Samyra hovered her fingers over the landline number, the only way she could contact Amelie. She dialed the number and kept her hand on the balustrade, hoping the call would be answered.
A servant answered the call.
"Hello, I am Samyra Conley. Can I talk to my daughter, Amelie?" she humbly requested.
"I’m sorry, ma’am," the servant replied. "But Prince Gabriel has issued strict orders. Miss Amelie is not to be disturbed by anyone affiliated with the Conley family."
Before Samyra could request her further, the line went dead.
She looked at the number in disbelief and brought her hand to her head, feeling guilty of her every action.
"Darling, what are you doing alone here in the balcony?" asked David as he stepped in there. He walked to Samyra and saw the phone in her hand. "Did you perhaps try to contact Amelie again?" he inquired.
"I did," Samyra admitted. "I wanted to apologize. Lady Vinette also expressed a desire to see her. I thought... maybe it could be a way to show Amelie that she still matters to us. That we still care."
David turned quiet, instead of giving her comfort.
"Don’t tell me you think it was Amelie’s fault," Samyra said.
"Wasn’t it? Why did she even do it before having any kind of commitment?" David frowned. "Then, she ran off instead of coming to us," he muttered.
"And why do you think she ran off? Flora betrayed her. They both are sisters. I treated Amelie badly because her omega rank always made me feel humiliated. I never took it with pride and let the hatred grow inside her. David, we both forgot how much Amelie meant for us since the day of her birth. We both ruined everything," Samyra said, her tears were on the verge of falling.
David placed his hands on her shoulders before hugging her. "Yes, we failed her. I–I will find a way to communicate with her. Because Prince Gabriel is involved, I am being cautious," he whispered, caressing his wife’s back. "But I promise I will make it possible that you can talk with Amelie."
~~~~
"You aren’t sleeping, Gabriel," Casaio arched his eyebrow as he entered the study of his youngest brother while scanning his eyes through the shelf.
Gabriel pulled out the drawer and put the book inside it, which he had been reading.
"Why are you bothered about me? It’s not like you, Casaio. Do you need something? You used to blackmail me, saying you would tell Mom if I didn’t listen to you," Gabriel chuckled.
"Aren’t such things common between siblings?" Casaio noticed how Gabriel hid a book inside the drawer of the desk before he could even check what he was reading. However, he didn’t bring it up.
"I don’t consider you and Dominick as my brothers," Gabriel clarified to him. "That’s why I even set the trap so that you both could die peacefully," he stated.
"Do you think I’ll believe your words?" Casaio chuckled. "Nevermind. I am not here to talk about the past," he said, pulling out the chair to sit on it.
Gabriel squinted his eyes, wondering what was Casaio’s mind.
"You did a marvelous job in catching Ewan. However, he told me something which I wasn’t even expecting," he said.
"Nice," Gabriel murmured, not even focusing on what he was saying.
"He said he saw Amelie and you in his vision," Casaio pronounced.
Gabriel lifted his eyes and met his gaze. "What are you trying to imply?" he asked.
"You know what I mean," Casaio said.
"Speak clearly, not in riddles," Gabriel warned him.
"I think you two got a past connection. You lost Amelie in your past life. Did you know about it?" Casaio inquired. "Is that why you were adamant to declare Amelie as your mate?"
"Casaio, don’t put your nose into my life. I don’t like it. Also, whatever assumptions you are making, get a hold on them. I didn’t choose Amelie because of what Ewan said," Gabriel declared with a stern tone.
He then leaned forward and continued, "And while we’re on the subject of personal lives. I’ve kept quiet long enough. You’re so busy meddling in mine, yet you continue to ignore your own. You’ve been in a relationship for over ten years, Casaio. Ten years, and still no real commitment from her. Don’t you think it’s time to ask yourself why?"
Casaio clenched his fists, feeling sudden anger.
"Maybe it’s time you start focusing on your own life," Gabriel added, "Before you try to judge mine."
"Did you know all this time about Zilia?" Casaio asked.
Gabriel didn’t even flinch. "Yes. I knew," he said bluntly. "You were the only fool blind to what she truly was, and what she wanted from you."
Casaio’s eyes hardened, but Gabriel leaned back in his chair with a bitter chuckle. "But why am I even bothering to explain? It’s your life, not mine."
"You should have told me," Casaio said, feeling hurt . "No matter what stood between us, you owed me the truth. We’re brothers, Gabriel. We share same blood. And I—I was a fool, hopelessly in love."
Gabriel exhaled slowly. "I don’t like meddling in your affairs. But now that you know what she’s done, you should act. Zilia committed a crime against the crown, against our bloodline. If Mother ever finds out..." He paused, locking eyes with Casaio. "She won’t hesitate to give the worst punishment possible for her. What if Zilia finds out too that you know the truth about her?"
Casaio turned silent. He had asked himself the question when he found out the evidence of Zilia’s betrayal in her house. However, he was not strong enough to punish her. Because he loved her dearly and still did.
"Don’t make foolish decision because of a love, which Zilia never even respected. I warned you today. Don’t yell at me later that I didn’t say anything to you," Gabriel said and locked the drawer on the desk before leaving his brother’s sight.
Casaio slammed the hand on the desk in anger.