Alexander turned around, staring at Elena, who remained frozen on the edge of the bed.
The fury in his eyes slowly shifted into a restrained ache of despair.
He approached her with rapid strides.
Without warning, Alexander knelt before Elena, cupping both sides of her face in his warm palms, and captured her lips in a kiss.
This kiss was neither demanding nor full of dominance as usual.
It felt deep, hurried, and filled with a bitter longing.
It was as if he were absorbing the very last essence of Elena’s existence to carry away with him.
Alexander broke the kiss, resting his forehead against Elena’s cold one.
His breath came out in soft hitches.
“Sweetheart…
I have to leave,” Alexander whispered in a heavy, raspy voice, staring straight into Elena’s bewildered amber eyes.
He brushed away the remaining tear on her cheek with his thumb, whispering an absolute command that permitted no defiance.
“Remember…
our deal still stands.
Your father is safe as long as you remain in this place and stay mine.
Don’t you ever think about running away, Elena.”
Alexander stood up, turning his back without looking back again.
He snatched his velvet cloak and rushed out of the room.
The heavy door shut with a loud thud, leaving only the fading echo of his footsteps in the corridor outside.
Beyond the threshold of the manor, the night air was biting and harsh.
Alexander mounted his black stallion in a single, fluid motion.
Alongside Alaric and Hugo, he spurred his horse into a fierce gallop, cutting through the pitch-black woods of the Dracox estate.
The cold wind whipped against his face, but it did nothing to quench the fire of rage and dark anxiety consuming his mind.
Behind him, he left the only woman who made him feel human; ahead of him lay an emergency at the Imperial Court that threatened to strip away his power.
He galloped at full speed into the night, forcing every thought of Elena into the deepest recesses of his mind—for now, survival and politics demanded his absolute focus.
Meanwhile, back inside the luxurious room, silence fell dead and heavy.
Elena sat alone on the edge of the vast gold bed.
The space around her felt agonizingly hollow, lingering only with the faint scent of sandalwood and snow that was slowly dissipating into the night air.
Elena clutched her own chest.
Deep inside, beneath her ribs, a strange feeling surged and collided with terrifying force.
A deep sense of relief washed over her soul—her wish and prayer had been granted instantly; Alexander had finally left the manor, leaving her alone.
A small spark of joy welled up because she didn’t have to face another night of physical ordeal.
Yet…
behind that overwhelming relief and joy, a tiny corner of her heart felt…
empty.
A strange, terrifying feeling she refused to acknowledge even to herself: a subtle, aching sense of loss.
Elena squeezed her chest tighter, shaking her head violently to banish the crazy thought.
‘No…’ Elena panicked internally, trying to ignore the strange throb in her heart.
‘It’s only because I’m shocked.
I’m relieved he’s gone.
I’m glad he’s gone!’
Yet, in that cold, hollow room, the image of Alexander’s face and his final, bitter kiss continued to echo, leaving behind an emotional puzzle far more dangerous than anything Elena had ever imagined.
In the days that followed, Elena tried her best to reclaim the rhythm of her ordinary life.
At first, the sensation of freedom was intoxicating.
Her heart felt lighter as she walked through the corridors without fear of a sudden grip pulling her into the shadows.
She smiled more easily when carrying out her tasks, genuinely believing that the dark cloud hovering over her had finally cleared.
However, a week soon passed since Alexander’s abrupt departure from the Dracox estate.
The grand manor had returned to its usual routine.
Elena’s life carried on as it always had—waking up before dawn, scrubbing cold stone floors, drawing water from the well, and enduring the harsh sneers and demands of senior servants like Clementine.
There were no more sudden summonses to the master bedroom on the upper floor.
No more muscular arms dragging her into the shadows behind stone pillars.
No heavy scent of sandalwood and snow to overpower her senses.
Elena should have been overjoyed.
She should have celebrated this temporary freedom with a sigh of relief every single second.
Yet, every time night fell and Elena lay on the hard straw mattress of the servants’ quarters, the darkness became a torment far more terrifying than any physical labor.
While the other servants slept soundly around her, filling the small room with heavy breathing, Elena remained wide awake, staring blankly at the ceiling.
Elena clutched her thin blanket tightly, turning onto her side as she stared at the cold stone wall.
Her mind drifted, returning again and again to that night when Alexander had embraced her from behind, to the warmth of his fingers beneath her coarse dress, and to his final, bitter kiss before he left.
‘Why…?’ Elena mourned internally, tears welling up in the corners of her eyes.
‘Why do I keep thinking about him?!’
A sudden wave of self-loathing and disgust burned in Elena’s chest.
She was angry—furious—at her own body and heart’s reactions.
Alexander was the man who had stolen her maidenhood, the man blackmailing her with her father’s execution, and the man who treated her as nothing more than a plaything for his leisure.
Yet, why was it that during his days of absence without a word, a part of her felt so hollow?
Why did her skin seem to crave the warmth of that prince’s possessive touch?
‘You’ve gone mad, Elena Rosemoor!’ she berated herself in the silence of the night, biting her lower lip to suppress her quiet sobs.
‘He is the Crown Prince!
To him, you are just a toy left in the corner of a room once something more important comes along.
Don’t you dare miss him!
Don’t let these forbidden feelings ruin your remaining sanity!’
Elena buried her face into her rough pillow, desperately trying to dispel the longing that crept in like poison.
She hated the fact that her mental defenses were crumbling.
She hated the fact that beneath her fear, she was craving the very man who had shattered her life.
See you in the next chapter!