To Love a Shadow, To Be the Sun novel Chapter 43

All because he'd glared at her in the old house, Elara was even more afraid of him now than she had been that morning.

She avoided his gaze, clearly unwilling to speak to him.

Still, Brian steadied his nerves and said, "You skipped dinner. Let Mrs. Archer make you something."

"Can I skip it?"

She hesitated, then corrected herself, "If I have to eat, I'll just have a little."

She was so obedient, but Brian disliked that feeling.

"If you don't want to eat, then don't. I'll have Mrs. Archer leave some food warming for you. If you're hungry later, you can help yourself."

Elara glanced toward the basement. "Is there anything else? If not, may I go upstairs and rest for a while?"

She was still worried he'd lock her up.

Brian felt a sharp pang in his chest.

"Elara, this is your home. You don't need my permission to do what you want."

No, it wasn't her home anymore.

Once she delivered her "gift" for their fourth anniversary, she'd finally be rid of him.

Elara said nothing and walked upstairs.

Brian watched her retreating figure, his frown deepening.

He wanted to follow, but his phone rang.

It was Lina, calling from the hospital…

Elara returned to the master bedroom, showered, and collapsed into bed.

Her body wasn't what it used to be—she tired easily now. She made a mental note to see a doctor soon.

Things were getting tense; she was always at risk of crossing Brian's invisible boundaries, and her health simply couldn't take it.

Half asleep, she felt someone touch her face.

This was the master bedroom. The only person who could be here now was Brian.

He'd just held Lina, and now he wanted to hold her? The thought made Elara sick.

She startled awake, unable to hide her disgust, and shouted, "Don't touch me!"

Brian sat at the edge of the bed, frozen by her reaction.

As her senses returned, Elara realized she'd overreacted. Her sharp gaze softened.

"I'm sorry, I thought it was…"

She couldn't finish the excuse. Hugging herself, she asked, "Is there something you need?"

"If we're not going, can you let me go? I… I feel sick."

She still recoiled from his touch, though not quite as violently as before.

After being locked in a dark room once, she'd learned to endure. But her body had its own limits—there were some things she couldn't just push through.

Brian saw right through her, but let it slide. He told her to rest, then stormed out in silence.

As for where he was off to at this hour, Elara didn't ask.

She simply didn't care anymore.

…

In a deserted back alley with no cameras, a metallic crash echoed through the night.

A thin figure slammed into a metal dumpster.

The air split with the shrill screeches of street thugs, their cries shattering the darkness.

The blond gang leader got the worst of it.

He lay sprawled across the dumpster, unable to get up, his hands bloodied and raw.

Brian had spent his youth toughening up in a military boot camp under the iron hand of Patriarch Hackett Vincent. He could more than handle himself.