A Threat
Blood drained from her face. Her hold on the horse tightened, alarming the horse. It neighed loudly but she was far from listening.
"Don't you dare leave, you fool. Come here or.." Philip jumped on his feet and warned her when she pulled the reins.
"Or what?" she asked back. God above, who knew what gave her the strength to ask this man back! In the past when she was recently married, she had the courage to question his decision and even rebel when he had beaten him for the first time. The result was she was held by two men tightly until he was done beating her.
She tried to run but the estate was too large. Tried to inform others in the party but they only grinned and enjoyed the pain. She did not have many friends to begin with and the only person she loved most.. Lenhart was busy with hating her and enjoying the company of other women.
She had nowhere to run too. She did not even realize how he broke her willpower slowly. How beating gets so habitual that she did not find them hard anymore.
Even now.. When she should shout and alert others about his presence. Her instinct told her to run and hide far away from here. Even when he was the criminal on the run, he was looking at her with those dominant controlling eyes.
"Or I will make sure that your dear brother will be accused of treason with me." her heart stopped for a second. Archie!
"Yes, that foolish boy wanted to follow his brother in law. So i made sure that he follow me well, my dear wife.'' She had warned her brother again and again to stay away from her husband. But that foolish young boy did not listen.
"He was generous enough to sign the papers instead of me. Attend the meetings I could not go to. They may not find the proof against me, but if they look closer, they will find a ton against your family.
Your brother will walk to the gallows before me, honey and you… you will be burnt alive in front of my eyes. I am sure you do not want that to happen with yourself and us. Right?" His voice was so low, so dominant that she could not move even an inch.
How the blood kept freezing under her skin.
"You would not do that. I will tell him you have trapped my brother." she hissed, collecting all her courage but Philip's lips twisted into a nefarious smile.
"Have you rekindled your love already?" there was no anger in his voice as a husband should have. "When you kissed her in your bedroom, i thought it was only for survival. But looks like he is still ready to be fooled by a wanton woman like you.'' He took a step closer and stood near her horse.
How he held the power when she was the one mounting the horse. Could a horse trample him? She could call it an accident or self defense later. Her eyes hardened at that thought. No one would know they were here. She could even run away after killing him.
"One wrong step and i will make sure that your family get ruined, Elara. My men had kept a closed eye on your family all the time. If i did not return, they will come into light and accuse everything on your family. Are you ready to get them killed for your love affair?" the warning in it, and the truth.
He knew every thought that passed through her mind. She was not weak, had never been. But her family was the only weakness he had held on too. Blackmailed her all the time because of it and controlled her like she was a puppet.
"How many times have you warned them already against me? But have they ever listened? They only think that you have never forgotten about your affair and you are only defaming me to return to him. You know, your every action had only brought me closer to them." he held the reins and pulled it from her hands. She flinched when she felt his touch and instinctively moved her fingers away.
His eyes narrowed at the small actions.
"Tch! The young girl still did not like her husband? Why.. is your lover already making your night wet enough to abandon this husband?" he spat with a look of pleasure in his eyes.
The man was disgusted with perverse pleasure. She would not waste her time in irking him.
"What do you want from me?" she asked back, the desire to kill him had never been strong enough. But she had to get some time and meet Archie. Ask him what he had done. Only then she would confess to Lenhart.
If she had to die, then she would rather trust him than this snake.
"At least you still have some brain left." he smirked, "i want you to bring some papers from my study and bury them under this tree tonight. As long as you do that, I will make sure that your brother will run away with me. You can stay here with your lover for all you want. I have no use for you anymore." ha! She would only let him take her brother with him over her dead body. But papers!
What kind of papers might they be? If she would give them to Len, would he trust her again? But more than that… if the task was so important why did Philip ask her to do it? He could have asked his minions who are loyal to him.
He knew she wanted him dead. It must be the trap.