Hours passed and the sun moved towards the horizon closely. But Amber still had not managed to sneak inside the manor to meet the man she was looking for. The guard had not budged an inch from his place, keeping an eye on her. Even when it was the time of lunch, he had stayed in his shack, staring at her without any emotion on his face.

Though she did not stay put right outside the manor, roaming around the place to shred the suspicion away, the guard could guess what she wanted. It did not take long to decipher what she was up to and what she was waiting for. Such a hateful woman! He thought, his resolve to guard the manor rising all the more.

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Amber had waited for him to leave during lunch hour. However, to her horror, a maid had approached him with his food, and the guard did not even have to leave his place. Amber was at her wit's ends and she did not know what to do. The manor had only one entrance and there was no way she could sneak inside without alerting the man who resembled nothing less than a watchdog.

Just like Amber, even the guard was frustrated. The stubborn woman had not left his sight even for a second, and he wondered what plan she was formulating. All he could do was sit still in his place, keeping an eye on her lest she should trespass in his absence.

But a time came when he was tired of sitting at the same place. He wanted to take a walk around the manor and check if everything was alright. And leaving the girl without any guard was quite risky. However, that did not stop him from doing what he wanted to do. He stood up from his seat and left his shack, letting his muscles relax.

Amber's eyes lit up at once. Her steps slowed and she looked at him, wishing for him to leave the place as soon as possible so that she could get into action. The guard did not miss her excited and anticipatory look and he scoffed in disgust. Instead of leaving, he whistled so loud that even Amber could hear it from where she was.

'What the heck is he doing? Why can't he just leave?' She wondered, her forehead wrinkling with a frown. She was already exhausted, hungry and sleepy. Amber had lost it the moment the maid had brought out his lunch. While all she could do was watch him eat, the man ate his food heartily, enjoying it to his heart's content.

Amber's legs were killing her. She cursed herself for choosing to wear high heels on such a dreadful day. Her stomach was protesting due to lack of food, and she felt immensely tired after standing for a long time. All she wanted was to find a restaurant nearby to rest her body and fill her stomach. But her heart kept screaming at her to not leave the place in case she were to miss out on an opportunity to enter the manor.

Just like that, she had stayed in her spot until four in the evening, watching the guard intensely, wishing to burn him alive for not allowing her in.

Amber frowned as soon as heard his whistle. But the next moment, her frown vanished and she was mortified. A German Shepard came running towards the gate and obediently sat in front of the man who seemed pleased all of a sudden. He gave Amber a provocative look that screamed, 'Go ahead and come inside if you dare.'

Amber trembled on seeing the beast in front of her. She was never a dog loving person. Dogs scared the freak out of her. Now, seeing such a ferocious animal, she was frightened until her face turned pale. Instead of taking a step closer to the gate, she backed off in fear.

The guard was satisfied with her reaction, and he patted his friend on its head in appreciation. "Hey buddy," He did not keep his voice low whatsoever. He had nothing to hide from the annoying woman anyway. "Guard the manor well. I will take a break. Okay?"

The dog barked in acknowledgment. Satisfied by its response, the guard patted its head again before he glanced at the intruder in triumph, only to find her glaring at him. He just raised an eyebrow at her before he walked away, leaving the girl all frustrated and annoyed.

Amber was now out of options. Though it was quite a feat to trick the guard and enter the manor, it was impossible to do so with a dog guarding the entrance; especially when the dog looked nothing less than a wolf, ready to hunt her down if she were to take a step towards it.

Amber clenched her fists in anger. As time passed, she realized that her chance to meet Joshua was slim, and she had to find another way and time to do so. 'My opponent is quite strong. I underestimated that bitch.' She seethed as she took a look at the manor in front of her.

Amber now did not have any reason to stay at the place any longer. She could not sneak inside with a dog on watch. One bite and she would be disfigured for sure. Amber did not wish to take that risk, not when she wanted to appear impeccable and perfect in front of her man. Also, her hunger brought back her unused rationality, and she eventually gave in.

Reluctantly, she dragged her body away from the manor, cursing all the people responsible for separating her from Joshua. Right now, her priority was to deal with her hungry stomach, and she found a small restaurant nearby, much to her relief. She did not have any choice this time and ordered a lot of food to satisfy herself.

Amber ate until she was full and got the leftover food packed when she remembered that she was responsible for her dinner and lunch. She was in no mood to cook after losing her spirit with all that had transpired in the day. She had suffered enough and was unwilling to go through more of it. Amber did not even care when she had to pay the bill.

'This is all temporary. Once I catch hold of Joshua, I will never have to suffer again.' She comforted herself before she left the restaurant. Amber had no idea that this was just the beginning of her miseries, and she would soon face a day that would send her straight to the gates of hell.