Chapter 11 - The Truth in the Ashes
Clara spun around, her heart jumping into her throat. Christian stood in the doorway, his coat wet with rain, his tie undone, and a bottle of amber scotch hanging loosely from his left hand. He looked exhausted, the sharp lines of his face carved deeper by shadows.
""I'm sorry,"" Clara whispered, stepping back from the desk. ""I was just... I wanted to thank you. The nursery is incredible.""
Christian didn't look at the desk. He walked past her, setting the bottle down with a heavy clink, and poured two fingers of liquor into a crystal glass. ""The ring was hers,"" he said bluntly, taking a slow sip that burned down his throat. ""Marcus knew it the moment he saw it on your finger. That's why he mentioned her.""
""Why did you give it to me?"" Clara asked softly, her gaze drawn to the brilliant green stone on her finger. ""If it hurts you this much, why use it?""
""Because Marcus took her life to steal my father's seat,"" Christian said, his voice dropping into a harsh, bitter gravel. ""He cut the brake lines on her car during a rainstorm on the Taconic Parkway five years ago. The police ruled it an accident. I couldn't prove it. The only thing I had left of her was that emerald."" He turned to face her, his eyes blazing with a dangerous, tormented fire. ""Putting that ring on your finger was my message to him. He took my future once. He will not take another life from under my roof.""
Clara walked toward him, ignoring the warning bells in her head. She saw through the armor of the ruthless CEO; beneath it was a man bleeding from wounds that had never healed.
""Christian,"" she said gently, laying a tentative hand on his wet wool sleeve. ""I am not a weapon for your revenge. And neither is Lily.""
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Christian stared down at her small hand against his arm. The rage in his eyes softened, replaced by something raw, heavy, and undeniably human. ""I know,"" he murmured, his voice dropping to a breath. ""And that's what terrifies me.""
Suddenly, the lights throughout the manor flickered once, twice, and plunged the estate into absolute, suffocating darkness.
