Page 163 of His Ruthless Match

I knew the estate well enough to navigate without drawing attention. The servants’ passages would be my best bet. The narrow, dimly lit hallways cut through the heart of the house, bypassing the main areas where I was most likely to run into trouble. Or, worse, Raffaele.

The first few turns were easy. I passed a large sitting room, pausing at the soft murmur of voices. My stomach churned as I recognized one of the voices—Jareth. I couldn’t make out what he was saying, but his low, familiar tone sent a shiver down my spine. He was probably in there with my brother, discussingplans, strategies, whatever the hell they thought was best for me. If I stayed here any longer, I’d be pulled into their orbit, stuck under their watchful eyes. I couldn’t let that happen.

I pressed on, keeping my movements steady and deliberate. Every step brought me closer to freedom, to action, to Jareth. It was reckless. Hell, it was stupid. But I didn’t care. The need to take control, todo something,burned inside me like a fire I couldn’t extinguish.

As I neared the back entrance, I felt a surge of adrenaline. I was almost there. I could taste the cool night air, feel the weight of the estate lifting from my shoulders. My mind raced with possibilities, with plans I could barely piece together but knew I’d figure out along the way.

I paused at the final corner, glancing around to make sure the coast was clear. The corridor was empty, the door to the outside just a few feet away. My pulse thundered in my ears as I stepped forward, every nerve in my body on high alert.

This was it. No turning back now.

This was my chance to make things right. To find Genevieve, to prove myself, to fight for what I wanted. And I wasn’t going to let anything or anyone stand in my way.

The air was cooler than I expected, biting against my skin as I stepped out of the estate’s back door. My pulse raced as I pulled the hood of my jacket over my head, glancing around to make sure no one had seen me. The sprawling grounds of Raffaele’s estate stretched out before me, dark and silent except for the occasional rustle of leaves in the wind. I felt a strange mix of exhilaration and dread as I slipped through the shadows.

They never would have let me leave. Jareth and Raffaele had made that abundantly clear. But I wasn’t about to sit around and let everyone else dictate my life. Not anymore. Genevieve was out there somewhere, scared and alone. I was going to find her.And if that meant breaking a few rules and risking everything, so be it.

I was halfway down the path toward the outer gardens when something flickered in the corner of my eye. I froze, my heart jumping into my throat. A rat was perched on the edge of a crumbled stone wall. Its beady eyes glinted in the moonlight, its long tail flicking back and forth like a pendulum.

I stared at it, my breath catching. I recognized it instantly. It was the same one that had terrorized Genevieve, the one I’d dismissed as a random nuisance. And the same one who’d shown up at my apartment. But seeing it here, now, sent a chill down my spine.

“What the hell are you doing here?” I muttered under my breath.

The rat didn’t respond, of course, but it tilted its nasty-ass head as if mocking me. Then, with a flick of its tail, it darted off, disappearing into the shadows.

I knew I should have ignored it, turned around, and gone back inside where it was safe. But my gut told me to follow it. My gut also told me I was about to do something monumentally stupid.

“Great idea, Eva,” I muttered, pulling my jacket tighter around me as I stepped off the path. “Chase a rat into the woods. Nothing bad could possibly happen.”

The rat scurried through the rubble and dense undergrowth like it knew exactly where it was going. I stumbled after it, my boots crunching over twigs and leaves. The farther I went, the darker it got. My heart thudded in my chest, but I couldn’t stop. Something about that damn rat felt important. Jareth couldn’t figure out who it belonged to, so maybe I could. It was a twisted guide leading me to whatever fresh hell awaited, yet I couldn’t stop myself from following.

After what felt like an eternity, the rat stopped. It perched on a rock at the edge of a clearing, its tiny body silhouetted against the faint glow of the waning sunlight. For a moment, I hesitated, my instincts screaming at me to turn back. But before I could decide, the rat darted forward and disappeared.

“What the—” I didn’t have time to finish. Without thinking, I lunged forward, trying to grab it before it vanished completely. My fingers brushed against air, and then?—

The world shifted.

It was like being yanked through a whirlpool made of light and shadows. The ground disappeared beneath my feet, and my stomach dropped as if I were free-falling. Colors swirled around me—dark blues, silvers, and blacks—blurring together in a dizzying, disorienting haze. My ears rang, and the pressure in my chest made it hard to breathe.

I opened my mouth to scream, but no sound came out. My body felt weightless and heavy all at once, like I was being stretched and compressed at the same time. It was impossible to tell how long it lasted—seconds, minutes, an eternity. All I knew was that when it finally stopped, I hit the ground hard, and the impact knocked the wind out of me.

Gasping for air, I rolled onto my back, staring up at a ceiling I didn’t recognize. My head spun, my vision blurred, and it took everything I had not to throw up.

What the fuck just happened?

I forced myself to sit up, bracing my trembling hands against the cool marble floor beneath me. The room was enormous, its vaulted ceilings and ornate pillars giving it the appearance of a palace or some kind of grand hall. Golden light streamed in through tall windows, illuminating intricate carvings on the walls and floors.

The rat scurried across the polished floor, heading straight for a group of three men standing in the center of the room.Their clothing looked expensive, and from the way they carried themselves, I could tell they were important—leaders of some sort, maybe.

I ducked behind a nearby pillar, my chest heaving as I tried to make sense of what I was seeing. The rat stopped at the feet of one of the men, its tiny form dwarfed by their towering figures. The man leaned down, his hand outstretched as if to touch the creature.

What the hell was going on? Where was I? And who were these men?

My instincts screamed at me to stay hidden, to retreat before I was noticed. But my curiosity and sheer stupidity rooted me to the spot. I had no idea how I’d gotten there, but I was certain this was no accident.

46

JARETH