Page 71 of Captive Bride

My voice disappears into the overwhelming silence. I rise out of the mahogany chair and push it back in place.

I turn towards the staircase. I pause briefly at the base to consider the wrath I’m about to endure.

She wants to run away, to have me turn my back on family and friends and just disappear.

I can’t do that. And what she doesn’t understand is that running will only get you so far. The Capulets will search everywhere until they find her. She’s the heiress, the princess.

There’s no escape that doesn’t end in death.

I head upstairs, knowing I’ll have to break her heart.

I get to her room and try to twist the handle, but it’s locked.

I pound on the door.

“Isobel, open up now. You’ve had your fun. Now it’s time to reconsider your actions.”

There’s nothing but silence from her.

“Isobel, are you in there?” I say, becoming impatient.

No answer.

“Open the goddamn door, Isobel. Now.”

I bang on it loudly.

“You’ve got three seconds. One, two...”

Dead silence, and then the first sign of life.

“Go away, Tristan,” she says.

The broken intonation in her speech tells me that she’s trying not to cry.

“I just wanna talk to you,” I say.

“I don’t want see you. Leave me alone.”

The tinge of anger and insolence in her voice makes me feel all the more furious.

“Isobel, open this door right now, or I swear I’ll break it down.”

She opens it.

Good girl.

“We need to talk,” I say.

She glares at me, and I see hurt and anger in her eyes. I know she doesn’t mean it. I know she’s afraid that she’ll have to go back to her father or that this will end badly.

“About what?” she says, crossing her arms.

She’s angry, but she’s also protecting her heart from me.

I get the feeling that our future is hinged on this moment.

If I don’t tread carefully or consider her words, I’ll destroy the very foundation of the love that has begun to blossom between us.

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