Her Anger
In my room, I was able to collect my thoughts after the emotional reunion with Lucian. I had barely had a moment to settle in when there was a gentle knock on the door, and it opened to reveal my brother.
Lucian stepped inside, and I couldn’t help but voice the question that had been gnawing at me since I saw Alicia in the hallway. “Lucian, what is Alicia doing here?”
He regarded me with a calm expression, as if he had anticipated this question. “Alicia is a maid now, Elara,” he explained, his voice steady. “There’s nothing between us anymore. You don’t have to worry.”
I let out a sigh of relief, even though a trace of doubt lingered in the back of my mind. “I’m sure you know what you’re doing,” I replied, unable to shake the unease that had settled within me. “But don’t forget, she’s a witch. And even though you’re the king of the witches now, you’re still a werewolf.”
Lucian’s eyes held a mixture of understanding and resolve. He knew better than anyone the complexities of our world, the delicate balance between different supernatural beings. “I haven’t forgotten, Elara,” he assured me. “I’ll make sure things stay in control.”
With that, he left my room, leaving me alone with my thoughts.
~ Lucian ~
The hours stretched on, and despite my best efforts, I couldn’t quell the restlessness that had settled within me. Alicia’s presence, or lack thereof, weighed heavily on my mind. She was now just a maid in this mansion, but the history between us couldn’t be so easily cast aside.
I found myself missing her, the way she looked at me with those eyes, the softness of her touch, and the warmth of her presence. I had tried to move on, to focus on my duties as the king of the witches, but Alicia’s memory lingered like an unrelenting ghost.
As the night deepened, a sense of longing overcame me. I couldn’t deny the pull I still felt towards her, even if I was now bound by duty and responsibility.
With a mix of uncertainty and resolve, I decided to call Alicia to my room. Perhaps it was a foolish move, but I needed to see her, to hear her voice, and to understand what had transpired between her and Ena.
Alicia arrived promptly when summoned, her presence stirring a complex mixture of emotions within me. I pretended to be engrossed in some papers, though my attention was solely on her. I gestured for her to sit on the sofa across from me.
She took a seat, her nervousness evident in the slight tremor of her hands. She kept her gaze low, waiting for me to speak, and I couldn’t help but appreciate how beautiful she looked, even in her uncertainty.
Rising from my chair, I moved to sit beside her, my hand reaching out to take hers. The contact was electric, and I found solace in the simple act of caressing the back of her hand.
My voice, when it finally emerged, was calm but held an underlying tension. “Alicia, I need to know the truth. Why did you do it?”
Alicia’s eyes widened in shock, her voice trembling as she responded. “What are you talking about? I didn’t do anything.”Text property © Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org.
But I knew, and she knew that I knew. A guard had discovered a piece of evidence at the scene where Ena had been attacked-a bracelet. It was a bracelet I had given to Alicia during a time when our love had been passionate and forbidden.
I showed her the bracelet, holding it delicately between my fingers. “This was found where Ena was attacked. It’s the same one I gave you.”
Alicia’s shock was palpable as she stared at the bracelet, her breath catching in her throat. She stammered, denying her involvement, but the evidence was too damning. My heart ached with disappointment and anger.
Alicia’s denial hung in the air, and for a moment, I wanted desperately to believe her. But the evidence was irrefutable-the bracelet, a symbol of our past love, found at the scene of Ena’s attack.
“Why, Alicia?” I pressed, my voice tinged with frustration. “Were you jealous? Is that why you did it?”
Before she could finish her sentence, a surge of anger and disbelief coursed through me. I couldn’t bear to hear her justifications, not when it was clear that she had played a role in this.
Gritting my teeth, I grabbed her arms tightly, pulling her closer to me. My grip was firm, bordering on painful, and my voice was laced with a raw intensity. “You were going to carry out these schemes behind my back? You of all people, Alicia? I can’t believe you could be so vicious.”
Alicia’s eyes welled up with tears as she struggled to speak. Her voice quivered with the weight of her confession. “No, Lucian. I wasn’t trying to scheme against you. I was just… scared.”
My anger wavered, replaced by a mix of confusion and concern. “Scared of what?”
A heavy heaviness settled over the room as Alicia’s tear-filled eyes sought understanding. Yet, her silence persisted as I prodded her for an answer. The intensity of my grip on her arms was undeniable, a reflection of the turmoil within me.
“Scared of what?” I repeated, my voice still tinged with frustration and confusion.
Alicia remained quiet, her gaze downcast, and her silence only fueled my growing impatience. I needed to understand her motives, to know why she had committed such an act. My voice hardened, taking on an edge of threat.
“Speak, Alicia, or else I’ll have you thrown in that dungeon again.”
But instead of cowering or pleading, Alicia’s demeanor shifted abruptly. She looked up at me, her eyes now filled with a fiery anger that took me by surprise.
It felt like something else just got into her and she was not the weak girl crying in front of me a minute ago.