Fated To Three, And I Broke Them All

Verity:

I bit the inside of my cheek to stop myself from scoffing again.

He didn’t ask why I had laughed, but his eyes lingered.

"Well— have some fruit," I said, pointing at the bowl.

To think I’d come here just to check on his health, and instead he’d said all of that to me.

I wanted to fucking slap myself.

Even if I was playing a game, I was still angry with myself.

As I turned to leave, I stopped.

Then I looked back at him.

"Just a question," I said softly.

"How does someone get a certain word or phrase banned from the internet?"

As soon as I asked that, I watched his eyes narrow.

The black in his irises began to dissolve, slowly giving way to gray.

It happened for only a split second, so briefly that I had to narrow my eyes just to make sure I’d seen it correctly.

But his eyes were back to normal.

Maybe it was just the light.

Maybe he was sitting at an angle where the light hit his eyes, making them seem gray, but I wasn’t sure.

"Why? What phrases are you searching for online?" he asked in his heavy tone.

Even his voice sounded heavier than before.

"Nothing. I was just asking," I replied with a shrug.

Ragnar gave a small nod before gesturing toward the door.

"Don’t worry. I don’t want to stay here either."

I don’t know what came over me, but I said those words while looking straight at him.

Then I walked out of the room and took a deep breath as I headed toward the kitchen.

I needed some water, or maybe a glass of wine, or anything.

I just needed something to help myself feel better.

As soon as I entered the kitchen, I found Jenna working there by herself.

Usually, she had someone helping her.

"Jenna, do they have soda?" I asked, rubbing the back of my neck.

She turned to me, looked me up and down, then looked away.

I’d heard from a maid that earlier, Lady Lucille had asked Jenna to come to my room to check on the preparations.

She had arrived at my wing, but then she left.

I wondered if she was avoiding me.

"Is everything okay?" I asked.

"Yeah, everything is fine. The soda is in that other fridge," she replied without turning around.

Her voice didn’t carry the same welcoming tone it had before.

I popped open the soda can, the sharp hiss filling the quiet kitchen.

"Is everything okay?" I asked, running my finger around the can’s pull tab.

"Yep."

Jenna didn’t even turn around to answer me.

She continued stirring the pot in slow circles.

Her voice was flat and cold, unlike how I remembered it.

I took a sip of the soda before stepping closer to the counter and resting my forearm against it.

I looked into the pot as Jenna stirred.

"What are you cooking?" I asked.

"Dinner?"

She gave a small shrug without looking at me.

"No. I only make soups for Lady Lucille."

Her tone was clipped, almost dismissive, as if she would rather be somewhere else than having this conversation with me.

I studied her for a moment, watching the rigid set of her shoulders and the tight movements of her hand around the wooden spoon.

Something was definitely bothering her.

I cleared my throat, forcing a smile onto my lips.

"I’ve been planning a really beautiful birthday celebration for you."

I expected at least a little enthusiasm from her.

Instead, she let out a quiet scoff.

I raised an eyebrow, watching her with growing amusement.

Whatever was on her mind, it clearly had nothing to do with her birthday.

After a long moment, Jenna stopped stirring.

She rested the spoon against the side of the pot, lowered her hand, and finally turned to face me.

"Did you know?"

There was a strange coldness in the way she asked the question.

"Did I know what?" I asked, frowning at her.

"Did you know your brother was abusing Gigi?"

Her cold tone and the reminder of the past made my fist clench around the soda can.

I finished my soda in one long sip before setting the empty can on the counter.

She kept watching my face.

My fingers tightened around the aluminum until it crumpled beneath my grip with a sharp crunch.

Jenna sucked in a deep breath, watching the can before lifting her eyes to meet mine.

Turning to my side, I kept one hand on the crushed can while the other rested on my waist.

"I didn’t," I replied quietly. "But thanks for showing me that there’s another person who holds me accountable for what my brother did."

As I said those words, I watched Jenna open her mouth, only to shut it again.

I didn’t wait for her to respond, though.

There was no point.

Gigi had already filled her head with whatever version of the story she wanted everyone to believe.

That was literally the story of my life now.

Every time I met someone, they already knew about my brother, and he was always the villain in their eyes.

Leaving the kitchen, I blinked rapidly, trying to keep the tears from spilling over.

Sure, I was thinking about vengeance.

Sure, I had grown much more confident.

Sure, many things had been planned by me.

But there was another truth.

I was still someone with emotions, someone who had been wronged, someone who hadn’t sat down with anyone and told them what she’d been through.

The moment I stepped into the hallway, two familiar figures came into view.

Theodore and Jaguar were walking side by side, files in their hands as they made their way down the corridor.

Their conversation died the instant they noticed me.

Both of them slowed to a stop.

Then their eyes settled on my face.

I didn’t need a mirror to know they had seen the tears gathering in my eyes.

The concern that crossed their expressions was impossible to miss.

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