ROSE
Caelin stepped out of the dark, holding a gun. The bright light from the Led bulb illuminated his face. He wore a different look from the last time I saw him. Cold, dark. Suspicious. His eyes skimmed the premises, searching for sudden movements. After a brief moment, he turned to leave, but snapped his head toward my direction. My heart almost jumped out though my mouth. His gaze locked on the tree, the light shone on his face as he squinted, taking in a proper view of my hiding corner. I pressed my hands against my mouth, grabbed my night robe tightly, like that would make me invisible.
My breath ceased when he turned and started walking toward me. A voice screamed at me to run, another voice suggested I stayed. I crouched lower, careful not to touch the leaves, careful not to make a sound. He strode forward quietly, calculating each step, gun in a defensive position. I froze. What if he fires in my direction? My thoughts ran wild, as i trembled in my squating position, humming every words of prayer my mother taught me,
Just when he was about closing in on me, one of his men called out. Not shouting. Just enough for the ears close by to hear. "Boss," he called. "Hes here."
He didn't respond to that, he only waved him off while his gaze stayed fixed in my direction. Suddenly, he turned and walked back to his men. I heaved a heavy but silent sigh of relief. A car pulled backwards, engine humming quietly. They opened the trunk of the car and pulled out a man blindfolded, restrained with ropes, and dragged inside like a bag of sand. His body scraping the interlock.
As soon as the shadows disappeared, I took to my heels. My heart thudded against my rib. I barged into the room before I could stop myself. Thankfully, nobody woke up, so I leaned back on the door for a brief moment and tried to catch my breath. The throbbing from my wound was gone, only the sound of my heartbeat echoing in my ears. Quietly, I tiptoed to my bed and climbed on it, pulling the blanket over my head with trembling hands.
Sleep did not come immediately, as the look in Caelin`s face kept playing in my head. I reevaluated my plans. I was definitely going to take revenge for Reid, but I can't be reckless, not after seeing his dark side which I feared was just a glimpse of him. A tip of the iceberg. Caelin is a cold blooded bastard, and even though he had made advances at me, I knew he would never forgive betrayal. He wont bat an eye doing away with me if I ever crossed him. As much as I hated him, I still needed to gain his approval and trust. That is the only way i can get close to him and take my pound of flesh. And with the poison and shooting incident, I think is was safe to say I was heading towards that.
***
"Wake up, this is not your house,' Madam Trovia shouted, shaking me violently.
I jolted up, wincing at the pain from my gunshot wound. I sat up and rubbed my eyes with the back of my hands.
"Cut the crap, the boss wants to see you," she informed. Just that. No explanation, no room for questions.
Why does he want to see me? Did he see me behind the flower tree last night? Or did he see me running back to the mansion? Fuck! I was doomed. I quickly changed up, brushed my hair and stepped out, going to the main building. To Caelin's room. Bracing up for what laid ahead.
***
"When I entered Caelin's room, he sat on the single couch, legs crossed, hands resting on the armrest. His right casually held a glass of gold coloured whiskey. He looked sharper in his white shirt.
"Good morning, sir" I greeted.
"Your job in this mansion will change, and it's effective immediately," he said.
His words meant nothing, yet it carried a lot of meaning. There was nothing bad about a boss changing the job description of his staff. But the tone with which he said it made me scared and I began to wonder.
I nodded, " yes sir. What is now expected of me?,"I asked.
He stayed quiet for some time, before adjusting in his seat. The silence crept up my skin. I looked down, anticipating his next words.
"Have a seat, Ms Wade,' he said, calmly.
What? I never told him my last name, I never told anyone. But then, it dawned on me. He was a mafia, a skilled and experienced mafia. A deadly one. So getting information was nothing to him.
"First of all, I want to make something clear," he began. "As my staff, everyone is obligated to obey every rule down to the last."
My palm suddenly became damp on a cold morning.
"No one is exempted."
I nodded, and breathed out.
He observed my nervous frame for a moment, eyes dark and assessing.
"Youre going to be my personal maid, from today," he said finally.
I looked up at him, my brows knitting in confusion, "I… I dont—," I stammered.
"I wasn't asking," he cuts in. "That was an order."
I swallowed hard, for a moment I was glad he didn't say anything about seeing me last night, but something in me snapped, my blood boiled with such anger that curled my fingers into a fist. Who the fuck does he think he is ordering everyone around? He's just a privileged brat.
"Stay calm Rose," I told myself. "If you're going to bring this son of a bitch down, you have to give him a grand downfall."
I nodded and looked up at him. "Yes sir."
He leaned forward and dropped the glass of wine on the table, and then leaned back on his chair. A brief silence swept through the room before he finally spoke. "A new job comes with a new job description, so pay close attention."
He said that with a face void of emotions and unreadable. I adjusted my weight, bracing myself for whatever rubbish he had to spill from his blood licking mouth, because somehow i knew it was going to make my stay in this mansion difficult.