Chapter 274
The air in the attic fell deathly still.
Dylan said nothing more. He simply stared at Eliza in silence, tears slipping soundlessly down the corners of his eyes.
Half an hour later, Eliza approached the iron cage with a vial in hand, the antidote nearly finished. Without a word, she uncorked it and splashed the contents directly onto Matthew’s face.
Moments passed. Then, at last, Matthew slowly stirred awake
He thought. The place is still the same. Has father still not found us?
He sat up in silence and quickly spotted Dylan sitting blankly in the corner of the cage. That, he could’ve brushed off. But what made him do a double take was the faint trail of tears on Dylan’s face. Was it a hallucination caused by the drug?
Rubbing his eyes and blinking hard, Matthew looked again–nope, not a mistake. He frowned in disbelief Dylan are you crying?”
Did Eliza drug him too? Maybe even tortured him after Matthew passed out?
Just as Matthew turned toward Eliza, ready to explode in anger, Dylan seemed to anticipate his thoughts and cut him off coldly. “It wasn’t Serenity.
She didn’t do anything to me.”
Somehow, that only made it worse.
He would’ve rather Eliza hit him, drugged him, poisoned him—anything to get it over with. That kind of retaliation, he could handle. But this silence! This indifference! That stung more than any wound.
And yet… was that precisely why she did it? Because she knew it would hurt him more?
Dylan cast a hopeful, cautious glance at Eliza, as if searching for a sliver of meaning.
Matthew noticed and couldn’t help but scowl. “Dylan, look at yourself. What the hell are you doing? Why are you acting like some scared little puppy! What exacly are you so afraid of?”
Dylan whipped his head around and glared at him. “Mind your own damn business.”
Matthew scoffed. “Trust me, I’d love to. But how can I ignore you when you’ve clearly been bullied to tears? What kind of brother would I be if I just sat here and said nothing!”
Eliza, no longer busy with her concoctions, sat calmly at the edge of the stone platform, watching them both with cool detachment
Hearing their bickering, she spoke up, voice dripping with sarcasm. “Yeah, he was just so responsible–drugging him, framing him. Real stand–up behavior
“You shut your…” Matthew began to retort, but before he could finish the sentence, à sudden spasm wracked his body, and he vomited a mouthful of blood.
Dylan leapt up, panic in his voice. “Matthew!! What’s going on?”
He looked at Eliza outside the cage. “Serenity, you said the antidote would keep him alive!”
“I will,” Eliza replied coolly. “That was just a bit of blood. He’s not dying
Seeing his reaction, she finally stood and strolled over, leaning in to observe Matthew through the bars. “Actually… not bad. Looks like my poison brew is working quite nicely.”
“Poison brew!““The two brothers said in unison, stunned.
They didn’t need to know the details to realize it was nothing good.
“Eliza, you–what kind of monster are you?! Mathew spat, only to immediately spit another mouthful of blood.
With each burst of crimson, his face turned a shade paler. Gritting his teeth, he growled, “What the hell did you do to me!!”
little
Eliza’s smile was faint, almost sweet. “Oh, don’t be so dramatic. This little trick is something I whipped up just for you–custom–made, inspired by none other than your filthy mouth. I can’t stand that trash you spew, so I created a poison laced with a special kind of parasite.”
She continued lightly, “Relax. It’s not the kind that takes over your mind–these bugs are dead. It’s more of a… behavior correction tool. If you keep
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Chapter 274
your mouth shut and speak nicely, it’s as harmless as water. But the filthier your words, the stronger the reaction. Want to test it again? Just know–if you puke too much. I can’t guarantee you’ll survive it.“
Matthew was seething, shaking with fury, but the bars of the cage kept him trapped, his rage useless.
Dylan, still supporting him, sank back into silence.
So… it wasn’t that Eliza hadn’t splashed the drug on him, Dylan realized, but that he hadn’t insulted her, and so he hadn’t fainted.
He bit his lip, lowering his head in quiet defeat.
Matthew, struggling to stay upright, pointed a trembling finger at Eliza. “You–just wait! You’ll regret this!”
He opened his mouth to curse her out, but the threat of another bloody episode made him clamp his jaw shut and swallow the insults whole.
Eliza just shrugged. Til wait. But you might want to focus on something a bit more pressing–like how you plan to get out of here. It’s already been. a day. Aren’t you getting hungry?”
Her smile was cool, eyes locked on him.
What she said was true–she’d isolated the little pocket of spiritual energy within the cage, and now, after a full day without food or sustenance, Matthew’s stomach let out a loud, humiliating growl.
His face flushed with embarrassment. Glancing around, he immediately noticed the half–eaten plate of food beside Dylan.
Dylan instinctively pulled it back, his hand flying to shield the dish. “I already ate. There’s nothing left for you,” he muttered, turning away. Somehow, he knew–if he offered food to Matthew now, Eliza would never look his way again.
Matthew stared in disbelief, then snapped, “It’s just leftovers! And all vegetarians at that! Who the hell wants to eat your scraps anyway?!”
“Great. Then I’ll just give the plate back to Serenity, Dylan said, calmly handing it over.
Eliza took it from him without a word, her expression unchanged. As she turned to leave, her parting words drifted back through the cage bars. “Take your time and think it over. To be or not to bet?”
AG
