Castle | ✔️

Chapter Twelve

I thought Castle would take me back to my room, but I was wrong. Instead, he carried me upstairs to his bedroom and headed straight to the bathroom.

He pulled out a little bathtub stool and made me sit on it. Theo had already left; so I assumed he'd already gone to bed by now and that left me alone with Castle and oddly, I felt safe being close to him. If Castle was with me that other night, I'm sure he would have protected me against his evil pair of siblings.

I'd never been inside Castle's bathroom before. It was big enough to be a bedroom; the tiles were all white marble. A large vintage bathtub sat in the center, transparent sliding doors leading to a shower space. I could see my battered reflection in the enormous masculine sink with matching marble countertop. It was lined up with bottles of shampoo, perfume, and cologne. Everything here was a glimpse into Castle's life before his accident.

I watched Castle as he pulled out the shower heads next to the wall near the bathtub and sprayed some water over his hand to check the temperature before reaching for my dress and lifting it.

He was trying to undress me!

I shook my head; my heart was pounding against my chest. "I'll...I'll do it alone."

My body hurt from staying on the concrete floor for over a week, but I wouldn't admit that to him. Castle regarded me with a concerned look in his eyes, and he didn't take his hands off my dress.

"You can wait outside," I whispered.

He stared at me for a long moment and that made me wonder if he was going to refuse to leave but seconds later; he gave me a nod, placed a bottle of body wash next to me, and stepped outside, sliding the door behind him.

Once I made sure that he wasn't going to return, I peeled off my dress and completely stripped down. I tried to avoid getting the water on my plastered legs and let the warm jet of spray soak me entirely. I took some of the body wash liquid into my palm and scrubbed the lather all over my body.

There was a knock at the door.

"I'm not done yet," I called out frantically, thinking he'd enter, not knowing I was naked.

"Miss. Millicent, it's me, Sally. Mr. Montgomery, sent me here to assist you. May I come inside?"

"Oh, I see," I said, relieved it was her. "Yes, come inside."

Sally stepped inside the bathroom carrying a towel and some clothes. I believed Sally was one of the nicer maids. She didn't seem like an emotionless doll, like the rest of the staff, and I always liked that about her.

After the bath, Sally helped me dress up. I couldn't stand up without support, so I couldn't be embarrassed about being naked in front of her. She dried my hair and even combed it for me. When I glanced into the mirror, I seemed to look fine, but a lot of changes had happened between the naïve Millie who'd joined the employment a few weeks ago and the Millie now who'd endured mental and physical pain. What I'd learned until now is to trust no one, and surely not the ones that seemed "normal."

I was on my own. 

I noticed Sally was wearing a similar ankle bracelet, and that made me wonder if she'd been put through hell too or if she'd accepted her faith and remained silent.

"Sally, how long have you been working for the Montgomerys?"

"Five years." She replied.

"Do you like it here?"

I didn't want to ask her any direct questions and get into trouble.

Her dark eyes met mine in the mirror. "Yes, and besides, Mr. Montgomery made sure my mother is getting proper treatment in one of the best hospitals in the country. That's all that matters to me."