Chapter 39 - Rosaire

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(From Ella's Perspective)

The sound came from beneath a door nearby. I had never gone through that door, but I was sure that inside, it was not a room.

As I was about to open the door, I heard a voice from behind me. "Why are you still in the castle, Leora?"

It was the same blonde woman who told us to clean the library and the roof the other day. She had a friendly face, making anyone want to trust her. But her loyalty to the king was far above anything else.

"Nothing. I was just about to leave," I said.

"It's been twenty minutes past nine. You and the boy are always the first ones to leave this castle. I was a bit surprised seeing you here," she said.

She was not wrong. Jed and I had always left the castle as soon as it was nine. None of us liked being here, forget staying here more than necessary.

"I actually had to use the toilet. You know what I mean? I had a stomach ache_ perhaps because of the cookies," I said, reminding her that I had eaten too many cookies during lunch. It was not a perfect time for cookies, but they were too delicious to let go of.

"Are you okay now?"

"Yes, I'm fine."

Suddenly the cry of the girl erupted through the place again, making me jump out in fear. The woman looked anxious as well. She quickly grabbed my wrist and pulled me away from the door. If she was a split second late, the door would burst open on my back.

The king came out of the door. I had never seen him before, but it was clear by both his dressing and his stature. It was clear that Leandro and he were brothers, but they did not look too much alike.

Leandro was very tall, but he seemed to be shorter than Leandro. Both of them had athletic built though Leandro was more handsome and attractive. Pure energy would radiate from Leandro, but from him, all I felt was- odor coming out of poop that was trying to look perfect. It was true that he was not ugly and perhaps was a bit desirable for some girls, but I could not help but compare him to his brother and feel the need to tell Leandro right away that his brother looked like a broken pillar.

Nicklaus, Leandro's brother, had broad shoulders and muscular hands, but not as perfect as Leandro. Oh lord, I could not stop comparing him to Leandro. It was impossible not to think about Leandro's perfect features looking at him.

He had blue eyes that held the power of captivating usual girls who thought every boy had a crush on her. But Leandro's eyes were different; they were dark and mysterious, just like the galaxy that held way too many mysteries than anyone ever could reveal and his eyes had the power to make anyone feel intrigued by him. Was it a good sign? Perhaps no. But was I looking for a good sign to be with him? No either.

"Go back to work!" he barked. I looked here and there to see who he was talking to, but the moment the woman nudged my arm, I realized that he was saying that to us.

"Wait!" he said, making both of us stop in our tracks.

"Yes, my king?" the woman mumbled with so much respect that made me question all my life decisions.

"Who are you?" he asked, looking directly into my eyes. His gaze was frightening, but not enough to make me shiver. If it was Leandro, I would have perhaps gulped twice. Here we go again- I was thinking about Leandro again.

"I work here_ as a servant. I clean the rooms," I muttered, not moving my gaze from him.

"What is your name?" he asked.

"El... Leora Edrei, my lord," I said, swearing repeatedly inside my head for almost telling him my real name.

He nodded. "What are you still doing here in the castle, Leora?"

"I... I had to use the toilet. My stomach is not okay," I replied quickly.

"Alright then. Go now," he said and I breathed a sigh of relief and walked away quickly.

"Was he torturing someone?" I asked the woman as soon as we got away from the place.

"That's not something we need to worry about. You are very young. You need to be careful. The luscious eyes are hard to get away from," she said and left for the kitchen, leaving me thinking about her words.

But there was no time to waste here. I went the same way where the king was. First I made sure that he was not there anymore before I opened the door silently. Hopefully, it did not make any noise.

It was the dungeon- I should have known. I had never been here before and I always hoped that I would not have to be here ever. But things seemed to turn out differently.

I took a deep breath before making my way down the dark short stairwell, almost tumbling over my own feet. The cries of pain could be heard from within, making my skin crawl within.

Whatever came across me was not the sight anyone would ever want to see. There were a lot of cells, decaying of rotten animals. Inside those cells, there were humans, perhaps shifters too, but there was no way to differentiate them by marks on their backs when I could not bring my eyes to look at them.

I slowly made my way through, ignoring pleads of those people. It was hard to bear the sound, but there was nothing I could do.

I knew who I was looking for. I kind of knew who Nicklaus was torturing even though I did not see her. I looked for her and I was sure that she was here though I did not know if I would find her dead or alive.

And to prove myself right, I found her, lying on the floor of a cell, bleeding badly. Her usual shiny black hair did not look shiny anymore, rather they looked sticky as if some kind of liquid was attaching them together.

To my horror, my instincts were telling me that the liquid was nothing more than blood. I could not see her face as she was lying on her belly with her face pressed against the nasty floor.

The cell was not locked. Nicklaus knew perfectly that he had done enough damage to her so she would not be able to move a single flesh.

I crept inside the cell, holding my breath as the odor of rotten bodies filled my nostrils. My hands were shaking as the smell of blood got into my nostrils, making me want to gag.

I was right. She had got caught and she was the one who was working to kill the shifters. I was right all along thinking that Rosaire was the Rose the two men were talking about that day.

"Rosaire," I whispered.

She moved a bit, raising her head up a bit hearing my voice. Her shiny brown skin looked dull as her almost dead eyes met mine, saying some kind of words.

"You have to stay awake, okay?" I said, kneeling beside her gathering all my courage.

"Go... away. He... will... he will kill... you too."

"Don't talk. Save your breath, okay? You need to stay awake," I said.

"No... you don't... understand. Please... go away. You're so... little. He... they... will kill you too," she said, struggling to breathe.

I quickly brought out a paper from inside my dress. It was one of Leandro's drawings. It showed the hidden passageway that was in the dungeon. The entryway was not far from this cell.

"Come on. You need to hold on a bit more. I'll take you out of here," I said and tried to make her stand. But it was impossible. She did not seem to have any strength left in her body and being so petite, I could not make her stand as well.

"I can't," she mumbled, cracking up.

She had been whipped badly. That was when I noticed that her dress was ripped, her personal spaces all in view. She was raped. The thought made me shiver and I held her so closely that her blood got all over in my dress.

She was not only raped and whipped, but she was also stabbed. Her belly was bleeding badly without stopping. It was a trigger for me and the memory of that night came flooding in front of my eyes. I felt like I could faint at any moment, but I knew I could not afford to lose myself right now.. I needed to save both her and myself.

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