Chapter 2 The invitation (II)

POV: Sienna

---

I followed the silent housekeeper down a corridor lined with abstract art, the kind that looked like blood if you stared long enough.

"Your room, Miss Rowe," she said without turning. "Mr. Valen doesn't tolerate disobedience. Kindly remember that."

I swallowed hard. "I wasn't planning to misbehave."

She didn't answer.

The door creaked open, revealing a suite that looked like it belonged in a movie. Cream velvet curtains swayed in a breeze I couldn't feel. A grand piano sat untouched in the corner. The bed was enormous, as if it were built for royalty-or monsters.

But the strangest part?

There were no mirrors.

Not one.

"I'll have your luggage brought up," the woman said. Then, she paused. "Don't leave the room after midnight. Not even to use the restroom."

I turned to her, a frown tugging at my lips. "Why not?"

She gave me a look that froze my breath. "Because not everything in this building is human."

And then she left me-alone with her warning and a silence that felt too full.

---

I tried to sleep.

I really did.

But around 11:58 PM, I heard it.

Scratching. Not loud. Just enough to raise the hairs on the back of my neck.

I sat up in bed, clutching the blanket as I stared at the door. It didn't move. But the scratching continued-soft, persistent.

Like something was... waiting.

I reached for my phone. No signal.

Of course.

The scratching stopped. Silence returned. But I didn't sleep.

Not that night.

Not even after the sunrise painted the walls gold and melted the shadows into nothing.

---

The next morning, I found a dress waiting on the dresser-black silk, minimal and seductive.

A card sat beside it: "You're expected for brunch. Dress accordingly."

There was no signature, but I didn't need one.

Of course it was him.

By the time I made my way to the dining room, the clock read 10:02 AM. The silence was so thick I could feel it.

Kade sat at the head of the long obsidian table, sipping dark coffee like he'd been waiting a thousand years.

"You're late," he said without looking up.

I pulled the chair across from him and sat. "Two minutes late. I didn't realize you timed your guests."

"I time everything, Miss Rowe. You'll find I'm not the forgiving type."

He finally looked at me, and I nearly forgot how to breathe.

"You didn't sleep last night."

It wasn't a question. It was a statement. A terrifyingly accurate one.

"I-" I hesitated. "I heard something. Scratching. On the door."

His jaw tightened. Just a flicker.

"Did you open it?"

"No. I listened to your warning."

That made him pause. Then his lips curled into something like a smirk. But it didn't reach his eyes.

"Good," he said. "You might just survive the week after all."

The staff served eggs benedict and smoked salmon, but I barely touched it. I couldn't stop watching him.

"Why did you pick me?" I asked finally. "Out of all the applicants... why me?"

He leaned back, studying me like I was a puzzle.

"Because you're curious. And brave. But mostly..." He set down his glass. "Because you don't know what you are yet."

My stomach dropped. "What I am?"

His eyes glinted-like moonlight on a blade.

"You'll find out. Everyone does eventually."

---

Later that afternoon, I wandered the library.

It was massive-two floors of ancient texts, spiral staircases, and dust that danced in the light like ghosts. I found a corner table and tried to read, but the words swam in front of me.

That's when I heard it again.

The scratching.

Only this time-it wasn't at my door.

It was behind the bookshelf.

My breath caught.

I rose, slowly, heart thudding like a drum. I touched the edge of the wooden frame, then ran my fingers along the seam-until something clicked.

A hidden door creaked open.

I knew I shouldn't.

But curiosity is louder than caution.

The secret room was narrow and cold, with a single leather-bound journal lying on a pedestal.

I opened it.

"The curse follows the bloodline. Every generation, one is chosen to carry it. If the curse falls in love... death follows."

My fingers trembled as I flipped to the next page.

Sketches.

Drawings of wolves with glowing eyes. Of a man-Kade-surrounded by bodies, blood, and fire.

A whisper echoed in my head. Run.

But I didn't.

Not yet.

Because somewhere deep inside, I already knew the truth:

Kade Valen was cursed. And now-I was part of it.

---

By the end of the day, I had more questions than answers.

Who was Kade really?

What was that scratching sound?

And most of all... what was it about me that made him pick me for this?

I tried to ask him that night.

He stood on the rooftop, staring out over the city like it was a kingdom he ruled but didn't love.

"You want answers," he said before I even opened my mouth.

"Yes."

He looked at me, eyes reflecting moonlight and shadows.

"Then earn them," he said. "Survive. Stay curious. But remember this-love is the most dangerous thing you could ever offer me."

He took a step closer, so close I could smell him-smoke, pine, and something dark I couldn't name.

"I'm not your savior, Sienna. I'm your poison."

And then, just like that, he disappeared into the night-leaving me on the rooftop, wind in my hair and terror in my heart.