What I Can Do For The One I Love (8)

The boy frowned.

“What nonsense is that?”

“Yeah, I don’t really know what I’m saying, either.”

Silence settled between us.

“Aren’t you bored?”

“No.”

He answered flatly, but I could tell he was. There was absolutely nothing to do here.

Suddenly, an idea popped into my mind. I brightened, grinning at him.

“Want to play with me?”

“What?”

“Let’s play together!”

Without waiting for a reply, I set my book aside and dashed over to the left cabinet. I pulled open the bottom drawer and took out everything I’d kept stashed there… games, cards, little boxes. I laid them all out on the floor.

“Do you want to play cards? Or animal catching? Oh, I have chess, too!”

I held up a box of cards, some animal-shaped tokens with a game board, and a chess set… just about every game I owned. The look he gave me said, ‘Is this girl out of her mind?’

“Do you know how to play chess?”

“…Yeah, I know how.”

“Then let’s play chess!”

I quickly set up the chessboard and pieces, glancing up hopefully, but he just sat there, refusing to move. I tried shaking his arm, but he ignored me.

“It’ll be fun…”

Pouting, I started playing chess by myself. But chess alone isn’t any fun. Before long, I got bored and started moving pieces in ways that made no sense. Just then, a small hand reached over and corrected one of my moves.

“You can’t move like that.”

He slid the piece back where it belonged. Seizing the moment, I played along, and suddenly, we were playing for real. The match was over in a flash.

I won. It wasn’t even close.

“What the… were you pretending you didn’t know how to play?”

“No, this was just my first time playing with someone, so I wasn’t sure.”

“What? Your first game ever?”

“Yeah. It’s the first time I’ve played with anyone.”

I gave him a shy smile at his bewildered face.

“I always wanted to play these games.”

“You’ve never played before?”

“No! You need two people, and I never had anyone. I just learned the rules and played by myself. Sorry if I made any mistakes.”

“…”

I picked up a deck of cards next.

“Let’s try this one!”

I shuffled, but I guess I was clumsy because he couldn’t stand it. He snatched the deck out of my hands and expertly shuffled the cards. I took them back, giggling. This was actually fun.

I’d never had anyone I could call a friend. Jayden and Jacob were my only siblings, but Jacob hated me, and Jayden ignored me. I didn’t care for them either, so even though we were family, we weren’t close. Maybe when I was really little I’d wanted their attention, but now all I felt was disgust.

So this was my first time playing with someone else.

We played through all the games I’d collected but never used. I won every single time. At first, the boy just humored me, but soon he started taking it seriously… only to lose over and over. Maybe it hurt his pride, because he frowned and accused me of cheating, but I wasn’t, so it didn’t matter.

“I’m not playing anymore!”

After I beat him at a puzzle, he threw the leftover pieces aside and gave up. But even that couldn’t spoil my mood… I was just happy.

When I smiled, he scowled.

“What’s so funny? Is beating me really that much fun?”

“Yeah, it is. Playing with you is really fun.”

“…You’re weird.”

Huh? How was I weird?

“How have you never played any of these? Don’t you have friends?”

“Nope.”

“…”

“Do you play games like this with your friends a lot?”

“Not really… Just sometimes.”

I let out a little sigh, feeling envious. People always said games were better with lots of players. I sighed again, quietly picking up the scattered puzzle pieces. The boy stared at me for a moment, then spoke.

“Hey.”

“My name’s not ‘hey.’”

“You know your way around here, right?”

“Of course. I live here.”

“Then help me find my dad.”

My hands froze, puzzle pieces slipping from my fingers. I looked up at him.

“My dad’s here somewhere. I have to find him.”

“…It’s not like I know every corner of the mansion.”

“But you know it way better than I do. Just show me what you know. I’ll figure out the rest myself.”

“I can’t, I…”

I dropped my gaze, fiddling with the puzzle pieces. I was just moving them around, not really putting anything together. I focused on that, ignoring the way his stare burned into my cheek.

I thought he’d keep pressing me, but instead, he just said, “Okay?” and flopped down on the carpet. He seemed oddly resigned, almost as if he hadn’t expected help in the first place.

