It had just been five days since her marriage, and she still hadn’t explored the mansion properly.
Her room, the dining hall, and most of the living areas were all located in the eastern wing.
So she assumed Adhiraj’s study would most likely be somewhere on the opposite side.
Her footsteps slowly carried her toward the western wing of the mansion.
The west side felt entirely different from the eastern wing.
The eastern wing has a warm and lively texture in its atmosphere, but the west side is cold, forgotten, and felt like it has been dead for ages.
Some of the walls had cracked paint peeling from the corners, and the long corridor smelled faintly of wet stone and dust.
The corridor was filled with ghosts of silence.
“It’s clear that Advanis hasn’t spent a penny on the renovation for this side for ages.” Her feet stopped in front of a large wooden door.
Slowly, she turned the doorknob and pushed it open.
The old door creaked loudly.
She stepped inside.
Countless old pages from the books were scattered across the floor in complete disorder.
The books from the shelves had fallen on the ground too.
“It looked as though someone had searched the room recently.”
She looked at the big portrait of Adhiraj on the wall of the study.
“Even in this painting he looked crazy.” She squinted her eyes and looked at the portrait closely.
“What the… this—I’ve seen this before.”
A dark green journal could be seen lying beside him.
A strange tree-like structure was carved into its cover.
Reiha’s eyes narrowed slightly.
“If this is really the same journal I’m thinking about…” Reiha whispered slowly, staring at the picture.
“Then it must be with him.”
Near the desk, Reiha suddenly noticed a torn black shirt lying on the ground.
Her eyes widened slightly.
“Arthav…”
She picked it up slowly.
“He must’ve come here last night trying to find something.”
A loud thud echoed into the study.
Reiha turned.
The portrait of Adhiraj has fallen on the ground violently.
The old rusted nail that had held it proudly against the wall for years had finally given up.
Reiha’s breath hitched.
“I was standing there just a second ago…” she thought, staring at the broken glass.
“I almost got crushed beneath it.”
“What did you do?”
Kiara’s furious voice suddenly echoed from behind her.
Reiha’s eyes widened in shock.
Before she could react, Kiara grabbed her arm harshly.
“How dare you enter this room?” Kiara snapped furiously.
Her gaze dropped toward the shattered portrait lying across the floor.
“I kept this room untouched for years…and you…you just walked in and ruined it in a second.” Her nostrils flared and her breaths turned uneven.
“What have you done?” she demanded angrily.
“It fell—
Kiara cut in, “You broke it, you filthy wench.”
“I did nothing.” Reiha’s voice faltered slightly.
“It just fell on its own—”
But Kiara wasn’t listening anymore.
She assumed that behind the fall of her late husband’s portrait was Reiha.
“You did it on purpose, didn’t you?” Kiara asked, rage filling her eyes when she lifted her eyes towards Reiha.
“Why would I do that?” Reiha replied, her brows pulling together in disbelief.
“The nail rusted. The portrait fell. I didn’t do anything.”
Kiara suddenly grabbed her arms tightly with both hands.
“You did it.” Her voice shook violently.
“You did it.” Stalking parrots repeat the same words that their owners teach them.
She wasn’t in a state to hear her, or she didn’t want to hear any words from her mouth.
Then suddenly—
Kiara shoved her backward.
Reiha’s back slammed against the window.
“Aah—!”
A sharp broken piece of glass dug into her shoulder instantly.
Pain shot through her body.
“Ow—Kiara, leave me!” Reiha tried pulling herself away, but Kiara looked completely blinded by rage.
The harder Kiara pushed her back, the deeper the sharp glass pressed into Reiha’s shoulder.
Blood slowly began staining the pale yellow sleeve of her dress.
Reiha clenched her teeth painfully.
Kiara stumbled backward violently.
Her foot slipped against the shattered portrait frame, and she fell over the broken glass.
“Aah!”
A sharp shard pierced into her palm instantly.
Kiara stared at the blood on her hand for a second before slowly lifting her eyes toward Reiha.
Hatred burned inside them.
“You filthy blood,” she spat venomously.
Then she abruptly looked outside toward the garden.
“Guards!” she shouted loudly.
Footsteps echoed through the hallway almost immediately.
Reiha touched her bleeding shoulder breathlessly while warm blood continued running down her arm.
Within seconds, guards rushed inside the study.
“Seize her,” Kiara ordered coldly.
“Lock her somewhere far away from my sight.”
Her chest rose sharply with anger.
“This filthy blood tried to kill me.”
The guards hesitated uncertainly.
“What are you waiting for?” Kiara screamed.
“Seize her now!”
Two guards immediately stepped forward and grabbed Reiha tightly by both arms.
“What the hell—leave me!” Reiha struggled against them furiously, but the large bodyguards barely moved.
“She’s the one acting crazy here!
“Lock her away.” Reiha looked back at Kiara.
“Kiara, stop them, Kiara.”
The guards pushed Reiha and locked her in an old room filled with rubbish and unimportant things forgotten in time.
A cardboard box filled with junk and rustic decorative items and a few old suits hung on the rack beside the wall.
The guards turn the lock and stand outside the room.
“Nobody should open this room until I say,” Kiara commanded.
“But ma’am, Master Arthav–”
“I’ll take care of him.
But she will be locked here until the morning.
If she comes out before dawn,” she narrowed her eyes, “you will be found dead.”