Chapter 2 - The Secret in the Old Locket
The heavy mahogany doors clicked shut behind the housekeeper, leaving Stellan and me alone in the vast office once more. Fern stirred slightly in his arms, letting out a soft sigh before burrowing deeper into his expensive Charvet shirt.
"You should leave her here and return to your duties," Stellan said, though his arm didn't loosen its hold on the baby.
"I can't just leave her," I protested softly. "She needs me. And... I need this job, Mr. Cross. If I lose this, I won't be able to pay for her medicine."
Stellan raised an eyebrow, his expression cold yet intensely analytical. "You're struggling that much?"
I looked down at my worn shoes, a wave of humiliation burning my cheeks. "My rent is three months overdue. The special inhalers Fern needs aren't covered by insurance. I do my best, but... it's never enough."
Stellan reached into his pocket with his free hand and pulled out a small, old silver locket that Fern had managed to tug loose from the collar of his shirt. It was tarnished, dented, bearing old scratches that looked like they had been there for decades.
His thumb brushed against the metal. A rare vulnerability flashed across his cold gray eyes before he quickly masked it. "Where did you get this?" I asked, noticing the locket for the first time.
Stellan didn't answer right away. He handed Fern gently back to me—surprisingly, she didn't cry when she left his arms, only reached out toward him with a sleepy whine.
"It belonged to my brother," Stellan said quietly, his voice dropping an octave. "Caleb."
May you like
My heart skipped a beat. "Caleb? I... I knew a Caleb once. Two years ago."
Stellan’s head snapped up. The air in the room suddenly grew suffocatingly thin. "What did you just say?"
