Page 38

“Am I interrupting something?”

Chapter Twenty-One

Lilith

“Of course not,” I said, deciding against what I wanted to do a mere moment ago, which was to tell Adrian the whole truth. As I spoke those words, Adrian released my hands from his, taking a respectful step back.

“If that is all…” he told me, to which I just nodded.

I could sense that he didn’t want to be here. That was understandable. It comforted me to know that he was a good person. He was the kind of person who couldn’t look another man in the eye after what he had done to him. But I was as guilty as he was, if not even more. I owed Luke my loyalty, not Adrian.

But this was not the time nor the place for that conversation. We would have to finish it another time. I knew that he would be in front of the door or at least in his room. He had to be around me, no matter how difficult that was for him right now.

“I could have sworn that you were in the middle of something,” Luke said, bringing me back to the present moment, still staring at the door, which closed a moment ago. “Weren’t you holding hands just now?”

“No,” I shook my head. “I mean, we were, but it was because I remembered how we were attacked that night in the garden, and I guess I was overwhelmed by everything, so he approached me and held my hands. He was just being polite.”

Luke’s brows furrowed slightly, curiosity evident in his eyes. He nodded, seemingly content with my response. I could still sense the lingering questions he wanted to ask, and which he probably would ask at some point.

I was lying to him, and I was a terrible liar. I felt my cheeks get all red. My palms were becoming clammy. I had that desperate urge to look away, but I forced myself to stare at him straight in the eyes. Hopefully, that would prove that I was telling him the truth. In a way, I was. I was overwhelmed by everything and Adrian did try to console me by taking me by the hands. From a different perspective, I wasn’t lying. But those were nothing but weak excuses.

I should have come clean right now. This was my chance. I should have told Adrian that I was madly in love with him, as I was, and I should have told Luke that our marriage would never have worked, that we both agreed because we didn’t know any better. But now we do.

Still, the moment was gone, and I knew that I had to wait again. I had to maintain this delicate balance, this tightrope walk between honesty and love. I had to wait until the timing seemed right again. However, I knew that when the moment arrived, I would need to summon the courage to reveal everything. There would be no holding back.

I reminded myself that Luke was my best friend. It seemed to me that in the midst of this chaos, I had forgotten this very important fact. Our bond was precious to me. I wanted him in my life as a friend, even after this. I wanted a sense of normalcy to return, allowing us to temporarily set aside the weighty matters that lingered beneath the surface, the stuff that neither of us wanted to talk about.

“You know, I came here to share some good news with you,” he suddenly told me.

“You did?” I echoed. “What are they?”

“The good doc has told me that I am well on my way to a full recovery,” he revealed, and this news brought a surge of relief and joy.

“I’m so glad to hear that,” I smiled, walking over to him and giving him a hug. We lingered like that for a few moments, then we both released each other from our grip. “I’ve been so worried about you.”

“I know,” he nodded. “But I kept telling you I was alright. It was nice to have you pamper me so much, to be honest.”

“Well, you’re fine now, no more pampering,” I teased, and he chuckled in response.

“But I’m still worried,” I said, returning to my grave state of mind. “We still don’t know how that happened.”

“I’ve spoken with your father and the doctor, and the doctor assured me it was my sweetener. They found traces of the same poison in there as well.”

“So, you were the target?” I mused. “But that really doesn’t make any sense.”

He shrugged. “There’s no point in questioning anything. All I know is that any of us could be the next target, so we have to be really vigilant.”

“How do we do this when we don’t know who’s the traitor in the castle?” I reminded him.

“Your father said that it was possible the sweetener was poisoned outside of the castle,” he revealed. “A fresh batch was ordered recently, just for me, and I suppose it was quite possible that an outsider did it.”

This made me relieved. “If that is really so, then I’m very glad.”

“So was your father,” he agreed.

“That is because he trusts every single servant in this castle,” I pointed out. “They are all loyal men and women, who have been with us for years. Just thinking that one of them could betray us is painful.”

“I know,” he replied. “More guards have also been appointed, and there have been no new suspicious activities anywhere in the castle or around it.”