Chapter

He held her wrist and dragged her into the mansion. No maids were in sight, he must have ordered them away.

His grip on her wrists tightened stopping the blood flow and bruising it.

He stopped in the main lobby and turned to face her. His eyes were raging.

"I thought you weren't such a whore." He growled.

"I did not-," Rose started but he scoffed and said, "Spare me the fake sob story. I saw you wrapped in his arms." His fingers sinking deep into her skin, As he pulled her closer.

His voice enraged he thundered, "I thought maybe... MAYBE you weren't a whore, But guess what my Rosette, you have a very bad habit of defying me."

Tears were already staining her cheeks as she chocked out, "H-he forced himself on me." Her voice broke but she added, "I did not." As she closed her eyes and winced at the pain on her wrist and her unstable breathing. But.

The next thing she knew was that she was slung on his muscular shoulder. She screamed and thrashed her legs, but he carried her as if she weighed no more than a bag of feathers.

"Caelum please! I was wrong, please let me go." She begged him but he ignored her as he walked through the corridors and into the bedroom. And threw her on the bed.

While she was busy recovering her breath, he threw his coat on the floor and started unbuttoning his shirt.

"W-what are y-you doing?" she asked. Her face paler than paper.

"Exactly what married couples do, love." He said droppin the shirt on the floor, His voice so full of viciousness that she almost chocked on them.

She dragged herself back on the bed sobbing, "no.."

He grabbed her legs and pulled her towards himself. He crawled on top of her.

He looked into her terrified eyes and whispered, "You make me do terrible things my dear Rose." He wiped a stray tear from her chin before grabbing it.

"I will bruise your lip and scar your knees and love you too hard.." he brushed his lips on hers, "I will destroy you. And when I leave, You will finally understand why storms are named after humans."

She could only sob at his words."Please don't do this. I'll do whatever you want. I-,"

He cut her off by crashing his lips on her, tasting the tears and fear on her tongue. This felt real. Too real to him.

His anger stripping off his humanity and his fingers stripping her cloths. His hands reached for her chest and tore open the dress.

She was pushing at his chest, trying the best she could to stop him. He pulled back and with one tug from his hand Rose rolled on the bed striped of her dress. She sat up, in her underwear. Her hands covering her chest.

"Please for gods sake stop." She begged him.

Caelum smirked bitterly as he reached for her and picked her up bridal style.

"What are you doing?" she said.

Caelum met her eyes, "Cleaning my whore." He entered the washroom.

"I can do it myself." Rosette snapped. She had a bigger secret to keep. She couldn't let him see what was maimed on her skin.

She struggled in him arms. He grabbed her thighs tighter and raged, "Shut up." the fire in his eyes threatening to burn her entire world to ashes.

He layed her in the bath-tub. Her hands still covering her breasts. The blood pounded in head, she felt scarred. Would he realize how useless she is? Would he think she is ugly and abandon her? Would he get angry that she did not tell him how ugly and disgusting she and her life were? What would she answer him if he asked where the scars came form?

"Where did that dog touch you?" she heard him say.

Warm water tickled down her head, past her tightly closed eyes. She did not open her eyes but she could feel the brown paint leaving her skin. She bit her lips until she tasted blood.

THUD THUD! Something hit the marble floor. Rose shot her eyes open. The faucet was lying on the ground. She raised her eyes to Caelum. His eyes did not meet hers, they were on her body. His face was taut and emotionless.

Something in her chest broke so violently that she wondered if it was possible he hadn't heard it.

He opened his mouth to say something .. but his lips wont form the words.

Was he so disappointed? Would he throw me out? Would he hit me? Would he rape me? These thoughts were haunting her.

She couldn't bear to look at him. She brought her knees to her chest and buried her head in her lap.

"I'm sorry.. I'm so sorry, please don't hurt me. I'll disappear from your life." She sobbed. Her body was trembling and shaking. "You wont have to see me ever again, no one will have to see me again."

She did not know how to stop this feeling.. this coil that she felt in her stomach. She was sobbing and it felt like she would never be able to stop.

When a hand grabbed her neck and pulled her.

She was a breath away from his lips. His face blazing with anger and rage. She had never seen him this mad.

His eyes so dark, they looked black. All his nerves stood out on his bare chest and arms. Cold fury danced on his face as he snarled, "Who the fuck did this to you." It wasn't a question, it was a command.

She shook her head. She dared not say. Caelum's jaw clenched, "ANSWER ME ROSE!" he yelled.

"please don't do anything to me, I'm sorry.. I'm so sorry.. I." she sobbed. She was so sure that he would kill her.

His eyes softened, as he spoke, "You think I'm mad at you?" He let go of her neck and stood up. His hands fisted, guilt and sadness dripping down his anger.

