Anastasia's eyes snapped open. The high ceiling of her bedroom blurred into focus, a sharp, throbbing ache radiating through her jaw and cheekbone. A worried maid pressed a cold, damp cloth against her skin, but Anastasia shoved the girl's hands away, wincing as she pushed herself up from the bed.
"Where is Julius?" Anastasia demanded, her voice hoarse and raspy.
"My Lady, please rest," the maid pleaded, stepping back in panic. "Sir Julius is in his office—"
Anastasia didn't wait to hear the rest. She brushed past the servants, ignoring their hushed warnings, and marched down the cold stone corridors. Every step sent a jolt of pain through her head, but her heart beat louder than the pain. As she neared the wooden doors of his office, dark, intrusive thoughts flooded her mind—images of Julius and Rem together behind closed doors. The mere thought sent a sickening pang of jealousy straight through her chest.
She stood before the heavy oak door, her hand trembling against the brass handle. Fearing the worst, she listened closely. Hearing no sound from within, she pushed the door open.
Julius sat behind his desk. He looked drained, hollowed out, with dark circles under his eyes and a cold, heavy shadow across his face.
He didn't greet her warmly. He slowly looked up, his eyes empty.
"Sit down," Julius said quietly.
"Julius... where is Rem?" Anastasia asked, her eyes welling with sudden tears at his cold tone. "What happened—"
"Sit the fuck down, Anastasia," Julius snapped, his voice dropping an octave, laced with a fury she had never heard from him before. "I have tolerated your games for long enough. Sit down."
Scared, Anastasia backed into a chair and sat down, her fingers tightly clutching her lap. It was the first time in their entire marriage he had ever raised his voice at her with such open contempt.
Julius took a shuddering breath, resting his elbows on the desk as he stared her down, desperately reining in his temper.
"Are you happy?" Julius asked softly, though the words burned like venom. "Are you satisfied with what you've accomplished? You are lucky I managed to hold Rem back. She would have beaten you to death right in front of the servants."
"I did all of this for you! For you and Rem!" Anastasia cried out, her voice cracking. "I was trying to build a future for us—"
"You never gave a damn about me!" Julius interrupted, slamming his palm on the desk. "You didn't do this for me! You did it for yourself! Because you have to control everything and everyone around you! Did you ever—for one single second in your life—think about how I felt? You pushed me past the line. Because of your sick, twisted manipulations, you made me ruin Rem's life!"
"She's a grown woman!" Anastasia screamed back, tears spilling over her cheeks. "She knew what she was doing!"
"SHUT UP! I am speaking!" Julius roared, standing up so fast his chair scraped violently against the floor. He squeezed his eyes shut, taking a deep, shuddering breath to compose himself before speaking again.
"Because of what you did," Julius said, his voice terrifyingly calm now, "Rem made her choice. She isn't hiding anymore. She is going back to Subaru, and she is going to confess everything to him. She is coming clean. She will beg for his forgiveness, and if he rejects her, she will accept it and leave."
Anastasia gasped, horrified. "Is she insane?! She's going to tell Subaru?! I was only threatening her! I never intended to ruin her life—or ours! What about your reputation, Julius?! What will people say about you?!"
Julius covered his face with both hands, a bitter, broken laugh escaping his lips. "Reputation... Of course. Even now, when everything is burning around us, the only thing you care about is our reputation."
"Julius, listen to me!" Anastasia pleaded, leaning forward in her chair. "If she leaves Subaru, it's a good thing! Don't you see? She can move in here! We can all be together, I'll let her stay, I'll give her a place—"
"It's over, Anastasia," Julius cut her off, looking at her with total exhaustion. "When Rem and I were away, we talked. At first, she thought about divorcing Subaru. But after what you did. Rem told me she wants nothing to do with me. Even if she had feelings for me, she will never act on them. She loves Subaru, and she told me she can never trust me again because I let you force her into this."
Julius turned away, walking over to the window and staring out into the courtyard. "You ruined everything."
"There are plenty of other women!" Anastasia insisted desperately, her voice rising in panic. "Younger, better women than Rem! I can find you someone else, someone who—"
"I DON'T WANT ANYONE ELSE!" Julius shouted, turning back with eyes full of tears. "I never wanted anyone else until the day you forced me onto her!"
"Then what about Yae?!" Anastasia shrieked. "She was nice! She would be a great replacement—"
"I only involved Yae to spite you!" Julius confessed, his voice breaking. "I did it because I was furious with you, and because I needed to confirm one thing."
Anastasia gripped the edges of her dress, her chest heaving. "Confirm what?!"
Julius walked slowly toward her, stopping right in front of her chair. He looked directly into her eyes, taking a deep, painful breath. Tears finally began to stream down his face.
"I love Rem," Julius whispered.
Anastasia froze, her heart stopping in her chest. "What... what do you mean...?"
"I love her," Julius repeated, no longer holding back the sorrow in his voice. "Because of your stupid, cruel games... I fell in love with her. I want to be with her. I want to wake up next to her. I finally realized that she is the only woman I want to spend my life with."
The words shattered Anastasia into pieces. A primal wave of agony burst from her throat, spilling out in hysterical, sobbing screams.
"I HATE YOU!" she shrieked, striking out blindly at the air before turning and bolting out of the office.
She ran down the hall, her vision blinded by a torrent of tears. She slammed through the heavy doors of her bedroom, throwing her full weight against them, turning the key, and locking the door shut.
Anastasia slid down to the cold floor, her back pressed against the locked wood. She pulled her knees to her chest, burying her face in her hands, and sobbed uncontrollably.
It was over. Everything she had planned, everything she had built—it was all destroyed. After everything she had done for Julius, he had looked her in the eyes and confessed his love for another woman. In her mind, Rem had stolen her husband, ruined her life, and stripped away the last pieces of her sanity.
Then, from the other side of the heavy wooden panel, a soft, desperate knock echoed through the room.
"Anastasia... please open the door," Julius's voice called out from the hallway.