210- When Freedom Tastes Like Silence
POV Elowen Grimwald:
“Aldren said I can leave? Is that right?” I wanted to be sure.
“Inside the house, Elowen. Do I really need to say that there are guards outside and that you would never escape these walls if you tried to run?”
I rolled my eyes, testing her patience.
“No, dear Nerin.”
“Very well, let’s go then. I’m hungry, and from now on you’ll have your meals with me.” She waved her hand at face level, as if shooing away a bug.
I remembered what I was wearing.
“Can I stay in my pajamas?”
“Whatever, Elowen.” She shoved me into the hallway. A strange mix of fear and adrenaline filled me; I could hardly believe I was partially free. “Follow me.” She passed by me, her low heels clicking against the floor.
And, obviously, I followed her; playing the disobedient one would send me straight back to the bars.
Barefoot and with my stomach frozen with anxiety, I walked down that long, dim corridor lined with doors until we reached the stairs, dreading running into him.
With every step, my shame expanded for having been weak, for having let the heat dominate me. If I ran into him in the house, I didn’t know whether I could hide all my anger and disgust. This was not the time to ruin everything.
Passing through the rooms, I noticed that everything was cold and meticulously organized, just like the owner. No flower vases or colorful details. Everything in earthy and metallic tones.
When we reached the kitchen, I was surprised by the atmosphere. It wasn’t soulless like the rest. Even at dusk, the pendant lights cast golden hues over the beamed ceiling and wooden floor.
Utensils hung on the walls, polished with care. Furniture also in earthy tones, mixed with polished metals. Smoke from the low-burning fireplace blended with a delicious aroma of unique herbs.
On the island at the center, with shelves below full of gleaming dishes, stood three large clay pots. I, who had been nowhere near hungry, heard my stomach growl.
“Sit.” She directed me to the small table in the corner, attached to the counter where the large dark stainless-steel sink stood, beside the big windows.
I obeyed—only until I realized she was going to serve me. Nerin didn’t like Teneris because she was pushy. I needed her to like me, so the only way to achieve that was by being useful, kind, and polite.
“No, Nerin, please.” I hopped off the stool and approached her, touching the arm with which she held the brown ceramic plate.
“Let me put your food on the plate, girl.” She frowned impatiently.
“I don’t want to impose. Can I serve myself?” I took the dish from her.
She shook her head in refusal.
“Silly pup. Then hurry up, because we have to leave when the guards come in for dinner.”
I lifted one of the heavy lids and was hit by a cloud of delicious steam, revealing a stew of lobsters and giant shrimp.
“How divine, dear God…” I thought out loud as I poured a full ladle onto my plate.
“Don’t you want a sandwich, dear?” she teased, grabbing a plate for herself from beneath the island.
“Very funny.” With my plate full, I still needed to know what was in the other two pots. “What’s in the others?”
“Red meat stew and cooked vegetables, but there’s no room for anything else on that one. Leave it on the table and grab another plate.” She pointed to my nearly overflowing dish.
“If you insist…”
My sudden hunger was so intense that I made another plate with the meat stew and some vegetables, a bit smaller.
We sat facing each other, but while Nerin ate calmly, I devoured my spoonfuls as if it were the last meal of my life.
Fearing I might choke, she kindly walked to the refrigerator two doors behind us and served us two glasses of diet soda.
“Are you on a diet?” I joked, making her let out a discreet laugh.
“No, girl, I’m already very thin.” I savored one of my large shrimp without taking my eyes off her. “You are forbidden to talk to the guards.”
I almost choked at the unexpected revelation.
“Why?”
“That’s none of your business—nor mine,” she replied, taking a sip of her soda.
It was better to steer the conversation elsewhere.
“How many people work here…?”
“Look, girl, I had already dismissed the idea that you’re a spy. Don’t make me change my mind.”
“No!” I tried to touch her arm resting on the table, but she pulled it close to her body. “It’s just curiosity… so I don’t get startled when I run into people around the house…” It would be very useful to know how many people I would need to deceive.
Nerin pursed her lips, considering, before answering:
“I’m responsible for coordinating everything and for the kitchen. On alternate days, Larubia helps me and Torya, who’s responsible for general cleaning. Among the guards, only Victor and Serpentino frequent the interior of the house.”
“I see. Three floors and a sublevel is a lot; I was afraid I’d have to take care of everything alone,” I said, partly to earn points with her—but it was true.
“Aldren would never do that. He always asks if I need more help or if I want the girls to come every day.”
Apparently, to some he was the most holy Aldren; to me, the Devil himself.
“You don’t have a family, like me?” She shook her head. “But don’t you go home? Or do you always stay here?”
“This is my home. Aldren is the son I never had, and the people of Valmorin are my family.”
Wow.
“You’re not a beta… didn’t you want to find your partner?”
Nerin smelled of soft verbena, cactus, and omega.
A flash of pain crossed her face.
“I did, Elowen. He died.” She set the spoon down and wiped her mouth with the napkin.
“I’m sorry…”
“Don’t be. It was a long time ago.” She stood up, carrying her dishes to the sink.
“I’ll wash them—mine and all of them.” She needed to like me.
“I’ll ask my alpha if you can do household chores. Until then, just finish eating,” she decided, turning on the tap and grabbing soap to wash the plate and cutlery.
“Oh, he’ll allow it, yes—he’ll surely love having the bitch from hell at his service.” It was my bitterness speaking.
Nerin froze, holding the plate in the sink, and turned her face toward me, her dark eyes narrowed.
“Girl, are you all messed up because he called you a bitch? Is that it?”
“You heard it?” My mouth fell open.
“I didn’t need to hear anything. It was obvious from the way you said it.”
I set my spoon down and crossed my arms over my breasts.
“Yes. Your most holy and idolized alpha fucked me like a whore and, in the end, still insulted me.”
She abandoned the plate entirely and walked to the table with wet hands, bracing them on the tabletop.
“And you, little angel, didn’t you ask for it?”
Shame washed over me, and my cheeks burned.
“That’s not what I said… I meant the way he treated me and how he must treat all women. I even fooled myself when he kissed me, thinking he might be different, but I’m so stupid…” I sighed, irritated.
Nerin’s eyes widened, dark, as if I had just uttered a blasphemy, before she blinked several times.
“He did w… what, girl?”
“He kissed me and fu—”
“KISSED YOU?” she interrupted, in complete shock.
“Yes…” I almost felt afraid to confirm it.
“Did that really happen, or is there any chance it was a delusion?”
I wrinkled my nose, annoyed.
“Well, I remember his tongue in my mouth very clearly!”
Nerin didn’t just seem it—she was completely incredulous and disturbed, like I had never seen before.
“What’s the reason for the shock? I don’t understand you…” Shaking her head, she turned back to the dishes and didn’t say another word.
“Nerin?” It was as if she couldn’t hear me. “Neriiiin?”
Nothing.
And for the next five times I called her name and asked questions…
No answer or reaction—only silence.