OLEANDER
Once again, I was alone in the room. As soon as Black finished speaking, he left with just five words.
"Be ready when I return."
I couldn't understand what that meant, and I didn't even want to think about it. The only thought currently swirling in my head was how to escape. I needed to leave.
But how?
I took a staggering step towards the window, staring out of it. My jaw dropped open as I saw the landscape. This place… was beautiful, like something out of a fairy tale, unlike anything I had seen before.
From where I was standing, I could see the woods to the right, a flower field at my left, and down below were settlements scattered around. It felt like a city inside another city. This place shared no resemblance with Silver Lake city as far as I was concerned.
Seeing this now made it even harder because how the hell do I navigate my way around here?
A soft knock pulled me out of my thoughts. I jumped, turning around just as the door opened. I hurried back to the wall, grabbed the dagger on the floor, and pointed it towards the newcomer. It wasn't Black.
But a teenage girl with wavy brown hair, streaked with pink, and blue-gray eyes. She was pretty.
Her hands raised above her head, a grimace crossed her face.
"He told me to come babysit his whore, and the first thing I get is a dagger pointed at me?" She snorted in disbelief, her eyes narrowed on me.
"Who are you?" I questioned, ignoring her words.
"Well, Hello." Her mouth opened with a broad smile. "I'm Celina Corsetti. My brother must have introduced me to you. You must be Oleander."
"It's Ivy," I corrected her sharply, scowling at her. "Who's your brother?"
Celina groaned out loudly, dropping her hands. "Seriously?"
"If you don't speak, I am going to kill you." I threatened, my voice steady. "My throwing skill is nearly perfect."
She looked at me, amused. "Now, I see why he doesn't want to kill you easily. You are feisty. He loves a good challenge. But I wonder how long that'll be for."
"That isn't what I asked you," I snapped.
Celina moved closer to me, her hand extended. "Give me your hand."
"I said I am going to kill you," I repeated, but Celina held my gaze without fear, and she walked even closer, like she was daring me to take action.
"I'm not afraid of you, human girl," she murmured, her voice low. "My dodging skill is perfect, and I can disarm you faster than you can throw that dagger at me."
I swallowed thickly, staring at her. My heart was beating fast, and my grip tightened around the dagger.
"Do you want to try it?" She tilted a slender brow.
Do I?
For a long while, we stared at each other, and the only sound I could hear in the room was the pounding of my heart and the gentle howl of the wind gliding through the open window.
"No," I admitted.
She didn't offend me. Black did. He should be the one who this knife would be going through his heart—no one else.
I let my hand drop, and Celina's face brightened.
"Great!" She perked up, pointing to my right hand. "Now show me. I believe that's the injured one."
I extended my hand to her, wondering what she needed it for. But then she placed her warm palm over mine, snapping her eyes shut, then opened them again. Warmth flooded into me at the contact, and my fingers tingled. When she pulled away, I looked down at my palm in shock.
"What did you do?" I whispered. The gash had disappeared. No scar. I couldn't even feel any pain! What the hell was this?
I took a step away from her, my breath hitching. "What the hell are you, and where did the injury go?"
"Do you want it back? I can surely give it to you." She answered casually.
"No, but…how did you do that? It vanished and…"
Celina sighed softly, shaking her head. "That should be the least of your worries."
"What are you talking about?" I got confused as the seconds ticked by. She hadn't answered any of my questions with the satisfaction I wanted. I couldn't tell it, but I believed she was hiding something from me.
"My brother brought you in here obviously as a form of revenge."
"Your brother is Black?!" I exclaimed, cutting her off.
Celina continued as if I hadn't interrupted her. "I think you should be grateful that he's at least in a happy mode and would be doing anything nasty, but let me warn you, he can as well switch in seconds. Whatever you're doing now that's bringing that smile out, keep doing it if you want to live longer."
I shivered at the warning in her tone. Also, the grimness of her expression told me she knew her brother so well, but I couldn't understand why she'd be warning me against him.
"And to answer your question, my brother Dante Corsetti. Otherwise known as Black, as you said."
Dante Corsetti. It suited him perfectly, just as his pseudonym did—a name befitting a psychopath. I looked at Celina. There was little to no resemblance between her and Dante. They seemed opposite of each other. She was like sunshine, whereas he was darkness.
"Why are you telling me this?" I whispered.
"Why?" She looked at me like I was stupid to ask her such a question. "Just letting you know to prepare for the worst."
"What else could happen that's much worse than what your brother did to me?" I murmured, my lips trembled, and tears slowly gathered back in my eyes as I recalled that afternoon. Six years ago. "He ruined my life, and now I am his captive. Tell me, what is much worse than this?!"
Celina shrugged, not caring about my outburst. "Ask him that yourself. My mission is done here."
Just as she finished speaking, the door flew open, and there he was. Black. Dante Corsetti.