Chapter 7 When Clock Strikes at Eleven
Sienna
I was practically pacing a hole into the rug, flipping the silver key over and over in my hand. My eyes kept darting to the clock on the wall.
10:43 PM.
The ticking sounded like the house was counting down to my own funeral. I knew the North Wing was at least a two-minute walk away, and my brain was short-circuiting trying to weigh my sanity against my curiosity. If I stayed, I’d never sleep. If I went, I was betraying Sev’s one big rule.
I stopped mid-stride, staring at the hands of the clock again. 10:54 PM.
"Screw it," I muttered.
Driven by pure, reckless impulse, I grabbed a cardigan and slipped out into the hall. The walk to the North Wing felt like a mile. Every floorboard creak sounded like a gunshot in the quiet house, and the shadows seemed to stretch toward me from the corners.
My heart was already doing a frantic rhythm against my ribs by the time that black door came into view.
Standing there, I felt the cold air of the hallway raise the hair on my arms. My hand was shaking so badly I could barely line the key up with the lock. I froze.
"Is... is anyone in there?" I whispered. I leaned my ear against the wood, holding my breath.
THUD. THUD. THUD.
I immediately stepped back, my heart beating fast on my chest.
Then, as if I were possessed, I didn't even think. I just reacted. There’s someone in there. Someone is being held against their will. The thought of a kidnapping, of a woman like the one in my nightmare, pushed me over the edge. I shoved the key into the hole and twisted.
The lock gave a heavy, mechanical click.
I grabbed the knob, pulled the door open, and braced myself for a horror scene. But as the light from the hallway spilled inside, I gasped. My breath hitched, and I just stood there, completely frozen.
It wasn't at all what I had prepared myself for.
Stretched out on the bed, wearing absolutely nothing but four heavy cuffs securing her limbs to the posts, was Keisha.
The bed was positioned directly in front of the door, giving me a front-row seat to the entire scene. She was blindfolded, her head tossing back and forth, and inserted inside her were toys—yes, plural.
I stumbled back a step, my brain short-circuiting as I tried to make sense of it. But even from the doorway, I could see the rest of the room. The walls were basically a gallery for "play." There were whips, leather collars, heavy chains, and coils of rope, a full-on setup for serious bondage. Shelves were lined with more toys and tools for stimulation than I even knew existed.
I wasn't some sheltered kid; I’d seen things on the internet, obviously. But seeing it in person, in the middle of this supposed "gentleman's" estate, was a total shock.
All along, the thumping I’d heard, and the muffled cries weren't because someone was being held against their will. It wasn't a kidnapping. It was a play, a staged session between a Master and a Servant.
And her master is…
“Sien.”
His voice hit me from the shadows behind me, and I swear my heart stopped. I couldn’t even turn around at first. How do you face someone when you’ve just accidentally peeled back the curtain on their darkest secret?
“Sev…” I finally managed to croak out, turning to find him standing there with an expression so dark it made the hallway feel like it was closing in.
In about three seconds, he was towering over me. I wanted to cry, but I couldn't tell if it was because I was terrified or because my heart was literally shattering into a million pieces. The "perfect" guy I’d been obsessed with since I was a teenager was gone, and this stranger was in his place.
“What do you think you’re doing?” He hit every word with this low, vibrating fury.
“I-I…” I couldn't get the words out. For the first time in my life, I was actually terrified of him. His presence was so dominating I felt like prey that had walked straight into a trap.
“I was curious. I-I heard a sound inside…and…”
I couldn't even finish. I watched as his eyes dropped to the door knob, to the key Keisha had given me. He didn't even acknowledge my pathetic excuse; he just pushed past me into the room. I watched, paralyzed, as he walked to the bed and started uncuffing Keisha.
“Wait, are we done? We didn’t even—” Keisha started, sounding all dazed and out of it.
“Get. Out.”
The way he said it made her flinch. She looked at me, then at him, and I saw her smugness from breakfast vanish into pure panic. “But Sebastian, that’s—”
“Don’t come back,” he added with a chilling finality. This wasn't the "scolding" tone he used at breakfast. This was the end for whatever they had.
Keisha didn't argue. She scrambled for her clothes, not even bothering to dress fully before sprinting for the door. “Fuck it!” she hissed, slamming her shoulder into mine as she bolted past.
I could only stand there, frozen, as I stared at his back.
Finally, when he looked towards me, he had no warmth in them, it was as if he couldn’t even recognize me.
“So, you were curious, huh?” he asked. His voice was terrifyingly calm, but his eyes were like ice. “Get inside.”
My heart was thumping so hard against my ribs I thought it might actually crack as I tried to take a step away from him.
“GET. INSIDE.”
It wasn't a request. It was that Alpha tone—the kind that just bypasses your brain and talks straight to your muscles. I’m about as stubborn as they come, but in that moment, my body just gave up. I found myself walking into that dark, suffocating room, the air smelling like leather and expensive cologne.
“Lock the door.”
I bit my lip, the sting of it grounding me for a split second. I wanted to scream, to be a brat, to tell him he couldn't talk to me like that. But instead, I just reached back and turned the lock. The click sounded like a death sentence.
“Come here.”
It was like I was hypnotized. I walked toward him, and the second I got close enough, he grabbed me. Before I could even gasp, he shoved me back onto the bed. The mattress was firm, and the silk sheets felt cold against my skin.
Then...CLANK.