Watching him lie there with his eyes closed, I let out a shaky breath. I asked if he was asleep, but he didn’t answer.

He must have dozed off for a bit.

A strange anxiety welled up in me. I shouldn’t just sit here. Suddenly restless, I jumped up and checked under the bed… but he was gone.

Panic shot through me. I grabbed a lamp and ran out of the room.

I hurried through the dim halls, checking every room and hiding spot I knew, but there was no sign of him.

My heart pounded faster and faster. I’d gotten complacent after he seemed so cooperative. Of course he was just waiting for a chance!

What if someone else had found him? Jayden, Jacob, even Father… they could sense things normal people couldn’t. And in this house, nothing was ever simple.

The only sound was my own footsteps as I searched. Had he gone outside?

Turning a corner, I stopped abruptly. The lamplight flickered hard, throwing strange shadows across the walls. And there, in the wavering glow, was a familiar face.

I rushed over and grabbed his arm just as he was about to disappear down the hall.

“Where were you?!”

He didn’t even flinch. He just looked back at me, calm… like he’d known I would come after him.

“I told you, I’m looking for my dad.”

“No. Come back to the room. Now.”

“I don’t have a reason to listen to you. I can’t stay hidden forever. Even if I get caught, I’ll never say you helped me, so don’t worry. Just go back.”

“Let’s go before someone sees us, please?”

“I said no.”

He shook off my hand and kept going. No matter how much I pleaded or reasoned with him, he wouldn’t stop.

“What do you think you can do if you go?!”

Finally, I lost my patience and spun him around. That’s when I saw… he was crying.

I froze, shocked. Tears streaked down his face. Only then did I realize how much he’d been holding back all this time.

“My dad is all I have left. He’s all I have…”

“D-don’t cry.”

Panicking, I cupped his cheeks. He sobbed softly, big tears landing on my hands. I’d thought he was tough, but now, he just looked so small, crying so quietly. It made him seem older, somehow.

Gently, I wiped away his tears. If his father really was all he had left, it was no wonder he’d come here so desperately, even with just a knife. Seeing him cry like this, I couldn’t help but feel my heart ache, too.

“All right. I’ll find out where your father is.”

In the end, I caved. His blue eyes, bright with tears, looked up at me.

“Really? You will?”

“Yeah. I’ll check. That’s all I can do… I can’t actually help, though.”

“That’s enough.”

His smile was so bright it made my chest tighten. I felt guilty for giving him hope, but it was all I could offer.

“Let’s go back now.”

When I tugged his arm, he followed this time, no resistance. I held the lamp high and scanned the corridor, keeping alert for anyone nearby.

“Thank you.”

His small, tearful voice came from behind me. Stubborn, then honest, then crying… he really was all over the place. I didn’t know what to say.

But his hand, warm in mine, made me wish, just for a moment, that this could last a little longer.

After a long, tense day, there was finally a short break. Even the servants, who’d been running around all day, paused to rest. I made sure Father was in his bedroom, and that Jayden and Jacob were off elsewhere. I turned away… I had somewhere I needed to go, alone.

I headed to the old storeroom. The building loomed above me. I went to the iron door, unlocking the padlock with a key I’d stolen from Father’s study. Inside, I made my way down the stone stairs, stopping at a door on the lower level.

The basement was nothing like the main floors… down here, the smell of damp and rot was thick, but stronger than anything was the sharp scent of blood. I moved quietly toward a man slumped in the corner. The closer I got, the more overpowering the smell became.

Even at a glance, I could see how bad his condition was. His body was covered in wounds… burn marks, cuts, evidence of water torture. Heavy chains bound his wrists and ankles to the wall. I tried pulling the chains, but it was pointless. His skin was raw where he must have struggled to break free.

I hesitated, then finally knelt beside him.

“Sir Riatrice.”

He didn’t respond, so I leaned closer, whispering.

“Sir Riatrice.”

I gently shook his shoulder. Still nothing. His face was pale and shadowed, hair stuck to his skin. For a terrifying moment, I wondered if he was even breathing.

I covered my mouth, overwhelmed by a storm of emotions I couldn’t even name.