Chapter 31
SEBASTIAN’S POV
It was obvious she was lying to me about that mark on her face. I could tell from her stuttering, excessive fidgeting, the way her beautiful, glacial eyes kept dribbling around the building to avoid my gaze.
Moreover, no maid had ever engaged in a fight or any kind of squabble in the castle for as long as I have known. Even if they did, the news would have reached me faster than the speed of light.
How could she be lying to me? I want to care for her. Protect her like a guard dog protected a building. But she wasn’t giving me the slightest chance. She wasn’t letting me and it was beginning to make me feel like a fool. Feel like she didn’t need me.
She even had to call off our reading lesson. Something she so desperately wanted without a solid excuse. There was no way the works in the castle will hinder her. The tons of maids in the castle could do all that. I even offered to grant her spare time. But she refused without a second thought. I never even wanted her to work as a maid in my castle, to begin with.
Fuck! Fuck!! Fuck!!! I gritted and restrained myself from punching the wall beside me as I made my way to my chamber.
What was she so afraid of? Was it Catherine? If anyone could have given her that mark, it was definitely her. It has to be her. From the first day, I brought Brianna to the castle from the auction, she had been furious about it and wanted her out. No one else here would have done such a thing to her.
Jerking the door to my bedroom open and stepping in, I saw Catherine seated at her vanity table, carefully applying makeup. She was dressed and looked like she was about to go out. What the hell? The sun wasn’t done rising and she was already about to go out.
The moment she turned and saw me, she huffed out what seemed like an angry breath, rolled her eyes and continued with what she was doing. I guess she was still angry with me for defending Brianna back at the dining.
“Going somewhere?” I asked as I clicked the door shut.
“Yes,” she answered almost immediately while applying a lip liner to make her lips defined. “My friend, Rose is hosting her birthday party today.”
“Early this morning?” I raised a brow. “Why can’t it be in the afternoon or evening?”
Turning to me, she gave me a long questionable stare and shook her head before returning to face the mirror. “I need to be there early to help her with the preparations.”
“And you?” She asked and coloured her lips with peachy lipstick, puckering them seductively. “Where have you been all these while?”
“I’ve been around,” I walked closer slowly. “Tell me, Catherine, did you hit Brianna?”
“That illiterate slave?” Turning back to me, her perfectly drawn brows pulled together in confusion and irritation.
“Yes,” I voiced. Even though I didn’t appreciate her calling her that. But why would she call her an illiterate in the first place? Did she somehow find out she wasn’t able to finish wolf school? Perhaps Brianna told her herself?
Heaving out a sigh, I decided to leave that for later and ask Brianna whenever I see her again.
“Since when did you start caring about what I do to the maids?” She gave me a hard piercing look before turning away without waiting for a reply.
I watched as she rose from the cushioned stool and adjusted her gown. That was when I noticed she was wearing a one-shouldered mini dress so short it only extended a little past her curves. She finished up by spraying a mist across her heavily painted face. Taking one last glance at the mirror, she patted her hair and checked herself out before stepping out.
Just how can she be going to a birthday party dressed like that?
“Answer me, Catherine,” I fought the need to remain calm. “Did you or did you not hit her?”
Facing me, she glared at me with burning, reproachful blue eyes.
“Yes!” She threw at me. “Yes! Officer Sebastian! I did it. I hit her. Are you satisfied now?”
“You’ve got to be kidding me. Why the hell will you do that to her? Can’t you see she’d suffered enough already?”
“If you knew how foolish she’d been as of late, then you wouldn’t stand here and berate me like I’m the bad one,” she jutted forward, her teeth gritted.
“Just how foolish has she been for you to want to damage her face like that? Lecture me. I’m all ears,” my expression clouded in a wave of hysterical anger as I stared at her blue eyes which were clawing at me like talons.
“She fucking spilt hot chocolate on Rose,” she spat out. “And not only did it almost burn her skin, it also ruined her dress. Now tell me? What type of maid does that to her mistress’s guest.”
I kept calm for a moment, in the thought of what to say. Catherine crossed her arms and watched me intently with those raging eyes, hungry for an answer.
Even though I have known Brianna for a short time, that short time was long enough for me to know she wouldn’t do such a thing. She was tender like the petals of a flower. And wasn’t the troublesome or disobedient type. There must be a reasonable explanation for this.
“I’m sure it wasn’t intended,” I defended. "She will never do such a thing."
With her gaze still on me, Catherine scoffed, incredulous.
“Trust me, Sebastian, it was intended. She did it. And I wish you were there to see it so you wouldn’t stand here and scold me like I’m a little girl,” she concluded and made her way to the door.
Could it be true? Can Brianna actually do something like that or was Catherine not telling me the entire truth? Either way, that still didn't give her the golden ticket to almost ruin her face like that.
“Catherine,” I called out and she turned with her hands on the door handle. “I need you to go apologize to her before you leave. I don’t want it to look like we’re maltreating our helpers in this castle.”
“Are you crazy?” Her peach-coloured lips parted in utter shock and disbelief as she washed me with a condescending sneer. “Over-my-dead-body will I apologize to that thing.”
“Listen to me Catherine, just listen,” I tried to say. But she groaned and slammed the door at me.