*BOOK ELEVEN* (Can be read as standalone)
"There's a problem with your theory," he murmurs, the touch of his fingers down my jawline, down my neck, a silent warning. I'm in the midst of a cold, calculated predator. "One side of me wants to preserve...
I was just about to make my first step toward, when someone grabbed my arm. "Who are you?"
Flinching, a curse comes out of my mouth that is enough to startle them, and me. Placing my hand on my chest, I turn around, seeing where the voice came from.
It's a girl who stands there, a confused expression on her face, holding a lantern up. The mellow burning light flutters across her face, stormy blue eyes skeptical. Whoever she is, she looks as though she works here, wearing nothing but loose brown pants and a shirt. It is beyond me how she isn't cold right now.
"You came from the docks, didn't you?" she questions flatly, raising an eyebrow as a warning. Don't lie to me she seems to say. She's just under my height, and doesn't look much younger than me, but I'm not about to cross her now.
"I did."
"Of course you did," she says with a sigh, brushing past me.
I watch her away, across the green lawn, toward the building, holding her lantern in front of her. Standing there dumbfounded, I have to wonder who she is. Her strawberry blonde hair has been twisted up into a knot on her head. She definitely works here, no doubt about that.
When she notices I'm not following her, she pauses, glancing over her shoulder. "Are you coming?"
"Where are you going?" I question, quickening my pace to walk beside her. "I mean, I assume you're going to the estate. What I should have said, is where did you come from?"
"I saw you walking up the hill after I was sent down to do a round of the docks," she replies.
I'm fascinated, but I don't want to ask too many questions to bother her. She looks like she has a lot on her plate as it is. At least she is giving me some answers right now. This stranger might just be my entry ticket into Ren's estate. Hopefully, without being caught by him.
"I'm Rose by the way," she says, leading me toward the side of Ren's manor, rather than the front. It must be a servants entrance. If that's what they are called here. I feel as though it would be rude to ask Rose.
"Brielle."
My eyes wander to the state of Ren's manor as we walk. It truly is beautiful, like nothing I've seen before. Artists on the street used to attempt to paint the estate upon rumours they had heard from fired crew. However, I can now see none of them came close to encapsulating how stunning it is. Like a true, magnificent lake side villa standing above anything else on this island.
"Do you work here?" I ask her, as she leads me around the other side of the building, shadowed by a cool darkness.
She nods. "Have done for three years now."
"How come you're being so kind?" I ask, watching her stop to unlock a set of double wooden doors, while she mutters something about a useless cook closing up too early. "I'm just a stranger who showed up on this island. You don't even really know who I am, Rose."
"I know your name is Brielle. Plus, if you wanted on this island, you needed a job. That's how it's been for awhile," she tells me, motioning for me to step inside. "We all had the same beginning. Would have been nice if someone gave me a helping hand in the beginning."
Smiling slightly, I do as she offers, stepping inside the room. I'm immediately enveloped by warmth, which I attribute to the ovens on the other side burning through ash wood.
"Everyone is asleep. It never looks this clean, nor quiet during the day."
It's a kitchen, on the lowest floor. Everything wiped clean, benches bare and sinks empty. It's pristine, but I'm more concerned about what might be on the other side of that door over there.
"There's a sleeping quarters down another flight of stairs. Luckily for you, there is more than one spare bed. It seems we are having quite a shortage of helping hands around here. Doesn't matter how much salary Ren gives them, for whatever reason, they don't stick around," Rose tells me with dismay, leading me out the room.
We are in a hallway, the flight of stairs she mentioned to our left.
"Does anyone ever get to see the Alpha?" I ask curiously. It's not something I want, in particular, I just want to make sure he doesn't run into me when I'm looking at my worse. Especially when I want a paycheck worth enough for me to get out of here.
Rose looks at me as if I just placed a curse upon her family. "I truly hope you're not one of those foolish girls who come here thinking they might have the Alpha fall in love with them. You're most likely to never see him. I can tell you that much."
"Why not?"
"He keeps to himself. Unless you've worked here for over ten years, you won't step foot inside his quarters. Those who do go in, never speak a word about him," Rose explains.
I let that sink in, as we trot down the stairs, into a communal sleeping area. There are a few figures tucked into beds, none stirring, ever as Rose continues to speak. It will become something I will have to get used to, surely.
Rose grabs my arm, getting me to face her. "Seriously, don't go anywhere near him. If the rumours serve to be true, you'd be foolish to do so."
Before I can ask what those rumours entail, she points to a bed, and leaves me be.
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