Yvette averted her gaze, not wanting to be intrusive. She hurried to catch up as Knox continued to climb the stairs.Florian was growing out of breath, leaning heavily on his shoulder for support as they reached the top of the stairs.
“Over there is Rhea and Lilith’s room,” Florian said, nodding to the double doors on the far side. “And this is mine.”
Knox was leading him toward the closer of the two doors evenly spaced across the hall.
“And the other is yours?” Yvette asked, gesturing to the bedroom just beside it.
“No.” Knox didn’t even bother to look over his shoulder as he opened the door to Florian’s room.
Florian gave her an apologetic smile as he followed Knox inside. He looked absolutely exhausted, and in a fair bit of pain. She considered if they meant for her to follow, but the door swung decisively shut.
Alone, fatigue seeped into her as well and with it a strong desire to find a place to rest. Her eyes fell on the nearest door, unclaimed as far as she could tell. She lingered for a moment longer, waiting to see if Florian or Knox would reappear, or if anyone might come up the stairs. But once it was clear she was being left to her own devices, Yvette turned for the door.
As she entered, lamps mounted on the wall lit. Inside the room was uncharacteristically put together, though clearly neglected. There were a pair of matching narrow beds against either wall as well as a writing desk, a chest, and a doll’s house, all covered in a fair layer of dust. Clearly, this room had been meant for children, but Yvette knew at once that was not the reason it remained unoccupied. Encompassing the walls was a mural of carousel horses, but true to the spirit of the house, the beasts looked as if they were on the brink of rearing in deranged panic, eyes wide and nostrils flaring.
Yvette took in the sight from the doorway, contemplating if she could possibly rest with those beasts watching her. But her body ached, and her mind was heavy with fatigue. In the end,Yvette pulled back a musty blanket and laid down on one of the beds.
The candles doused the minute she laid her head on the pillow, and she was asleep only a moment later.
She was back in the prison, running down those black spiraling stairs. They were endless. Her frantic breaths and aching muscles grew worse with every turn, but she couldn’t stop. Behind her, Victor’s voice was echoing off the walls, pleading apologies and shedding tears, begging her to come back. What frightened her most was how much she wanted to. The running was exhausting. Her body and soul ached from it. How much easier would it be to stop, to let his hands run over her while he whispered his gentle words like kisses against her skin?
Yvette longed for it more than she would let herself admit. Yet the desire was tainted, by his lies, by the long bruise that was still fading along her spine, by the image of Keira after Florian had pulled her out of that awful cell.
The perpetual stairway came to an end with the creaking of a door. One of the prison cells-
No-
Yvette startled upright. The room was dimmer than when she’d fallen asleep. The door opened slowly, spreading a beam of warm candlelight across the floor. Her heart stopped, her dreams bleeding into reality just enough for her to genuinely fear that Victor had somehow found her even here.
Instead, it was Florian’s head that peered inside. Her body relaxed, embarrassment washing in to take the place of her fear.
“Sorry I woke you,” Florian whispered. “I didn’t know this door was so obstinate.”
“It’s fine.” Yvette straightened, fixing her appearance. “I didn’t mean to sleep for so long.”
Florian rubbed his neck with his good arm. “I passed out too.” His eyes flashed up to the manic horses on the wall. “I have to say I’m surprised to find you in here.”
Yvette snorted, following his gaze to the disturbing wallpaper. “It is a touch unsettling for a nursery.”
He scoffed a laugh. “I think Knox and Lilith wound agree.”
“This was their nursery?” She looked at him. Of course he’d told her that Lilith and Knox had been left this house by their aunt, but they’d lived here as children?
Florian sat down, obviously avoiding eye contact with the horses. “After their parents died, which is its own story, they were taken in by their Aunt Agatha, their mother’s sister. She married a much older man, Edgar Grimlocke, who was wealthy and lonely and lived in this house. They didn’t have any children, but I suppose she took a swing at accessing her maternal instincts.” He glanced at the horrific carousel as evidence of her objective failure.
“No wonder Knox almost bit my head off when I asked if this room was his.”
He sighed. “Don’t take Knox’s trust issues too personally. They are well earned. And once you grow on him, he can be very loyal.”
“He certainly seems to feel loyal to you.”
Florian laughed, almost shyly. “I can assure you he has not always felt that way toward me, toward any of us really, except for Lilith of course.”
“It’s fortunate he has her,” Yvette said. “It’s good to have at least one person you can truly rely on.”
“You say that like you don’t have one,” Florian said, meeting her eye.
“I-”
