Chapter 39

Zenovia

I froze in my tracks, my heart pounding in my chest. I had assumed Callahan hadn’t noticed my presence, but his voice shattered that illusion. Slowly, I turned around, my eyes meeting his intense gaze.

Callahan’s expression was stern, but there was a flicker of curiosity in his eyes. My mind raced, desperately searching for something to say, a plausible reason for my presence in his office. I opened my mouth to speak, but no words escaped.

I gulped when I heard the voice of King Callahan. My heart began to beat so fast that it was galloping at the speed of a thousand horses.

I feared it would fall out of my mouth at this rate. Slowly, very slowly, I turned around to see Callahan looking at me.

He still had the marker in his hand and gave me a small smile before returning his attention to his file.

“Come here.” He said and went back to sit on his chair, the file in his hand.

I gulped nervously as I slowly made my way towards him. I reluctantly approached Callahan’s desk, my eyes darting nervously around the room.

As I reached his side, he motioned for me to take a seat in the chair opposite him.

He pushed the chair in my direction without looking up and highlighted something with his marker.

“Are you going to speak at all?” He asked without looking at me. I sank into the plush chair and hoped that it would just swallow me whole.

“I…I am sorry…” I muttered weakly. He flipped the page, took a pen, and scribbled something on the paper.

Callahan did not say anything and kept reading intently for the next five minutes that felt like an eternity to me.

There were a few files scattered along the table and a huge map of the kingdom strewn across the length of the desk.

There were a few stains of teacups, showing that he had been really working hard on it, and a few pins that marked certain important spots.

“Do you not know that it is a bad habit to eavesdrop on someone?” Callahan asked as he pulled the cap off a pen with his mouth and threw it on the table as he took another pen to write something.

I thought of what to answer and could not come up with an answer. Luckily, I was spared of answering him when there was a knock on the door.

The servant I had met on my way to Callahan’s office had returned with another round of tea.

“Yeah, come in,” Callahan muttered as he began pacing through the room while reading the file.

He flipped a few more pages and was done with the file as he tossed it on the table and picked another one.

The file had landed on the edge of the table and it was going to fall down, so I stopped its fall. A few loose pages came out of the file, which I began picking up.

As I collected all the papers and put them in a stack, Callahan’s voice reached me.

But it was not directed at me. “Zenovia will prepare the tea. You can leave.”

He said to the servant who had just poured black tea into the cup and reached for the sugar. He did not say that to me, felt like it was an order directed at me, nonetheless.

and it did not look like last night had affected him

but I

been stupidly fantasizing about him, but he had been working all day and was still reading the files instead of lunging at me the

was what I secretly hoped he would do upon seeing me again. Either that, or just leave the room if he

he did neither, and

to not

and walked towards the tray. Placing the papers I had collected on the table, I

“Sugar?”

I put

“Milk?”

asked, and he only grunted again. I took the cue and poured the milk while reaching for

11.01

Chapter 39

the ceramic cup were the only noise in the big office. I would have argued with him that I am not his maid to serve him tea/coffee, but he had found me eavesdropping on him so I could

moment.

I was supposed to obey him because his mark meant I was under his protection. I meekly handed him the cup, which he took from me without even looking at me, leaving the saucer in my hand. Callahan took a sip, and I watched his face for a change in expression, but there wasn’t any. He only placed the saucer

the table, spilling it all over the files

I let out a startled cry and hastily pulled some tissues to dab it off

cup on the

most of them had stained and the marker ink was spreading through the white pages,

desk and I felt scared

am sorry, I did

only grabbed my wrist and held it in front of me. My hair was askew as 1 tried to grab the papers, but Callahan’s

was firm.

stop moving

gaze met his and I quickly looked down, not wanting to see

do it purposely…” I cried, but he simply plucked me away from the table and pushed

way he had grabbed me and then placed me on the chair and my body

When he saw that I was not moving, he went to

off the lid. I peered intently and realized it was

going to disinfect the papers??

beside me and squatted down. Without saying

some of the dried bits off my hand and I saw redness spreading

that I had spilled most of the tea in my hands. He wiped it off and then grabbed an ointment from

face, covering it partially. He

he was not even the least bothered. How could

another plaything for

it. The silence was too much to bear and seeing him not yell at me

and be done with it so I don’t live in this

of the marker and pens spreading through even more papers, making it look

am sorry,” I muttered softly.

arms and I tried not to

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