Nico's POV:

I just watch as the slave gave another bow before walking away.

My mind was going a thousand miles an hour, trying to think of what on earth the Lord could want from me.

My work has long since been done, so what could it be?

My worry and confusion were partially soothed by the fact that he only wanted to see me.

I had always been careful as to not draw too much attention to how I treat Khloe, but luckily I have a feeling that this has nothing to do with her.

Taking a step backward, I closed the door, still trying to think of any recent events that would call for my arrival before the Lord

"What does he want with you?" Khloe asked from behind me.

I turned to see a worried expression plastered on her face as she held the book close to her body.

"I don't know," I began as I walked towards my closet, " I can't think of anything that could make him want to speak to me."

He practically despises me because of my father, and well, probably the way I act too.

I grabbed and slipped on one of my dress jackets, knowing that Bronwyn wouldn't appreciate it if I didn't put at least a bit of effort into how presentable I need to look before meeting with him.

Khloe looked at me as I walked out of the closed, that worried look still on her face.

Which in any other case I would have had more time to appreciate the fact that she was worried about me, but I just wanted to go and get this over with as soon as possible.

"Do you think it will take long?" She asked.

I let out a quiet sigh as I fixed the collar of my shirt.

I hope not.

"I'm not sure, but ill be back as soon as I can."

Khloe's eyes looked down, her face showing that she really didn't like this.

"Don't worry about me, Khloe. I'm sure whatever it is isn't a big deal." I said as I head towards the door.

She didn't say anything, just offered a small nod.

~~~

My mood decreased by the second ever since I stepped out of our room.

I guess Khloe's presence had helped me keep calm about the whole situation, but now I really did not want to be doing this.

The last time the Lord called for me via slave was for a completely unnecessary reason.

A reason that ended up hurting Khloe.

Not to mention that it was an absolute waste of time.

Time that I could be spending with someone else.

A growl rumbled low in my throat as I approached the same guards that always stood in front of his 'Office'.

They got the message and stepped aside, allowing me to push open the doors and make my way inside.

I had to stop myself from glaring at his gold eyes as soon as I spotted them.

He apparently caught sight of my distaste anyways judging by the subtle tug on the corner of his lip.

I stopped about 20 feet away from his throne, offering a small bow.

"You wanted to see me, my Lord?" I asked as humbly as I could muster.

Only then did I notice the blonde slave boy standing beside him.

My brows drew together slightly at the slaves unusual demeanor.

Usually, the castle slaves stood straight and looked straight ahead at all times, but this one... This one's body was trembling, specifically from pain, and his eyes were glued to the floor.

His breaths trembled as well.

Why he was the slave that accompanied the Lord was beyond me.

"Yes, Nicolas," He started, leaning forward, "Its been a while hasn't it?"

My hands balled up a bit.

I didn't come here for casual conversation.

So, swallowing my pride, I nodded.

"It has. What is it that you wish from me?" I asked.

His smirk grew.

I bet seeing another Lords son serve him really gets him off.

"I called you up here for two different matters," He began, grabbing an envelope from the small desk.

He admired it for a second.

"Firstly, " he began, practically shoving the envelope to the slave, causing him to stumble and grunt in pain, "You've received a letter from your father."

I watched as the slave carefully made his way over to me as quickly as he could.

Something about this slave struck me as familiar, but I couldn't quite place it.

What I found most confusing though, were the bruises on his arms and the recent fang marks on his neck.

Slaves were never to be fed from... Unless as a punishment.

It wasn't until he was close enough to hand me the letter that the realization hit me.

His scent. It was the exact same one that Khloe had on her the day she came back from the clinic.

Even though all of the slaves had basically the same scent, everyone's was a little bit different, and his fit perfectly with what was on Khloe.

He didn't even look at me as I carefully took the letter from him.

I glanced over my families crest that decorated the wax seal, barely even beginning to wonder what was in it before returning my gaze to the slave as he stumbled back to the Lord.

"Ah. You're probably wondering what happened to him," Lord Bronwyn spoke up.

I met his gaze.

I really did want to know. A lot of things were very out of place with this boy.

Lord Bronwyn laughed lowly as the slave returned.

The boy flinched as the Lord reached to pat his head.

"This one used the elevator for a non-instructed purpose while delivering a pet back to its room, and you know how I hate it when slaves brake the rules. Especially the simple ones."

My eyes widened ever so slightly as I thought back to that day.

Given her condition, there's no way Khloe could have made it up all of those stairs without something going wrong.

The boy and I met eyes for a brief moment before he slowly turned his head to the side.

A look of guilt covered his face.

"But since he's been one of the castles top slaves ever since he's been here, I decided to keep him alive instead of sending him to the slaughter. With the proper punishment of course." He finished.

I looked away from the boy, a tinge of guilt building in my chest.

"I see," I cleared my throat, "What was the other reason you called me up here?"

The Lord clasped his hands together, his face turning serious.

"Due to yet another accident involving a screw up from a slave, Floor 35 no longer had running water and until that gets resolved I've been working on finding temporary rooms for those residents to stay in."

I rose a brow, wondering why this had anything to do with me.

"But unfortunately we don't have that many extra rooms in the castle to house them all, so I've requested some of the residents here to share their living space with someone else until this is fixed. And one resident, in particular, would love nothing more than to spend that time in your room with you." He finished, his smirk briskly returning.

My eyes widened, now knowing exactly what was going on.

"You should be honored, Nicolas," The Lord began, "My daughter is very picky when it comes to what men she spends her time with, but you have really seemed to spark something within Layla."

My breath hitched as his words confirmed any doubt that he was talking about Layla before.

He wanted Layla to spend an undetermined amount of time living with me... with Khloe

The thought of that made a knot form in my chest.

Our room was one of the only places I could actually spend time with her the way I wanted too, and I couldn't do that with Layla constantly being around me.

I couldn't sleep with her in my arms, I couldn't let her walk around my room without a collar, I couldn't let her call me by my name.

The last realization actually caused a pain in my chest.

Not to mention everything she's put my brother through...

"How long will this... setup be in place?" I asked.

The Lord shrugged, "The movements will take place tomorrow morning and I can't imagine the repairs taking longer than a few days."

That was too long.

A few days was too long.

I felt anger began to flare within me.

"So do you accept this temporary arrangement?" He asked as if I really had any choice in the matter.

Even if I did say no, I can almost guarantee he'd come up with some sort of threat that would make me say yes.

I could explain this to Khloe.

She would understand, right?

Of course, Id have to make this up to her but...

I bowed my head, "Yes, My Lord."