Page 69 of The Silent Princess

Ella is asleep, and I am not exactly certain how she would feel about this gesture while being out. With another woman, I wouldn’t ask myself that many questions, but…I doubt Ella has ever been with a man before, let alone slept outside her home. I did bring her here for her safety and, well, because I also wanted–no, needed her here, in my place, under my roof. Still, physical boundaries are a different matter, and I need to know hers before pursuing anything more. Cracking my neck, I take a deep breath, wanting nothing more than to be close to her. I settle for a gentle caress of her temple.

“I’ll be right back, sweetheart,” I murmur, and turn before I change my mind and let my resolve snap under the weight of desire. Getting out of this room has never been so hard. Yet, duty descends under my skin, my calm morphing into something lethal and cold.

Stepping into my living room, lit only by two dim lights, one in the corner and one from the entryway, I take out my phone.

“Yeah,” rasps Nate, sounding like he has just crawled out of bed, which makes sense since, checking the time, it is now past two a.m. Catching him up on our situation, I inform him of my plan.

“From now on, I am reinforcing security for you, Maddie, and Mom. You will have constant house watch and bodyguards. I am turning the office into a fortress, and I’m expecting to find the breach in our security that this fucking rat used to intrude. You will have to inform all our staff tomorrow of the new security protocols, including digital screening.”

“Wait, Mad and me too? Are you sure you’re not overreacting?”

“Either this, or I move all of you into a safe house.”

“Bodyguards it is, then,” Nate sighs, his voice catching, clearer. “What about Ella? Is she all right?”

“Yeah, she’s, she’s…”

“Don’t tell me you brought her home.”

I go silent.

“No way,” he lets out. “You’re sure you’re my brother?” He’s trying to diffuse the obvious tension. “I’ll be there first thing in the morning at the office, taking care of the announcement and the new security protocol.”

“Thanks. Thanks, I…”

“You did good bringing her home.” Silence stretches, the reality of Ella taking place in all parts of my world now undeniable. “Never thought I’d see the day that you, my brother, would move in with someone, but yeah, there’s a first for everything.” I grin in silence behind the call, fear fighting with me, diluting into my blood, telling me I could have it all. It is almost there. Almost.

“Alright,” I clear my throat, “I have to go, er…”

“Yeah, sure, just…” He pauses. “Don’t get killed, yeah?”

“Sounds great,” I rasp. Another silence falls, and I end the call, then call Matt, my head of security. Quickly putting a security plan into motion, I reinforced every aspect of my life and business, physical and digital, turning Ashford Building into a fortress and finding someone for Ella’s dad. A nurse who happens to have worked with him in the field back in the day, whom we will manage to get hired through Mara’s care company as a replacement for the one currently working that job. That is the best I can do so far to make sure her father gets proper care and safety while Ella is here. At home. Our home? No, stop. This is premature.

A muffled sound strikes me as I stand near the window. Did I imagine it? Sprinting toward the stairs, I rush to my bedroom. The sound repeats again, sheets shifting, heavy breathing. Cole could never enter this place, but what if… What if he could? What if he was about to steal or hurt Ella? What if…

Squirming under the sheet, eyes squeezed tight, my Ella is crying words I cannot hear, fisting the fabric and contorting as if being attacked from the inside out. Her voice is not there, but I swear, I swear I hear it, pleading to be found in whatever hell she has found herself in. Her breathing catches, heaving, like she has just sprinted. Terror punctures my chest, and I rush to her, climbing on the bed still in my black pants and white shirt folded at the elbows. For a second, I hesitate. Can I touch her now? How will she react? A tear forms at the corner of her eye as she keeps thrashing, and my palms find her shoulders.

“Ella, wake up, sweetheart. Wake up.” She keeps moving, but I continue. “I’m here. You’re not alone. You’re safe. I’m right here. Wake up, baby, just…” She stops moving, her chest lifting slightly, face moving left and right, looking for me. With care, I place my hand on her cheek, cupping it, and she embraces the touch, inhaling my skin, the motion wild and feral, making my blood boil. Ever so slightly, her eyes open, the imperceptible sanguine light from the corner of the room letting her wake without the blade of brightness hurting her vision. I sit on the bed as she naturally climbs onto my lap, seeking refuge in my neck, inhaling my scent, holding on to my biceps, hard.

“Just a nightmare. Just a nightmare,” I repeat, trying desperately to soothe her. Am I doing this right? Should I offer her a glass of water? Or space? Or a blanket? Her breathing slows as she backs off slightly, just enough for our noses to brush. “What happened?” I ask as she wipes her tears, signing between our chests.

“Everything was gone. You, my dad, everything. I was all alone in a dark place with no walls or ceiling. It was so scary, Tristan. What if whoever sent you the photo finds me?”

Connecting our foreheads, I murmur, rubbing her back, “You are not alone, and you never will be,” because if she is as in as I am, then this is for the long run. “I will keep you safe and make sure you never have to be afraid anymore. I’m going to take care of this, Ella.”

“You promise?”

“I promise. Tomorrow, you’ll stay here while I take care of it, and then it will be done.”

“Take care of it?”

“Do you really want to know?” She hesitates, looking right, then back at me, shaking her head.

“What if they hurt you? What if tomorrow something goes wrong and…”

“It won’t. It will be okay. I promise you.”

“How can you be so sure? If they managed to break into the building, then…”