To ruin an Omega novel Chapter 274

Chapter 274: Sympathy 1

MADELINE

The silence at the breakfast table after that felt like a living thing. It breathed. It waited. It watched me the same way Aldric was watching me right now.

I reached for the serving platter of eggs and bacon and scooped a small portion onto my plate. My hand didn’t shake. I made sure of that. The fork clinked softly against the porcelain and I set it down with care before moving to the pitcher of water.

Aldric’s gaze burned into the side of my face but I didn’t look at him. I just poured the water into my glass. Slow and steady. The liquid filled the cup halfway and I set the pitcher back down.

"Elara," Aldric said suddenly.

His daughter looked up from her plate where she’d been pushing around a piece of bacon. "Yes?"

"I noticed something odd this morning when I returned to my room." His tone was casual, almost conversational. Like he was discussing the weather. "A watch I kept in my dresser drawer seems to have moved."

I lifted my fork, speared a piece of egg and brought it to my mouth before chewing it slowly.

"It wasn’t where I left it," Aldric continued. "I’m wondering if you might have been looking for something and disturbed it by accident."

Elara wrinkled her nose. "Dad, I hate your watches. You know that. They’re all so boring and old-fashioned." She waved her hand dismissively. "Besides, the sentinel you posted at your door wouldn’t let anyone in. So no. I didn’t touch anything."

"Mm." Aldric made a thoughtful sound. "I must have dropped it somewhere odd then."

The egg tasted like cardboard in my mouth but I swallowed it down and took a sip of water. My pulse stayed even. My expression remained neutral and mildly interested in the conversation happening around me.

Even if I knew exactly what he was doing.

"There’s also a book missing from my personal shelf," Aldric said.

He turned to face me fully now. His eyes locked onto mine with the precision of a predator who’d just spotted movement in the underbrush.

"Self help book," Elara scoffed. "Dad, you should know me better."

I reached for the salt shaker and sprinkled a bit over my eggs. Then I grabbed the pepper and did the same. My movements were unhurried and methodical.

"I heard your brother came to visit," Aldric said.

I looked at him then and met his gaze head-on without flinching. "Well, I am to be ostracized." My voice came out steady and calm. "They came for my blood and I handed Wilhelm a vial of it to give to my father."

It was code for what he needed to know. Since Elara was here.

I set the pepper shaker down and picked up my fork again.

"He wouldn’t have stayed long," I continued. "But he loves me. More than he would like to admit. So we just spent the night talking."

I paused and tilted my head slightly. "Did you want to see him or something?"

"No." Aldric’s expression didn’t change. "I hope your father does fight for you. Ostracization is a cruel thing."

The words would have sounded sympathetic if anything I had just said was remotely true or if the look in his eyes didn’t tell a different story.

He was testing me. Probing for weakness. For any crack in my armor that he could exploit.

"Just stay true to what you need to stay true to."

The threat landed like a knife between my ribs. Precise and deliberate.

I smiled anyway. Soft and grateful like he’d just offered me comfort instead of a reminder that he owned me. That he could destroy everything I cared about with a single order if I stepped out of line.

I turned my attention back to my plate and cut into the eggs with careful precision. The yolk broke and spread across the white porcelain in a golden puddle.

My stomach turned but I brought another forkful to my mouth anyway.

Footsteps echoed from the hallway outside the dining room. Fast footsteps. Someone was running. Or close to it.

All three of us turned toward the entrance.

Cian appeared in the doorway. 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

He looked like he’d run the entire way here. Sweat dampened his dark hair and made it stick to his forehead. His chest rose and fell with quick breaths. Those blue eyes of his were wild and bright with something I couldn’t quite name. Panic maybe. Or desperation.

He was still beautiful. Even disheveled and sweaty and clearly in distress. The kind of beautiful that made your breath catch. Those sharp jaw. Those strong shoulders and the way his shirt clung to his frame from the exertion... Hekate, it did things to me.

I hated that I noticed. I hated that some small part of me still responded to the sight of him even after everything.

"Mads," Cian said. His voice came out rough. "I need your help."