THE CURSED BOND

Chapter Two (The Cellar)

The late afternoon sun bathed the garden in warm gold. A gentle breeze drifted through rows of blooming roses, carrying their sweet fragrance across the quiet estate.

Petals swayed softly as Soma Stone moved carefully between the bushes, gathering fresh flowers into a woven basket.

For a moment, she allowed herself to breathe. The garden was peaceful. One of the very few places in the entire mansion where she could exist without someone reminding her of her place.

She loved flowers. But apparently, so does her stepmother.

Agnes demanded fresh flowers from the garden every day. Every room in the mansion must have a new vase, perfectly arranged before evening fell.

Once, Soma had forgotten to replace a wilted bouquet. She had spent the entire next day scrubbing stone floors until her hands bled.

Agnes’s obsession with flowers rivaled her obsession with control.

Soma gently clipped the last rose and placed it into the basket. The garden was the only thing left of her mother that remained untouched. Everything else had been destroyed.

Family portraits, jewelry, dresses, heirlooms.

Everything that should have been passed down to her and her younger brother, Ryan, was either burnt, stolen, or broken. All except for the ancient bracelet on her wrist.

Her fingers brushed against the ancient silver band wrapped around her wrist. Her mother had placed it there the day she was born, instructing her never to take it off.

Agnes had never questioned the unique ancient bracket she always wore. Perhaps she simply never cared enough to notice or it would have been destroyed as well.

She picked up her basket and headed toward the mansion. Her thoughts drifted, as they often did, toward the past.

Everything had changed after her mother died. Three days after the funeral, her father had returned home with a strange woman and a girl nearly Soma’s age, but older than her younger brother Ryan.

It was Agnes, and her daughter Sally. Her father’s illegitimate child.

He had announced happily over dinner that the woman they thought was a guest was actually their new stepmother. And her daughter was their half-sister.

Soma had believed her father was a good man once. A loyal husband. A loving father. That illusion had long since shattered.

“Well father,” she murmured to herself as she walked towards the house, the basket of fresh flowers hefted on her hip. “I hope you could see just how well your beautiful family turned out in the end.” Her tone carried quiet sarcasm.

Inside the house, she began placing flowers in each room just as Agnes had instructed. One vase in the sitting room. Two in the dining hall. Another near the staircase.

As she approached the long corridor leading to Sally’s room, she heard something strange. A muffled sound. At first, she had ignored it earlier, thinking she had imagined it. But the closer she got, the clearer it became.

Low voices. Soft thuds. And something else she couldn’t quite place.

She paused outside Sally’s door where the sounds were coming from. Curiosity got the better of her. Slowly, she pushed the door open slightly.

Her eyes widened.

Inside the room, Sally was tangled with a man against her dressing table, their bodies pressed close together in a passionate embrace.

The room was a mess. Clothes were scattered across the floor. Jewelry knocked aside. Neither of them noticed Soma standing at the doorway.

Then the man shifted. Light from the window revealed his face.

Lord Cedrick. A powerful general in the royal army, the king’s nephew, and a married man.

Soma froze. Her stomach twisted in disgust. She watched as Cedrick swept the items off Sally’s dressing table with one careless motion and everything came crashing down with a loud noise. Then he threw her against the desk and leaned in to penetrate her from behind.

Sally’s loud moan of approval echoed through the room. The sound snapped Soma out of her shock. She quietly shut the door and hurried down the corridor.

Moments later she stepped outside the mansion, drawing in a deep breath of fresh air. Her heart still raced.

“How shameless,” she muttered under her breath.

Like mother, like daughter. She thought as she hastily left for the small cottage she now shared with your brother Ryan. The place they now call home.

The small cottage sat behind the mansion. It was originally built by her late father as a servant quarters, but after her father’s death, Agnes had decided keeping servants around and paying wages was too expensive for them, so she had dismissed all the loyal servants who had served her family for years and made her do all the work instead.

She pushed open the door and stepped inside. The cottage was small but neat. She immediately walked to the small wooden closet in her bedroom. Inside hung a beautiful dress.

A soft smile touched her lips.

She had spent weeks sewing it at night for the moon festival after finishing Agnes’s endless chores. Every stitch was done by hand.

The fabric had been a gift from Mrs. Brutcher—Carl’s mother. Soma suspected the kind woman knew she had nothing suitable to wear for the festival tonight.

The dress was the only worthy piece in her wardrobe. The only thing without hundreds of patches and mending.

She carried it outside and sat on the grass, carefully attaching small fabric roses to the bodice to finish it up.

The delicate handmade flowers complemented the deep off-the-shoulder neckline of the dress and made her chest appear fuller. Her fingers moved skillfully as she placed each rose.

Then suddenly, a strange feeling prickled across her skin. Someone was watching her. She lifted her head.

Lord Cedrick stood a few steps away watching her. The way he looked at her made her blood run cold. There was something predatory in his gaze. She immediately jumped to her feet.

“My lord… why are you here?”

He didn’t answer. He simply stared. His gaze moved slowly over her face… her body… lingering far too long.

Soma instinctively stepped back.

Up close, her beauty was even more striking. Long dark hair flowed in soft waves down her back, absorbing the sunlight like midnight silk. Her skin was pale and flawless, almost porcelain in its smooth perfection. But it was her eyes that truly captured attention.

Pale silver eyes. Cool and luminous, like moonlight trapped in glass.

