Chapter 4: The night that called

“You are not Elena Cruz. Leave before the Bishop family consumes you.”

I jerked up, gasping for breath. My eyes darted across the room. No one was there. The silence was thick and smothering, and then I realised it was a dream.

Still brainstorming on the voice I had in the dream. I saw a sheet of paper lying in the center of my bed, untouched, as though it had materialized from the air itself.

My hands shook slightly as I unfolded it. The handwriting was jagged and rushed as it was written. “Leave here or you will die.”

What?

My heart pounded violently. The walls felt closer to me. Who could have placed this here? The air around me hummed with unseen presence, heavy and electric. Then my phone buzzed, breaking the silence of the room.

I rushed forward, my chest heaving as I held the piece of paper tightly in my hands. I reached for my phone, and he caller ID flashed across the screen.

Mother!

My breath caught as my mind flashed back to the message in the letter. I hope my mother is safe at the point.

“Mother?”

I picked up the call, pressed the phone to my ear and clutched my chest to steady my pounding heart.

“Cl.. Clara…” Her faint voice, cracked with pain, came through the phone. Each word trembled with suffering.

“Clara. It is worse…I can’t breathe.” She said, a harsh cough tore through her voice, shredding my heart.

“Please, Mother, don’t talk again. Please save your strength. I’ll find the money and I’ll fix this.” I cut in as tears blurred my eyes, burning hot trails down my cheeks.

“The nurse says I'll be needing stronger medicine. Without it I’ll…”

Her voice faltered.

“You’ll what?”

I screamed, with my eyes wide open, desperate and terrified, but silence answered me.

“Mother?” No answer came through.

“Mother!”

I cried, gripping the phone until my knuckles turned white.

“Momma, don’t leave me,” I whispered to the silent phone, breaking and pleading.

“I swear I’ll get the money. Just… just hold on.”

The call ended with me. My sobs ripped my chest. I sank onto the cold floor, one hand clenching the warning note, the other gripping the phone, both like a storm threatening to drown me.

Two threats in one night?

My pulse thundered in my ears, my body shaking against the marble floor as the walls of the Bishop's mansion seemed to lean closer to me mockingly.

Why me?

Why are all these coming to me all at once?

I was still reeling on the floor, my palms damp with tears, when I sensed him before I saw him.

A shadow stretched across the room. The first thing I noticed was the strap of his boots, polished to a cold gleam. Then his scent, dark and expensive, intoxicated and flooded my lungs.

Nathan.

My heart stumbled.. Every part of me screams danger. Am I in trouble?

He didn’t simply walk into the room. His presence arrived like he had always been here, waiting for me to notice.

“You’re lost in thought,” he said, his voice smooth as silk but edged with steel. His hands slid casually into his pockets. This is my first time seeing him cared for by any of the staff. No, maybe he wants something from me. Or has he finally found out about my hidden identity? No, if he has it should be the opposite of what he is doing right now.

“I’m fine,” I lied, wiping my damp cheeks as I scrambled to my feet. His eyes drifted over me slowly, assessing and stripping me bare again without even touching me.

“You’re not fine,” he murmured. “And you’re terrible at lying.” He spoke those hurtful words again. How long would he stop messing up with my feelings?

The words cracked through me. I staggered, gripping the handle of the wardrobe for balance.

“I’m fine, sir.”

“No, you look shattered and devastated,” He corrected, stepping closer.

The scent of his expensive cologne wrapped around me, thick and warm to a point I struggled to breathe.

“Lies get people hurt in this house. So tell me the truth.” He warned, his gaze drawing into mine. I tried to turn away, but he closed the distance. His body pressed closer to me as I pinned myself to the wall. My heart hammered against my ribs as something inside me hungers for his touch.

“Then, Sir, maybe I should stop thinking, because right now all I can feel is how close you are.” I managed to speak, almost expecting the worst from him.

His eyes roamed over me with a slow hunger and something that looked like pity, claiming me without permission. He knew I was bothered.

“Your mother is sick, isn’t she?” He asked rhetorically.

His question hit me immediately like a slap. How did he know? My chest constricted. Is this man truly the Devil? How would he know of every step taken in this mansion? First, he nearly found out about my hidden identity. Next, he knew I was near the east wing and now my mother? My eyes widened in shock as I asked him.

“How do you know that, Sir?” I asked curiously.

He responded. "I know everything about people under my roof,” he said coldly. “So yours will not be different.”

I wondered why the man I thought could wreck me suddenly started caring. He is rumoured to be ruthless, one who pulls one into depression at the snap of his words. Why is he suddenly acting like he cares? I was very curious and anxious. I replied to him again. “Why do you care?” I whispered, though my voice betrayed the trembling in my chest.

To my surprise, he leaned closer, his breath brushing against my skin, warm, heavy and dangerous as my pulse roared.

He murmured closely to my ears. “I have a good use for you.” Then, stepping back, his command lashed like a whip.

“Follow me.”