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I try to steady myself, but it’s hard.
The sight of him, the familiarity of his face mixed with the strange reality of this all, makes it become too much.
I can barely hold myself as I begin to slip, my eyes becoming heavy when I jolt at his words.
“Chiara!” Alessandro’s voice is sharp, commanding as it shakes me from the fog of confusion that’s settled over me. Before I can fully process what’s happening, he storms forward, closing the distance between us in an instant. He grips my arm,holding me upright as I find myself swaying slightly, my mind still reeling from the mere sight of him in this place. “Are you okay?”
He asks me again, his grip becoming unbearably tight around my arm.
His eyebrows are furrowed, concern and frustration clear in his gaze.
I find myself nodding, whispering.
“H-How are you here?”
His jaw is tight as he runs his eyes over me again, his gaze harder this time.
“You’re safe now, Chiara. That’s all that matters.”
I blink, my mind racing, but I nod anyway.
A voice speaks to the side of us, and I turn to look over at Isaak.
“Let’s take this somewhere more private.”
I don’t argue with him.
He leads us, and I follow behind Alessandro.
Though my legs feel weak beneath me, Alessandro’s steady presence keeps me grounded.
I still do feel a little disoriented with every step that I take.
The mansion is grand, to say the least. The rooms are large with high ceilings, and marble floors which gleam under the soft lighting. A strange mix of beauty and coldness settles in my chest.
When we finally reach the second floor, we walk through a long hallway and towards a door that opens into a sitting room. There are plush chairs here, a large crystal chandelier, and bookshelves filled with leather-bound books. As my eyes scan over the shelves, I notice the small spaces where books have been moved, and I swallow hard, knowing exactly what happened to those.
They gave them to me.
I force myself to drag my eyes away, looking all around the room.
The pure luxury in just this room alone is overwhelming.
There’s something so unsettling about this entire situation; where I am, and who I’m surrounded with. This place is no longer the four walls I had been living in all this time.
This istheirworld, and they’ve made me part of it now.
I wonder what’s to come.
What will they ask of me next?
And will I ever find peace again?
Will I ever be able to forget Nikolai, to forget Mikhail, and return back to the life I once knew?
A shiver runs down my spine.
No.