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.

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