Eclipsed Love

Chapter 5: A Mercenary's Gesture

"Miss Catherine?"

I looked back and saw Elias surprised to see me cleaning the armories.

"Yeah, I'm on cleanup duty," I admitted. Turns out, going to that address alone without backup was a bad move. Ethan spent the whole night searching for me to let me know about the spy getting caught by Adrian. When I got home, Daniel and Ethan scolded me, my father gave me some warning, and my mother gave me the cold shoulder.

Ethan, full of ideas to torture me, thought cleaning the whole armory would do the trick. The place was a mess, used daily for training, filled with different kinds of dirt. It felt like a day wouldn't be enough to finish this.

But then there was Elias, unexpectedly showing up. Why was he here? He naturally stepped in front of me, ready to help clean.

"Elias, what brings you here?"

"Cleaning," he said, flashing a smile before diving into the task.

I watched in amazement as he skillfully cleaned each weapon as if he did this every day.

"You don't have to help me," I said.

But Elias just shrugged, grinning like he was having the time of his life.

"Well, I figured I could use some armory cleaning practice," he replied, mischief in his eyes.

I chuckled, grateful for the company. The rhythmic sounds of cleaning filled the room as we worked side by side.

"So, what happened out there? You went off alone, and I heard the whole family was on a mission to find you," Elias asked.

I sighed, recounting the events that led to my current situation.

"I went to a party to meet a friend. It was supposed to be a mingle thing, and I thought I could handle it by avoiding people. But it turned into a mess. I realized it too late, and now I'm stuck on armory duty."

I almost hesitated to lie, knowing secrets required lying. Despite my usual knack for deception, it felt challenging to keep up the act around Elias.

Elias smiled knowingly, "I can imagine how you must have turned heads at that party, Miss Catherine."

"Next time, at least give a heads up, alright?" he added with a playful tone.

I looked away, feeling a blush creeping up. I was surprised but knew he was just lightening the mood and he didn't mean anything by it.

Despite the punishment, having Elias around made the job more bearable, and less of a drag. There was a strange comfort in our shared silence as we worked.

And for some reason, I just felt a sense of comfort and content with this moment. What we're doing is tiring yet somehow the quiet moment while working made it more satisfying. It was like I'm not alone.

"You seem so calm and like you're enjoying this," I observed, breaking the quiet.

"It's a skill I've picked up over the years. Sometimes, you have to create your moments of peace," he replied with another gentle smile.

"Who knew a mercenary could be so philosophical?" I playfully added.

"Mercenaries have layers, Miss Catherine. You're just scratching the surface," he replied, playfully winking.

Elias's wink made me chuckle, realizing there might be more to this mysterious mercenary than met the eye. As we continued cleaning, our conversation flowed easily, shifting from casual banter to more serious topics. The quiet moments in our work became oddly satisfying, making me feel less alone amid my punishment.