Audrey's POV
The taxi ride to the Moreno Estate was a silent, tense journey. The opulent gates, even larger and more intimidating than the Blakes', swung open as we approached. The security guard didn't even stop us; he just gave a curt nod and waved the taxi through. Seems like they already know who i am.
The driver let out a low whistle as we navigated the impossibly long, manicured driveway. "You must be a very prominent figure, miss, to be allowed straight in like this," he said, his voice filled with awe.
I didn't reply. I just stared out the window at the sprawling, modern fortress that was to be my new prison. It was all sharp angles, glass, and cold steel.
The car stopped in a vast, empty courtyard of polished stone. I stepped out, the cool evening air a shock after the stuffy cab. I hauled my ugly nylon sack out after me and turned to pay the driver, pulling a wad of cash from my pocket. I counted it quickly. I was short. Way short. The trip from the slums to this pinnacle of wealth had cost more than I'd anticipated.
"Look," I began, my pride stinging. "I'm a little short. Let me just run inside and—"
The driver held up a hand, his eyes wide as he took in the sheer scale of the house behind me. "No, no, miss. It's fine. Really. Just… consider it an honor. I got to drive into the Moreno compound." He gave me a hurried, almost fearful smile, then quickly got back into his taxi. Before I could argue, he was turning the car around and speeding back down the driveway, leaving me standing alone in the enormous, silent courtyard.
I stared after the retreating taillights, a hollow feeling in my chest. Even the taxi driver was terrified of this place.
With a sigh, I turned and faced the main entrance that a massive slab of dark wood and metal. I dragged my sack across the smooth stones, the plastic rustling loudly in the silent compound. I reached the door and knocked.
No answer.
I knocked again, harder. Nothing. I peered through one of the narrow glass panels flanking the door. The foyer was a cavern of marble and modern art, utterly still. No butler, no maid, no one.
Great. So I was supposed to live here, but no one was home to let me in? I didn't have Dave or Dominic's number. For all their "you're our stepsister" demands, they hadn't exactly provided a welcome packet.
A spark of defiance cut through the helplessness. Fine. If they weren't going to answer, I wasn't going to stand on the doorstep like a discarded package.
I let my heavy sack drop to the ground with a dull thud. I wasn't dragging that thing around. Leaving it there, I turned and started walking away from the imposing entrance.
I headed left, following the side of the gargantuan house. The courtyard gave way to immaculate landscaping—precisely trimmed hedges, silent fountains, pathways lit by subtle, ground-level lights that were beginning to flicker on as dusk settled.
As I moved further from the main house, i remember that This was a fantasy world. That meant this place would also be filled with super technologies.
As i was thinking of how i can talk to my guide without being spotted, i cam across a towering facade of grass twelve feet high, a hedge wall of grass. There's this one perfectly straight opening. I looked around carefully, scanning for cameras and saw some. I can be able to evade them if i find a corner inside the maze.
Technology couldn't see Mia, but anyone monitoring feeds would see me talking to empty air. I had to be fast. I got inside, memorizing the direction i took, and found a spot that was safe.
"Mia," I whispered into the dim space.
A soft glow materialized in front of me, resolving into my guide. She looked unbothered by our surroundings.
"Your primary residency quest is complete," Mia said. "Your reward is ready. You just need to accept it."
As she spoke, a translucent, bluish screen shimmered into existence between us. It was simple, displaying only a line of text: Quest Reward: Latent Ability Unlocked. Below it was a single, pulsing button: ACCEPT.
I reached out and pressed it.
A sudden, icy chill shot through my core, so intense it stole my breath. It wasn't painful, but it was profoundly alien—a wave of cold energy that rushed through my veins, branching out to my fingertips and toes.
For a few seconds, my entire body hummed with a strange, internal pressure. Then, as quickly as it came, it faded, leaving behind a subtle, new awareness. It was like a layer of static I hadn't noticed before had suddenly been quieted.
"What was that?" I asked, flexing my hands. "What ability did I get?"
"You've been granted a psychic shielding ability," Mia explained, floating closer. "It will help stabilize your presence in this narrative reality. It should, in theory, prevent certain forms of external psychic interference aimed towards you."
"its a good ability, but can't i at least get an ability i can use to defend my self, especially when i am living under the rood with these men."
"Consider it your first ability. The more quests you fulfill, the more abilities you will unlock. And these abilities are not static. They can grow, evolve, and become more potent as you progress."
It wasn't the super ability I'd half-hoped for, but it was something. A layer of protection against the unseen rules of this world. I nodded, absorbing the information. "Okay. What's the next quest?"
Before Mia could answer, a new sound cut through the garden's stillness. I wasn't alone.
"Mia, go," I hissed.
She vanished in a wisp of light.
I moved deeper into the maze of tall grass, my steps silent on the soft earth. The landscape lighting cast long, eerie shadows, providing just enough illumination to see at least most of the surrounding. The chill I felt was a prickle of pure danger crawling up my spine.
Then i felt someone was behind me. I spun on my heel, instinct taking over, and threw a punch aimed where a head should be.
My fist connected with a solid, jarring impact. There was a grunt, and a figure stumbled back, cloaked in the deep shadows between the light pools. He was tall, with a man's broad build, but he moved with a strange manner. His face was covered by a dark mask.
My heart hammered. Was this Dave or Dominic's idea of a sick welcome? Testing the new stray?
"What's the matter?" I taunted, my voice low and steady despite the adrenaline. "Too scared to show your face, or just too ugly?"
The masked figure didn't speak. Instead, he took a step back into a patch of shadow against the hedge wall and seemed to… dissolve. His outline bled into the darkness and texture of the grass until he was gone. Not invisible, but perfectly camouflaged.
My blood ran cold.
I was on full alert now, every sense straining. The maze corridor was spacious, but suddenly it felt like a tightening trap. Who is that person? Why attack me? I didn't read this in original novel's plot for the villainess. This was new, and it was deadly.
I caught a flicker of movement to my left—just a slight distortion in the air. I tried to dodge, but he was too fast. A fist, hard as stone, slammed into my gut.
The air exploded from my lungs in a painful gasp. My legs buckled, and I hit the ground, the world spinning. Before I could scramble up, he was on me. The muted light glinted off the polished blade of a dagger he drew from his side.
Panic, cold and sharp, joined the pain. I weakly pushed myself backward with my heels, scrambling in the dirt, putting pathetic inches between myself and the descending blade.
I can't die like this. Not in some fancy garden maze, murdered for a reason I don't understand. Not before I've even figured out the rules of this damned world.
The dagger rose for a final strike.