Shadows of the Heart

Chapter Fifteen

The morning sun spilled through the curtains of the Carlisle estate, casting long golden beams across the grand room. Stella sat quietly, her fingers tracing the edge of the soft blanket Kurt had draped over her the night before. She still didn’t remember her past, and the fragments of her gypsy life felt like a distant dream she couldn’t quite grasp.

Kurt paced slowly by the window, his jaw tight, his blue eyes scanning the gardens below. Ever since she had arrived at the estate, he couldn’t stop thinking about her. Her fragility, her beauty, the way her mind was sharp yet clouded by memory loss—it all consumed

“Morning,” Stella said softly, turning toward him. Her voice was cautious, unsure.him. And now, with Shaun occasionally lingering a little too long near her, a dark edge of jealousy gnawed at him.

“Morning,” Kurt replied, his tone low, measured. He closed the distance between them and settled in the chair near her, not touching, yet his presence pressed around her like a shadow. “How do you feel today?”

“Better,” she admitted, though the tight knot of uncertainty in her chest didn’t fully loosen. “But… I still can’t remember much. I feel like I should know things… people… but I don’t.”

Kurt’s gaze darkened. “We’ll find out. Whatever it takes, I’ll help you remember. But… there are people looking for you. Dangerous people.”

Stella’s eyes widened. “What do you mean?”

“Not everyone from your past has… good intentions,” he said, his voice low. “And I don’t intend to let anyone harm you. Not now, not ever.”

A shiver ran down her spine. It wasn’t fear alone—it was something else. A strange awareness that this man, the one she didn’t know, would do anything to protect her. And that terrified her… and drew her to him all at once.

Shaun entered the room, cheerfully carrying a tray of breakfast, unaware of the tension thickening the air. He glanced at Stella with that same boyish admiration that had been growing since her hospital arrival. Kurt’s eyes narrowed, and Stella felt the invisible tension coil between the two men.

“Good morning,” Shaun said, his grin faltering under Kurt’s glare. “Breakfast, anyone?”

“I’ll eat later,” Kurt said shortly, standing. He strode toward the window, but not without a last look at Stella that made her stomach flutter.

As Shaun approached her, she instinctively took a small step back. Not out of fear of him, but because the other presence in the room still pressed on her chest. Shaun set the tray down gently. “I… brought some food. You should eat. You need your strength.”

She nodded, glancing between the two men, sensing the unspoken battle in the room. Something told her that both cared deeply—but in very different ways. And that unsettled her.

Later that day, Kurt summoned his private investigators. He needed to know her past, no matter the risk. The gypsy king, the mysterious travelers, and hints of witches and werewolves all whispered in the shadows of her past. Whoever had sold her to the gypsies as a child had started a chain of events that could bring unimaginable danger if they found her now.

Kurt clenched his fists, pacing. Protecting her wasn’t enough. He had to uncover the truth, find her family, secure her safety, and… somehow, convince her that she was safe enough to trust him.

And somewhere deep in his chest, the possessive, dark pull he felt toward her tightened. He would not let anyone, not even Shaun’s admiration, interfere with what he felt she was… and what he was slowly realizing he wanted her to be: entirely his.