One Wild Night

A soft smile played on Mia's lips as she slept. Her brow remained smooth, untroubled by the anxieties that often plagued her waking hours.

In the dreamy world behind her closed eyelids, she found herself standing beside a familiar counter with Jeff beside her, their arms brushing as they leaned in over a sizzling pan. The scent of sizzling garlic and rosemary filling the air.

"Just a little less pressure, Mia," Jeff's voice, warm and familiar, cut through the dream. "You want to sear it, not flatten it."

Mia giggled, adjusting her grip on the spatula. The playful banter, the shared task, the easy companionship - it was everything she craved but could never have in the real world.

Laughter danced on the edge of her lips as Jeff, his grin wider than the spatula, as he held up a perfectly seared steak.

"Voila!" he declared, his eyes sparkling with amusement. "See, Mia? It's not magic, just a little technique."

Mia reached out, her fingers tracing the grill marks on the meat. It felt real, the warmth radiating through her fingertips like a forbidden secret.

"You're a natural," Jeff teased, gently swatting her hand away with the spatula.

The dream dissolved then, leaving behind a lingering warmth that seeped into her waking moments. Mia stretched, a contented sigh escaping her lips as she blinked her eyes open with a smile on her face.

The playful kitchen scene in her dream dissolved into the stark reality of her cold bedroom, and her contentment was short-lived when she came face to scowling face with Henry who loomed above her his his eyes narrowed with suspicion. Her heart lurched into her throat and a chill tan down her spine.

"Well, well," Henry's voice dripped with icy sarcasm. "Seems like someone's having a lovely dream," he said, his voice dripping with a coldness that sent shivers down her spine.

He didn't want her to be peaceful, to have even a moment of respite. He wanted her to be perpetually cowed.

Mia scrambled back against the headboard, her heart hammering frantically against her ribs. "H-Henry? What are you doing here?" she stammered, feigning fear and confusion.

He leaned in closer, his breath hot on her cheek. "Curious. I saw that smile on your face. What kind of dream could make someone like you smile so wide? Care to share what little fantasy brought that on?" He asked with a cold smile as he grabbed her shoulder.

Mia felt a surge of defiance rise within her. How dare he pry into her dreams?

"I... I don't know what you're talking about, Henry," she mumbled, her voice barely a whisper.

"Don't play dumb, Vanessa," he snarled, his grip tightening on her shoulder. "Don't lie to me." his voice grew louder, a dangerous edge creeping into it.

"It was just a meaningless dream…"

"It couldn't possibly have been a mere dream," Henry cut in.

"You looked downright content there. Relaxed. Almost happy. And that is unacceptable. It's unsettling, really. You shouldn't be comfortable enough to have pleasant dreams under my roof. You should be having nightmares, nightmares that keep you awake at night. How dare you be happy?"

The anger in his voice sent a tremor through her. Happy? Unacceptable? He made it sound like she was a naughty child caught with a forbidden candy bar.

Taking a deep breath, Mia forced her voice to sound meek. "I'm sorry, Henry. I must have had a nice dream, but I don't remember what it was about. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to… to have a happy dream," she choked out, her voice trembling, and her eyes downcast.

Henry stared at her, his expression unreadable. The silence stretched on, heavy and suffocating. Finally, after a tense moment, he finally released his grip and he straightened up, his shoulders slumping slightly.

"See that you don't, Vanessa," he said, his voice low and menacing and she nodded.

"Come out. I want you to meet someone," he said and she glanced at the clock in her bedroom with a frown.

"It's barely six…" she pressed her lips together when he shot her a glare.

"Are you questioning me?" He asked with a raised brow and she shook her head.

"I will be right out," she said and her eyed her with displeasure.

"You have five minutes. We will be in the living room," he said and walked towards the door, leaving Mia alone in the cold, oppressive silence of her bedroom.

As the door clicked shut behind him, Mia let out a sigh. She shuddered at the thought that he had been standing over her and watching her sleep.

She was not permitted to have happy dreams? She mused and resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Well, he should try to stop her.

Had she really endured all of this in the past? She mused as she went to the bathroom to wash her face and mouth.

She wondered if she was going to be able to put up with him for up to a month talk more of three. She needed to teach the imbecile a lesson, and she needed to do it fast.

As she put on a robe over her sleeping wear, her lips twitched as she remembered her dream. Who would have thought she would be able to sleep for so comfortably on her first night back here? She thought as she walked out to go meet Henry.

As she walked into the living room, she heard Henry talking to someone and on getting close to them, she saw it was a beautiful young lady. She looked like she was in her mid-twenties.

