Chapter 0265

While the princes were giving interviews with the camera crews, Terry and a few of his servants

escorted the candidates, including myself, on a tour of his mansion.

When the plan had been suggested, I had seen the worry in both Nicholas’s and Julian’s gazes, but their

concern was merely blinding them to the benefits of such a move. If I could take the tour, perhaps Terry

would show us to some of his more private offices. And if I could slip away…

I tried to convey as such with my eyes, unable to privately speak with Nicholas and Julian, but my efforts

only seemed to double their worry. I wouldn’t be waylaid from my plan, however. This was the reason we

had even pushed to have this event.

We needed the dirt on Terry, and this was the perfect way to find it.

Terry led the way, with the candidates behind, and the servants following. I had hoped there would be

enough of us that I would have a chance to slip away. As it was, Terry kept me in his shadow. He touched

my wrist when I dared stray too far from his side.

The gleam in his eyes made me nervous to openly disobey, almost like that was what he wanted me to

do, so that he could put into practice his promise of… breaking me.

I shuddered at the thought. I could only imagine the horrors of what that would entail. From what it

sounded like, my consent was not a part of the equation.

Finally, after several long minutes of waiting for Terry’s guard to drop, Jessica stopped him and asked

one of the artworks.

brushstrokes look

with outrage. “I can assure you

walked closer to her and the artwork in question. He reached out, tracing the

touching the

is his early work. If you

with the servants. None of

or care when I stepped behind them.

hammered all the way up into my throat as I continued to move backwards until I was near a corner of

hallway. I had no idea where I

tended not to ask too many questions when hit with

ducked my head into every open door. I found many bedrooms, some closets or storage

then finally

sweeping my gaze across the office to make sure it was empty, I

clean, with every pen in its place and no

opened the drawers, found one filled with manila folders, and began flipping through them. They all seemed innocuous: copies of electric and

year’s insurance

made me wonder if this was even Terry’s office at all. The walls were trimmed in gold, but I was learning from the tour that Terry

things in gold, even rooms he rarely visited.

could easily

a fancy paperweight with no papers underneath. The drawer nearest the desktop

on the notepads. The pens were all symmetrical and identical.

away.

room was likely a bust. Nothing here seemed to be incriminating in the slightest. Or, if it was,

not that good.

Maybe I still had time to check another room before my absence would be noticed enough for me to be

hour, people might stop

came close to the door, suddenly, it slammed shut. A lock turned. I heard footsteps walk

my breath, scared even the sound of breathing too

that closed the door.

a long moment for all sounds to cease, and then

the lock, I hadn’t panicked, expecting there to be a knob to turn on the inside. There’was no lock on the inside. The only thing

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