Chapter 250: Forbidden Hallway

I should call Hayden to let him know that I’ve found Little Hayden.

"Umm…Hayden. I found him. I found Little Hayden," I quickly reported when the line connected.

"Where did you find him?" Hayden asked.

"It was just like you said. He came back to my room. I found him when I came back looking for him in my living room. Thank goodness…he seems alright too…" I said thankfully.

"That’s all good then. I’ll be back home soon. I’ll call off the search now that you’ve found him," Hayden said calmly.

"Thank you so much…and sorry for the trouble," I mumbled apologetically.

"It’s fine," Hayden said firmly before hanging up.

…

"I told you that he’s somewhere in the mansion. This place is heavily guarded so how can the dog possible go missing?" Hayden said to me once he arrived back.

"I guess you’re right…I’m sorry for panicking like that…" I apologized.

"It’s not a problem. If you’re that worried about him, I can get a maid or someone to baby sit him fulltime," Hayden offered generously.

"No, that’s ok. I’ll be more careful from now on," I replied.

"Let me know if you change your mind. You should focus on your work instead of baby sitting a dog," Hayden said sternly.

What he said was true, but I still wanted to take care of my own dog. I felt extremely guilty for losing him even if he came back later. However, if I told Hayden that he would just think that I was being stubborn which wasn’t entirely wrong.

After having a peaceful dinner together, we went to sleep in his room. Hayden’s mood seemed to have improve, although only slightly. He never spoke or asked about Ethan again and I didn’t dare bring that topic up. It was like I had lost my chance to find out what he was thinking and what was going on with Ethan. Despite myself, I found myself worrying about Ethan. What is that mad man up to now?

Why can’t he just settle down and live his life peacefully?

I knew that I shouldn’t be thinking this, but I couldn’t help the desire that popped up in my mind. I wanted to talk to Ethan. Maybe if I could just talk to him, things might be different. That was just wistful thinking on my part, though. I had no way to contact Ethan and if Hayden found out, he’d probably end up killing me along with his foe.

That night, I didn’t sleep very well and woke up the next morning with a throbbing headache which only got worst when I realized that Hayden was no longer in bed. He didn’t leave a note and he didn’t text, but it wasn’t surprising when I found out from Auntie that he had left for work bright and early in the morning. Hayden was away more and more now.

He left earlier in the morning and came back slightly later at night. I still decided to wait to have dinner with him.

After making my way back to my own rooms, I quickly showered and entered the art studio. Hayden was right, I needed to focus on my work before the clients start sinking their teeth into my slim neck. I’ve narrowly avoided missing my deadline a couple of times now and I wished that I had more breathing room.

I stared at the painting in progress as I reminded myself that having work is better than having nothing to do and no income.

I was about to start painting when I realized that I couldn’t find my mobile phone. A loud sigh escaped my lips as I closed my eyes in frustration when I realized that I must have forgotten it in Hayden’s bedroom. This is such a pain.

"Stay here for a bit, ok? I’ll be right back," I told Little Hayden.

I headed for the door and was out in the hallway in no time as I made my way back to Hayden’s wing of the mansion. Waking up late already ate into the time that I had to work and now I was wasting more time by being forgetful. When I approached the fork in the path that led to Hayden’s wing, I thought that I saw Hayden. Well, I didn’t see him clearly, but I was quite certain that I saw his back.

Before I could call out to him, he disappeared into the dark hallway leading into Harvey’s wing. I blinked my eyes in surprise. That was Hayden for sure but wasn’t he supposed to be at work right now? Auntie told me that he left for work so why was he here in the mansion? I was sure that he headed down the hallway that led to Harvey’s wing.

My body froze in place when I arrived at the fork in the path. My eyes wandered towards the dark and desolated hallway that led to Harvey’s wing of the mansion. No one was allowed to enter this hallway and Harvey’s part of the mansion ever since he died. The one who made that rule was Hayden, but I guess that the rule doesn’t apply to him. What is in there?

The next question that popped into my mind was an even more troublesome one. Did Hayden leave for work this morning before returning or was he here in Harvey’s wing of the mansion all along? My eyebrow drew together as I frowned. Suddenly, a cold shiver ran through my body, and I realized that this was just freaking me out.

"Miss?" a small voice said very close to me.

Shocked and panicked, I let out a shrilled scream before turning around to find a young and very thin maid standing right behind me. Why did she have to sneak up on me like that? I placed a hand on my chest as I struggled to calm my breathing. The maid gave me a truly confused look as if she couldn’t understand why I was so freaked out.

--To be continued…