The Punishment
1177 Words
Amaris slowly looked Gretel up and down.
Her eyes traveled over Gretel without the slightest attempt to hide the disgust she felt in that moment.
“You’d better stay out of my way.”
Gretel let out a mocking little laugh and crossed her arms.
“And what if I don’t?” she asked, stepping slightly closer. “What exactly do you think you’ll do to me?”
Amaris stared directly at her without blinking or backing away.
“I’m not in the mood today for newcomers with bad intentions.”
Gretel’s smile widened slightly.
“I’m not a newcomer, sweetheart,” she replied, leaning a little closer to her. “I’ve had business with Kael for a very long time… and at one point, we were involved.”
The words pierced Amaris far more than she wanted to admit.
But she refused to show how much they twisted her stomach.
“So that’s why you keep trying to blame me for everything happening here.”
Gretel raised an amused eyebrow.
“You’re very smart… although I’m still convinced you’re behind all of this.”
Amaris looked at her with both disgust and contempt.
“You want Kael to exile me so you can have him for yourself.”
As always, Gretel didn’t deny it. On the contrary, she smiled so slowly it was painful to watch.
“That’s exactly what I want.”
Amaris clenched her jaw, but before she could say anything else, Gretel did something completely unexpected.
She slammed her arm hard against the edge of the wall.
Amaris’s eyes widened in shock.
She didn’t understand what was happening. She was completely confused by what Gretel had just done.
“What the hell…?”
But Gretel was already screaming.
“Help! Help!”
She rushed toward the hall, clutching her arm while pretending to cry.
“Amaris tried to hurt me!”
Footsteps were heard immediately.
Kael and Aldo appeared almost at once.
Kael frowned when he saw Gretel holding her arm in obvious pain.
“What happened?”
Gretel pointed directly at Amaris just as she stepped out of the study.
“She attacked me!”
“That’s not true!” Amaris snapped immediately. “She did that to herself just to frame me!”
Gretel let out an incredulous laugh mixed with fake pain.
“Who in their right mind would break their own arm on purpose?”
Amaris opened her mouth to respond, but Kael was already staring at the swelling beginning to form on Gretel’s arm.
Aldo quickly stepped closer.
“It looks fractured.”
Gretel pretended to wince in pain and moved slightly closer to Kael.
“I told you she was dangerous…”
Amaris felt rage boiling inside her chest.
“She’s lying!”
Kael closed his eyes for a moment, as if the chaos itself was beginning to exhaust him, then looked at Aldo.
“Take her to the medical wing.”
Aldo nodded immediately.
“Come on. I’ll take you to get treated.”
Gretel allowed him to help her, but before leaving, she looked at Amaris with a barely visible smile.
A victorious smile.
Amaris felt an even stronger urge to rip her hair out.
When both of them disappeared down the hallway, Kael and Amaris stared at each other in silence.
Kael slowly ran a hand over his face, obvious tension written all over him.
Then he finally looked at her.
“I don’t know what I’m going to do with you.”
“I didn’t do anything,” Amaris said immediately as soon as they were alone. “It was Gretel. She hurt herself to frame me.”
Kael didn’t answer.
That silence was the worst part for her.
He grabbed her arm firmly and began dragging her down the hallway with him.
“Kael—” she cried out.
But he didn’t stop.
He opened the bedroom door and pushed her inside first.
The door slammed shut behind them.
Amaris barely had time to turn around before Kael grabbed her face.
“You’ve caused me more problems since the day you arrived than I ever had before,” he confessed, sounding frustrated.
“I—”
She tried to speak, but he silenced her with a rough kiss.
The kiss left her completely frozen for a few seconds.
It was intense, desperate… and full of anger.
Amaris ended up kissing him back immediately, clutching his shirt while he deepened the kiss as if he were trying to pour all the rage inside him into it.
Kael gently pushed her against the wall without breaking the kiss.
His hands slowly moved down her waist, pulling her tightly against him.
Amaris felt her heartbeat racing violently, and even then, she understood nothing.
Just minutes ago, he had seemed ready to distrust her all over again… and now he was kissing her like he was losing control.
Kael moved down to her neck, leaving slow kisses against her skin.
Amaris closed her eyes involuntarily.
“Kael…” she whispered softly.
He lifted his gaze toward her.
His dark eyes were filled with something dangerous.
“I don’t understand what’s happening,” Amaris admitted breathlessly. “I thought you were going to punish me.”
A small crooked smile appeared on Kael’s face.
“I will.”
Amaris looked at him in confusion, and then he slowly leaned closer to her lips again.
“But first… I’m going to make love to you.”
The words sent a shiver through Amaris’s entire body.
Kael kissed her again, this time more slowly, as if he wanted to savor her completely.
He easily lifted her into his arms and carried her to the bed without taking his eyes off her for even a second.
Amaris felt the air leave her lungs when Kael positioned himself over her.
For the first time, there wasn’t only coldness or physical desire in his movements.
There was need.
A dangerous need that seemed to anger even him.
His hands slowly explored Amaris’s body while he kissed her over and over again.
She eventually wrapped her arms around Kael’s neck, pulling him even closer.
“Grrrr…” Kael growled with frustration and passion over what he himself had unleashed.
The room began filling with ragged breaths and desperate kisses.
Kael seemed incapable of stopping.
“Kael…”
Every time Amaris said his name, something inside him reacted even more strongly.
Amaris felt the intensity between them growing little by little, consuming them completely.
Kael rested his forehead against hers for a few seconds while trying to steady his breathing.
But Amaris leaned in again and kissed him first this time.
That seemed to break the little control he had left.
Kael kissed her passionately again while holding her tightly against him.
And that night, the two of them completely lost themselves in each other.
But it didn’t last beyond that long moment.
“Now you’re finally going to receive your punishment for hurting Gretel,” he said as he got out of bed.
- Writer
