Chapter 1.9: Brother's Shadow

After that night, Leila followed Cleo's brother like a shadow. She played it off as the teenager being fearful of going outside without him. Anytime he tried to be alone, she'd stare at him teary-eyed and begin to panic. The man cracked and would end up with her by his side, watching him like a hawk. At dinner, she requested to sit next to him and it stayed that way for weeks. The discomfort on his face was obvious as he patted her head and gave her a warm hug. The man hated being so close to her, but like the dutiful son he strived to be, he held his tongue. He accepted the meals she made for him and praised her for spending their free time together.

'I should start teasing him more openly.' Two weeks after their initial meeting, she watched him practice. Dressed for warm weather, she sat on a picnic blanket in the shade of a tree. 'There's nothing he can do to me without the others.'

It had become obvious to the teen that he was the weakest link of the brothers. Cleo's oldest brother would have tried to kill her by now. The two others wouldn't, but they'd make their distaste for her clear. This guy instead pretended to be a loving sibling when really he was sick of her. He wanted the forehead kisses their mother showered her with. And the vocal acknowledgment their father gave the teenager any time he saw her. She looked at the man from the side of her eye and shrugged. She laid down on the blanket with a soft grunt and closed her eyes. He was getting on her nerves, honestly, but she had to stay silent. She needed him by her side when the others came back to visit.

Her designated maid, Jisu, had told her that they'd be back by winter. Some sort of civil war started, and they had gotten too involved to leave. They sent her letters explaining this, but were full of thinly veiled threats. The men didn't like her. They told her she was weak at getting caught by the king. And they taunted her about the rumors of her whorish ways traveling all throughout the country. Leila demanded that they burn the letters. It seemed like every man she encountered in this world was one of two things. A sexist pig drunk on power or a slimy schemer playing the nice guy role. She wanted to find that entity and beat them silly for cursing her to live with such people.

"Sister, are you feeling well?" Her eyes cracked open to see the man kneeling on the grass. His identical jade-green eyes stared back at her.

Before she could answer, his gloved hand touched her forehead. His skin felt cool under the hot sun that glared at their bodies. "You're getting a fever."

Something Leila noticed was that he rarely ever called her by her name. Or more so, Cleo's name. Ever since that night, he called her little sister or just sister when addressing her. It rubbed her the wrong way, but for now, she tucked it in the back of her mind. More important matters were happening.

"Oh, am I? Sorry, I've been so focused on spending time with you that I didn't realize." She smiled at him, only for it to drop at his expression.

"You never spent time with me like this before." His tone was serious as he removed his hand. "The royal family can't lay a finger on you here. So you don't need to rely on me that much."

"I like relying on you," she hurried to say, her face flushed with her growing fever. She had expected this to happen, but not so soon. "But if it's causing you trouble, I'll just stay in my bedroom."

"I'm sorry for behaving like this. I thought you were comfortable being with me." She turned away from the older man. Her arms wrapped around herself as she became more annoyed than before.

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"That's not what I meant. Mother mentioned you spend too much time with me–"

She cut him off, angrily cursing the woman in her head for interfering. "I'm not! We haven't seen each other in seven years, Alek. Why not make up for that lost time now?"

In Volume 1, Cleo was seventeen years old and had been on her own for two years. When she had been beheaded, she had just turned twenty a few days prior. Alex, who was frozen by his name being used, had left when she was thirteen. The boy was so desperate to please he begged to go deep into a mission. This mission ended only when Cleo was already gone and he never bothered to reach out. He was a coward who she had no respect for and spending time with him made her sick. Leila sighed and got up from the ground. She dusted her dress off and let herself walk away. She wanted to make Alek feel like he needed to protect her, so why not pretend his words hurt her the most?

She would act like his words wounded hero. It was weird to throw a tantrum since she was a grown woman, but it fit the role she was playing. To the servants, it would look like a quarrel between two loving siblings. But to Alek, this would be a dagger in his heart. He remembered ignoring her countless times when they were young. He knew deep down that he wishes he had been the one locking her in chains. She knew these feelings conflicted him and it annoyed her to no end. Even when given a false show of affection, he ignored his true feelings of indulging in it. He'd rather Cleo be dead than tell her how much he resented her place in their family.

"You know, I didn't mean it that way." He said as she continued making her way back towards the house. She ignored him, holding her skirts up as she went.

"Sister, wait!" Alek reached out for her, but she kept walking. He followed after her as she entered the house's entryway.

"I'm sorry for burdening you," Leila said with an irritated look on her face. Thankfully, her back was to him as she rolled her eyes. "I'll leave you alone and go study in the library."

A puzzled look came onto his face as he mulled over her words. "Study? You shouldn't be studying but resting, sister. You can't continue on like this."

'Seriously?' Leila didn't fall for his tricks and kept walking.

She neared the stairwell that would lead to the second floor. As soon as she'd reached that area of the house, the library would be right in front of her. As her feet planted themselves on the first step, she felt him grab her dress. His grip was firm, and she struggled to go up with how strong he was. This made her beyond frustrated. The bastard wanted her gone, but also wanted to dictate her life. The teenager grit her teeth and put on her best fearful expression when turning to face him.

"Brother, I understand your worry for me, but I am twenty years old. I can do as I please." She fought to keep her downright disgust for him out of her voice.

Alek looked as if she had slapped him in the face. She had to admit her behavior was strange for the damsel role she was playing. However, it was normal for any girl with an overbearing sibling.

"You can't leave the house on your own without collapsing. You're as frail as a child and act like one." At this, Leila twitched as she restrained her tongue. "I don't think I should leave you alone in our father's library in such a state. Please go study in your bedroom, or the tea room at least."

'What the hell is in that library that he doesn't want me to be alone with it?' Leila didn't remember reading about anything Cleo's father hid in there. All it had really been poison and snake information she wanted to research.

Whatever it was piqued her interest. "Thank you for the concerned brother. It warms my heart. Still, I want to brush up on things I missed while traveling." She placed a hand on his face and smiled warmly, like you would at someone special.

"If it makes you feel any better, I will call for Jisu to stay with me. That way, if I'm dizzy or struck by another episode, she can call for you." Leila would rather the dimwitted maid not be near, but she had no other choice.

He let her go. “You must swear to call for me the moment you feel sick.” His gaze was intense as he waited for her answer.

‘Didn’t I just say that?’ She sighed and crossed her arms over her chest. “I promise.”