Raven's DarkNess | ✔

Chapter Twenty

I heard it too. When I zoned in, I could tell that it was a female.

"Stay here," Enzo whispered to me as he lifted a finger to his lips to hammer on the fact that I should be quiet. I obeyed him.

He pulled away from me. First, he took his large hand away from my mouth and then he got off the bed. The weight shifted upward and I sat down as he rushed to his table. Enzo picked up a candle and lit it then went out of his room. I collapsed into his bed wondering who the girl must have been. Maybe Erica or Tinley? Worst-case scenario? Cranky granny.

Oh! My heart flutters at the thought of the heart attack that awaited her if she found me here, at this time in her poor godson's bed. I licked my lips at the thought.

Enzo was gone for a little while and in that time, I looked around his bedroom. I still couldn't come to terms with the accusations against Willow. I felt it in my bones that the girl was simply a victim of an expert. She was caught in the web of lies woven by a master manipulator. I should know, I was pretty good at weaving my own webs myself. Regardless, I silently decided that I would get to the bottom of this.

When I heard the door open, I pulled the hem of my blue dress up to my knees. No! I pulled them a little above my knees.

My plan worked because when Enzo stepped into the room, the first thing his eyes found were my calves. I felt the heaviness of his gaze on me but I pretended not to notice that he was back into the room. At least until he shut the door. I jumped and turned towards him. When I visibly noticed his eyes on my bare calves with my socks only stopping at my ankles, he looked away, walking deeper into the room.

I pulled my dress back down my ankles and contemplated apologising but decided against it. Instead, I played coy and asked, "who was it?"

"Erica," Enzo replied as he set the candle on the table and blew it out. "She came to see if I was unwell because I didn't go for my usual daily night shift,"

Erica seems to be slowly becoming a problem. This is the second time she has interrupted me. She better pray to the moon that it will be her last!

"And why didn't you go?" I was interested to know as well. The fact that he was here and not in the fields ruined my plans to search for the precious stone. Anyway, at least it gave us an opportunity to patch up so I could finally stop starving myself. It was fucking work!

He turned towards me when he responded with, "I felt guilty. About everything that happened to you with my godmother and the fact that you refused to meet anyone or eat anything after that," he walked to the bed but didn't sit down, instead he stood over it and gave me the most sincerest of gazes.  "You are my responsibility and after that incident, I felt like in some way, I had failed you. I had failed to protect you. I had failed,"

It was my turn now to rush from where I was seated to the edge of the bed to place my fingers over Enzo's lips. His lips were soft and his pupils dilated. I stared right into them.

"It wasn't your fault, Enzo. You weren't even there when she slapped me and when you came, you stopped her so please, don't stand here and tell me that everything is your fault because it's really not and hearing you say this makes me feel sad," he peered right into my eyes and for some reason, I felt my heartbeat quicken at the realisation that all I had just blurted out was not a lie. My lips parted without control.

"It wasn't your fault," I repeated and then pulled my fingers away. Enzo stood only a few inches from me when I exhaled and dipped my head downwards. "I was the one who confronted her. I knew exactly what I risked when I did that. Please don't blame yourself, Enzo,"