"Why?" Tears of frustration spring to my eyes. This is cruel. This is the cruelest thing he has done yet. To show me the water while I am dying of thirst and forbid me to drink.
"Because," Alaric says, walking past me to the piano. He runs a hand over the lid. "Right now, you would play your pain. You would play your chaos. And I cannot allow chaos in my halls."
He turns to face me, leaning against the instrument. "Music is a privilege, Elodie. It is a reward. It is earned through compliance. Through stability."
He crosses his arms. "When you can sit through a therapy session without crying... you may play scales. When you can eat a full meal without me force-feeding you... you may play Etudes. And when you accept your place here, truly accept it..."
He taps the lid of the piano. "...then you may play whatever you wish."
He is holding my soul hostage. He knows it is the only leverage that truly matters. He can drug me, lock me up, strip me naked,and I will still fight him. But this? This is the only thing that can make me obey.
"You're evil," I whisper.
"I am necessary," he counters. "And you are shaking."
I am. I am vibrating with the need to touch those keys. Alaric walks back to me. He takes my chin in his hand, forcing me to look at him. "Do you want to play,petite?"
"Yes," I choke out.
"Then be a good girl. Take your medication. Eat your food. And forget about the world outside these walls."
He releases me and walks to the window. He pulls back the heavy velvet curtain. "Come here. I want you to see something."
I walk over to him, my legs feeling heavy. I look out the window. We are on the second floor, overlooking the main driveway. The rain has stopped, but the sky is still grey and weeping.
Down below, at the main entrance, a black sedan is pulling away. I recognize the license plate. I recognize the driver. My father's driver.
My heart stops. "They were here?"
"They came to drop off your personal effects," Alaric says casually. "And to sign the final release forms. They didn't ask to see you."
I watch the car drive down the winding road, toward the iron gates. Toward the freedom I lost last night. I watch until the taillights disappear into the trees. They are gone. They really left me.
The realization settles over me like a shroud. The last tether to my old life has just been severed. I am untethered. Floating in the abyss.
Alaric moves behind me. His chest presses against my back. His hands come up to rest on my shoulders. He leans down, his mouth right at my ear.
"They are gone, Elodie. They left you behind." His hands slide down my arms, wrapping around my waist, pulling me back against him. "But look where you are."
He turns me slightly so I face the reflection in the window glass. I see myself. Pale, haunting, dressed in the grey wool dress of a penitent. And behind me, I see him. Dark, towering, his eyes burning with a possessive fire. We look like a portrait. The King and his captive Queen.
"You are exactly where you are meant to be," he whispers.
He is right. I am alone. I am broken. And the only thing holding me up is the monster.
"Now," Alaric says, stepping back and breaking the spell. "It is time for your intake exam. And trust me, Elodie... I am very thorough."
CHAPTER 04
SKIN AND BONE
POV: Elodie Fray
Location:The West Wing Corridor -> The Clinical Suite (Exam Room 1)
Track:I Found– Amber Run
Sensory:The snap of latex gloves, the smell of isopropyl alcohol, the hum of fluorescent lights.
