SIX
676 Words
Chapter 6 – Moving Shadows
The next day, it was as if nothing had happened. The mansion returned to its usual rhythm—the maids busy with their chores, the dogs running through the gardens, the sound of cars pulling into the garage. But inside Althea, that sense of “normal” was gone forever.
As she sat at the long dining table, the silence weighed heavily on her. At the far end sat Xavier, a laptop open in front of him, eyes fixed on documents. He didn’t glance her way, yet his presence was palpable—cold, unshakable, commanding.
“Mrs. Madrigal.”
The sudden voice pulled her from her thoughts.
She turned and saw Lea Sandoval, dressed in a crisp corporate outfit. Her gaze was sharp, but her smile carried a professional polish.
“Are you ready for your orientation?” Lea asked. “You’ll need to learn a few things about social gatherings and business dinners. It’s part of your role now.”
Althea nodded, though unease stirred within her. There was something about Lea she couldn’t quite explain—something in her words that always felt laced with double meanings.
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Hours later, Lea brought her to a private study room in the mansion. On the desk were neatly arranged folders, invitation letters, and a list of influential names in business.
“As Mr. Madrigal’s wife, you need to project grace and intelligence. Every word, every gesture—it all carries weight in his world,” Lea explained, carefully arranging the papers as though every detail mattered.
While she spoke, Althea couldn’t help but watch her closely. Every move was precise, practiced—like someone who had long been part of this world of wealth and power.
Is she really just his secretary? Althea wondered.
“Lea,” Althea asked softly, “have you been with Xavier for a long time?”
Lea paused ever so slightly before smiling. “Long enough to know him better than anyone else.”
The air between them tightened. Althea couldn’t tell if it was a simple response or a deliberate hint at something deeper.
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That evening, instead of coming down for dinner, Althea stayed in her room. Her thoughts were heavy, tangled with doubts about Lea.
But as she lay in bed, faint footsteps echoed from the hallway. She rose and moved quietly to the door. Through the narrow gap, she saw Xavier walking alongside Lea—both heading toward the study.
Althea froze, her body rigid, her heart pounding faster with every step they took together. She couldn’t hear what they were saying, but their closeness was enough to wound her.
Why is there always a wall between us? she whispered in her thoughts. Am I nothing more than a contract to him?
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The next day, she could no longer keep her questions locked inside. As she walked in the garden with Xavier, she slowed her pace and looked at him.
“Xavier,” she began gently, “I just need to ask… what exactly is Lea’s place in your life?”
He stopped, turning to meet her eyes. His gaze was deep, shadowed, carrying secrets he refused to reveal.
“She is someone you must never trust… but someone you can never remove from my side,” he said, his voice low and deliberate.
Althea swallowed hard. What did that even mean?
Before she could press further, Xavier turned and walked away, leaving her behind in the garden—confused, but now more certain than ever.
There were shadows moving all around them, and she was standing at the very center of a battle she didn’t yet understand.
But in her chest, a quiet resolve began to grow. She would find the truth—not only about Clarisse, not only about Lea, but also about the man she had married under a contract.
And she knew that the deeper she searched, the closer she would come to the wounds of Xavier’s past… and to the dangerous fire that came with it.
- Writer
