After that, she left and took her med kit along with her. Did she even understand what I meant?
I looked down, grabbed the blanket, and heaved a sigh. “Maya, I need your help.”
Maya considerately poured me a glass of water and put it on the bedside table. “Miss Todd, you should rest first. If you need anything else, just press the bell on the bedside table, okay?”
I reached out for her hand and looked at her straight in the eye. At this point, I was willing to do anything. I was desperate for freedom. “You don’t understand. Please just help me remove the shackles, Maya. Let me out of here.”
Maya simply gave me a bitter smile. “I can’t do anything about the shackles, Miss Todd. Prince Rufus is the only one who has the key to the shackles. I only have the key to this room.”
“Ugh! Of course!” I slammed my hand on the bed, expressing my irritation. “Rufus!”
“Miss Todd, all I ask is for you to be obedient and stay here for a while longer. When Prince Rufus calms down, I’m sure he will let you out,” Maya helplessly replied.
“How about I break the lock by myself and you just get me the tools?” I persuaded. I still didn’t want to give up on my pursuit of freedom.
Maya took a big step back and kept away from the bed. She looked down and hesitantly shook her head. “Miss Todd, please don’t make things difficult for me. If Prince Rufus finds out about it, I’ll be doomed. I’m sure you’re aware that if he’s mad, even the Lycan King can’t stop him. He’s actually showing you mercy this time because he loves you.”
I could feel the fear in Maya’s voice, so I didn’t insist anymore and heaved another sigh. Then, I laid back down.
“Miss Todd, please don’t be mad at Prince Rufus. You don’t know that he has been…”
Maya abruptly stopped mid-sentence and bit her lip. Her expression was oddly complicated.
Sylvia’s POV
I noticed that there was something wrong with Maya’s expression, so I looked at her and asked, “What’s wrong?”
Maya let out a sigh. “Ever since you left the imperial palace, Prince Rufus hasn’t slept a wink, nor has he had a good meal either. But as soon as he found out about your whereabouts, he rushed there overnight. You can just imagine the pain he went through while you were away.”
My heart ached when I heard what she said. I pictured Rufus’ weary expression on the way back as he leaned against his seat. He was probably both mad and disappointed in me.
I looked down and gripped the blanket as I murmured, “I know I did something wrong this time, but…”
I almost wanted to tell Maya my unspeakable secret, but my subconscious held me back. If I were to reveal the secret about the curse on Rufus, things would get even more complicated. Ethan and Laura might even get involved.
In the end, I heaved a sigh. “I’ll apologize to Rufus when he comes back.”
“Miss Todd, that’s not what Prince Rufus wants. Don’t you understand? Since you’re his mate, you should be honest with him. He loves you. Your escape from the imperial palace is no less than betraying his love and your mate bond. I think instead of an apology, he needs you to reciprocate the same love he’s giving you.”
“I understand that, Maya. It’s just too complicated. I can’t talk about it right now,” I replied, my voice a little hoarse. I felt powerless, but I still had a secret to hide, and I had no choice but to bear the pressure and the misunderstanding that came along with it.
“Miss Todd,” Maya said as she sat on the edge of my bed. “Can you tell me why you suddenly ran away from the imperial palace? I always believed you had a reason that you didn’t want to tell anyone, or maybe you just couldn’t. But either way, I don’t think you meant to betray Prince Rufus.”
Seeing Maya’s sincere expression, I felt a lump form in my throat. At that point, I just wanted to tell her everything.
But I knew the consequences would be dire if I did that.
When I stayed silent, Maya sighed and gave me a sad look. “Do you really not love Prince Rufus anymore?”
I subconsciously wanted to tell her that I loved Rufus with all my heart, but I couldn’t. I would have to leave the imperial palace sooner or later if I couldn’t get rid of the curse on his back. I would have to make him forget about me before I left.
The real question was, what should I do about the people around him?
Back then, Edwin was the only one who knew about what happened between Leonard and my mother, so it was easier to hide the truth.
But almost everyone already knew about my relationship with Rufus. It was basically general knowledge to them. They even thought we would get married soon.
If Rufus were to lose his memories, the people around him would still mention me. That was why I’d better just let everyone misunderstand that I didn’t love him anymore. In that case, even if I were to leave, no one would mention me in front of Rufus, and it would be better that way.
If everyone believed that I had betrayed Rufus and then he just magically lost his memory, no one would be stupid enough to bring me up in front of Rufus again and get themselves in trouble.
“It’s a long story, Maya,” I said, looking at her serious expression.
“Do you still love Prince Rufus, Miss Todd? You ran away with Mr. Joshua this time. Did you really fall in love with him?” She asked once again. I nervously bit my lip. Ever since Rufus sent her to take care of me, I had never seen her so serious.
At that point, I was having mixed feelings again. I really wanted to tell her that I loved Rufus so much, but I couldn’t, and I couldn’t lie either.
Thus, I had no other choice but to remain silent.
Sylvia’s POV
Maya shot me a reproachful look. She seemed to want to say something, but bit her tongue in the end.
I grabbed the quilt, not defending myself.
After a long silence, she sighed and left the room.
As soon as the door closed behind her, I heaved a sigh of both relief and distress. I felt sad and bitter. I was truly like the main character of a tragic movie.
I wiped my tears, feeling bad for myself. Yana sneered at me again.
“Humph, are you feeling bad? Why don’t you just tell them the truth? Keeping this secret to yourself is killing you.”
“No, it’s better for me to suffer alone than make Rufus go through the same misery with me.” I ran my hand roughly through my hair, feeling distressed and depressed. If only I could get a bottle of wine now. But just as the thought crossed my mind, my stomach cramped, as if the baby was protesting this idea.
I touched my belly sadly. I had almost forgotten that I was pregnant. I couldn’t even drown my sorrows now.
The shackles were long enough to allow me to move around the room without hindrance, but I couldn’t reach the door and leave. I got out of bed and changed my resting place. The fluffy rocking chair helped me relax immensely. It was built by Rufus. He had constructed it when I made the walking stick for Leonard.
Now that the weather was getting chillier, he had covered the chair with a thick cashmere blanket.
I sat facing the garden, rocking in the chair and tossing grapes into my mouth. Although I was a little bored, the view outside was still gorgeous. Everything in the imperial place was aesthetic, and even the fish in the pond were carefully chosen. As the sun dazzled in the sky, colorful fish would surface in the water periodically to display their beautiful fishtails like mini-mermaids as the pond rippled and sparkled.
I sighed, my frustration increasing. I missed the swing downstairs.
“I don’t think you’re missing the swing. You just want to get rid of these shackles and regain your freedom,” Yana instantly complained.
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