Chapter 20: Strange message
Things went back to normal in the Birmingham estate.
Draco kept to his words and Amber enrolled in Rockville University, the most prestigious institution in the city.
He got her a female tutor that came three times a week to lecture her in preparation for her exams.
Amber did her part by learning everyday and trying to keep her mind off the strange things that were occuring in the house.
Most nights she slept alone in the large room, wondering why Draco never slept in the same room with her.
Many nights when she heard thuds coming from the wall behind her, she was tempted to creep out and find out the source of the sound.
The screams she heard that last time still bothered her, and her curiousity increased with each passing night.
Was there a secret room behind the wall? she would ask herself. Where did that hole lead to?
One of the nights when she was alone, she crept out of bed and tiptoed to the door. She stepped out silently, only to be faced with two bodyguards standing outside the door.
"Do you want something Mrs Birmingham?",one of them asked her.
Amber stuttered, searching for an excuse to say. She hasn't expected to see them guarding the door.
"I... I just... I wanted a glass of water",she stumbled over her words.
In the end, one of them left and came back with some water.
Thanking them, she turned and shut the door behind her. Draco placed those men outside the door for a reason. Either he was keeping her safe, or he was trying to prevent her from wandering around in the night.
It just proved to her that he was indeed hiding something.
But the question remained;where did Draco go every night?
The only time she saw him was in the early hours of the morning when he would crawl into the bed and pull her into his embrace. During the nights, he was never there.
Amber continued her pretense and acted ignorant to the things that were occuring.
While within her, she plotted her plans.
...
When the results were released finally, Amber was astonished to see that she passed excellently.
She hugged the envelope to her chest and danced around the room. Her dream of going to college was finally coming true.
Now that she wouldn't be at home all the time, she would have a chance to actually uncover the secrets of Draco's home.
When Draco came back and she showed him the result, he snaked an arm around her waist and kissed her on her cheek.
"I'm proud of you",he murmured to her.
Amber ducked her head, a blush spreading round her face.
When Draco acted this way, it tugged at her heart. Most times he was the loving and perfect husband. Other times, his fury terrified her and she would keep her distance.
She didn't need someone to tell her that she was already falling for him. Despite the strange things occuring with him and around him, she couldn't stop her naive heart from falling for her handsome husband.
At times she would catch herself staring at him dreamily. He was so handsome that she had to hold herself from showing her feelings.
She still remembered his words the first day she was brought here. He didn't want her affection, and she shouldn't expect it from him.
She had to keep telling herself to keep her feelings for him hidden.
"What do you want me to get you?"Draco asked as he went through a thick file before him.
He was in his study, seated behind a thick mahogany desk with dozens of files before him. Being the CEO to many companies and owners of other numerous businesses, he sure had a lot of work to do.
Amber snapped back to the present and her eyes settled on him. She was still standing by the door, holding the envelope that contained her result.
"What?",she asked.
Draco's blue eyes drifted to her and he beckoned on her with a finger.
Obediently, Amber walked up to his side and gasped when he pulled her to sit on his lap. One hand grasped her waist and held her in place.
"You did really well in your exam",he said, eyes locked on the files before him. "What do you want me to get you as a gift?"
"Oh",Amber mumbled. "Um, anything is fine. Although I want...",she hesitated.
"You want?",Draco prompted her and his eyes turned to her briefly. "Tell me"
"I want a new ipad. The last one you got me was forgotten in my father's house",Amber rushed her words, shutting her eyes so he wouldn't see the pain she was feeling. She couldn't mourn her father because she had to pretend he was still alive.
"I'll get it for you",Draco assured her and squeezed her waist. "Wendy will go shopping for your school requirements"
"Thank you",Amber mumbled.
"Just thank you?"
Amber frowned at him. He dropped the sleek pen he held and turned to her, assessing her with his bright blue eyes.
"I know we started on a wrong foot",he continued softly, which was so unlike him. "But I'm ready to make amends to you. You're my wife after all"
Amber felt like she was dreaming. Was Draco really saying this? Did he want them to take their relationship forward?
"I... I don't know what to say",she voiced out finally. "You were the one that laid the rules of our marriage"
"I know that",Draco said smoothly and buried his nose in her neck, something that was slowly becoming a habit. Her scent was just too exquisite. "Let's start over, and see where it leads us"
Amber closed her eyes as he nuzzled her neck. Why was he being so nice just when she had begun to suspect him? Now she wouldn't have anything to hold against him if she found out the secret he was hiding.
"I don't know Amber",he murmured. "There's just something about you. Something that keeps calling to me. I want to find out what it is"
Amber shivered as he sniffed her neck. Her lips were slightly parted, begging to be kissed. Apart from the short moment at their wedding when he kissed her, he hadn't made another attempt to.
Just as his lips trailed up her jaw and hovered over hers, the door to the study opened.
Amber felt her eyes widen and she tried to jump off Draco's lap but he held her in place.
Her wide eyes darted to the door and fell on three bodyguards she had never seen.
The men instantly knew that they had walked in on something private but their expression remained neutral.
"Forgive our interruption Master Birmingham", the first one apologized.
"What do you want DC?",Draco asked in annoyance. He clearly hated the interruption.
"There's a letter for you",the one called DC, short for DiCaprio voiced out respectfully and bowed.
"What letter?",Draco asked lazily, tracing light circles over Amber's shoulder.
DiCaprio stepped forward and dropped a letter on the table.
Draco took one look at it and his expression changed instantly. His eyes hardened, his blue eyes turning icy as he stared at the letter. There was a single alphabet scrawled on the front.
V.
"Wait for me in the room",he said coldly to Amber.
Amber didn't need to be told twice. She jumped off his laps, her eyes landing fleetingly on the letter with the alphabet and then she quickly hurried out of the room.
Draco shot out of his seat with so much force that the chair toppled over.
He snatched the letter and tore into it, bringing out a smaller paper that was within it.
There was a message within that was addressed to him.
'Keep a careful eye on your wife Draco. I'm coming for her!'
Below the message, the same alphabet.
V.
It only meant one person, someone that was furiously obsessed with him.
Velma.
She was still alive.
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