Chapter 15
Stefan
For the past few weeks, Maureen has turned into a new leaf.
It still surprises me how easily people change when they realize resistance only brings pain. The girl who once glared at me with hatred in her eyes now moves like a shadow through the halls. Quiet. Careful. Obedient.
Too obedient.
She bows when spoken to. Answers without argument. Never meets my gaze unless I command it. The servants whisper about how she's finally learned her place.
They don't know the truth.
They don't know obedience born from fear is not loyalty—it's survival.
She has also become a good girl in ways that benefit me. She gives me what I want without complaint. Never begs. Never cries anymore.
And that is what unsettles me the most.
As much as I enjoy having control over her, I remind myself daily that she is still my captive. My slave. The daughter of my enemy.
Nothing more.
Seven months.
That's all I need.
