TORN BETWEEN TWO BROTHERS

Chapter Four — Beneath His Gaze

Hours slipped by, but Kara barely felt them. She polished brass doorknobs until they gleamed like gold coins, swept out a study that smelled of old books and expensive whiskey, and fought a hiss of frustration when a loose floorboard snagged her sleeve.

Klaus the butler stalked her every move like an emotionless wraith. He never praised, never scolded — just made neat notes in a slim leather pad that probably held her entire future between its pages.

At one point, Kara knelt on the cold marble of the grand hallway, scrubbing a faint wine stain from the edge of a priceless Persian rug. Her shoulders burned, fingertips raw, but her mind drifted — to Bella’s laughter in their cramped kitchen, Aria’s soft voice whispering You can do this.

For them, she told herself, grinding the brush harder into the fibers. No smart mouth. No mistakes. Not now.

A shiver prickled her neck. She looked up — and there he was again.

Wilhelm Finn.

He stood in the doorway of the vast study, hands tucked into his pockets. Sunlight from the tall windows caught the gold flecks in his blond hair, the sharp edge of his jaw. But it was his eyes — those piercing green eyes — that rooted her to the spot. Cold. Searching. Almost curious.

“Miss Armani, is it?” His voice was deeper than she’d imagined — smooth, low, a blade wrapped in silk.

Kara froze mid-scrub, her fingers clenched around the brush. “Yes, sir.”

“Why do you want this job?” His tone was deceptively casual — but there was a trap coiled beneath every syllable.

She forced herself to stand, wiping her raw hands on her apron. He was closer now. Close enough that she caught the subtle notes of his cologne — crisp cedar, winter air, and something darker that made her pulse flutter in her throat.

“To work, sir. To do something I’m good at.”

Wilhelm tilted his head slightly. His eyes drifted down her figure — the sweat-damp collar of her borrowed blouse, the flush on her throat, the tension in her parted lips. When his eyes met hers again, they gleamed with something she couldn’t name.

“You think you’re good enough for my house?” he asked, each word slicing the air between them.

Heat flared in her chest — defiance wrestling with fear. She lifted her chin. “Test me.”

A ghost of a smile tugged at his mouth — not warmth, but something sharper. He stepped closer, so close she could feel the brush of his coat sleeve against her arm. Her breath caught, her body taut as a wire.

“Oh, I intend to.”

His voice was so soft she almost didn’t hear it over the thunder of her heartbeat. She held his gaze, refusing to flinch, even when every nerve screamed at her to look away.

Finally, Wilhelm’s eyes flicked past her — to Klaus, who seemed to appear out of the shadows.

“She’ll do,” Wilhelm said simply. “For now.”

Then he turned, the faintest hint of amusement at the corner of his lips, and vanished down the hall as silently as he’d come.

Kara’s heart slammed in her chest, her hands trembling. Klaus cleared his throat, adjusting his gloves as if nothing had happened. “Congratulations, Miss Armani. You start tomorrow. Seven sharp.”

She barely heard him. She was still staring after the space where Wilhelm had stood, the echo of his gaze like fingerprints pressed into her bones.

A chill slipped down her spine — not just fear, but something else. A dangerous curiosity that felt like stepping into a cage she didn’t yet understand.

But one thing was certain — she’d caught the Fiend’s eye.

And above her, unseen in the hush of the hallway, Wilhelm lingered in the shadows, watching the girl who dared to look him in the eye.

A good fit, he thought, a faint smirk curling his mouth. Let’s see how long before she breaks.

In the Finn Mansion, being beneath his gaze was the most dangerous place to be.