Chapter 66 - Don't Lose Faith

Present (2018)

It had been over an hour, and Shadrach still had not returned to our room. I knew something was off, and his absence had confirmed my suspicions. I needed to know what he was hiding, and so I decided to take a stroll the the basement.

Now don't get me wrong, I remembered the last time I went to that area. When Shadrach had dragged me to the door of the basement, the cellar, whatever it was. His words were etched into my memory, but I never brought it up because I was too scared to.

"Once you see what's inside, you'll tremble at the sight of me, let alone talk back to me or disobey me," he had said.

"Why? What's in there?" I had frowned, a shudder going through my body.

"In there, Alizabeth, are all the people that my father has literally vanished from the face of the Earth. Some of them have been there since months, days, even since decades. And you see, not everyone is as lucky as you to receive so much hospitality from the Bradley family. So it's better if you never see what's down there, because once someone other than the members of our family and our workers enters that place, they never leave."

Things had been going good between us, and I did not want to ruin them. Especially when he never really went down there. It was his father's prison, not his. So it did not really matter to me a lot. They were two different people, and I already knew his father was a horrible man. But now that he had went down there, things had taken a different turn. Now I wanted to know what was up. So I stood up from the bed, putting on my clothes.

I remembered where that door was, and made my way to it. Of course, those six men were still standing there, rigid as ever, guarding the 'prison' door.

"Hey, is Shadrach inside?" I asked politely.

"Yes, Miss," one of them replied.

"Okay. I need to go inside, if you'd please move from here," I smiled at the man blocking the door.

"I'm sorry, I can't do that," he said, his eyes downcast.

"Why not?"

"You're not allowed in there, Miss. Young Master has forbade us to let anyone enter, let alone you," another one replied.

"Well, I wasn't asking. It's an order. Move," I said confidently.

They looked at each other in confusion, before moving away. I opened the door, to find darkness greet me.

"One of you, come with me, and bring a flashlight," I said, and the man who was previously blocking the door obliged. He switched on the flashlight on his phone, allowing me to safely descend into the basement. As I stepped down the last stair, I regretted coming down here. It was a whole fucking dungeon, and I could hear people screaming. I sucked in a breath, blinking. The area was dimly lit, but still better than the pitch black stairs. Gulping, I began to walk deeper into the basement, passing by literal cells, with metal bars to prevent people from escaping. The guard was still following me, and I was glad I had company. The area was designed to look like something from a horror movie. One with a lot of violence and gore.

"Help!" One of the prisoners suddenly yelled, making me flinch. I looked to the cell, to find a man about my age, holding onto the metal bars. "Help me, help me please! Get me out of here!" He begged, and I could not even bear to look at him. He was bruised, and beaten down, covered in blood.

"I'm sorry," I whispered, and walked forward, but he called out again.

"Miss! Please! I'm begging you. These people are animals. I-I have a wife. I have two little kids. Please don't keep me here. Let me out, please," he pleaded with me, and tears filled my eyes. I turned around to look at him, but before I had the chance to say anything, someone grabbed my arm and turned me around.

"What the fuck are you doing down here?" Shadrach hissed, looking super pissed off.

"What is this place?" I whispered, tears rolling down my cheeks. I realized I was shaking, and I didn't know whether it was because of the cold, or the fear.

"I told you not to come here," Shadrach said through gritted teeth, instantly dragging me away from there. He took me up the stairs and out of the dungeon, with the guard following behind us. Once we were out, he turned to the guards. "Why the fuck did you fools let her inside?" He yelled at them, making me flinch.

"It's not their fault," I whispered. "I ordered them to. Exercised my right as your... Queen."

Shadrach shifted his gaze to me, but his eyes didn't turn soft. He was still furious, and his gaze on me felt like it would burn me alive.

"No one enters the basement!" He yelled loudly, while staring at me, making me flinch. "Is that understood?" He asked, now turning to the guards.

"Yes, Young Master," they replied in unison.

Shadrach did not reply, instead turned around and began walking, dragging me back to our room. His grip on my arm was firm, and although he was not hurting me, it was still harsh. I did not like this change in his behaviour. We entered our room and he slammed the door shut, turning to me.

"What the fuck were you thinking, Aliza?" He hissed, taking a threatening step towards me. I flinched and stepped back, my eyes wide in shock. "Why did you enter the basement? I told you I'd be back!" He took another few steps towards me, whilst I kept stepping back.

