Blamed For Malice

Kael

I stared at Banjo through a wave of dizziness, my skin burning as if it were on fire. My hand trembled against my throat, which felt tighter by the second.

"Frame her?" I choked out, my voice barely a whisper. "Look at my skin, Banjo. I'm having a severe allergic reaction."

Banjo didn't even reach out to help me. He just tossed the jar back onto the vanity, where it shattered with a loud crack.

"Tahlia has used that exact skincare line for years," he said, his voice flat, icy, and completely closed off. "She had no idea you were allergic but instead of simply not using it, you rubbed it all over your neck to make her look like a murderer right before an international dinner."

"I didn't"

A loud crash echoed from the floor below, followed by the terrible sound of breaking glass and a woman’s sharp, terrified scream.

Banjo didn't hesitate. He turned and rushed down the staircase, leaving me alone in the bathroom, gasping for air as I scrubbed at my raw skin with a cold, wet cloth.

I forced my weak legs to move, holding onto the wall as I dragged myself down the hallway toward the dining room.

The main dining hall was in complete ruin.

The long table set with delicate family china, crystal goblets, and fresh floral arrangements for the European diplomatic envoy was completely overturned. Shards of glass covered the floor. Food was smeared across the rug, and a heavy silver candle holder lay bent near the fireplace.

In the middle of the mess stood Tahlia.

Her hair was messy, her cashmere sweater pulled slightly at the shoulder, and tears streamed down her red face. She was trembling violently, clutching her chest as if she couldn't catch her breath.

Banjo was already beside her, holding her shoulders, his face dark with panic. "Tahlia! What happened here? What did this?"

Tahlia looked up at him with wide, tea filled eyes, her lower lip trembling. "I came back to give Merinda the matching eye serum" she sobbed, her voice loud enough to echo into the hallway where several servants stood in horrified silence. "She was so angry, Banjo! She was screaming about how I ruined her life, how I took her place she went completely wild! She started throwing the plates, knocking over the table"

She buried her face in Banjo’s chest, her small frame shaking with dramatic sobs. "She told me she would destroy everything you built if I didn't leave Switzerland!"

I stood near the stairs, my skin red and swollen, my breath coming in painful rasps. "That's a lie," I rasped out, stepping forward. "Banjo, I was upstairs in my room the entire time"

"Shut up!"

Banjo’s roar cut through the room like a thunderclap.

He turned toward me, his eyes completely bloodshot, filled with a hatred so pure it made the temperature in the room drop. He looked at the ruined dining hall, then at Tahlia weeping in his arms, and finally at my disfigured face.

To a man whose judgment was completely blinded by his urge to protect his childhood sweetheart, the picture was obvious. In his mind, I had thrown a jealous rage, ruined the dinner, and harmed myself just to ruin them.

"You are sick, Merinda," Banjo spat out, his voice so deep and quiet it was far more terrifying than his roar. "You are a cruel, malicious monster."

"Banjo, listen to me"

"I have listened to you for three years!" he yelled, his hands clenching into tight fists at his sides. "I gave you my home. I gave you my name. I protected your useless family from debt and this is how you repay me? By terrorizing a sick girl and ruining a multi billion dollar diplomatic alliance?"

He stepped toward me, "Jarrah!" Banjo called out, not taking his eyes off mine.

Jarrah appeared from the side corridor, his face calm, his hands neatly folded behind his back. "Yes, Master Banjo?"

"Take Merinda's belongings out of the master suite," Banjo ordered, his voice devoid of any humanity. "Move everything to the old servant quarters in the west wing."

"Banjo no"

"You are locked out of the master suite permanently," Banjo said, stepping so close I could feel the cold rage radiating off him. "You don't deserve to step foot in my wing of this house ever again. You will stay in the west wing, out of sight, until I decide what to do with you."

He turned his back on me, taking Tahlia's hand to guide her away from the broken glass.

I stood alone near the hallway, my chest heavy, the burning on my skin nothing compared to the cold, absolute death of my heart.

As Jarrah quietly walked past me toward the stairs, he paused for a split second, whispering in a tone so low only I could hear:

"The shift has begun, young lady. Your hour is almost here.”