Page 49 of Cursed By Gold

At last we break apart again, both sucking in ragged breaths as the roaring crowd once more reasserts itself in a deafening swell. Rose watches me through narrowed eyes, her chest heaving, silently questioning the newfound intensity blazing within me. I meet her gaze with a fierce grin, whole body thrumming with the lingering high of unleashed passion.

Only then do I dare to fully turn my focus back to the king's viewing box. And my breath catches in my throat at the naked acknowledgment blazing in Remme's eyes as they find and hold mine. Gone is the opaque mask, the impenetrable wall he normally wields - instead I'm pierced by an incendiary look of molten approval, challenge...and undisguised yearning that leaves me both shaken and strangely emboldened.

You Need to Win

Scarlet

The clash of weapons fades into a distant murmur as the crowds gradually disperse from the arena, the day's exhibitions drawing to a close. I linger behind, feigning interest in one of the vacant training rings as the competitors and spectators filter out around me.

My gaze continually strays to the now-empty king's viewing box, and a strange sense of loss tugs at me.

I'm the last to eventually exit the shadowed expanse of the arena. The walk back through the winding city streets allows my mind to wander, replaying every heated look, every charged moment shared with the king in an endless, dizzying loop.

My feet steer me not to the dorms, but to my family home. It’s been too long since it was a place that I felt safe and like I belonged, but it is mine. I need to own up and take control of things before they get even more out of hand.

Raised voices and clattering objects greets me as I reluctantly step inside. Squaring my shoulders, I make my way towards the sitting room from which the disturbance seems to originate.

Stepmother stands in the center of the chaos, eyes blazing and lips pursed in her signature look of disapproval as she stares down my bickering stepsisters. At my entrance, her ire pivots towards me in a sweeping shift of demeanor, a serpent-like smile spread thinly across her face.

"What are you doing here," she simpers in saccharine tones that instantly set me on edge. "I thought you would be gone the entire tournament. Have you already been eliminated? You never were very good at much." Her gaze holds a knowing look tinged with veiled menace.

Refusing to be cowed, I lift my chin in silent defiance. "I have only stopped by for a moment. May I have a word alone?"

"Of course. In fact, I feel we should have a private discussion to realign expectations," she states, gesturing towards the study with an imperious wave. "Girls, see to having tea brought for us."

An uneasy silence falls over the room as my stepsisters eye me with undisguised dislike before scurrying to obey. Forcing an insouciant expression, I trail behind Stepmother, bracing for the onslaught to come.

She wastes no time once the study door closes behind us. "I hope you realize how very fortunate you are that Lord Greystone has developed...certain intentions regarding you," she begins without preamble, mouth pursing contemplatively. "His status and connections could secure our family's future where your own failings have left us perilously vulnerable."

The words are like a slap to the face, driving the breath from my lungs in a harsh exhale. "My failings?" I echo, dumbfounded.

"Silence!" she hisses, palm cracking against my cheek with enough force to make my head ring. I taste copper on my tongue as my jaw clenches stubbornly against the wave of pain.

"You ungrateful wretch," Stepmother seethes, livid eyes boring into me. "Your foolish whims and defiance have cost us more than you could ever comprehend. Your father's legacy - this estate and all it represents - is nearly lost."

A leaden knot of dread forms in the pit of my stomach as her words seem to echo from somewhere far away. Surely she doesn't mean...?

“What did you do?” I spit out.

Her expression softens into one of feigned remorse. "The truth is, I made certain...investments in an attempt to shore up our dwindling assets. Very ill-timed investments as it turned out."

She pauses to let the weight of her admission sink in. My throat works convulsively as I struggle to process the implication. The estate...my inheritance...in jeopardy?

"For my lack of prudence, I accept full responsibility," Stepmother continues smoothly, an undercurrent of steel beneath her placating tones. "But that still leaves us in a rather precarious position. One that could be handily resolved were you to embrace the future Lord Greystone has so generously arranged for you."

My pulse thunders in my ears as the floor seems to tilt dangerously beneath my feet. After everything—the missions, the brutality, the deceptions—it all may be for naught?

A tremulous tide of rage surfaces then, shoving aside my disorientation as I level a look of pure venom at the woman before me. "You selfish, grasping viper," I spit through gritted teeth.

Stepmother's expression shutters closed, mouth flattening into a severe line as she straightens to her full domineering height. "Mind your tongue, girl," she hisses in clipped tones.

Her next words are slow, measured, and laced with serpentine certainty. "Accept Lord Greystone's proposal and a portion of your inheritance may yet be preserved for you. Defy me..." Hergaze grows flinty and merciless. "And all shall be forfeit - your wealth, your status, even this home stripped away to settle the debts."

“What will you do if you lose the house? You have nowhere to go,” I ask.

“That won’t happen. As long as I live this home will be mine and if you hope to ever inherit it you will be a good girl and do as I say.”

As she sweeps from the room without another word, her ultimatum hangs in the air like a sword's keen edge pressed to my throat. Dimly, I register the muffled clink of china and footsteps signaling my stepsisters' imminent arrival with the tea service.

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