~ Jane’s POV
The estate of the Knights stretched farther than my eyes could comfortably follow. When my feet landed on the solid ground, I came face to face with a building towering over every other building on the property.
“Leah, this is Jane,” Blake Knight had told the old lady, who simply twisted her arm across mine and guided me inside the massive building surrounded by several others.
Massive columns covered the entrance, while floor-to-ceiling windows reflected the surrounding gardens like polished mirrors. My breath fastened when my eyes landed on the room located in the east wing of the mansion. Unlike the lavish halls downstairs, the corridor was quieter, its cream-colored walls softened by warm lighting and thick Persian carpets that silenced my very anxious footsteps.
The room inside was larger than the one I had spent my entire life in within the Miller mansion.
The lady walked me into a room that had a king-sized canopy bed standing beneath a crystal chandelier, while the floor-to-ceiling windows gave me a view of perfectly trimmed gardens. A fireplace also occupied one wall beside a comfortable sitting area with velvet sofas and a small library filled with leather-bound books.
“Please get comfortable, miss. I’ll be right outside if you need any help,” The lady murmured, taking her leave and shutting the door on her way out before I could even stop her.
I swallowed, watching my suitcase standing comfortably by the bed, and I realized someone had already brought my things here. My eyes landed on the walk-in wardrobe, larger than the bedroom I was using the past few days, and my feet automatically moved forward. I took out a dress from the walk-in wardrobe, grateful that I didn’t have to unpack, considering how bad my nerves were.
I went to the luxurious bathroom complete with a freestanding bathtub and rainfall shower. I sighed, realizing how perfectly beautiful the room was. But I knew I wasn't staying in a luxury bedroom. I was staying in a gilded cage.
After freshening up, my feet took me back to the bed, and I sat on the edge of it, picking up my phone and typing a quick text to Lily, informing her of the situation. Before I could stand and go out, a knock on the door caught my attention.
I cleared my throat, swallowing my anxious nerves. “Come in,” I said, watching the lady whom Mr. Knight called Leah, and she closed the door behind her.
“I hope you’ve freshened up, child?” She asked, and my eyes instantly darted to hers, wondering how one person can hold so much warmth.
“Y-yes,” I whispered, unaware how to act, how to behave, what to say, or even what to do. I had been nervous the moment he picked me up and brought me out of the apartment. Though I was relieved that I was safe from my family, that didn’t mean I wasn’t brought to another prison.
“Are you hungry, dear?” She asked, taking a seat beside me, and I shook my head, my appetite lost a long while ago. I had been hungry when I came back from the party, but now, all I wanted was to just close my eyes and sleep until the end of the world.
“Let me see that,” She whispered, taking my arm in hers and lifting up the sleeve of the dress to show her the bruise that was already worse. “Oh, my,” she murmured, gasping as if she’d seen an injury she wasn’t expecting. Without another word, she stood up and walked out of the room, rushing.
My eyebrows furrowed, and before I could go after her, my phone rang, Lily’s phone appearing on the screen. With a deep breath, I picked up the phone, my mind spiralling with a million thoughts. “Jane! Where are you? Are you alright?”
“I don’t know, Lily. I’m currently on the property of Blake Knight. I don’t know what to do, Lily. I’m scared.” I told her, wincing every time I moved my arm, the bruise hurting my arm even more than before.
“I know, Jane, I know. I’m so sorry I can’t come to you instantly, Jane…” She paused as if she was contemplating her next words before she continued, “…he didn’t do anything to you, right?”
A gasp left my mouth at her question, but who wouldn’t ask that given the circumstances. “No, he didn’t. He was rather…protective. He threatened my brothers, too,” I told her and heard her hum in response.
“Don’t worry, Jane. I’ll see if I can visit you, but hang in there, okay? You know I can’t go against him, but I can be here for you every step of the way,” she told me, and I nodded, almost face-palmed myself when I realized she couldn’t see me.
I let out a breath in frustration. “It’s alright. Stay safe, Lily, okay?”
“I will. You stay safe, Jane,” She told me, and we hung up after bidding each other farewell. I sighed, placing the phone on the table beside my bed, wondering if this could ever become my home. I knew it couldn’t, at least not soon.
A knock on the door interrupted my trail of thoughts, and I looked up to find Leah peeking through the corner of the door, asking for my permission, which I gave with a nod of my head. She walked in, followed by another old guy walking inside, a briefcase dangling in his hand. I watched them both with wide eyes and was about to ask who he was when Leah interrupted again.
“He’s the resident doctor here, dear. Could you please show him your arm?” She asked, and my eyes darted between the two of them. I nodded and extended my arm, biting my lip when a burst of pain rushed through the upper side of the elbow. He inspected it before opening the briefcase and taking out a tube.
After taking care of the arm, he left the room after giving me instructions not to move my arm too much or lift heavy objects.
“Here, have these.” Leah had the tablets placed on her palm and a glass of water in her other hand, offering me the medicine the doctor left for me to take before sleeping. I took it and swallowed it all in one go.
“I want to sleep, please,” I asked her, who nodded at me with a smile and left the room without another word.
I lay back on the bed, my mind drifting through several scenarios of living here. Not one of them had me imagining that maybe I could become what I wanted to be—an artist. Sighing, I closed my eyes and waited patiently for sleep to take me over, my mind drifting to dangerous scenarios.
~ The Next Day
I woke up with the sunlight cascading through the windows, enveloping the room in a warm embrace. I sighed in relief when I felt almost no pain in my arm. I went straight to the bathroom and freshened up, wearing a fresh set of clothes I took out of my suitcase.
When I was finally dressed, I walked out of the bathroom only to be greeted by Leah once again, who was waiting for me with a wide smile plastered on her face. “Hello, dear.”
I smiled back in response, not knowing what else to say to her.
“Come, let’s get you to meet Madam Knight,” Leah said politely, and my breath hitched when I realized who she was talking about. The lady from the restaurant. The lady who came in with Blake at the restaurant I was a waitress at.
I swallowed, already knowing that there was no other option, so I followed her out of the room and into the corridor. Leah took me through the corridor that had elegant wooden doors standing evenly spaced along the walls of the corridor. I knew, without a doubt, that each of the rooms led to spacious suites prepared with the same understated luxury.
She then took me to the one at the far end of the corridor and knocked on the door before turning the knob and walking inside. For a place like this, I wondered why the doors had a traditional style to it.
When I walked inside, the room was almost identical to mine, minus the canopy bed and the long windows. My eyes landed on the lady sitting by the fireplace, sipping on her cup. When her eyes landed on mine, she immediately gasped and stood up, trudging to me.
I inhaled a deep breath when she stopped in front of me and pulled me into a hug. “Oh, sweetie! How are you? Did you sleep alright?” She asked, and I watched her, shock plastered all over my face.
“I did, thank you,” I told her, my heart beating so quickly, I was finding it hard to breathe. She grabbed my hand and guided me to the velvet sofa set by the fireplace, seating me beside her.
“Oh, I am so glad you are here. I’ve been looking forward to meeting you.” She said, her eyes wide with joy and glistening with hope.
“You are?” I asked her, my eyes wide with curiosity and anxiety filling my stomach.
Before she could answer, a cold voice interrupted us from behind us. “Having fun?”
