Chapter 8 Sebastian
Those fucking bastards.
I had a bad feeling from the moment I saw the FedEx package.
I couldn’t say why, but something didn’t feel right, maybe the delivery time.
When I heard Marfil’s scream, I feared the worst. Opening the door to her bedroom, the only room in the apartment without security cameras to monitor her, I saw her standing there, covering her face with her bloodstained hands and her emerald eyes frozen in a mask of horror.
It was then I understood that I had failed her.
Those bastards had mixed the bird’s blood—it was a fucking condor that they’d sent her—with red paint so it would be harder to clean up. Her white face, almost the color of porcelain, had looked so grisly with those red stains.
The poor thing was horrified and shaking so hard that I was afraid she might faint. Seeing all that blood, the dead animal, and the message they’d sent must’ve been the worst thing that had ever happened to her. Or maybe not, considering her recent past.
I got to work, making sure that by the time she was done with her bath, there would be no trace of that scene that looked like something out of a horror movie. I put the bird in a plastic bag, intending to have it sent to a lab to be examined, along with the box.
I took the cover off her duvet and saw that the down comforter was completely ruined as well.
I put it in another plastic bag and went to get mine.
Once everything was clean and organized, I heard the bathroom door open.
She walked out fearfully, wrapped in a white robe with her jet-black hair dripping down her back.
Her incredibly green eyes were red from the tears she’d shed, and her cheeks, although surely hot from the water, were pale under the superficial warmth of her skin.
“I gave you my comforter. I had to throw yours away.”
She nodded, looking warily at her bed. “Did you talk to my father?”
“I called him, but he didn’t answer. I talked to Logan. Tomorrow I’ll send the evidence off so they can try to find something that might lead us to the people trying to scare you.”
Marfil sat down at her dressing table. I watched her reflection in the mirror as she opened her mouth to speak. “Did you see what was in the box?”
I pressed my lips together, furious.
“They’re taking revenge on my father through me, and we don’t even know why.”
I had no idea how much Marfil knew. Her father had clearly specified that I not divulge any information that could scare her. I felt a stab of pain in my side and was reminded to keep focused on my job.
“Don’t worry about that right now. Do you want a cup of tea or something hot?”
She shook her head, eyes lost to her reflection in the mirror. “Would you mind lighting the fireplace?”
I did as she asked, and after checking her room one last time to make sure everything was in order, I left to give her some privacy.
I made a cup of coffee, feeling that I needed to remain alert.
When I was almost finished with it, the door to her bedroom opened and she appeared, barefoot, adorable in her pink pajamas.
She looked better, not a trace of red paint on her skin, and she had dried her hair, which hung straight and loose down her back.
“Are you all right?” I couldn’t help but ask.
She seemed to hesitate for a moment before opening her mouth to ask me something. “I’m sure you’ll laugh at me, but…”
I set the coffee cup on the kitchen counter, giving her my full attention.
“Could you stay with me for a little while until I fall asleep? When I close my eyes, all I see is…”
“No problem.”
I followed her into her bedroom and sat on the chair in the corner.
After what had just happened, it was as if something had changed between us.
Her eyes never left mine as she lay her head on her pillow and pulled my comforter up to her neck.
She breathed in my scent on the blanket, and we gazed at each other until sleep overcame her and she closed her eyes.
I sat watching her for a long time, with only one thought on my mind: I’ll do anything to keep you safe, Marfil. That’s a promise I won’t allow myself to break.