Mia recognized her from the welcome party they had thrown previous day, and seeing how she was also wearing a sleeping dress, and judging by the way she was smiling at Henry as they talked, Mia could tell there was more to their relationship.

Henry looked up when Mia walked in, "Diana, this is my wife, Vanessa. Vanessa, this is Diana Locke, your aide," Henry said and Mia frowned.

"My aide?" Mia asked incredulously.

"Yes. She will be in charge of your appointments and schedule. She will be your shadow. She will go with you to wherever you're going," Henry said and Diana flashed Mia a smile.

"Thanks for going through the trouble to get me an aide, but…"

"Diana is also my lover," Henry announced as he held out a hand to Diana and she took his hand.

"Your lover?" Mia asked, looking shocked. She had not expected this.

"Yes. We were going to get married, but unfortunately you turned up alive before we could announce our engagement. So, we are all stuck together," Henry said and Mia looked at Diana who was staring at Henry like he was the best thing to have happened to her.

"Why don't you divorce me and get married to her since you're both so in love?" Mia asked hopefully, looking from Henry to Diana.

"No. My king here, believes in the sanctity of marriage. I do too. That means for as long as you are alive, he won't divorce you. Only death can do you part," Diana explained sweetly.

"And you're okay with that?" Mia asked and she nodded.

"Absolutely. As long as I can live close to my king and serve him in every way I can, I'm fine," Diana said and flashed Henry a smile which a returned.

"And you're going to be my aide? You will be an aide to the woman who is married to the man you love?" Mia asked incredulously.

"Yes. I have to make sure you don't cause any more problems for my King. To everyone else, I will be your live-in aide. We don't want the public to have a wrong opinion of Henry," she said and Mia opened her mouth to speak again, but Henry raised a finger.

"I didn't ask for your opinion. I only called to let you know how things are done around here now. She has been in charge of running the household since you disappeared. She will remain in charge. Whatever she asks you to do, make sure you do it. You left your place vacant, and now it has been filled by another," Henry said as he rose.

"I will leave you two to get acquainted," Henry said with a nod to Diana before walking away.

The moment Henry disappeared from view, the smile slid of Diana's face and she looked at Mia, "Sit down," she ordered.

Mia looked at her contemplatively before sitting down, "Just to make it clear to you. This is my turf. And like Henry already told you, I run things here. I hope you do not have any funny ideas and you're not here to pull any silly stunts," Diana said in a tone reeking of superiority.

"You realize that this could really be all yours if you could convince him to divorce me, right?" Mia asked and Diana snorted.

"Did you really contact a man like Henry, asking for a divorce and expecting him to give you one?" She asked, eyeing Mia speculatively.

"There is no way you could have followed him back here without a plan. I'm sure you knew he wouldn't divorce you and he would come for you. What is your plan? Did you come back because you suddenly realized it is better to serve him and enjoy all his wealth, or did you come because you want to hurt him? Perhaps kill him?" She asked thoughtfully.

"I was brought back here against my will…"

"Then you're either more foolish than I thought, or braver than I gave you credit for. If you had no intention of coming back here, you should never have let him know of your existence in the first place," Diana said with a shake of head as she rose.

"I have nothing personal against you, Vanessa. Be a good girl, and I will go easy on you. Who knows? We might even get along. But if you so much as give me a reason to raise an eyebrow, I will make your life a living hell. If you came here with any silly plan in mind, discard it. I will be watching you like an eagle. Your every move. Today, we will be accompanying Henry to the golf club by 10 a.m. I'm sure you can dress up accordingly. And we will be having guests over for dinner. Go get ready for breakfast. It will be served by 7 a.m."

With that, Diana walked away, leaving Mia alone in the living room. Mia clutched her trembling hands together, willing them to stay still.

Mia didn't know how long she sat there, but her old fear returned. She had not seen this coming. Jeff and the others had been right. She had thought everything would be as usual— exactly as she had left them, but things had changed.

If Diana was going to be dogging her every move, then she was not going to be able to do much. How was she going to be able to get Henry to fire his domestic staff if that was Diana's turf?

What was she going to do? What if she was not able to carry out her plan? Had she willingly walked back into Henry's gilded cage to be stuck here?

No. Mia told herself calmly. No. She was not stuck. She had Jeff, Harry, Tom, Bryan, Sonia and even Lucy. She was not alone in this. She knew they would do whatever it took to get her out of here whether or not her plan failed.

She was not going to fear or give in to despair. This was only a hiccup in her plans. She would find a way. She was certain that they would also find a way. She would do whatever she could while also being careful to not provoke Henry or rouse the suspicion of his watchdog girlfriend. With that thought in mind, Mia rose and headed for her bedroom.