The Chateau (Chateau 1)

The woman who ordinarily delivered dinner came in even though it was earlier than usual. She brought a tray that was overstuffed with food, everything piled high on the plate and toppling over. There were two bottles of water there too.

The second I looked at it, my stomach rumbled.

It was the first time the woman actually looked at me. She was several decades older, as if she could be my mother, and her eyes softened like she pitied me, like she wanted to place her palm against my cheek and tell me everything would be alright. But a look was enough to convey that kindness.

She walked away.

“Thank you.” I pulled the tray into my lap and ate at the edge of the bed, almost too tired to even eat.

Then Magnus entered, wearing the same jacket and cloak like the other guards. But this time, he lowered his hood once the door was shut behind him, revealing his face because I already knew exactly what he looked like.

I stopped eating.

He carried a mug of hot cocoa to my nightstand. Then he dug into his pockets and pulled out a tube of medicine to apply to my neck, a couple pain pills, and a medical ice pack. His head turned slightly, and he glanced at the book lying on the bed. “You’re reading it.”

“I’ve already read it. But I’m reading it again…” It was my bible, my therapy, my hope.

“Eat.” He didn’t look right at me, never giving me direct eye contact even though his hood was down. His brown hair was a little longer this time than it was weeks ago. His jaw was covered with a shadow because he’d ignored the shave for a few days. There were thick veins up his neck, like his skin was so tight that the rivers popped out. He moved to the chair against the wall near the door and took a seat.

His presence gave me more comfort than the food in my lap, but I was starving and weak, so I grabbed the fork and continued to eat.

He leaned back into the wall, his knees apart, his eyes looking at nothing in particular. He had masculine angles to his face, noticeable cheekbones, and his brown eyes conveyed a constant sense of indifference. He’d shouted in that clearing just minutes ago, but now he didn’t seem angry.

I continued to eat, my eyes down most of the time, though I couldn’t help but to sneak a glance at him from time to time.

He was still, as if he were encumbered by his thoughts. He didn’t say anything to me, but he lingered like he might.

I liked having him there. After being terrorized by that asshole for two weeks, I didn’t want Magnus to leave my cabin. He was the only power that I had, the only weapon in my arsenal. “Did you just get here…?”

He nodded.

If he’d arrived just thirty seconds later, he would have seen my dead body hanging from that noose, my guts spilled into the snow.

“Where were you?”

“Paris.”

I steadied my fork and looked at him. “That’s where I live. Well, where I lived…”

He kept his gaze on the wall. Despite his visual indifference, he remained.

“What were you doing there?”

“Work.”

“You have two jobs?” I asked in surprise.

“It’s the same job, just in a different place.”

There was no way there was a labor camp in Paris, so he must do other things there. “Do you distribute the coke?”

He shifted his gaze to me, eyes cold. “Do you really care?”

I stilled at the look then turned back to my food. “I just… I guess I don’t. I just haven’t really talked to anyone for the last few weeks. It’s been really hard…with you gone.”

“And of course, the second I leave, you get yourself in the noose.”

My head snapped in his direction. “I did nothing. Your…” I couldn’t find the right word to describe that asshole. “Colleague decided to torture me the second you were gone. He treated me like a dog, made me beg for my food, told me I had to suck his dick or I would starve. I did nothing. I carry no blame.”

He shifted his gaze away.

“He targeted me, for whatever reason.”

“Because you’re difficult to break.” He shifted back to me. “So, it’s fun to try.”

That explanation disgusted me.

He removed the gloves from his hands and stuffed them into his pocket. Then his chin tilted down slightly, his eyes on the floor.

“Magnus?”

He wouldn’t meet my look.

“Don’t leave me again…”

He inhaled a breath before he lifted his chin and looked at me. The expression in his eyes was different this time, absorbent, as if he took time to digest the request.

“Don’t leave me with anyone else but you.” I didn’t realize how much better my life was with Magnus. And just how I took things for granted back in Paris, I did the same with him. This man wouldn’t hurt me. He wouldn’t force me. He even protected me…