I recognize the defensive pose, and it stops me for a moment, and as her haunted eyes find mine, any fury inside me diminishes in a heartbeat.
I know her.
Our gazes collide, and an understanding is reached. As I perch on the edge of the bed, something passes between us.
“What did you see?”
There is no point in pretending, and she whispers sadly, “Nothing. I saw you enter the room and then I heard your pain.”
“My pain.”
I shake my head.
“You heard pleasure, Tiffany. You see, in my world, pain is pleasure.”
“How?”
Her stricken gaze finds mine, and for some reason, I want to reassure her.
“I will show you.”
If anything, she shrinks back against the bars, the fear in her eyes almost an aphrodisiac.
“No.”
“Come. I won’t hurt you.”
My hand reaches for hers, and for some reason, she allows me to take it. As I guide her from the room, I wonder why I am doing this.
* * *
We reachthe door and I’m already second-guessing my decision. Nobody comes in here. Not even Mrs. Harrington. Su Yin does a good job of keeping the room sterile, and there is no need to alert the rest of the household to my proclivities.
Until Tiffany came to live here.
I’m unsure why I’m affording her the courtesy of peering into my world because she hasn’t earned that right.
It was the haunted expression in her eyes.
It reached out and gripped my heart hard because I share that look.
She falters as I turn the handle, and I take her hand. As we enter the room, her soft gasp does little to reassure me.
“What is this place?”
“Sanctuary.”
I breathe deeply, the scent of Su Yin and her potions still prevalent in the air.
Tiffany has no words, and I don’t blame her because there is nothing in this room to give any insight into what goes on here. The room is entirely black. The walls, the blinds at the window, and the marble floor. The ceiling is also painted black, andthere are no mirrors. No art on the walls and only black candles intermittently set around the room.
“Do you worship the devil in here?”
Tiffany gasps as she grips my hand a little tighter, causing me to chuckle.
“Would it matter if I did?”
“Of course. Nun—remember.”