Cedrick stepped closer and Soma backed away until her back hit the wall of the cottage. His hand suddenly reached out and grabbed a handful of her luxurious dark hair. He slowly brought it to his nose, inhaling deeply while keeping his gaze fixed on her.

“So beautiful… So tempting…” he murmured.

Something snapped inside her. She shoved him away hard trying her best not to gag. His presence alone made her feel filthy.

“I would appreciate it if you kept your hands to yourself, my lord.”

Cedrick only smiled, but he took a step back.

“You’re spirited,” he said calmly. “I like that.”

The sound of footsteps approached. Her step sister Sally appeared with a forced smile.

“My lord! I’ve been looking everywhere for you,” she said sweetly.

She glanced at Soma and her eyes hardened, but she kept the plastered smile on her face.

“Why are you speaking with the help?”

Cedrick tilted his head slightly but his gaze remained fixed on Soma.

“Help?” he repeated. “Isn’t this Soma Stone? The legitimate eldest daughter of the late General Reese Stone?”

Soma’s stomach twisted. He knew who she was?

Sally forced a laugh. “Oh… I didn’t know you knew her.”

Cedrick smiled. His gaze never wavered. “I make it my business to know beautiful women.”

The tension thickened instantly. Sally’s smile faltered.

“You should head back, my lord,” she said stiffly. “I believe you have a lot to attend to. Thanks for stopping by.”

Cedrick nodded once, then finally turned toward his horse. Before leaving, he glanced at the dress in Soma’s hands. “Are you wearing that tonight?”

Soma nodded cautiously.

His smile widened. “Good.” He mounted his horse. “It’s my favorite color.” Then he turned and rode away.

The moment he disappeared, Sally spun toward Soma with blazing eyes.“What were you doing speaking to him? Don’t you have anything better to do?”

“I finished my chores,” Soma replied calmly. Then she tilted her head slightly. “Oh, except one.”

Sally frowned. “What do you mean?”

Soma smiled faintly. “I couldn’t place the flowers in your room earlier.” Her silver eyes locked onto Sally’s. “You seemed… quite busy.”

Shock flashed across Sally’s face before anger quickly replaced it. “Mind your business.”

“Gladly. I have no intention of being in that kind of business,” Soma said lightly.

“Shut it you pathetic excuse of a wolf.” Sally snapped back. Fury darkened her face and slightly twisted her features.

“I may be a pathetic excuse for a wolf, but at least I’m not a slut.”

Sally’s face turned red with rage. “You’ll regret that.” She said and stormed away.

Later that evening, Soma returned home after finishing her work. She glanced into Ryan’s room, but he still wasn’t back. He’s been gone for six days now.

His festival clothes were still lying on the bed. A flicker of worry touched her heart. He and his friends have been training for the Moon Festival contest all week. If Ryan can secure a position in the shadow fang army, they would be under the protection of the king.

“He’s probably just running late,” she reassured herself as she went about with her own preparation. She knew what tonight meant for him. For them.

After bathing, she braided her hair neatly and tied it with the ribbon Mrs. Brutcher had given her. Then she walked to the closet. Excitement fluttered in her chest. Tonight would be the first time in years she wore something beautiful.

She opened the closet and her heart dropped into her stomach. Her dress lay in shreds on the floor. Painful backbreaking weeks of stitches were destroyed in a single night. A tear slid slowly down her cheek.

“Why?” she whispered. Her hands trembled as she reached for the shreds of what used to be her dress. She cried for a while, then anger surged through her veins like fire.

Without thinking, she rushed outside and grabbed the bucket of filthy black water she had used earlier to scrub the kitchen stove and the fireplace. Armed with the bucket of inky black water, she marched straight toward the mansion.

Sally and her friends were laughing outside, already dressed for the festival. The moment they saw her, their laughter grew louder. Every sound carried the mockery of their actions.

“Look who just crawled out of the mud,” Sally mocked.

Soma walked straight up to her. Without any hesitation, she dumped the entire bucket over her head. Black water drenched Sally from head to toes, instantly ruining her own dress.

Sally’s scream echoed across the estate. “You b***h!”

“You ruined mine,” Soma said coldly. “So I ruined yours.”

The night erupted into chaos. Sally lunged straight for her hair and they both began to wrestle.

Then a cold voice cut through the noise. “Enough.”

Agnes stood at the top of the stairs. Her golden eyes glowed as she descended slowly. Within seconds, Sally and her friends had forced Soma to her knees.

Agnes grabbed her chin hard. “You forget who rules this house.”

Soma tasted blood in her mouth. But she smiled. “Not for long,” she said calmly.

Shocked. Agnes' eyes hardened. “What did you say?”

“Ryan turns eighteen soon. And when he does,” Soma continued quietly, “everything returns to him. The rightful heir. You are just the caretaker.”

Agnes’s expression darkened. Her palm connected hard with Soma’s Jaw. Blood oozed from the corner of her mouth.

“We will see about that,” Agnes said in a calm voice despite the rage clearly visible in her eyes. “Beat her up and throw her in the cellar.” She ordered as she turned and walked away.

Moments later fists rained down on Soma until the world faded into darkness. Her unconscious body was dragged across the yard and thrown down the wooden stairs of the underground cellar, and the door was slammed shut.

Outside, unnoticed in the dirt near the entrance of the cellar lay one of Soma’s slippers that had fallen off her foot.