บททั้งหมดของ THE CURSED NECKLACE: บทที่ 51 - บทที่ 60

The scream ripped through the mansion at exactly three in the morning.Elena sat upright instantly.For one disoriented second she thought the sound belonged to the spirits again.Then she heard it a second time.Human.Male.And filled with absolute terror.Roberto.Her heart stopped.Without thinking Elena threw the blankets aside and rushed toward the bedroom door barefoot.The hallway outside was dark except for flickering wall candles.Another scream echoed through the west wing.Lower now.Rough.Like someone fighting in their sleep.“Elena—”A guard stepped forward immediately.“My lord ordered nobody enters—”Elena ignored him completely.The bond was pulsing violently now.Pain slammed through her chest in brutal waves.Fear.Not hers.His.The realization sent cold panic rushing through her instantly.She ran faster.The whispers had started again too.Excited.Hungry.“The bonded male breaks.”“Finally.”“He cannot survive us forever.”“Stop it,” Elena whispered breathlessl

The question shattered the room into silence.Are you in love with her already?Elena’s heartbeat stopped completely.Beside her, Roberto’s grip on his father’s wrist tightened hard enough to whiten his knuckles.The fire crackled violently behind them.No one moved.No one breathed.Then slowly—Roberto released him.“No.”The answer came too quickly.Too cold.But Elena felt the bond react instantly.A sharp pulse.His father noticed.Of course he noticed.The older man’s smile deepened slightly.Interesting.“Elena,” he said smoothly, eyes returning to her, “has anyone explained to you what you are?”Roberto answered immediately.“She doesn’t need to know.”“She absolutely does.”The temperature in the room seemed to drop.Elena frowned between them.“Stop talking like I’m not here.”His father finally looked fully at her again.And Elena hated how exposed that gaze made her feel.“You died.”The bluntness of it stole the air from the room.Elena stiffened instantly.Roberto’s jaw

Dinner in the Francesco estate began at precisely eight o’clock.Not a minute earlier.Not a minute later.Elena realized very quickly that everything in this family revolved around control.Even time itself.A servant dressed her in a dark wine-colored gown before leading her toward the dining hall in silence.No one spoke directly to her anymore.Not comfortably.The servants looked nervous now whenever the necklace glowed faintly against her throat.As though they expected something terrible to crawl out of her skin at any moment.The thought made Elena feel sick.By the time she reached the dining hall doors—Roberto was already waiting.Dressed entirely in black again.Of course.His posture straightened slightly the moment he saw her approach.And Elena noticed something immediately.Two guards stood behind her tonight.Not servants.Armed guards.Her stomach tightened.“You brought security to dinner?”Roberto’s expression remained unreadable.“They’re for you.”“That isn’t com

Roberto did not answer immediately.The silence itself felt painful.Heavy.Elena stood motionless in the center of the underground chamber while cold air curled around them both.The restraint chair sat between them like a ghost.Waiting.Roberto’s eyes remained fixed on it.Not Elena.Not the walls.That chair.And suddenly he looked younger somehow.Not physically.Emotionally.Like part of him had never truly left this room.The bond pulsed sharply with something Elena had never felt from him before.Shame.Deep.Rotting shame.“Elena.”His voice sounded rough now.“You should go upstairs.”“No.”The answer left her instantly.Because now she understood.This place terrified him.And Roberto Francesco was not a man easily frightened.Elena slowly stepped closer toward the chair.The chains hanging from the ceiling clinked softly above her.“How old were you?”Roberto’s jaw tightened visibly.“Elena.”“How old?”Silence.Then quietly:“Twelve.”Her chest tightened painfully.Twelve

The creature hit the guards first.Its scream ripped through the underground chamber while black saliva dripped from its twisted mouth.One guard barely raised his weapon before the thing tore into him violently.Blood splattered across the stone floor.Elena gasped sharply.The souls inside her necklace erupted into delighted laughter.Roberto stood instantly.Gunshots exploded through the chamber.Once.Twice.Three times.The creature barely slowed.“Elena get back!”She stumbled backward while the guards opened fire desperately.The thing moved unnaturally fast.Like a starving animal.Its broken body slammed another guard into the wall hard enough to crack stone.Then suddenly—it stopped.Its ruined face turned slowly toward Elena.The whispers inside her necklace became frantic.Chosen vessel.It recognizes you.The creature began crawling toward her.Like it was being pulled.“Elena,” Roberto warned sharply.But she couldn’t move.Because now she could see tears in the creatur