On top of the used hay, a thin woman sat, her skinny arms grabbing her legs, hair falling straight onto her knees as shame hid itself beneath the light. Millicia had been stripped, being dressed in filthy clothes, body utterly thin and dirty from the lack of water and sustenance. Heavy trembles followed her members, as if in the peak of the warm Seedling weather, Frosting had ensued its domain.
Does she have a fever? Her breathing was irregular, forcing shallow breaths to consume her being before a long, deep inhale sank in the midst of pure desperation.
“Millicia, do you remember me?” Hearing Ophelia’s voice caused the woman to faintly turn her head, her gaze to fuzzily view the woman between the oily hair strands falling from her scalp. Yet such a brief moment of acknowledgment was shortly lived as she merely returned to her previous stance, completely unbothered. It seemed her conscious self was long gone. “Sir Aldrich, could I have a moment alone with her?”
“Lady Ophelia, I’m afraid that request is...” The aide bit down on his own words, feeling strangely entangled by the beauty of the girl before him. His brown eyes fell on her crystals, surrounded by a set of long, dark eyelashes, beautifully shaping her sharp eyes into thin, seductive daggers.
She sighed, looking back at the prisoner. “We’re both women and I’m afraid I won’t be able to get the closure I need if a man is here... all I’m asking is a couple of minutes. Please, Aldrich.”
“Very well. You have three minutes, milady.” Still conflicted, the aide ended up complying and heading down the corridor, just to close the door behind him with a loud thud. At that moment, his head fell on the entrance, struggling to understand why he had complied with such unethical request.
Is this what they feel? The need to satisfy her…? Aldrich found himself pondering on this strange sensation, on how logic had left his being for just a handful of moments.
Back in the prison cell, Ophelia’s stance had completely shifted, causing her to approach the iron bars with a stern expression stamped on her face. “Millicia Swan, do you know why I am here? I assure you, it would be wise for you to respond.”
Yet silence was her sole answer. So it’s going to be like this?
“Do you think Charlie will give me the answers I need?” At that moment, the girl rushed towards the bars, grabbing them with all the strength she possessed, growling like a hungry beast.
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‘Touch him and I’ll kill you’ was written all over her face.
“Good Millicia, good...” With a grin stamped on her lips, Ophelia leaned forward, close enough to feel her hot, sickening breath. The prisoner’s hungry eyes temporarily lost their resolution, becoming doubtful of what they were witnessing. “That hatred is beautiful, but it shouldn’t be aimed at me, wouldn’t you say? I wasn’t the one who left you to die after all...”
Her tense body gradually began to relax, causing her strong grip on the iron bars to soften. At that point, her fingers pushed her hair away, allowing Ophelia to witness the masterpiece this place had created.
“I am not here to hear justifications, nor to get revenge on your actions. I already know Duke Criswell orchestrated the whole thing, and you were but a pawn in his game.” Hearing the girl’s words made the maid swallow down hard, nerves crawling at the base of her skull. “Milly, do you want to live?”
Her eyes widened, completely taken aback by such possibility.
Jade had taken the initiative to gather information while Ophelia was unconscious, clearly thinking this situation had far more parties involved than it met the eye. And he was right, it wasn’t hard to find out about the deal between Alvin and Millicia: all she had to do was to infiltrate the Earl’s party and poison the noble lady’s tea in exchange for a large sum of money - something that she desperately needed to take care of her very sickly brother, Charlie. But that man never intended to give her the money, nor to let her walk out alive of such a situation, after all, the maid knew too much.
Even after failing me once, he managed to surprise me yet again... Ophelia thought, remembering how her slave hadn’t been able to find anything regarding the intruder in her room, no matter how much time passed.
“Let me put it differently... the money Alvin promised you never reached your brother, and it never will. He will die because the Duke didn’t keep his promise.” At that moment, Millicia rushed towards her again, groaning in pure desperation, in pure sorrow, tears threatening to leave her eyes. “Do you want to get revenge? Do you want to make him suffer for betraying your trust? For walking out on your agreement?”
The maid immediately nodded, hands bleeding from the minor rusty cuts on the iron surface.
“So, Millicia Swan, I will ask you one last time... do you want to live?” Her eyes sparkled with an insatiable thirst for revenge, with a burning hatred words couldn’t begin to express. They appeared so beautiful. “Then devote yourself to me and I will satisfy you until your heart’s content.”
Without uttering a single word, the maid stumbled back and fell on the ground; her knees sinking into the stone floor, her arms stretched above her head in a sign of utmost respect.
Smart girl.
The sound of a door opening echoed. “Wait for me, Milly. I will come and get you soon.”