Chapter 69 - MYSTERY
He stirred on top of the bed. His eyes fluttered open and drifted to the spot where he sensed an intruder intervening in his sweet slumber. Instantly, his gaze landed on mine, thus taking my breath away. I have to wrap my trembling fingers around the doorknob to support my knees that suddenly melted into Jell-O. For a frozen moment, I just stood there unblinkingly enchanted by his enticing blue eyes that seemed to penetrate through my soul. He looked so good on the bed as if he belonged there.
The thin fabric of his shirt clung to the hard contours of his chest leaving nothing to the imagination, his rich tousled hair fell to his eyes enticingly like soft molten honey against the light from the lampshade on his right. He was wearing fitted cargo shorts, the tight garment hugged to his powerful thighs and when my gaze moved further it sinfully stopped on his crotch—he was indeed—blessed. Heat flooded my cheeks. Thankfully the shadows concealed the blush. My eyes drifted down to his muscled thigh.? He has the sexiest legs I'd ever seen—sexy in a masculine way.
The sight of him on the bed nearly took all the sanity in me, I nearly ran to his side and wrapped my arms around his shoulders to experience the thrill of being crushed against his perfectly chiseled body. Ocean blue eyes peered under extraordinary eyelashes, the look meant nothing for him, and yet it turned my throat into an arid desert and singed my body with fever. Just one look from him and I lost all control. He was the first man who had such a profound effect on my senses. With little to no effort, he could make me giddy like a girl straight from the schoolroom.
I took another deep intake of breath when he carefully eased his arms away from Faith Viene and rose from the bed leaving the sheet crumpled behind his weight. The spacious room constricted as he slowly made his way in my direction. His sweet enchanting scent drifted to my nostrils. I inhaled his achingly familiar scent as I watched him stop when he was just a few inches away from me.
The dreamy look on his eyes was seductively sexy, I want to grab a camera and capture the exhilarating expression. The lampshade near the bed cast golden shadows on his profile, he was like a beautiful painting emerging from an artist's canvas. "It's about time you arrive home, Madam." He said in a hoarse sensual whisper that sent tiny butterflies crawling inside my stomach.
My lips parted to retort but to my surprise, no words escaped my lips escape a sound that sounded like a strangled chicken. The soft cries coming from the bed saved me from the humiliation. I ran to the bed but before I could take Faith Vien into my arms, he already did the job. He carefully lifted the tiny angel from the bed, less than a minute, she stopped crying as he skillfully rocked her into his arms. I stood there unblinking, dazed from the scene. Watching him hold Faith Viene into his arms sent my heart aching with tenderness. That moment I wished that he was Faith Vienne's father.
There was something in him that draws me near, the way a moth is drawn to fire. Fire is ablaze with danger for it could burn a moth's delicate wings and yet the temptation ahead was impossibly hard to resist. I rather burn than not feel the heat at all. My thoughts were interrupted by the soft rustle of his slippers on the marble floor. He was moving to the bed. I watched with growing fascination as he gently placed Faith Vienne's tiny body atop the crib and pulled it closer to the bed. He moved confidently as if he knew exactly what he's doing as if he'd done it a hundred times before.
I became aware that he's done with the job when he turned in my direction and stepped closer and closer…. My breathing quickened from anticipation while watching him cross the distance between us without tearing his gaze off my eyes. My heartbeat quickened. My throat went dry. When we were inches apart, he stopped walking. "Goodnight Madam." He said in a soft whisper. Before I could react he was gone. The door softly closed behind me.
'Madam' He just made me feel like an old maid again. I'm not that too old.
My knees finally gave in, and I slumped on the bed on the same exact spot he last occupied, it was still warm, and his natural musky scent lingered in the air as if he was still there. I was surprised to realize I was still holding my silver beaded stiletto into my hands, it softly dropped on the floor. My head ducked over to the crib to watch the rise and fall of my daughter's chest.
