Chapter 8

Trinity

The woman scoffed at me. She stood and struck me across the face. My face stung, but I didn’t cry out. Was she allowed to do that? How hard had she hit me? My ears were ringing like a bell, and my jaw throbbed. I tasted blood in my mouth as if I had cut my cheek on a tooth.

I was more surprised there was any blood left.

“You’re an idiot if you think you have the right to call our master by his name just because you have the late lady’s face,” she hissed. “Do your best to learn your place and await the day that the master will release you into death. Do not speak any further. You will only irritate me.”

She left then and closed the door behind her with a loud, metallic groan, yet I didn’t hear a lock click. Was that the castle’s doing or her doing? I didn’t know, and I couldn’t bother to focus on it. Until I was down from this position, until my hands were free, trying to run away again would be impossible.

Besides my hands, I couldn’t even imagine being able to walk. Somethi