Part 22

Nadine sat on her bed wearing her grey nightgown. The room was dark, so she had lit up two candles. She had never been so confused in her life. What was going on? It seemed that Tristan had indeed lost his mind. What would that mean to her and Lucien? What did Tristan want from her? Well, she had a pretty good idea, but once again she could be wrong. If he wanted her body, why didn't he just take it? Many noblemen did that, servant girls had no right to refuse them.

Tristan had absolutely no need to show Nadine kindness, she wasn't a lady he needed to court in order to get what he wanted. But again, what did he want? His behavior made no sense to her. Why would he possibly want to know what she liked? She had spent the whole day with him; he had wanted her to accompany him everywhere when he had taken care of his duties. He had said that he needed her to stay near him. Why? She sighed tiredly, she was so confused. If she could only understand what was going on with him… A quiet knock on the door cut off her thoughts.

"It's me," Lucien's voice said.

Quickly Nadine stood up and unbolted the door. Her brother was looking at her with furrowed brows; she could immediately see how tense he was. There were two guards standing few steps away from the door, Tristan had ordered them to make sure that no one, except Lucien, would enter Nadine's room. He had said that he wanted "his puppet" to be safe. Lucien didn't say a word before closing the door and bolting it.

"Nadine," he started tensely. "What…"

He paused when he noticed all the food on the table. Their supper. Lucien's eyes widened, but his expression tensed when he took a hold of Nadine's arms.

"Please, sister… Tell me it is not true. The rumors…"

Nadine shook her head as firmly as she could. Lucien leaned closed and looked into her eyes.

"I… I need you to know that I would never think… If he has…"

Nadine shook her head again. Lucien was quiet for a long while before speaking.

"If he has not done that, then why…"

Nadine sighed and shook her head; she didn't have an answer to that. Lucien pressed his lips together and wrapped his arms tightly around Nadine.

"I am so sorry," he murmured. "I am your brother, I should be your protector, but all I have done is failed you…"

Nadine pulled away immediately and slapped Lucien's cheek, not roughly enough to hurt him, but still firmly enough to really stun him. She looked at him harshly and shook her head. Determinedly she pointed at him and placed both of her hands on her chest above her heart. The last thing she wanted was him to feel bad; he had done everything he could for her. He was still unable to speak when she kissed his cheek and leaned her head on his shoulder.

"I love you too," he muttered after a long silence.

She took his hand and led him to the small table, pointing at the food. He didn't argue, clearly he was hungry. They both ate in silence; she was more than happy to see him for once having enough to eat. If there was something good in Tristan's bizarre behavior, it was this. After they had eaten, she pointed at him and his bed; she could easily see how tired he was. Again he didn't argue with her, perhaps he understood how useless that would be. The thought made her smile. He looked at her face and smiled too.

"I have missed your smile, sister," he said.

She was confused for a moment before she remembered that he hadn't seen her smiling after she had been brought here. She asked again if she could sleep in his bed and she was happy when he agreed. She felt safe when he was beside her. Again she didn't want to make him uncomfortable, so she observed his reaction when she curled up against him, just like she had done when they had been children. He didn't tense or push her away; instead he wrapped an arm around her. She was nothing but grateful for that, the sound of his heartbeat calmed her. She had just fallen asleep when the banging on the door woke her up.

"Open the door!" a male voice demanded.

"Stay there," Lucien whispered and went to unbolt the door.

One of the guards marched in and looked at Nadine.

"She will come with me," he said.

"What, why?" Lucien asked.

"Lord Tristan's order. Get up, girl."

Lucien clenched his fists, Nadine got up quickly before he managed to say anything. She moved in front of Lucien and cupped his face, trying her best to convince him that she would be alright.

"Nadine…"

"Move, girl," the guard ordered. "The lord does not like to be kept waiting."

Obviously Nadine was aware of that, she kissed Lucien's cheek and gave him a calming smile. She hated to see the distress in his eyes and she hoped that she could return to him soon. The guard didn't say a word to her when he escorted her to Tristan's chamber. What did he want now? Cautiously she entered after getting his permission. Tristan was standing in front of the fireplace with his back turned to the door; he was wearing nothing except a pair of pants. Nadine swallowed; she had a very bad feeling about this.

"Come here, puppet," he muttered, he didn't turn to look at her.

Somehow she managed to obey, but she still kept her distance. He took a deep breath and turned to face her. She couldn't hide her surprise, he looked so…exhausted.

"Alright…" he sighed. "Alright… I need you to do something for me, puppet. I am aware that what I am about to ask probably sounds strange to you, scary even, but I can assure you that you have no reason to be afraid. No harm will come to you, I give you my word. Alright?"

She looked at him disbelievingly, his words made no sense to her. The intense look in his eyes scared her, she was afraid that he had really lost his mind now.

"I need to sleep," he said tensely and took a hold of Nadine's arm. "Do you understand, puppet? I need to sleep."

Quickly she nodded.

"Good," he sighed and touched her cheek. "Come with me."

He was leading her to his bed. Instinctively she tried to free herself, but he tightened his grip.

"Don't, puppet, please don't," he sighed. "I need to sleep. I am not going to hurt you."

She shivered when he lifted the cover and told her to lie down. No… He told her again, this time more tensely. She had no place to run; she had no choice but to do this. She clenched her fists at her side and forced herself to settle onto her back.

"It's alright, don't be afraid," he muttered when he lied down beside her.

Her heart was beating like a drum; she closed her eyes when he touched her hair.

"I am not going to hurt you," he repeated. "I am not, but I can't take this anymore, I need to sleep. I am going to put my arms around you now, alright? I won't do anything else, I swear."

Her whole body tensed when he rolled her on her side and wrapped his arms around her, drawing her as close to him as possible. Her face was against his bare chest, she had never been in this kind of situation. Tears were burning behind her eyes; she waited for his hands to start groping her. That didn't happen, he only leaned his cheek on the top of her head.

"This doesn't feel unpleasant, does it?" he muttered. "I am not hurting you."

She was still breathing faster than normally, but for some reason, hearing his heartbeat calmed her down a little.

"It's alright, puppet," he muttered. "Try to relax and make yourself comfortable. I just need to…"

He didn't finish his sentence; she could tell that he had fallen asleep. Just when she had thought that she couldn't be any more confused… What was happening here?