LONDON'S POINT OF VIEW
He turned around, his black suit perfectly tailored to the shape of his body.
I'm a very busy man. And you're likely to distract me.
I'll behave.
His voice turned icy.
No. Ariel will take you outside for an hour a day. That's final.
"Crewe, I'm not a damn dog."
I hated being treated this way. I had no rights and no freedom. All I wanted was to spend time outside in the sun, and even that was forbidden.
I need more than that. On Fair Isle, I spent all my days outside. You're torturing me by keeping me locked up here.
"You're a prisoner," he barked. "Get used to it."
My hand itched to slap that arrogant man.
"And if—"
"Silence."
When his eyes darkened, I knew he wasn't joking.
"Say one more word and you'll see what happens."
The threat filled the air, the danger hanging once again over my brother's life.
Despite my urge to answer back, I stayed quiet.
"On your knees."
I hated obeying like a dog. I hated having no rights. There was nothing I could do except follow the orders of this sick man. When my family was at stake, I was willing to do anything—even things I despised enough to make me sick.
I dropped to my knees.
Crewe looked down at me with his hard expression, satisfaction evident in his eyes. He slowly approached me, closing the distance between us until he was almost touching me. Without taking his eyes off my face, he ordered Dunbar to leave.
Dunbar's footsteps faded as he left the entrance hall and disappeared into another part of the castle.
Crewe watched me silently for a moment before finally stepping back.
"Show me."
Not sure what he meant, I looked up at him.
He nodded with approval.
"Good."
Then he reached out a hand and helped me to my feet.
"Ariel will come get you from the room when she has time."
What did that mean? I was still confused by how abruptly he was dismissing me.
"And what if you came with me to the room?"
He placed a hand on my neck, his favorite place to touch me.
"No. That way you'll think about me all day."
I already thought about him all day—either fantasizing about killing him or sleeping with him.
He kissed me before suddenly pushing me away and returning to work as if nothing unusual had happened.
Ariel sat in the padded armchair with her tablet, her black glasses resting on the bridge of her nose. Her dark eye makeup gave her a mysterious appearance, and her stylish clothes made her look more like a supermodel than a businesswoman. Every now and then she glanced at me without saying a word.
I enjoyed the sight of the trees and tulips, letting the sunlight warm my skin. The castle walls surrounded us, winding across the green moorland. Beyond them were more trees and hills, a truly beautiful landscape. The air felt different here—cleaner and lighter.
Everything I had seen of Scotland was beautiful. Even Fair Isle, in the middle of the North Sea, was breathtaking despite its cold winds. And now I was looking at a monument so old that I could hardly comprehend its age.
I wasn't sure whether I was safe with Ariel. If one of the men tried to assault me, I doubted she would defend me. But she was loyal to Crewe, so I assumed she would do whatever he asked. Then again, she wasn't carrying a weapon. Crewe had said she was the toughest of them all, so she probably had some secret advantage I didn't know about.
Her attitude was certainly ruthless.
I crossed the courtyard and wandered into the gardens, spotting a squirrel in a tree.
"Don't go too far."
The warning in Ariel's voice made it clear that challenging her would be a bad idea.
I watched the squirrel until it disappeared, then returned to the courtyard. The flower beds were filled with tulips of every color—pink, yellow, blue, and countless others. In the Scottish climate, summer felt more like spring. It was a welcome change from New York's unbearable heat.
Still, I missed the humidity.
I wondered whether my friends had given up looking for me. I wondered whether NYU had removed me from the current semester and given my place to another student. I wondered whether the police had stopped searching and filed my case among the unsolved ones.
I had been gone for two and a half months.
That was a long time for a missing person.
Everyone probably thought I had been cut into pieces and dumped in the harbor.
I saw a squirrel,I explained. I was just watching it.
I didn't owe her an explanation, but I didn't want her to think I was trying to escape. I'd already tried once, and my backside still remembered it.
"I don't care what you're doing," she said coldly. "Just don't test me."
She looked up from her tablet and fixed me with an icy stare from her blue eyes. Her dark glasses made her seem even more intimidating.
"I shouldn't be out here playing babysitter."
She pressed her lips together and shook her head.
"With all the crap I already do for that man, I can't believe he's reduced me to something this pathetic."
How did Crewe manage to work with this woman every day? She was absolutely unbearable. I'd never seen her smile or joke. Even Crewe, as hard as he was, had a sense of humor.
"To be fair, I told him I didn't trust his men, so he sent you."
She sighed in frustration.
"I think you should trust me even less."
"You don't seem to like women, so I don't have much to worry about."
"There are worse things than being assaulted," she said coldly. "I'm sure you know that by now. But you're right—you've never been assaulted."
My relationship with Crewe was unhealthy, but that didn't necessarily make him an unhealthy man. When I'd told him I didn't want to sleep with him, he'd respected my wishes. Whenever we were together, the pleasure was mutual.
Of course, it was still against my will. I had to obey him even when I didn't want to. But intimacy itself was something I genuinely enjoyed.
What I hated was being a prisoner.
You hate me, don't you?
She lowered her eyes back to her tablet.
Absolutely. You're nothing but a distraction for Crewe. He has more important things to do than spend all day taking care of his little pet.
To be CONTINUED....