembled faintly in her hand as she knelt and coaxed the embers back to life.

A flame caught quickly, bright and filling the room. She held the note over it until the edge blackened and curled inward, the ink disappearing first, then her name was swallowed whole by the fire.

She watched until there was nothing left but ash. Only then did she exhale.

The room seemed to release its breath with her, the walls settling back into silence.

Whatever had been written would remain only known to her , and that, she decided, was the safest thing to do.

Bella rose and crossed to the balcony pushing the door before her. The doors opened easily, the night air cool against her skin as she stepped outside

She rested her hands against the frame and closed her eyes.

Andre’s voice echoed uninvited in her mind as his words and reaction when he had seen the cufflinks pressed against her ribs like a promise and a threat tangled together.

She wondered, not for the first time, how many conversations in this place were postponed rather than faced right on.

When she opened her eyes again, she felt watched. It wasn't in the obvious way as there was no movement, or sound.

Yet it left a subtle awareness, a prickle at the back of her neck that refused to fade. After a while, the feeling passed. Or perhaps she simply grew tired of listening to it.

Bella stepped back inside and closed the doors softly behind her.

She moved through the room without lighting any lamps, guided by memory and moonlight alone.

The fabric of her dress slid from her shoulders and pooled at her feet. She stepped out of it carefully, folding it once before setting it aside.

There was no rush or urgency. If someone was watching, she refused to give them the satisfaction of haste.

She shed the rest of her clothes in silence, her skin cooling as the night air brushed over it.

Standing bare beneath the dim glow, she felt strangely unafraid. Vulnerable, yes but not weak.

Slowly, she reached for the cloak hanging near the door.

The fabric was heavy as she drew it around herself and fastened it at the throat, the weight settling across her shoulders.

The candle on her bedside table flickered, its flame wavering as though it sensed what was coming.

Bella leaned forward and blew it out as darkness filled the room.

For a minute, she waited for a heartbeat longer than necessary, listening and counting her breaths. Then she reached for the door and slipped out into the corridor.

The halls were empty, the stone floors cold beneath her bare feet as she moved briskly following the directions noted in the letter.

The farther she walked, the older the corridors became.

She paused once, pressing herself into an alcove as footsteps passed at the far end of the hall.

Bella watches as a guard moves past where she had hidden herself unaware of how close he came to seeing her.

She held still until the sound faded, her heart steady despite the risk.

When the coast was clear she continued on.

At last, she reached a narrow door.

Her fingers hesitated, then closed around it before pushing gently.