Chapter 13 Connie's Warning

Regina’s POV
“What on earth are you doing!” Lady Connie cried again and rushed forward to separate us.
Gray’s hand dropped from my cheek to his body side. And the next second, I was dragged away from him by Connie.
A surge of panic seized my heart.
What were we doing? I honestly didn’t know.
Was Gray trying to kiss me? Maybe I was wrong, and he simply wanted to kiss me on the forehead like he always did. But was I trying to kiss him back? God, what was I thinking? He was my brother for Christ’s sake!
Lady Connie’s eyes traveled back and forth between Gray and I and she asked warily, “Were you two—”
“NO!” I quickly denied.
Gray glanced at me without saying anything. There was a sullen look on his face when he turned to look at Lady Connie and asked, “What are you doing here? I didn’t remember inviting you here.”
Lady Connie seemed offended. She drew herself up and challenged back, “I am Barnie’s wife. I don’t need an invitation to be here. And I have heard everything that happened in there. How can you treat Regina’s husband like that?”
Gray let out a sarcastic snort, “Words travel even faster than I have expected.”
Lady Connie pretended that she didn’t notice Gray’s sarcastic tone and continued anyway, “For what is worth, Nigel is still Regina’s husband. He should be treated with respect in this pack! And yet you threatened to kill him in front of everyone out there. What will other pack members say? Will they think of us as tyrant?”
Gray’s eyes narrowed slightly, “Are you teaching me how to be an Alpha now, Lady Connie?”
Connie choked. She seemed intimidated by Gray’s Alpha aura.
When she spoke up again, her voice grew lower, “Of course I am not teaching you any lesson. I was just looking out for Regina—and this pack—just think about what people will say—”
“If you really care about Regina, you should know that she was tortured severely in Nigel’s home,” Gray snapped. “If I can’t even protect my sister from a scumbag like that, there’s no point being an Alpha anyway.”
Connie gritted her teeth.
Seeing that there was no use winning this argument with Gray, she directed her gaze at me.
“Say something now, Regina!” Connie demanded, “You are married to Nigel. It was your own choice! But are you willing to see your own husband getting beaten up by your brother?”
Her iron grip tightened around my hand.
I wanted to pull my hand out. But she wouldn’t let go.
Now I felt cornered.
I didn’t want Gray to beat Nigel. For me, there was a more civilized way to deal with this.
But the thing I hated even more is to have Lady Connie scolding Gray.
After hesitating a bit, I finally spoke up, “Gray, can I please have a word alone with mother?”
It’s probably the best to separate the two of them for now.
Hearing my words, Gray’s body became stiff for a moment. He gave me a dark glance before turning on his heels and headed towards the front door in silence.
There was a triumphant smile on Lady Connie’s face as he walked away. And she yelled at Gray’s back:
“And remember, your little sister is a married woman now! You should keep your distance with her!”
Gray didn’t stop to argue with her. Instead, he kept walking in long strides and soon disappeared in the distance.
“Mother.” I couldn’t help but say to Connie, “Please don’t blame Gray for this. He was concerned and he has a reason to be. Nigel…Well, Nigel wasn’t exactly the best husband in this world.”
Connie turned to me and took my hands in her palm, “But you chose him anyway, among all other pursuers. Do you remember why you chose Nigel?”
Why did I choose Nigel?
I simply remembered that he was the most handsome boy in the academy and all girls liked him. When he showed his interest in me, I was so flattered. Dating him was like a dream and I couldn’t remember many details.
Nigel was my first love. I didn’t know what it felt like to be with somebody and to love somebody. Nor did I have any elder female figure in my life to share these things with.
And that was when Lady Connie and I became close. She would come into my dorm and talk these girly stuffs with me. It was her who helped me understand my feelings towards Nigel.
I still feared her after that. But I started to call her “mother.”
And when Nigel got on his knees and proposed, with a group of people cheering and clapping by our side, I felt exhilarated.
So I said yes without thinking too much into it.
Everything happened…so naturally.
“…I chose Nigel because…” I cleared my throat, “…because I love him.”
“Right. Because you love him. And that is all that matters,” Connie gently squeezed my hand. “So what you and him have a few quarrels sometimes? Every couple argue with each other. You think me and your father never argue? Impossible. We fight all the time. And that shows that we love and care about each other.”
But…
I felt there was something wrong about this.
But Nigel hit me, and slapped me, and called me “a tramp.”
Were all couples like that?
I wanted to tell Lady Connie this, but she interrupted me before I did:
“Go talk to Nigel, OK? Don’t let your hot-headed brother ruin this. Address your misunderstandings and talk it out. It is what you want, right?”
I nodded.
Yes, that was what I wanted.
“But Gray locked him up…and I don’t know where to find him,” I said reluctantly.
Lady Connie gave me a mysterious smile.
She pulled out a keycard from her pocket and placed it in my hand.
“This is the keycard to the dungeon. Nigel is locked in the second cell to the right,” she whispered in my ears. “Don’t tell anyone I gave you this.”
Then she walked away.
My mind was occupied as I rode home with Maya. Maya kept apologizing for leaving my side for too long and she believed that none of those would happen if she got back in time.
But I barely listened. I was still thinking about Connie, Nigel and Gray.
Was Connie right about those? Did every couple fight like that?
And Nigel. Did he really want to get back together with me? Would he ever heat me again?
Gray…
Would he kiss me if Connie didn’t interrupt us?
I suddenly shivered and patted my cheek anxiously. What was I thinking! He was my brother! How could I have those nasty thoughts in my head?
“What’s the matter, my lady?” Maya asked by my side, “Your face is red. Are you hot?”
“No…nothing,” I murmured.
It was still pretty early when we got back. I was forced to read a book and played crosswords with Maya to kill time. But I couldn’t focus on anything at all.
At least I waited till midnight, for Maya to fall asleep, and I quietly got off bed myself. I took the keycard Connie gave me and left my room.
I knew where the dungeon was and there was no trouble getting there. The guard was taking a nap when I arrived. So I quietly swiped my keycard and entered the dungeon without waking him.
It was dark and damp in the dungeon. And I swear I heard some squeaky noises rats made.
I was scared. But I had to go see Nigel. So I tightened my hold on the lantern in my hand and continued anyway.
I finally arrived at the second cell to the right.
“Nigel?”
I called with a small voice and came close to the iron bar.
A blur figure moved in the darkness. And then with a rattling sound, Nigel came lurching forward and grabbed the bar with both of his hands.
“Regina!” he cried with a ragged, hoarse voice, “My love…You came! You finally came!”