“It’s mostly cosmetics..” I took in a deep breath, my hand curling around my coffee mug for the first time. “They have beenrunning blood work every now and then. You know, just to be safe.”
“So you’re not dying?” she asked, like she needed the answer more than I did.
“No.” I shook my head. “I’m not dying, Elizabeth.”
11
BETH
I like being yours. I would love to be yours.
“So…your vacation home, huh?” I asked Callan as he walked behind me–more like hovering, because I could almost feel his breath ghosting over my skin from the level of proximity.
My phone buzzed again and a tiny disapproving frown materialised on my face. I lifted my hand that held the phone, my finger quick as it swiped the decline button.
I loved Kenzo. And there was nothing I appreciated more than the way he always went out of his way to look out for me, protect me. But he was really bugging me right now. Especially knowing I was hanging out with my fair, prince charming.
‘Don’t be quick to judge,’ a wise man once said. But Kenzo only saw Callan once, from afar, and he painted thisquestionable, bizzare picture of him. He was sure Callan had dirty, hidden intentions.
But I was wise enough to tread with caution, and knew enough to grab my shoes and run if things went south.
Callan was a kind man as far as I knew. And if eventually this was a mask, all I knew was that he was kind to me, at least. That kindness was enough, even if it was fleeting, even if the mask would soon rip off and reveal this mean, vile thing Kenzo had dreamt about.
And really, I once did track. I ran quite like a cheetah. So if this charming smile ever turned into a sneer with his fangs bared, eyes blood-red, I would run like a damn cheetah.
“It’s kind of a guesthouse?” His voice floated in the quiet around us as the polished stone stairs opened to a rather large bungalow. Its glass shone like water, black bricks anchoring its frame, while green flowers spilling warmth over its edges.
Spontaneously offering to follow him here was a reckless decision, yes. But beholding the beauty of this simplistic home was worth it.
He had said something about business-related stuff that he needed to attend very early in the morning, so he was sleeping over at Braemont and returning to Glenfallow tomorrow.
I had so kindly asked him which hotel he usually lodged at whenever he had to stay the night in town, and he said it wasn’t a hotel, that he had a place. I said I wanted to see the place…for some reason I hoped to find out soon before Kenzo would come and drag me out of here by my ear.
The thing was, I was just being greedy…like always. Because I was always so hungry that whenever someone offered me a finger, I would crave the whole arm instead. I just wanted more time with Callan, more time than he was probably willing to offer me.
I wanted more chances, more of his strange, enigmatic and refreshing presence. I didn’t care if following him to the house was like walking into a lion’s den. Being in his presence felt like I stepped into a far away land, and I wanted more of that feeling. We could just sit for hours, merely staring at the sky, and I would be content with it.
Kenzo said it was a bad idea following a stranger to a private place. But the man walking before me looked like he would apologise to a piece of furniture if he bumped into it, or host a burial for the ant he mistakenly stepped on. He didn’t seem to have a mean bone in his body. And I really hoped I was right and Kenzo was wrong…which was a rare occurrence–Kenzo’s hunch, that is.
“It’s really beautiful,” I smiled, pressing hard on my phone’s power button until I felt the vibration of it turning off.
Now, peace and quiet…and death, with my blood spilled all over this clean floor if Kenzo was right and I was just naïve and stupid…again.
“Thank you,” he replied.
The house was quieter than the outside, all soft lights, black furniture, echoing halls and empty rooms.
I was a bit startled seeing armed soldiers hanging at shadowed corners, eyes like steel, arms lined with ink. They didn’t move, barely even breathing. Like a statue, they just stood there, watching, hunting for danger that would never come.
Their stares were powerful and intimidating, threatening to open sealed doors and crack open long buried secrets. With a glance at them one more time, I nearly dropped to the floor, confessing to crimes I didn’t even remember committing.
But with Callan behind me, I felt a layer of confidence. I could make my jelly-like legs move.
“Wow,” I breathed, my face pressed against the sliding door that led from the kitchen to the stone terrace, my heart stirring in awe of the infinity pool lying still beyond it.
I had only ever seen infinity pools in movies. The indoor pool at Kenzo’s house came close, but it wasn’t quite the same, though it had been enormous.
“It’s so pretty.”