"I did not mean to lie to you, I'm sorry. I am so sorry... I am so ugly and I'm so sorry." Her voice a small whisper.

Caelum was shocked. "SHUT UP!" he yelled. "YOU REALLY THINK I'M SUCH A MONSTER?!" he banged his fist on the wood lined sink. "DAMMIT!"

He looked at the whimpering mess she had become. Was this the women who had slapped him? Was this the women he had sworn to destroy the world of? God! She didn't even have a world! It all made sense now, why she had slapped him when he asked her for sex.

He rubbed his thumb on his temple. "I'm sorry." she whispered. She looked at him with those honey eyes, pleading like a child. He went back to her. He grabbed a towel and wrapped it around her as he picked her up again and walked back into the bedroom.

He laid her on the bed. She curled her knees to her chest and tucked herself into a ball as she sobbed.

Caelum brushed a soft hand on her head as he took in the scars. Some were long looking like belt marks while others were small and fading. They weren't very old. They were still covered partially in makeup.

Was she abused in her own house? How long had she been hiding these under layers of makeup? Was it from her step relatives? Did her dad know? Was her dad part of this? What else had she endured in that hell hole?

She raised her head slowly. Her eyes red with crying. Her lips trembling. Bile flowing in her veins instead of blood.

Caelum just looked at her body. He felt the pain of each scar on her body.

"How do you take the makeup off?" he asked, his voice gentle and soft.

She pointed to the transparent bottle on the dressing table. Something about the way he asked made her feel safe.

He went and soaked a hand towel with it and came back.

He looked at her asking for permission. She nodded. He gently wiped her body down. The towel stained brown and peach. With each stroke the makeup came off revealing the scars and pain her body had suffered.

His hands were shaking. Had she suffered so much in one life? Her scars moistened his soul and angered his heart. He saw glimpses of his own past in her scars.

She sat to face him. The tears had stopped flowing.

"Who did this to you?" he asked, his eyes moist but no tears in sight.

"I-I cannot say" she answered, Libelle's face flashed in front of her open eyes.

Caelum knew better than to force an answer out of her. He got up and as he made way out of the room, he tossed Rose her nightdress that was kept for her on the dressing table.

...............

"Hello?"

"Long time Caelum."

"Long time Raf." He said pouring himself a drink. He needed something stronger than champagne.

"What job can I do for you?" Rafael asked. Caelum's left hand and spymaster.

"The last time when I told you to look into Rosette Carter's file, did you find anything suspicious?"

"Nope. Everything was neat and clean about her."

Caelum's anger only infuriated, "I need you to check it again and find anything and everything about her."

Rafael chuckled, he had never seen his boss so interested in anyone, "Even her favorite ice-cream?"

"Not in the mood of jokes, Raf." He growled.

"Haha, okay. I'm on it." Caelum put down the cell phone and took a long sip of whiskey.

Favorite ice-cream? He thought. He opened the fridge to find three ice-cream tubs lined up.

Coffee, choco-mint & choco-chips. Which one would she like?

He played it safe by choosing choco-chips. Everyone likes that one.

He swallowed the rest of his drink in one gulp. As he took the tub and made way to the bedroom.

He knocked on the door as he entered. She sat there wearing a golden nightgown. Caelum stood there for a moment staring. She had not worn anything below the sleeveless gown.

The fabric almost see through, he cleared his throat and shook of the sight of her nipples, and walked to her.

He smiled, "They say ice-cream helps with sleep." As he raised the tub and two spoons.

She did not smile, instead she stared at him. He came closer and handed her a spoon. She took it.

Caelum opened the box and offered it to her.

"You pity me, don't you?" she looked at the spoon in her hands. She did not meet his gaze.

Caelum was shook. This was sudden and out of the blue.

He wanted to tell her a thousand things, ranging from how the first time he saw her, he had to pop a nerve to look away from her to how she was perfect just the way she was. But he couldn't. He couldn't let her in. His heart wasn't a place she should know. She was good and gentle, she deserved all the sunshine of summer and all the butterflies of spring but he couldn't give her that. He was darkness mixed with every terrible poison possible. So instead he said,

"Yes." Lie. He was lying.

Rosette closed her eyes as two tears rolled down her cheeks. Sometimes being offered tenderness feels like the very proof that you've been ruined.

Caelum put the ice-cream on the table as he reached for her shoulders, "I'll take care of you."

Rosette scoffed without opening her eyes, "It's rotten work."

Caelum brushed her tears off with a finger, "Not to me. On purpose. I will take care of you on purpose."

Rosette cracked open her eyes.

She didn't know when she fell asleep or when Caelum left or when the tub of ice-cream got empty, but she knew she was safe, and that was important.

............................................

💖