Chapter 105 Cold Frontage (Part 2)

Chapter 105 Cold Frontage (Part 2)
VINCE'S POV:

“Sir… she refused to eat. Again.”

“​Take it away, then. If she wants to starve, let her.”

​”Yes, Mr. Lysander,” The maid nodded and left.

​The door clicked shut, leaving me alone in the suffocating silence of my office. 

Damn her.

I stared at the wall for exactly three minutes. 

‘Let her starve. She’s throwing a tantrum. It’s a test of wills.’

That was what I wanted to believe.

​”Fuck.” With a curse, I somehow found myself rising from my seat hastily.

​I marched down to the kitchen, snatched a fresh tray from the counter, and personally prepared a bowl of simple broth and sliced fruit. 

I didn't let the servants see the desperation in my movements.

My mind was already pushing me forward to move. 

What was wrong with me?

Was this also a plan for my cruel game? 

Why was I–

“Alyssa.” ​I pushed the guest room door open without knocking. 

Alyssa remained curled into a ball on the window seat, looking out at the stormy night.

She had been doing this for a week.

Going to work early. Returning late. Staring outside. Shutting herself from me completely.

“Sit up,” I commanded, setting the tray down with a deliberate, aggressive demeanor. 

“I am not running a hospice, Alyssa. You are going to eat this, or I will force-feed you myself.”

​She didn't look at me.

“Then force me. You obviously don't care about the pawn of your game.”

“The pawn who was about to become the queen.” I corrected her.

“A pawn's a pawn.”

The urge to yell at her, to shake her into compliance, completely vanished.

​Slowly, I sat down on the narrow  window seat beside her. 

“A reason valid enough to ruin yourself?”

I picked up the spoon, my movements turning gentle despite the harshness of my posture. 

I brought the broth to her lips, blowing on it first to ensure it wouldn't burn her.

​”Just a little bit,” I whispered, the anger completely draining from my tone. 

“Please, Alyssa. Do it to spite me if you have to. Just eat.”

​She finally turned her hollow, tear-stained eyes to mine, searching the dead depths for the monster she expected. 

Slowly, she leaned forward and took the bite.

​The following Sunday, I found her near the stationary cases, finally out of the room. 

She had tried to reach for ink, but her weakened, trembling hands had betrayed her. 

The ink glass lay shattered on the floor, staining the wood along with other glass organizers.

​She was on her knees, desperately trying to pick up the fragments.

​”Don't, Alyssa!” I hurried down the corridor and shifted to one knee.

“Are you completely stupid? You’re going to cut yourself!”

​”I can do it,” she whispered, her voice cracking with a fierce, stubborn pride. 

“I don't need your help. I don't need anything from you.”

​She reached for a large shard, but before I could stop her, the glass sliced deep into her palm. 

A bright crimson line of blood immediately welled up, dripping onto the floor.

I panicked.

“Oh no!” 

​I grabbed her by the waist, completely ignoring her weak shoves, and lifted her effortlessly into my arms. 

I carried her into the nearest bathroom, setting her down on the counter.

​”Let me down! Wash it away, let me bleed!” she yelled, trying to wrench her hand from my grip. 

​”Shut up!” I roared, but my hands were trembling as I turned on the faucet, running warm water over her wound. 

I grabbed the first-aid kit, my heart pounding madly as I applied pressure with a clean gauze.

“You… you are supposed to be cold… no?”

​”God help me, Alyssa, I try,” I replied breathlessly, slowly regaining my composure.

She remained perfectly still for the next ten seconds, placing her hands slowly over my shoulder.

She shoved me away using remaining strength and ran away.

….. leaving me all alone to enjoy the ‘victory’ I thought would taste scrumptious.

Running a hand over my face, A long, frustrated sigh left me. 

Fuck….

The night was thunderous, but sadly, the storm did not provide me with comfort tonight. If anything, it increased the hollowness. 

Suddenly, the lights went out. I sighed deeply, closing my file and rubbing my temples.

Ever since Alyssa shifted to the guest room, I hadn't slept in our room. I stayed in my studies, slept there too. 

The room had become surprisingly suffocating–not what I expected.

“Check the lights!” My voice called the servants. Grabbing my phone, turning on the flashlights, my feet instinctively reached the guest room only to hear whimpering in the pitch-silence.

“Argh… no…”

Without thinking, ​I slammed the door open. 

Alyssa was tangled in the bedsheets, tossing violently, her face flushed a dangerous crimson as a feverish nightmare gripped her.

​“No... please... Vince…” she choked out in her sleep.

Was she having a nightmare… about me?

​My heart rate plummeted at the thought of it. I moved to the edge of the bed, reaching out to shake her shoulder, forcing my voice to sound hard. 

“Alyssa. Wake up. Stop making a scene.”

She only let out a broken sob, her entire body shivering despite the heat radiating from her skin.

‘​Let her rot,’ the dark voice in my head whispered. ‘This is what she wanted. She wanted the truth.’

​But my hands wouldn't obey. My resolve crumbled into ash. I dropped to my knees beside the mattress, discarding the mask entirely. 

I filled a basin with cold water, grabbed a washcloth, and gently began to wipe the sweat from her forehead. 

“​I'm here, Alyssa.”” I whispered, my voice cracking, entirely stripped of the ruthless king she feared. 

I brought the damp cloth down her burning neck, my fingers unsteady as they brushed her skin. 

“I'm right here, Alyssa. Shh... I've got you.”

She groaned, eyes opening gradually, only to find my silhouette in the darkness.

“What is… happening?”

“A storm. The lights went out. They will be back soon.” 

She closed her eyes again.

“Vince,” 

“What?”

"Did you ever... even for a second... feel anything?" She asked, holding my wrist, desperate for a shred of the man who had always stood before her unwaveringly.  

“When we were together. When it was just us. Was it all just… revenge?”

I lowered my hand, slowly removing her grip on my wrist. My hands curled in a powerless fist. 

“Feelings…. are for people who can afford to be weak, Alyssa…. Look where your feelings got you.”

“You…” She breathed, clearly it

“Get over it, or don't.” I spoke possessively, holding the hand, pressing my thumb on her wedding ring.

“The ring is still on your finger, and you aren't going anywhere.”

“If that's the case.” She swallowed hard, the lights came back, locking her eyes intensely with mine. 

“I pray your heart breaks terribly one day too.”

She turned to face the other direction, leaving me all alone as I looked down in defeat.

“There is nothing left to break.”