The Beast Inside | ✓

23 | Your Beautiful Heart

Bella almost jumped out of the horse as she rode along the driveway in the castle, trying to be as quick as possible.

She stole another glance at the mirror in her hand, her heart thrumming with fear as she realised that Adam definitely looked closer to death than he had when she left for the journey back. 

"How ill is he?" Richard asked, curious about the Beast after hearing so much from his daughter.

"Worse than he was in the morning," Bella replied, snatching her bag off the horse, swinging it on her shoulder and rushing into the castle.

The castle doors opened wide automatically and Bella did not spare it a glance as she ran up the main stairway. Her father followed along at the same pace, unwilling to be left behind and be alone in such a huge place.

----

Cassius slowly moved out of the shadows, leaving his horse at the edge of the castle as he walked past the castle gates.

The handgun in his hand was a small weapon, and he was no longer sure if it would protect him from the 'beast' that lived in the castle, from what he gathered from Bella's rambling.

Still, he continued on, unwilling to admit defeat to his fears. If he managed to destroy this beast, he would have both Bella and an entire castle to his name. Both riches and the lady he always wanted to possess would be at his disposal and Cassius was never less ready for that to happen.

His greed fueled his evil and Cassius let out a smirk that promised terror as he walked through the front doors of the castle.

----
Bella ran into Adam's bedroom, her father following behind. She rushed past the castle healer who was discussing something with Mrs. Potts, instead focusing her full attention on Adam.

His eyes had sunken with eye bags, his face gleaming with perspiration. His skin hung over his bones, the weight loss apparent as his clothes sagged over his big frame where it once fitted him tightly.

His eyes slowly opened and Bella let out a nervous smile as he weakly said, "Bella, you are back."

She nodded, trying to reassure him. "I am. How are you feeling right now?"

Adam closed his eyes. "Better, now that you are here."

Although Bella suspected that he was only saying so to make her heart flutter, it did seem to be suspiciously true. A strange glow seemed to radiate from his body and his face seemed fuller and brighter than it had been only moments ago.

Suddenly, Adam's eyes shot open, alertness evident in those dark orbs.
"Bella, who else came with you?"

"My Papa did," she replied.

Adam shook his head. "No, who else other than him?"

Bella tilted her head curiously. "Only Papa came with me. No one else."

Adam slowly sat up, swinging his body over the duvet to get up. "There is someone else in the castle; someone with bad intentions."

Before Bella could even convince him to remain seated, he vanished out of sight. Bella shook her head, groaning internally at his speed and lack of care for his own health, before walking out of the room towards the front doors where she assumed Adam would be.

She hardly registered her father walking alongside her as she descended down the main stairways. Skidding to a stop, her gasp was audible as she realised that the man standing opposite Adam with a gun in his hand was none other than Cassius, the man who tried to make her life a living hell since forever.