Chapter 56: Strange happenings
TERESA’S P.O.V.
Months had drifted by since I first set foot in Adrian’s mansion, a place so grand it felt like stepping into another realm. The mansion sprawled endlessly, every inch of it exuding wealth, with fancy carvings on the ceilings, polished marble floors that stretched like sheets of ice, and walls lined with portraits whose painted eyes seemed to follow you down the endless halls. Despite its beauty, though, it was a cold beauty, one that left a lingering chill. The staff and residents moved like shadows, drifting from place to place with practiced elegance but barely a hint of warmth. They were polite, offering nods or stiff greetings in passing, but no one seemed truly friendly.
I tried to adjust, to find some sense of familiarity in this strange, isolated world. One morning in the gardens, a soft haze clinging to the early air, I spotted Harry—a tall, stoic figure who always hovered close to me when Adrian wasn’t around, and I had a feeling Adrian put him up to it. There was something in the way he held himself, quiet but watchful, that reminded me of Lucian’s own bodyguards: dutiful and distant, like they existed only to keep me in my place. I took a deep breath, telling myself that maybe all I needed was to break the ice. Surely, there was a way to get through to him.
"Good morning, Harry," I ventured, pushing a stray strand of hair behind my ear and mustering a smile. "It’s... um, it’s lovely here. Do you enjoy living in such a magical place?"
He barely glanced at me, his dark gaze sliding over me in a quick, dismissive flicker. Silence stretched between us as he remained stiff, unmoved, like a statue carved from stone. I had a feeling he didn’t like me. I felt the urge to fidget under his scrutiny, but I forced myself to stay steady, to try again.
"You don’t have to just stand there, you know," I said, adding a light laugh to ease the tension. "I don’t bite."
His gaze sharpened, cutting through my attempt at humor with a cold, piercing intensity. He leaned closer, his voice low and chillingly calm. "Ms. Teresa," he said, his tone formal yet taut with an underlying threat, "if you value your life, don’t speak to the others. Stay close to Mr. Adrian or me. Always."
My stomach dropped, and for a moment, I was caught off guard, staring up at him as the weight of his words settled over me like a lead blanket. "Um... excuse me?" My voice came out faint, barely more than a whisper.
But Harry only gave a single, curt nod, as if his cryptic warning explained everything. Then he turned and strode away but didn’t go to far, leaving me standing alone with a swirl of questions and a deepening sense of unease twisting in my chest.