Chapter 10

I unintentionally poked at my scrambled eggs lost in thought. They were now cold, I'd barely eaten up to two bites and now my fork just stabbed the eggs like I was the source of all my pain.

Mrs. Thornton, who was cleaning up the kitchen, glanced my way multiple times and her gaze was hard for me to read. Was it concern? or pity?

Or maybe both.

For someone who hadn't eaten since yesterday afternoon, I should have been hungry but with everything going on, especially last night…

Last night was indeed… a mess.

After Leo had barged into my room like a marathon horse with his eyes livid, his accusatory words hit me with no time to defend myself.

“Who are you working for?” He'd snapped, this was unlike the confrontation we just had.

“What?” I squeaked out after some seconds of trying to comprehend his words.

“You heard me,” he yelled,stepping closer. “Nicole? The Ghost Clan? Or are you just playing stupid? Was it all a setup—the bleeding, the hair, the timing— was it all just a ploy to get us out of there early?”

“What are you talking about?” I cried out in confusion.

He kept yelling, his words didn't stop coming, they were sharp and fast, accusing me of things I barely understood.

He didn't hit me or touch me but his voice was so loud, so angry and scary.

The panic came like a tsunami the second he slammed my door shut behind him, leaving me gasping for air.

I slid down the wall, clutching to my chest struggling to breath as the memory of my dad yelling in my face, the sharp sound of his belt, the experimental punishments he carried out, the muffled cry I wasn't allowed to make.

They all came back, every single ghost of my past hovered over me.

And just like the night before, I didn't sleep a wink and now I'm here pretending to eat, with my puffy eyes, chapped lips and pale face.

“Honey, you need to eat,” Mrs Thornton said, pulling out a chair on the other side of the island table in the kitchen and sitting down. “You don't want to collapse, do you?”

I didn't respond, just pushing my egg around my plate as I tried to hold in the tears that had been threatening to fall since last night.

“Did…did Leo say anything to you?” I asked, finally looking up.

“About what happened last night?” She asked with a raised brow and I nodded.

She exhaled, “I thought he would let you rest after how…shaken you looked. But I suppose not.”

“He barged into my room last night and accused me of being a spy. He said I faked the bleeding to leave the party early like I planned it”

Her frown deepened. “Oh, Lena…”

“I don't even know what I did wrong,” I whispered. “I didn't do anything.”

After being quiet for a moment, she spoke up, “There was a shootout”.

My gaze snapped up to her in utter shock.

“Right after you both left the event,” she continued. “Multiple injuries. A few of Leo's people were hurt. He thinks whoever called him away, whoever made him leave when he did saved his life. Or…set him up.”

My mouth opened and closed like a fish for a bit before I pieced the puzzle. “He thinks I planned it?”

“He saw you bleeding from your head and that gave him a reason to leave. And after he found out what happened next…he panicked,” her voice so gentle.

“But how could it have been me, I didn't know anything or anyone there, I had a headache, he noticed the bleeding, hedecided it was time for us to leave,” I muttered.

“I believe you,” she said firmly. “But Leo, he hates surprises and when things go wrong, he searches for the weakest link. It's his means of survival.”

I looked down at my plate, the eggs were definitely cold by now but I still forced myself to eat a few bites.

After breakfast, Mrs Thornton suggested I go to the garden to get some fresh air and I obeyed. The roses were fully bloomed, and so red. I reached out to touch its petal with my finger, wishing I could stand bold like it was doing in the breeze.

Every time I closed my eyes, I heard his sharp, accusing, cold voice over and over. Who are you working for?

I found the courtyard bench and sat down, burying my head in my hands.

How long would I survive in this place?

“Lena”

I flinched at the voice, the deep, unmistakable voice. I turned to see Leo approaching me with his hands in his pockets, his jaw tight and facial expression unreadable.

I stood instantly, my instincts telling me to run and hide.

“Sit!”

My body didn't think twice before obeying much to my dismay.

“Mrs Thornton tells me you may be unwell.”

“I'm alright, you did accuse me…of setting you up. What else would I be?”

He apparently ignored that because he just moved on, “there was a shootout, minutes after we left the venue.”

I brushed my hand down my dress slowly.

“Coincidence is a dangerous thing in my world, Lena.”

I hated how he said my name with so much hate, “I don't know anything about that. I swear.”

His eyes narrowed at me, “You looked rigid, your wound conveniently reopened. You rushed to the bathroom. Anyone would've thought it was planned.”

“If I knew people were going to get hurt, I would've said something”

He looked at me, like he was studying my expression, “Maybe. Or maybe you're just good at looking innocent.”

He stepped closer, not threatening, but close enough to make my heart react. “I'm watching.”

With that he turned and walked away.

No apology.

No comfort.

Just a warning.

My fingers trembled against my skirt as I stared blankly at the space he had just occupied.

He didn't yell this time but he felt more scary.

I wasn't even sure what I was feeling anymore. Was it shame? Or Fear? Or maybe exhaustion?

I wasn't strong like those heroines in books, the ones who stareddanger in the face and fought back with a sharp tongue.

I was just Lena Lynx Grey, a girl who flinched when voices rose. A girl who froze under pressure. A girl who couldn't even cry properly anymore because it always felt like a luxury that I hadn't earned.

I buried my face once again in my hands, as my breath came out in short heavens through my clenched teeth.

Don't cry.

Not now.

But the tears came anyway.

Not the loud, angry, attention seeking kind but rather the quiet one that slipped out without permission, the one that hurts the back of your throat the more you try to keep it in.

I heard footsteps as light as air but I couldn't raise my face to see who it was, I'm sure I looked like a mess.

A coat was wrapped around my shoulders while the person remained in silence. After some seconds, I heard the person turn and leave. Taking a deep breath, I wiped my face with my sleeves before looking at the direction the person took and I was confused.

Marcello?