I tense up, but no one's there. No servant giving me that "you fucked up" look or someone telling me I'm not allowed to leave.
Instead, noise comes from the kitchen as the smell of food drifts down the hall.
I step into the hallway, and the smell gets stronger as I move toward the kitchen.
I round the corner and stop. Adrian is standing at the stove, his back to me.
He's not holding a gun or a belt to hit me.
He's holding a spatula.
The pan sizzles on the stove in front of him.
For a split second, the monster fades. Images of the blood-splattered man who killed three men last night disappear into slow-moving memories.
And now, standing in the kitchen, quietly making breakfast, is the silly boy from Bucharest who stole my heart.
The boy who used to try and sneak into my bedroom at 2 a.m. The one who moved me out of the concrete place in the city to a nice home in Bra?ov.
The one who laughed when I burnt dinner and kissed me anyway.
The man I loved.
My breath catches, and I don't move.
I just stand there, staring at him, my heart pounding.
He hasn't noticed me yet.
He's focused on the pan, and for the first time since he burst through that door at the château, I see him.
It doesn't last long, however, for the memories to turn dark, and anger lines my thoughts.
14
ADRIAN
Ipace the living room, my back stiff from spending the night propped up against her door.
Victor's back. He got here a little before 7 a.m. He sits in the armchair near the window, one leg crossed over the other. He watches me with that damn calm expression he always wears.
"She doesn't even care I got her," I say, harsher than I intend, but I don't take it back.
Victor's eyes flick toward the hallway.
"Keep your voice down. You don't want her to hear you."
I rub the back of my neck and keep pacing.
"You should have seen her face. It's like she didn't even recognize me. She pulled back when I touched her, and all she wanted to do was get away from me."
Victor takes a slow sip of his coffee, then sets the mug down on the side table.
"You're upset, brother."
"Of course I'm fucking upset."
"But take your emotions out of it and think logically for a second. She's been through a lot. For eighteen months you thought you were in hell," he says and glances down the hall again, "she was actually there. Just give it a few days."