"You were taking too long so I-"

"So you what damn it?" He yelled, slamming his hand against the wall, which I realized was right behind me now.

"Don't speak to me like that," I said softly, looking up at him.

"I told you to wait, Alizabeth. What was so hard to understand?" He continued, but his tone was a lot softer now.

"You told me you'd be back in half an hour max, yet over an hour passed by, and you still didn't come back. I decided to come look for you," I shrugged.

"You could have waited at the door, you could have asked the guards to call me upstairs. You didn't have to come down there, Butterfly, and you know that," he replied.

"Yeah. You're right," I nodded, crossing my arms. "But I wanted to. I wanted to see your family's personal dungeon."

"Why?" He asked, sounding utterly frustrated.

"Because I needed to know why you went down there!" I replied. "I remember what you had said to me Shadrach. That if I ever see what's down there I'd tremble at the sight of you. But I never said anything since you said the place was your father's. I assumed it was your father's business and you had nothing to do with it. But then you had 'work' in that damned dungeon? I needed to know why. I thought you were changing, Shadrach. You were changing your ways for me. Then what business did you have over there?" I asked.

He sighed. "Nothing, Butterfly. That place is my father's. I actually don't have any business over there, except for one person. And he was the one I went to interrogate."

"Why is that person in there?" I asked softly, feeling my heart sink.

"Because he knows who murdered Simon's brother," Shadrach explained. "I have to avenge him, Alizabeth. I can't let his murderer go."

"When did this happen?" I asked.

"Two years ago. Two years after you left. That's what brought me back to my senses. Simon was falling apart, and we both couldn't do that at the same time. I had to be there for him. The murder was brutal. His body was mutilated. It was awful," Shadrach said, and I noticed how tears began to well up in his eyes.

"Why interrogate him now?"

"This is the first time he fessed something up. Something we can catch onto. Alizabeth, Simon can't do it. It's too painful for him, so I have to. I hope you'll understand," he said, looking at me with sad eyes.

"You didn't think I would," I said softly.

"Yeah, I didn't. I know you're very sensitive to violence, so I decided to keep you away from this matter," he explained.

"Shadrach. No more secrets from now on. Promise me," I said to him, placing my hand on his shoulder.

"I promise. I'm sorry," he said softly.

"It's alright. But yeah, there is one thing I need. I... I can't stay here anymore. I can't stay here for another moment. Drop me home tonight, Shadrach," I said.

"What?" He asked, frowning. "I thought you understood."

"I do. I understand your situation, but you were right Shadrach. That basement is too much for me, and being here, in this very house, it's making me feel unsafe now. I-I don't feel good here anymore, and I definitely can't sleep under this roof. Where people are being tortured. I heard the screams, Shadrach. People were crying, yelling in pain. I can't get them out of my head," I shook my head. "Drop me home tonight instead of tomorrow."

Shadrach stared at me silently for a few moments, before he slowly shook his head.

"What?" I said softly.

"I can't do that," he replied.

"Why-why not?" I frowned. "You were going to drop me home tomorrow, you may as well do it tonight. What's the harm in that?"

"I'm sorry, Butterfly, I can't do that now. Not after what you've seen. I don't trust you'll come back to me," he shook his head, and I felt my heart sink.

"Shadrach," I whispered. "You promised me."

"I know. I'm sorry. But I can't drop you home now," he said.

"Are you kidding me?" I said in disbelief. "I love you, Shadrach. I've already told you. I love you. Why would I not come back? I told you I understand your situation. I'm not angry or upset with you. I just don't wanna stay in the house where people are being tortured."

"Then I'll take you to our farmhouse, right now. You don't have to sleep here tonight or even come back here ever. It's your choice. But I can't drop you home," he replied.

"Shadrach, don't do this, please," I whispered softly, as a tear escaped my eye. I cupped his cheeks with my hands, looking straight into his eyes. "I will always come back to you. You are my King, Shadrach, and I am your Queen. Don't lose faith in me like this, when I haven't even done anything to make you think this way," I begged.

"I'm sorry," he whispered softly. "I love you more than you can ever imagine, Butterfly, but I just can't drop you back at the moment. Please don't force me."

I stared at him silently for a moment, before withdrawing my hands from his face. I looked away from him, not meeting his eye.

"Fine," I nodded slightly, biting my lip, as my throat burned, and I felt tears blur my vision. "Excuse me," I whispered, pushing him away from me and rushing to the washroom.

"Aliza!" He called out, but I didn't listen, locking the door behind me.

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