The Lady Is Mine-Chapter 184: The Dead, The Living And Shame in Between

"Did you hear about the mysterious deaths of four noblemen last night?"

"The rumor is everywhere, but that isn’t the most shocking part of it," a servant in Rhane’s estate remarked.

The gossiper ignored her and continued, "Someone found them castrated in their rooms with their... ehm." "In their mouths... those who saw it said it was a horrific sight. And to think that these men visited our estate not too long ago."

"But that isn’t the shocking part," the other servant insisted.

"What else is more shocking than this?!" the other exclaimed, folding her arms across her chest. "Those men deserved to die... they had treated our girls like filth, but then... their death is rather... horrendous."

The other servant raised her hands tiredly. "That isn’t the most shocking part!" This time she raised her voice to be heard, and it worked.

"Fine! What is the most shocking part then?" The servant finally listened with a bored gaze, waiting for whatever it was that would shock her more than the news she’d just brought forth.

"Nikolai is dead!"

"What? Why didn’t you say so?" the first servant asked, her hands over her mouth.

"I’ve been trying to say that to you, but you kept on talking."

When Kali passed, the servants bowed in unison and dispersed, leaving the effect of the bombshell they’d just dropped in the air.

Someone found Nikolai dead in his home the previous night, with one hand in his mouth and a rope line around his neck. Someone had killed him. Nobody in his house had seen the killer, and until now, there were still no traces left behind by the suspect.

Kali pushed a strand of her hair behind her ear; she had mulled over the words of Percy, and it changed something within her. Now that morning had come, she felt even better.

"Joy does come in the morning," Kali stretched her body to the side with a pleasant grin. She hadn’t gone far outside when she thought of checking on her brother. He had been grumpy since he woke; maybe the morning would soften his mood.

Reaching the door, Kali heard a sharp cry that made her panic, and without thinking, she kicked the door with force, her hand clutching her dagger to slay whatever danger it was.

"What—"

Blood drained from Kali’s face when she saw Jenna bent in an awkward position and Rhane dragging her hair. Kali’s mouth stayed open. Her expression like a deer stuck in headlights.

"Get the hell out!" Rhane barked.

Jenna’s face flushed with shame, and she recoiled to hide her body.

Kali turned around, staggering away from the room; she almost forgot to lock the door. She wiped her eyes as she ran out through the hallway.

Jenna, who could no longer hold her laugh, pulled down her dress and stood straight. Rhane had finished bathing, so they both decided to give it a trial a position wouldn’t stretch his wound. Jenna bent over the bed while Rhane took her from behind without moving too much.

The shock of being rammed through the back might have made Jenna scream more than necessary.

"I think we scared her," Jenna muttered after fixing her dress.

Rhane pointed at Jenna’s face. "I think you need more help; look at those cherry cheeks."

Jenna hit Rhane’s shoulder. "Stop... that was really embarrassing! I’m not sure how I should look at Kali."

Rhane frowned. "She should know this room belongs to a couple. Barging inside with no announcement- if anything, I have to make her realize I’m no longer alone and I deserve privacy," he said while fixing his trousers and buttoning his shirt.

Jenna bit her lip and sighed, "Maybe she had a reason for it. Kali isn’t someone who usually crosses the line."

Rhane straightened his collar, then leaned to peck Jenna’s lips. "I’ll have a talk with her."

As he left the room, Jenna trotted behind him. She didn’t want Rhane to do the talking, but then again, they were siblings.

It didn’t take long for Rhane to find Kali sniffling beside one pillar. With his hand in his pocket, he walked up to her.

"Ka—" Rhane was interrupted by Kali’s hand raised to his face; he caught it quickly with a narrowed gaze. "Have you lost your senses?"

Kali’s eyes shimmered with unshed tears. "How could you? How could you hurt her?"

With confusion etched on Rhane’s face, he opened his mouth to talk, but Kali continued, pointing at his face.

"I thought you loved her... you risked your life to bring her back here, and now you... Rhane, why would you hurt her? Do I also have to kill my brother with my hands because he doesn’t know how to treat a woman? Are all men truly monsters?"

Rhane sighed tiredly, shaking his head. "Look, Kali, I wasn’t hurting my wife."

