Page 54 of Bound By Blood and Lies

They stop just outside my room.

A knock lands softly against the wood and the breath in my lungs freeze. I keep staring at the handle like it might move at any second. Sweat begins to gather faintly at the back of my neck. The pause on the other side of the door stretches longer than it should as I shift backwards across the mattress without taking my eyes off it. The chain at my ankle gives a metallic rattle with the movement.

The knock comes again.

“Leave me alone!” I snap; the words crack through the quiet like a gunshot.

The silence that follows is so thick it presses in on my ears. I count to ten as I wait for what the person will do next. Another knock, a taunt, a nasty message spat out. Instead, I hear the soft shift of footsteps moving away from the door. They travel slowly down the hallway toward the staircase until the sound fades completely.

I let out a quiet breath as the tension begins to drain from my shoulders, leaving behind a faint tremor whilst my body slowly unclenches from the tight coil it had twisted itself into. I lean back against the headboard and close my eyes.

“Jesus fucking Christ,” I mutter under my breath whenthe footsteps return.

The sound hits the hallway faster this time. Not the cautious pace from before but something almost frantic, the rhythm of it echoes off the walls as they rush back towards the room. My entire body locks up again. The small relief I’d just felt vanishes instantly, replaced by a cold spike of dread that shoots straight through my chest. I force myself upright as I brace when the footsteps reach the doorframe and stop. The mechanism shifts with a dull metallic scrape as something heavier moves inside the lock. I stare at the handle. Are they trying to?—

The lock clicks.

The door swings open.

A person steps into the room and we both freeze as we look at each other. Her brown eyes widen and her dark curly hair is pulled loosely away from her face as she steps fully into the room. A gasp escapes her as her expression flickers between disbelief and horror.

“Fae—” she cries as she stumbles toward the bed.

The sound of my name in that traitor’s mouth makes anger flare through my chest.

“Fuck off,” I bark instantly. I can tell my voice is sharp with panic as I shove myself further back against the headboard. “What are you doing here? Did he send you to do his dirty work now?”

She stops dead. The colour drains from her face so quickly it’s unsettling as her mouth parts like she’s struggling to make sense of what she’s seeing.

“What are you talking about?” she asks breathlessly.

“Oh please,” I snap bitterly, “like you didn’t know he’s got me locked in here!”

The confusion on her face deepens. It fractures across her features as her eyes move quickly around the room beforesnapping back to me again. I won’t let her trick me. Men, I expect. Men, I already know are capable of cruelty. But Fiona… Fiona was softness. She was warmth. She had the kind of quiet light that made a room feel safer the moment she walked into it. She made me feel welcomed in a way I hadn’t realised I needed until it happened.

Which makes this different.

This isn’t just fear. It’s betrayal.

Monsters don’t scare you the same way as the people you trust. With monsters, at least you know what you’re looking at. You know what they’re capable of. But when someone kind turns on you, the ground shifts beneath your feet in a way that leaves you completely unsteady.

“Oh my God, Fae…” she takes another step towards me as I shrink backwards.

“Don’t touch me!” I scream.

She stops immediately. This time her eyes drop following the sound of metal as the chain at my ankle rattles. I see the exact moment she notices it and her entire body goes still. The room feels like it holds its breath with her as her eyes lock onto the cuff around my ankle. Her expression changes so quickly it feels violent. The shock is still there, but a darkness flashes beneath it. Before I can react, she crosses the room in three fast steps. She drops to her knees beside the bed in a sudden and decisive way and her hands hover just above the metal cuff like she’s afraid to touch it.

I flinch anyway.

“Sweetheart…” she whispers in a shaky voice. “I’m going to help you.”

Before I can respond she’s already on her feet again. The movement is so sudden it makes me jump, and her shoes scrape harshly against the floor as she pushes away from the bed. Shestorms out of the room without another word, moving so fast the door crashes against the wall behind her with a sharp bang.

I stare at the empty doorway as my brain struggles to catch up with what just happened. My heart is hammering so violently I can feel the pulse of it in my throat.

Is this real?

Or is this another trick?