Faith Vienne is fine. Our 'handsome' gardener took good care of my daughter well. I was seriously worried a while ago by the thought Faith had fallen on one of her violent tantrums, when she fell into one, none could console her tearful fits, not even her father could. My eight brothers are as hopeless as my father since they never handled a child before.
I sighed with relief. A thorn had just been pulled out of my chest. Now that I saw how peaceful my angel looked in her sleep I was able to stretch my lips into a genuine smile. I haven't thanked him yet, whatever his name is.
Five minutes later, I already changed into a silk nightgown. The makeup on my face had been flawlessly cleaned with wipes. I now lay in my bed, nestled beneath the covers waiting for the dreamland portal to open.
My eyes remained nailed on the ceiling but it was not the flawless white ceiling I'm intently looking at but the man with exquisite blue eyes and hair the shade of warm honey playing on my thoughts.
I want to know his name. I remember mumbling to myself before plunging into a dream.
***
No matter what happens, just run...Don't ever look back." His words came as harsh and fierce, it was not a plea but an order.
I looked up at him, the face of the man kneeling next to me wasn't a blur anymore. Shocked hit me like a sharp bolt of lightning when a pair of haunted blue eyes held my gaze prisoner. Fierce pain stabbed my chest realizing the tears softly streaming down the smoothness of his cheeks, moonlight gleaming on his tear-stricken eyes.
His fingers were bound by a rope, thus, restricting his movement. But despite the obstruction, he managed to capture my hands which were bound in front of me. He fumbled with the rope on my wrists and struggled to unfasten the rope using a piece of broken glass he managed to retrieve on the ground.
He impatiently struggled to brush the shard against the rope, muttering unintelligent curses under his breath, unmindful that his fingers were now bleeding from the exertion. I cast him a pitiful glance, if only I could help him but I could barely move. The rope was tied too hard, it was digging into my flesh.
"Please, I will never leave you, not like this," I whispered weakly. Tears burst forth from my eyes, slithering down my cheeks until I could taste the saltiness on my parted lips.
"No! Listen to me!" He snapped, his tone laced with impatience, he had to stop cutting the glass to the rope so he could explain better. "You need to escape! Both of us will get killed if you don't, I need to spare you!" He whispered grimly, gritting his teeth in exasperation.
"No, please don't make me do this please!"? My chest ached painfully. Even my shoulders are shaking uncontrollably. "I will never leave you alone!"
From the distance the sound of a long, loud, doleful cry uttered by an animal, a dog, or probably a wolf—I'm not quite sure which—sounded ominous, it sent deep chills down my stiff spine.
I swallowed hard as he struggled to free my wrist, a tedious task which we found impossibly hard to accomplish within short notice. The rope that tied around my fingers painfully dug into my flesh, making my fingers numb and cold.
"Promise me you will not look back okay? Just run, please, find help. Promise, I will be fine." His ocean blue eyes glowed brighter, almost begging. How could? I say no?
Unmistakably terror filled my eyes. Dread spread throughout my body until it crept to my bones. My breath came deep and labored. The thought of escaping alone and leaving him behind scared the hell out of me.
"Please Ace! No!"
"No Phoenix! Run… never look back."
***
Dream…It's only a dream... the same repetitive nightmare.
I woke up with eyes wet with tears, beads of sweat trickling down my temples, chest heaving violently, and heartbeat still hammering from shock.
Before, the dream had been vague…. Ambiguous… But now it appeared vividly clear and exquisitely detailed.
The man I saw in my dream was our gardener, his ocean blue eyes would be difficult to forget especially when it was brimming with tears.
He was the man who sacrificed himself so I could escape and in return, he was beaten and stabbed to death.
True, it was a dream, but my guilt had been irrepressible, it weighed heavily over my chest making it difficult for me to breathe.
I eased myself from the bead and leaned on the headboard, I wrapped my arms around my legs and rested my chin on my knees.
I wasn't sure if it was only a dream or real events from my past. I couldn't find an answer. How could I find the truth when the most crucial part of me has long since been forgotten—my name.
Am I Phoenix?
If yes, then who's Ace?
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