The maid thought for a moment.
“He was furious.”
Mariam’s stomach dropped.
“But not at you,” Lena continued, trying not to scare Mariam and to put some sense of ease into her.
“He was more angry at Sheikh because the security was weak.”
Mariam huffed.
That was typical of Jackson.
“I’ll go,” Mariam said, biting her lip.
She pushed the blanket aside and forced her legs over the edge of the bed.
The moment her feet touched the floor, a wave of weakness hit her body, making her sway slightly.
Lena immediately moved closer ready to catch her if she fell, but Mariam raised a hand, silently refusing help, even though her knees felt unsteady and her muscles protested every movement after days of complete immobility.
“Miss…let me help…”
“I’m fine.”
She was absolutely not.
There was a sharp pain in her ribs and she had definitely hurt herself when she had jumped down from the window.
Still, she walked without Lena’s help.
Each step toward the door felt heavier than the last, and by the time she reached the staircase, her breathing had already become uneven, but she continued downward anyway, gripping the railing tightly.
Lena followed behind her silently.
This woman was really stubborn!
At the bottom of the stairs, a guard opened the door leading into the dining area.
“Miss… you may go in,” he said.
“I will not follow you inside,” Lena said.
“Master is waiting for you there…”
Mariam took a deep breath before walking inside the dining room.
The dining room was large, well-lit by warm overhead lights that softened the otherwise cold atmosphere of the villa and at the center of it sat Jackson Walsh.
He ate his dinner indifferently, his expression distant and detached as if nothing in the past few days had ever disrupted his routine.
He wore a dark shirt, sleeves rolled up slightly, revealing the defined lines of his forearms, and his hair was slightly tousled in a way that suggested he had been working for hours without rest.
Yet even in that state he looked composed, but it was impossible to tell what he was thinking.
There was another plate placed across from him.
It was holding a smaller portion of simple food—porridge and soup, the kind typically served to patients who had just woken up from a coma.
It was clearly meant for her.
“Sit down and eat.” Jackson’s order sounded cold and harsh.
Mariam’s eyes shifted from the food to him and something inside her snapped at the sight.
Was there a harmonious relationship between them that allowed her to share a meal with him at the same table?
How could he order her with such authority?
She slowly stepped towards the table.
And then, in a sudden violent motion, she grabbed the edge of the table cloth and flipped it over.
The tableware clattered violently as the bowl in front of her tipped, its contents spilling over the rim before crashing onto the floor.
A few splashes of food even struck Jackson’s cheek.
“I would never eat at the same table as you,” she said, her voice rising, trembling with anger that had been building for days, weeks, maybe longer, as everything she had endured since meeting him collided at once. This chapter was taken from g.com without permission.
Her chest heaved as she continued, words spilling out before she could stop them.
“I told you before that I never want to marry you,” she said sharply, her green eyes filled with venom.
“You’re just taking advantage of my family’s bankruptcy—” Her voice broke slightly, but she forced it steady again.
“I said I never wanted to see you again. Ever. I want to marry Ronan. He could have paid off the debts too. You didn’t need to get involved!”
The words escaped her like an old wound being torn open once more.
“I hate you,” she went on, her voice trembling with both fury and heartbreak.
“Just being in the same room as you makes me sick.”
A heavy silence followed as Jackson didn’t answer immediately.
A slight shadow of sorrow passed Jackson’s face.
If someone didn’t notice carefully then they would have entirely missed it.
He forced himself not to react, not to show anything, even as something sharp twisted painfully inside his chest seeing Mariam’s outrage.
The silence stretched longer than comfortable.
Then he spoke.
“You haven’t eaten in five days…You should eat.”
Mariam let out a bitter laugh.
“In this house,” she said firmly, “I will never touch a single grain of food. You should let me go!”
“I am not letting you go anywhere.” Jackson wiped the food plastered on his cheek with the back of his hand.
The intensity in his gaze was sharp and suffocating that made her breath hitch.
“You will be too foolish to try escaping again…unless you want to be chained in my basement.”
Mariam’s hands clenched into fists till her knuckles turned white.
“You…how heartless can you be?!”