Chapter 55 055

Chapter 55 055

Rayna
By the time night came, the locket felt heavier than it had any right to. I wanted to say I had no idea how I felt about this development, but deep down, I knew I would only be lying to myself if I said those words. Hell, even if a gun were to be pressed to my head right now, I wasn't sure I would be able to speak.

I wasn't a pessimist, but right now, I definitely wouldn't mind dying by suffocation. Or having my throat slit with the same locket I'd found earlier. If that could actually work that is.

It sat in the pocket of my dress like a secret with teeth, dragging at my awareness with every breath I took. I tried not to touch it, I tried not to think about the way it had looked resting in that archive, catalogued and hidden like it had never belonged to a girl who laughed too loudly and loved too fiercely, like it hadn’t belonged to my sister, but it was hard.

So hard that by the time it was almost time for me to head into Zero's room, I started having stupid thoughts. Thoughts I never believed would ever cross my mind.

For a brief, stupid moment, I considered not going.

The thought slipped in quietly as I stood in front of my door, my hand hovering over the handle. If I stayed here, if I delayed, if I pretended to be sick or broken or obedient, then maybe I wouldn’t have to see his face tonight. Maybe I wouldn’t have to test whatever fragile balance I’d been dancing on for days.

But I knew better, not going would ruin everything.

It would be noticed. It would be recorded, and worse, it would mean I’d flinched. Why? Simply because I'd come across something that belonged to my sister? That was the main reason I'd come here, so why the hell was I going to back out now?

I hadn’t come this far to turn away now, not when the truth was finally close enough to cut me.

So I straightened my shoulders and stepped out into the corridor.

Each step toward his room made my pulse climb. The House felt tighter tonight, like it was holding its breath along with me. The Mistress’s presence pressed in from every direction, unseen but unmistakable.

“Do not dig.” Her words echoed again. This time, it was so close I almost thought she was trailing behind me, just to make sure that her words were engraved into the back of my head by the end of the night.

I walked anyway.

When I reached the door, I didn’t pause. I went in the way I always did, without knocking, without permission and Zero was already there.

Of course he was.

He sat on the edge of the bed in his usual position, his spine straight, hands resting on his knees, and his head slightly bowed. He looked carved into place, like he’d been waiting long before I arrived.

The sight of him sent a sharp, painful twist through my chest.

I crossed the room and stopped near the chaise, forcing myself not to reach for the locket, not to give away the storm churning beneath my skin just yet.

“Well,” I said lightly, though my voice betrayed me by tightening at the edges, “you didn’t even ask how my day was. I thought you would have been over this bad habit by now.”

He didn’t move. He didn’t look up, didn’t speak up either. So, I swallowed and kept going, because stopping would mean thinking.

“Rude,” I added, trying for my usual bite. “You know, most people at least acknowledge the person standing in front of them. Even prisoners get that courtesy.”

Again, I got nothing.

The silence pressed harder tonight, heavier than it had ever been. I could feel his attention, though, sharp and focused in a way that made my skin prickle. He wasn’t absent, he was watching.

I paced once, then stopped, my fingers curling at my sides.

“You missed me talking the other day,” I said, quieter now. “I could tell.”

That earned me nothing, but I wasn’t surprised. I’d already burned through my rehearsed taunts, my practiced deflections, and now the words tasted hollow in my mouth.

Enough. That was enough.

My hand slipped into my pocket before I could lose my nerve.

The locket’s metal was cold against my palm, grounding me, and steadying me all at once. I turned slowly and walked toward him, each step deliberate, my heartbeat thundering so loud I was sure he could hear it.

I stopped directly in front of him.

Up close, I could see the tension etched into his face, the rigid set of his jaw, the way his shoulders were pulled just a fraction too tight. His eyes remained lowered, lashes casting shadows against his cheeks, and for a moment I actually wondered what it would be like to have lashes like that.

“You don’t have to answer,” I said softly. “I know that’s your favorite rule.”

My hand trembled as I withdrew the locket from my pocket.

For a moment, I just held it there between us, letting it catch the dim light. The chain glinted faintly, innocent and damning all at once. Then I bent and placed it on the small table in front of him.

The sound it made was barely anything, a soft clink of metal against wood, but in the silence of that room, it landed like a gunshot.

I straightened slowly, my eyes locked on his face, my breath held as the truth finally stood between us.

And I waited, waited for anything to signal if I'd made the biggest mistake of my life, or if Zero was about to confirm my biggest fears.