Chapter 340 - Three Hundred And Thirty Nine

Chapter 340: Chapter Three Hundred And Thirty Nine

His eyes went wide as he stared at her. In his years of military service, he had seen many brutal forms of interrogation—whips, hot iron rods, heavy chains, and sharp blades. But he had never heard of hanging a bucket of dripping water over a prisoner’s face in a dark, silent room. He was thoroughly confused about how a simple, soft drop of water could possibly break a hardened killer who had just survived a gunshot and a crushed wound without breaking.

However, as Kade looked into the intense, ruthless fire burning in Camilla’s eyes, he knew better than to question her orders. He realized there must be something behind her strange method.

Kade bowed his head deeply. "Yes, my lady. It will be done exactly as you say."

Camilla gave a short, quiet nod. She turned on her heel and began walking toward the dungeon exit. Kade quickly stepped forward and escorted her out of the cold basement, holding open the door for her as she passed through.

When they reached the main hallway of the ground floor, the freezing, damp draft of the basement was replaced by the warm, quiet atmosphere of the mansion. The bright, warm light from the crystal chandeliers made Camilla squint her eyes slightly against the glare.

Kade stopped near the entrance of the hallway and bowed to her once more. "I will go prepare the bucket and secure the prisoner immediately, Lady Camilla."

"See that you do," Camilla said softly, without turning around.

Kade turned on his boots and hurried back down the basement stairs to execute her strange command.

Camilla was left standing alone in the grand hallway. The heavy silence of the large house washed over her like cold water.

Now that she was away from the assassin, now that the dark thrill of the interrogation had passed, the brutal reality of her own physical condition finally caught up to her body. The large wave of adrenaline that had kept her moving ever since the attempted assassination was rapidly fading away, leaving her hollow and weak.

She took a slow, heavy step toward the grand staircase that led up to the master bedroom where Damon lay.

As soon as her foot lifted off the marble floor, her head began to spin in dizzying circles. The grand paintings hanging on the walls blurred together in streaks of dark gold and brown. A heavy, hollow ringing sound filled both of her ears, drowning out all other noises.

"I need to get to Damon," Camilla thought desperately. Her mind fought with everything it had against the darkness creeping over her vision. " i need to see his face... I need to make sure he is still breathing... I need to be by his side..."

She placed her trembling hand on the smooth banister of the stairs. She forced her weak legs to move forward.

Step One.

Her legs felt weightless, as if she were walking on thin air, yet at the same time, her torso felt as heavy as lead. Every single muscle in her body screamed in agony.

The severe bruise across her back—caused when she slammed into the wooden carriage door to break Damon’s fall—throbbed with a sharp, burning pain. Every shallow breath she took pulled painfully against her bruised ribs. The small, untreated scratches on her bare arms and forehead burned with fresh heat.

Step Two. Step Three.

The mental, emotional, and physical ordeal of the day was simply too much for any human body to endure.

Within a few hours, she had watched the man she loved bleed out in her arms. She had watched the entire sky split open and the world tear itself apart. She had begged unknown, cosmic forces for a second chance at life. She had performed a terrifying, delicate surgery with her bare hands . And through all of it, she had not eaten a bite of food, she had not rested for a single minute, and her own wounds had gone untreated.

By the time she reached the middle of the long flight of stairs, her vision went almost dark at the edges. Large black spots danced before her eyes.

She tried to grip the banister tighter to keep herself standing, but her fingers had no strength left. They felt numb, cold, and useless. Her weak fingers slipped slowly from the smooth, polished wood.

"Damon..." she whispered faintly. Her voice was barely a breath, disappearing into the quiet air of the stairwell.

Her feet lost all connection with the carpeted wooden steps. Her knees buckled beneath her robe. She felt her consciousness floating away as her eyes rolled back into her head.

Her body went limp.

Camilla fell backward off the step.

THUD!

Her body crashed hard onto the stairs below. She rolled uncontrollably down the steep flight of stairs, her limbs flailing uselessly as her back, shoulders, and hips slammed repeatedly against the edges of every single step.

THUD! CRASH! THUD!

She tumbled all the way down to the bottom of the staircase. Her body landed in a motionless, crumpled heap on the cold marble floor of the foyer.

As her head struck the wooden base of the main banister post at the very bottom, a fresh, deep cut opened along her hairline. Bright red blood began to ooze out slowly, pooling against her skin a little and spreading across the light-colored marble floor.

She lay still. Her eyes were closed, her face was deathly pale, and her chest barely moved.

At that exact moment, Uncle Murry walked out of the side parlor carrying a silver tray with clean towels and a pot of hot tea meant for the master bedroom.

The loud, violent, crashing noise of her body falling down the stairs echoed through the quiet mansion, making the old housekeeper jump in fright.

He turned his head quickly toward the staircase and froze in horror.

The silver tea tray slipped from his trembling hands. It crashed onto the hard floor, shattering the porcelain teapot and cups into dozens of sharp pieces. Hot tea and water splashed across the floor, but Murry did not even notice the heat or the mess.

His eyes were wide with terror as he looked at the crumpled, bloody form of Camilla lying motionless at the base of the stairs, blood slowly spreading around her hair.

"MY LADY!!!" Uncle Murry shouted at the top of his lungs.

His voice was filled with sheer panic and terror as he sprinted across the hallway, his old knees shaking as he rushed toward her body.