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Just to spite him, I’m going to wait until he leaves and take a stroll around the mansion. If I’m stuck here, I might as well get acquainted with the place. Top to bottom. Side to side. I want to know where all the exits are. I want to see all the rooms. I’ll just do my best to avoid running into Rafe along the way.
After checking out the window every few minutes for nearly half an hour, I see Elio’s form cross the stretch of grass outside and disappear into the trees. I wait a few more minutes, just to make sure he isn’t going to come running back for anything, before turning on my heel and heading for the bedroom door.
The prickle of reality dances at the nape of my neck like a warning as I step into the hallway. I’m alone. And as far as I know, there’s only one other person in the entire mansion. I haven’t seen anyone else coming or going besides Elio and Azarius.
No butlers.
No staff.
No one.
After meeting Rafe, I’m not surprised. It would take a very special individual to tolerate being in the same building as him for any extended amount of time.
No wonder everyone else prefers hanging out in the human world.
This place seems kind of miserable without Elio and Azarius to keep me company.
Despite the gleaming decorations, grand staircases, and extravagant furniture, the grandeur of the place dissipates in the wake of Rafe lurking somewhere inside the mansion. It’s more like a haunted castle than a home.
Aside from the various guest rooms on the second floor, there is a long sitting room at the end of the hall that’s beautifully decorated with red-velvet couches, several small tables, and a crystal chandelier which casts flecks of rainbow light across the dark surfaces in the room. Several paintings, all framed in thick black rectangles, hang throughout the room and knickknacks are scattered across all the flat surfaces. A sand-filled hourglass here. A clawed hand with the palm outstretched there. Candles. A skull. A clock with fourteen numbers and six hands.
It’s a beautiful place to spend an afternoon lounging around—I can see why the aesthetic appeals to Rafe.
If he wasn’t such an insufferable asshole, he might be able to enjoy this beautiful sanctuary he’s created with other people.
Then again, he probably doesn’t want to.
From there, I head to the staircase, running my hand along the banister as I make my way downstairs. I walk slowly, looking for any sign of movement in the shadows that might give Rafe away. I haven’t decided if I’ll address him and say hello or turn and run like hell if I bump into him.
I’ll have to wait and see, I guess.
Aside from the foyer and dining room that I saw with Elio and Azarius, there are two sitting areas—both of which resemble the living room upstairs with color and furniture choices—and a gorgeous kitchen. There’s no sign of a refrigerator, which I personally find disappointing, but there are tons of marble countertops and cabinets lining every wall with a huge island in the middle.
I decide to wait for the boys to get back before I explore outside at all—if what they said is true, a Malev could potentially smell its way to me.
Not a risk I’m willing to take.
Some people would probably rather take their chances with a Malev than Rafe, but not me. Besides, I haven’t seen any sign of him since I started exploring. Who’s to say he didn’t step out too?
Finally, there’s only one place I haven’t explored—the third floor.
I’m assuming that’s where Rafe sleeps, but I don’t know for sure.
Does he even sleep?
He’s probably just running on hatred and his inflated ego at this point. No need for downtime when you’re trying to rule the realm.
I climb the stairs to the second floor and pause on the landing, my eyes dancing up the next flight of stairs. A tiny voice at the back of my mind begs me to stop exploring. It tells me to go back to my room and wait for Azarius and Elio.
But then my curiosity tells that voice to shut up, and my feet find their way to the bottom stair.
It won’t hurt to just look.
I don’t even have to open any doors.
I can sneak up and sneak down without being seen.
A nervous flutter in my stomach erupts when I take the first step, careful to test it for creaky boards before putting my weight on it. I wait, nervously anticipating the worst to happen, but nothing does. As quietly as possible, I try another step. And then another. After several excruciating minutes, I reach the top of the stairs and freeze on the landing, afraid any wrong move will draw Rafe out of his hiding place.
