Page 59 of Royal Beast
When I step off the elevator and into the apartment, the sound of low voices carries from the kitchen. I pause, about to announce myself, but something about their tone stops me.
“I’ll give him this much,” the maid says, her voice loud in the quiet apartment. “Kellan Brannagan pays better than anyone else I’ve worked for. But dangerous? Without question. I don’t know what Mrs. Brannagan sees in him.”
I freeze, gripping the strap of my bag tighter.
Doreen giggles and I freeze. “You’re not wrong,” she says, tone sarcastic. “That woman is nuts to put up with someone like one of the Brannagan brothers. I mean, she’s got a daughter tothink about. But maybe being with a man like him is worth the risk for her.”
A quiet chuckle follows, making my stomach twist painfully.
“I guess I shouldn’t be surprised,” Doreen continues. “Have you seen him? The sex is probably phenomenal, but what kind of mother puts her need to get laid above her kid’s safety?”
The words slam into me like a physical blow, leaving me rooted in place.
I should walk in there and shut this down, coolly dismiss them both and make sure they know whom they’re gossiping about.
But a small voice in the back of my mind whispers a question I don’t want to face.
Are they wrong?
The knot in my chest tightens as their voices drift into other topics. I force my legs to move, taking slow, deliberate steps into the kitchen.
Doreen looks up first, her face going pale. “Oh, hello, Mrs. Brannagan. I didn’t realize you were home. Have you been here long?”
“Just got in,” I say, keeping my tone light. “My only meeting canceled so I decided to take the rest of the day off and spend it with my daughter. Why don’t you head out early? I can look after Rose now.”
Doreen hesitates, exchanging a glance with the maid, but she nods. “Of course. Rose is in her room. I just put her down for her mid-morning nap.”
“Alright. Thank you,” I reply, keeping my expression neutral.
They leave quickly, murmuring polite goodbyes. The moment the door closes, I lean against the counter, staring at the spotless kitchen without really seeing it.
“You can take the rest of the day off too, Sylvia,” I say, barely looking at the maid as I head for Rose’s room. My stomach is churning as I process what I’ve just heard.
Inside my daughter’s room, I find her curled up under her blanket, clutching her stuffed rabbit in one hand, her little chest rising and falling in a steady rhythm.
The sight of her melts something in me. What am I doing? Am I putting her life in danger? Am I a bad mother for wanting to be with Kellan, for wanting to be happy?
But my doubts momentarily fade when she stirs and blinks up at me, her little voice murmuring, “Mama?”
“Hey, sweetheart,” I whisper, leaning down to kiss her forehead. “How about we go for a walk? Just you and me today.”
Her sweet smile is all the answer I need, and I get her dressed in something warm, bundling her up as we head out for the park.
Walking along the path, I push Rose in her stroller, listening to her babble about the pigeons bobbing around and the leaves that blow past in the breeze.
My guilt starts creeping back in as we walk through the trees and into the forested area. I’d fought so hard to keep her and Kellan apart. I built up walls, lied to everyone, anything I could to keep my baby safe.
But here I am, willingly waltzing back into his life and dragging my innocent child along with me. Anxiety curls in my stomach and I swallow, trying to keep the nausea at bay.
The breeze picks up, the air getting chilly, so I suggest to Rose that we head to the library and her little face lights up in excitement. She adores the children’s section with the colorful rugs, painted murals, and the foam blocks for little readers.
The short trip should settle my nerves, but my thoughts are relentless, circling back to the conversation I overheard, and worse, to the truths I can’t ignore.
Rose has already been a target once. That evening is burned into my memory, the way those men didn’t even hesitate to attack a woman and her child, the way I felt terrified and helpless. Kellan came through for us then, but what about the next time? She’ll always be a target of his enemies if we stay.
Getting her settled in with a few picture books, I pull up the library’s app and pick something to download to my phone, needing a distraction.
The idea of running crosses my mind again, as it has several times before. If I could take her somewhere far away, where no one knew us, maybe she’d be safe. We could leave this all behind, find somewhere warm and sunny, and settle down, just the two of us again. Away from my dad’s debts, away from Kellan’s dangerous lifestyle…
