Dinner is something Draco seems to take more seriously. He didn’t want me here yesterday and he doesn’t want me here today either.
The man with the white hair is at the door and he tells me to go back to my room before I can even walk in. I spot Draco sitting in his throne, twisting the silver skull ring on his pinky finger as he waits. His eyes are on me.
Stern.
Cold.
I turn without hesitation and go.
I go and I don’t look back.
I take a shower, toss my hair up in a bun, and then climb into bed.
At 2:10 a.m. I hear those three footsteps again. The doorknob jiggles and I put my focus on it. It creaks open, but barely. A hand wraps around the edge of the door. It’s a tan hand, a skull ring on the pinky finger.
I remember that ring.
Draco wore it during breakfast and dinner.
It’s him.
Has he been the one tiptoeing past my door? I wait for him to come in and say something, but the door remains cracked. His hand is still wrapped around the edge, but in the blink of an eye it’s gone.
The door shuts quietly and his footsteps drift down the hallway.
I listen until I can’t hear them anymore.
I stare up at the canopy with tired eyes. My belly growls in agony while my heart skips a rapid beat.
Why in the hell is he doing this?
Chapter Ten
Day 9
At 7:50 a.m., I’m trudging down the stairs.
I walk to the french doors and see only Francesca and the older woman sitting at the table. Draco’s place isn’t even set, and I find utter relief in that.
They both look at me, but mainly Francesca. The older woman is knitting as she waits, her square glasses placed on the bridge of her nose.
“He’s not going to be here for breakfast today,” the older woman announces.
Oh, thank God.
She notices my relief as I walk forward and lowers her needles. “But you still can’t eat. His orders.”
“Seriously?” It feels like my stomach is eating my insides right now. It is in knots. I am so hungry. So thirsty.
“I’m so sorry,” the older woman says. She drops her needles and I see the sympathy in her eyes. But just like everyone else, she knows she can’t go against Draco’s word. Would he be so cruel as to harm his own mother just to prove a point?
Is he that callous?
Francesca doesn’t look at me. She stares down at the plate in front of her. Pressing my lips, I turn around and walk out of the dining room. I look over my shoulder and Francesca is watching me go. Her expression is unreadable.
I don’t know what the hell she’s thinking.
She probably wants to kill me.
She thinks I’m the competition.
She’s wrong. She can have that brute.
Instead of going to my bedroom, I walk towards the other kitchen, thinking maybe I can steal a bagel or a donut. It is vacant. It’s already clean—no butlers or maids inside.
No food on the counters.
I sigh.
The door that leads to the beach is open. I walk out. But as I walk towards the sound of the ocean, I am caught up by the iron gates.
There is a lock box, but I don’t know the code.
Defeat settles in. My fingers wrap around the thick, black bars, and I press my forehead between them, sighing again, hot tears burning my eyes.
I can see the beach from here and it is so beautiful…but then I see an old brown building not too far away from the shore and my heart sinks.
There are men standing outside of it, smoking cigarettes.
Ronaldo is still in there. I feel so sorry for him. I wonder how he’s holding up. I wish I could go see him.
Francesca walks around freely, but she’s succumbed to this lifestyle. I won’t be. I’ll take my chances.
I turn around, but as I do, Francesca is already standing by the door. Her eyes are hard on me, and she has a white towel in her hand. It’s covering something.
A slight gasp fills the air when I see her.
Her face is solid, even as she walks towards me. For a split second, I think she’s going to pull me aside and strangle me…but she doesn’t.
“Here.” She shoves the white towel into my hands. When it touches my skin, I realize there is something warm inside of it. “He won’t let you eat for another day. You’re already too small. You’ll faint before you make it. Eat that, but don’t let anyone see you. Take it back to the bedroom. I’ll bring you a water in a few.”
She turns just as quickly as she appeared.
I watch her trot away in her tall black heels. She doesn’t look back at me, and I don’t blame her. I observe my surroundings before opening the white towel.