"I just..." Kali pushed Rhane to the side and walked away, holding her hand over her mouth.

Rhane wanted to follow her, but Jenna stopped him.

"She thinks I was hitting you!" Rhane replied. Though his voice was cold, he was also worried that his sister saw him as someone like their father.

Jenna nodded; she had heard it from where she stood. "She will believe you... maybe I should talk to her."

Rhane ruffled his hair with his palm. "I don’t know, Jenna... I really don’t know how to handle her sometimes. She’s just too difficult when she is emotional," he confessed sincerely, already feeling the weight of having to train his only sister with no knowledge of what he was doing, right from when she was just a girl.

"Go ahead and take care of other things; I will go to Kali," Jenna replied, not saying any more words.

Rhane rubbed his eyes tiredly. "Can you really talk to her, Jenna?"

"Go away..." Jenna made him turn around. When Rhane left, Jenna went to look for Kali.

The warm morning sun was overhead the new earl’s estate, leaving its traces on the spring and the fallen dry leaves. Jenna walked quietly toward the quiet spot in the estate, the place she suspected Kali would be sitting.

"Kali?" Jenna called her softly. When the girl raised her bloodshot eyes, Jenna sighed.

Kali swallowed hard, "I must have been foolish to believe my brother is different. I’m sorry, Jenna... I didn’t think he would hurt you."

Jenna made a chortle sound, but she didn’t want to let the girl think she was laughing at her. "But he is different... and Rhane wasn’t hurting me.

"Did he threaten you to say this?" Kali narrowed her eyes. "You can run... go somewhere he would never find you. I will handle the rest."

Jenna couldn’t hold her laugh anymore; she held her stomach, her hair falling over her face. "I guess I have someone who will protect me. That is reassuring."

"This isn’t funny, Jenna. You should run." Kali sniffled, not finding any joke in what she had just said.

Jenna stopped laughing; with a soft hum, she leaned in and hugged Kali.

"Oi!" Kali tried to push her away, but Jenna held her in place. "What are you doing?"

Jenna chuckled, "What does it look like I’m doing?" she asked. When she moved away, she tilted her head to the side. "Rhane wasn’t hurting me, and trust me... he never would. Instead, what you saw was him giving me all the love I’d lost and never imagined to receive in this lifetime."

It took Kali minutes to understand the meaning of Jenna’s words, and when she did, her face turned red. "You mean he—Rhane and you were—"

Jenna started laughing again, "Yes... we were making—"

"Stop!" Kali covered Jenna’s mouth with her hand. "Don’t... bloody hell! Why?" she clenched her fist.

"I am so stupid... oh no... I have just made a fool of myself." Kali cringed, shaking her head. Now she would have preferred to think Rhane was hitting Jenna than to imagine what was in her mind now.

"Kill me now, please," Kali screamed, hiding her face on her knees. "And stop laughing at me... why didn’t you tell me earlier?"

Jenna shrugged, "You wouldn’t listen. Rhane was trying to get you to calm down."

Kali curled her body, feeling ashamed of herself. She had not only interrupted their time, she had also misunderstood everything, accusing her brother wrongly.

"Rhane must wish for me to leave his life," Kali cried. 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

Jenna took Kali’s hand, "You’re wrong again... your brother loves you more than anything. And he was only worried about you."

Kali dropped her shoulders, "He has always been there for me... I wonder how difficult I’ve made his life with my existence."

"Don’t say that, Kali. You’re the best part of Rhane’s life. He might not say it, but I know it. Having you is having family. And you know family is everything, don’t you, Kali?"

Kali smiled, "Now we have you... and you will be having lots of children to fill the place up." She took Jenna’s hand and squeezed it. "My brother is lucky to have you fall in love with him. You’re a good woman, Jenna."

"Thank you, Kali. And don’t forget you can talk to me about just anything." Jenna rubbed the back of her hand. "It doesn’t have to be Rhane..."

Kali’s eyes widened, then she gulped. "Rhane is the only person I think of these days... I mean except for..."

Seeing the hesitation in the girl’s eyes, Jenna tried to make her relax.

"Except for? Is there someone in—"

"I kissed Percy!" Kali blurted.