Page 20 of My Forever Sin

It takes me a few seconds to acquaint myself with my surroundings.

Right. I’m back. Not that this place is any better.

The knocks resume, causing me to flinch.

“Yes?” I call out.

“Vivian and Heath require your presence in the dining room, Miss Clarence,” someone I assume is a member of staff informs me.

“Okay, I will be there as soon as I can.”

No answer comes, and no footsteps retreat.

I lug myself out of bed and head to the bathroom.

Once I’m ready, I examine myself in the mirror, a slight smile curling on my face. I feel like me. The version that Poppy helped me bring out. I’ll have to find some way of getting more clothes, but I’ll keep these ones from her on rotation for the time being, despite how Mother might feel about them. As long as I remain obedient, she’ll be satisfied.

Leaving the bathroom, I stand in front of my bedroom door but it seems to mock me. Like it knows as soon as I walk out of this bedroom, I have to step into the role of someone I’m not. See people I don’t want to.

“Fuck you,” I mutter as I grip the handle and take a deep, calming breath.

I click it open, slowly nudging further.

The crimson hallways are silent and empty.

I blow out a breath of relief but then his door opens, and anger rumbles in my chest. I brace myself to see Lacey… but I don’t. It’s only him. His hair splits down the middle, effortlessly tickling the sides of his forehead. A rolled cigarette sits tucked away behind his ear and his leather jacket groans as he leans against the doorframe. His annoyingly attractive face pulls into a smirk as his eyes drift over me. “Hello, step-sis.”

But then again, isn’t the Devil an attractive entity too?

One that’s built to lure you in, eat you alive, then spit you back out.

My nostrils flare, but instead of responding to him, I spin on my heel and start heading down the hallway towards the dining room.

His fresh, citrusy scent lingers behind me so I opt for subtly glancing at any rooms we pass, making notes of which ones could be useful to me.

The whole time, he follows me like it’s his full-time job. Step for step. Breath for breath.

When I finally reach the long hallway leading to the dining room, I suck in a breath and Kain’s desperate shouting echoes in my mind like a broken relic and I’m taken back in time; my mind wraps around that memory like a vice and I try to wipe it out.

It’s not until his shoulder brushes mine that I’m pulled back into the present moment. I watch as he leisurely makes his way towards the double doors, like he has all the power in the world. He doesn’t glance back, but I swear he slows when he nears the entryway.

I shake myself out of my stupor, breezing past him, before pushing the doors open with a loud bang as they hit the walls and all eyes in the room turn to me like I’m the main spectacle.

Dorrian, Heath, and my displeased mother when she catches onto yesterday’s attire.

Dorrian is stoic as usual, pushing breakfast around his plate.

No Lacey.

I clear my throat and straighten my spine, retracting my hands from the door handles.

The room is the same as that night, only brighter with the overcast day lighting it up. My throat seizes as I take it in.

Heath gestures to the two empty chairs near the end of the table where the breakfast buffet has been placed. “Nice of you to join us. Please, sit. We didn’t get a chance to discuss our plans with you last night.”

“Plans?” I ask as I sit next to Mother, who sits opposite Dorrian with Heath at the head of the table.

Simple answers and questions keep me in the safe zone. If I don’t talk back much, I don’t get punished. I quite enjoy the confusion on their faces while they try to figure me out.