Chapter 212

Evaline:
The room stilled as River’s warning rang in the silence. The servants froze and so did I. The last thing I expected was to witness him standing up for me… and that too against his own staff.
“Am I clear enough?” He asked, his gaze drifting over the group of servants who all quickly followed Sera’s lead and echoed ’Yes, Alpha’.
But if I thought this was the end, then I was in for a surprise as River next turned his full attention to the maid who had spilled the soup on me.
“No salary for next three months. Send her to work in the fields for next three months.” His voice held no mercy or warmth, just pure coldness and an authority that no one in the room dared to defy.
The maid was on her knees, her head bowed as she cried silent tears but didn’t dare to ask for leniency. No one did.
River’s gaze then moved to Sera. “Take her as a lesson and make sure such mistakes aren’t repeated, or you will be the first one to answer.”
“Yes, My Lord.” Sera quickly bowed, her fingers trembling slightly as she pulled the maid to her feet and disappeared from the dining hall.
Within minutes, the floor was cleaned and everyone was back at the table to finally start the dinner.
“How are you feeling?” Oscar asked as he settled down in his chair once again.
I nodded. “The pain is almost gone.” Now that things were calming down, I was finally able to recall my mistake when I grabbed Oscar’s hand. But neither River or Kieran seemed like they had noticed, or if they did, then they didn’t think too much about.
“Do you want to get changed first?” Kieran asked when he noticed me fixing my trouser that was still rolled up to keep the burnt skin from getting irritated.
I quickly shook my head. “It’s alright. I’ll get changed later. Please start the meal.”
Kieran nodded and the dinner finally began as the earlier tremor of tension eased into a steady hum of polite conversation. I mostly stayed silent unless Kieran asked me something every now and then to keep me included in the conversation.
I kept my focus on the food that pretty much made up for the pain that I just experienced moments ago. Knowing that it wasn’t just an accident, I couldn’t help but wonder just how unhappy the servants, or at least few of them, were to see me returning here… as a guest this time.
I also felt Oscar’s worry for me through our bond, and I passed him a soft smile when I was sure River and Kieran weren’t noticing. On the other hand, while my bond with Draven wasn’t strong enough for us to feel each other’s emotions, I knew he was just as worried as his brother. So I gave him a reassuring smile as well.
My last meal was the lunch, so I was really hungry. Hence, I made sure to fill my stomach with the dishes that made me feel like I was eating at a fice-star restaurant.
I ignored the cold smoked salmon and reached out for the delicious looking salad. It tasted just as good as it looked. Chicken soup no longer looked appetizing so I instead focused my attention to the lemon herb roasted chicken. I also added veggies, a stuffed bell pepper, and a little bit of the creamy mashed potatoes to my plate.
For desert, there were two options – strawberry cheesecake and warm apple tart. I went for the latter and almost moaned the moment it melted in my mouth. My taste buds were on cloud nine at the moment.
I was about halfway through my apple tart, when I caught River looking at me… and this time, he didn’t bother looking away. And as I looked into his eyes, I realized that he wasn’t simply tolerating my presence… but he had accepted it, embraced it.
My heartbeat stuttered. I was confused by the realization. What did this even mean? What was he up to this time?
Call me paranoid for all you want, but I had learned my lesson – to not blindly trust River Thorne – in the worst way possible. Even if he was indeed being considerate toward me as a guest, I would rather believe he had something sinister planned in disguise.
I was the first one to look away and I quickly finished the desert. Still, I didn’t move to leave as it didn’t seem like the right thing to do as a guest.
Five minutes later, the dinner came to an end. Servants appeared to clean up the table while the brothers stood up to head to the living room.
“I’ll retire to my room now. Thank you for the lovely dinner,” I said with a polite smile, ready to disappear. Follow current ɴᴏᴠᴇʟs on.net
Fortunately, no one objected or tried to accompany me. But Kieran did add – “I’ll drop by later to check the burn. Okay?”
I nodded and turned away, making my way out of the dining hall while I felt all four of their gazes fixed on my back.
Back in my – Huge – bedroom, I locked the door and pressed the switch Draven showed me earlier to cover the windows with curtains. Even though I knew it was one-way glass, I still couldn’t make myself undress until thick, dark curtains were covering them.
With the room secured, I finally started peeling my clothes away. The inside if the mansion was warm because of the heating system, so there was no need for wearing several layers of clothes. Even a simple top and bottom was enough to walk around the place without feeling any cold.
I wrapped a plastic wrapped around the burned area on my leg before I got under the shower. To keep the skin from getting irritated by clothes, I ended up wearing the only pair of shorts pajamas I tossed in my suitcase during packing.
I just finished getting ready for bed when I heard someone knocking on my door.