Chapter 97: The night before all hell broke loose
Cass had done everything he could to prepare. Did he know what he was preparing for?
Not at all.
That hadn’t been really made clear to him, but it was clear that Sam was worried for him. As much as Cass had told him to rest while Cass was dealing with whatever happened while he was in this week-long break, Sam had been insistent that he would be nearby if he needed anything. Only Sam was permitted to enter his chambers, once a day, while Cass secluded himself.
Whatever was about to happen, Cass at least hoped it wasn’t painful.
So, the night before his seclusion time was to begin, Cass and Sam shared their plans for the week, what Cass wanted done while he was out of commission, and anything else that he could think of.
Sir Forsythe, who had come back after disciplining the stablebitch, had seemed worried, and also reminded Cass that Draken was planning to test his skills. Cass, having forgotten that since he tried to forget about the other men in this mansion as much as he could, had a feeling that it would happen during this time.
Cass made sure that Sam and Byron were going to be in place to support Sir Forsythe if things went badly. Sir Forsythe seemed a bit mixed on Cass’ response, but in the end, seemed grateful that he cared enough about him to worry about what state Draken left him in.
Byron, who had been at the man’s mercy for a week, was probably the best person to fall back on, and Cass told Byron specifically to keep an eye on Sir Forsythe if Draken had ’tested’ him. Byron took his duties seriously, and nodded. Cass also made a point to make sure he focused on his studying, and Cass said he would test him after he came back.
Byron had seemed to brighten at that, and he grew enthusiastic. He had met his teacher that day, so he was set to start his lessons the next morning. Cass felt that the reason he was excited was that he was happy to learn, and happy to be shown that Cass had taken an interest in him.
If he took an interest in him, he’d keep him around, and so he could be around Sam more.
Cass had definitely noticed that something had shifted between his two henchmen, but he wasn’t sure in what direction it was going. Sam definitely seemed...more aware of Byron, but the big dragon hadn’t really noticed the shift. Cass didn’t want to meddle, but he’d read enough to know that if he didn’t notice soon, Sam might take it as a slight.
So, hopefully, while he was stuck in his rooms, he’d figure out that Sam was checking him out whenever he was sure no one else was watching. Apparently Sam liked the new, grown up Byron. It was cute, actually, and Cass was happy for them.
Someone needed to have a happy relationship in this damn mansion, cause everyone knew it wasn’t him.
After a few more times of Sam needing comforting words, Cass telling him that he was going to be fine, the others left, and the doors were locked. It was a safety measure that Lord Blackburn had put into place, and it truly made Cass wonder what the fuck was about to happen.
Was he going to transform? Was there some kind of secret to his birth? He knew he was his Father’s son, since apparently he looked just like him, except his hair colour and eye colour were different. Cass had wondered what that meant, but hadn’t looked into it too much. He didn’t really care much about a group of people who would abuse an innocent child.
One thing that they had made sure to do since they couldn’t deal with the secret passage yet, was have Byron and Sir Forsythe move a full bookcase in front of it. It might reveal that they knew about it, but Cass had a great excuse lined up.
He was allowed to change his office around, and it wasn’t as if Sam hadn’t been asking about renovations over the last two days or anything, or even over the last month. Anyone who was paying attention to him and what Lord Blackburn was doing would notice that he’d had switching up his space on the mind.
It wasn’t foolproof, but it was an easy fall back.
But now that he was alone in this huge space, no Sam or Byron or anyone else around, he really felt alone. The rooms were quiet, and even if Sam had made sure that everything was in its place, books were nearby, the healing tonic was nearby as well as drinks and tea, Cass found that even the aggressive colours in these chambers weren’t enough.
He was truly alone right now.
He had never had this much warning that something awful was about to happen, and that there was nothing he could do about it. If Lord Blackburn hadn’t even handed over these memories, it must have been something he was worried about. Was he afraid that Cass would have backed out if he knew what it was?
Cass sighed, moving towards the bathroom to pour himself a bath to relax, clean himself up, and take a break. The stress was going to eat him alive, but what else could he do? Nothing, really.
So, he grabbed a fresh book since he’d been taking his time to read, planning to use this week off if it was allowed to enjoy himself and relax.
"Well, Lord Blackburn, I hope that whatever is about to happen isn’t painful. I don’t like pain. Or blood." Cass spoke out loud. Lord Blackburn didn’t respond, as he hadn’t the whole time he’d been trying to communicate with him now that he knew he was around. "Though, that damn wine I drank with Vespertine might beg to differ, it’s true. I don’t think you like blood either, at least from what I remember from the novel." Cass whistled. "Oh wait, did you even know that I thought this was a novel? Or that I read this as a novel? Whoops." Cass chuckled as he filled up the bathtub, grabbing a fistfull of the weird soap pebbles that Sam had used that had caused the bath to foam.
He tossed them into the tub, watching it foam up as he placed his book on the small table nearby, a glass of water next to it. It was from whatever well that Lord Blackburn preferred, as Sam had made sure to tell him over and over about before he’d left.
"I’m sure that’s a shock to you. It was a shock to me too. It’s from Lady Fiona’s perspective. Reverse harem. Do you know what a harem is?" Cass pondered, before shaking his head. He turned off the tub, grateful for indoor plumbing, before he turned and began taking off his clothes. He still tried to not look at his body, feeling like an imposter. It wasn’t his. It was Lord Blackburn’s, and he planned to give it back to him untainted.
The sound of clothing sliding against skin filled the air, as well as the popping of bubbles as they settled. Cass sighed, the silence loud. He really wished that radios or music players were a thing. He hadn’t looked into it, but right now, he was really missing it.
This silence was insane. It made his mind wander, and not in a good way. He really hoped that the week wasn’t like this, while at the same time, hoped that it was. Not knowing what was going to happen was killing him, and Cass grumbled as he got into the tub, the warm water soaking into his body and muscles.
"Damn book. Fucking can’t tell me everything. I know they told me not to rely on it, but damn it, it would have been nice to know what I should be expecting. Who did you make a deal with, Lord Blackburn? I would love to know so that I had some ideas. I hate the idea that you are stuck in this body while I’m in control because of the damn previous deal. I hate that idea." Cass muttered as he sank into the water. He kept his arms above so that he could read without damaging the book.
Leaning his head back, he sighed, closing his eyes. He just sat in silence, listening to the bubbles pop and spread the sweet scent around the room. He felt his tense body relax, the warmth soothing him.
He’d always liked baths, and was happy that Lord Blackburn appeared to be the same. He had a lot of bath products, so Cass would never get bored.
Suddenly, a tingling started below Cass’ belly button and he frowned. It didn’t hurt, but it felt like a muscle twitching. Twitching and...aching?
Confused, and concerned, Cass opened his eyes fully, staring down at the suds covering his body.
"What the hell was that?" Cass muttered, more to himself than to Lord Blackburn this time. As soon as it had arrived, it was gone, and Cass was left thinking he was insane. Had he imagined it? Had it actually happened?
He had no clue, but a sense of unease filled him now.
Nervous, for no apparent reason, Cass reached for a book, needing to take his mind off of whatever the hell that was.
It had to be nothing, right? Right?