The damp and crisp dawn air filled her lungs. The lakeside seemed like a different world at sunrise.

Damian, who was dressed warmly, was excited to take his first walk in a long time.

“Does it feel that good?”

“Yes! I’m so happy to be here alone with my mother.”

Damian smiled and looked at the lake, then raised his head to Rowena.

“By the way, mother, how long will we be staying here? When are we going to go home?”

“It’s…”

The sudden question left Rowena speechless for a moment.

Damian was a quick-witted child. She felt that this was the reason he wanted to take a walk alone with her, without Genok, just so he could be at ease to ask her this question. Rowena paused and then knelt down, lowering herself until she was at eye level with Damian.

“This is a secret, but I’ll let you know; my uncle will be coming here soon to pick us up. His name is uncle Jeremy Dish.”

“Mother’s uncle?”

Damian had never heard of him before, and when his eyes widened, he tilted his beautiful face and asked.

“He will be coming here to pick us up?”

“Yes. So… We’ll just have to wait a little longer.”

“Really? Are you sure we can get out of here?”

“Of course. I promise.”

Rowena smiled softly and stroked his soft black hair.

“Okay.”

That was the end of their short, happy walk. She took Damian to his room through the employee’s back entrance that Joanne had informed her about, and Rowena headed for her bedroom.

She didn’t see anyone on the way to the bedroom and felt safe when she opened the door. The unusual air instinctively sent shivers down her spine. The moment she caught a whiff of the cold wind, a cold voice pierced Rowena’s ears.

“Miss Philone.”

There was a man sitting on the bed that should have been empty.

“Where are you going this early in the morning?”

This was the moment when the peace Which she was enjoying crumbled.

The hair on the back of her neck stood on end at the emotionless tone of his voice. The peaceful air she had been living in felt as if it had been frozen in an instant. She couldn’t move at all, as if she were caught in a spider’s web.

She swallowed her breath, and her lips quivered slightly.

“I took a walk….”

She was trembling with dread, but she was in the position she was forcibly brought to. She was a victim; however, the moment she thought of Damian, her words quivered.

“My stomach was upset, so I went for a light stroll.”

Killian, both eyes narrowed, stared into the terrified face of his mistress.

“And you didn’t tell anyone?”

There was no excuse. Rowena’s gaze dropped to the ground.

Killian, who had been observing her, stood up from the bed. He walked past Rowena, who had closed her eyes tightly, expecting him to approach.

When Rowena finally opened her squeeze shut eyes carefully, he was sitting on the couch in front of the blazing fireplace. With a cigarette in his mouth, Killian took out a match and lit the cigarette filter. Letting out a long cloud of smoke, Killian motioned for her to come over and sit on the couch across from him.

With silent motions, Rowena approached and took a seat.

“This won’t happen again.”

It was humiliating, to say the least. Rowena was frustrated and angry that she could not enjoy even the slightest freedom. The problem, however, was that she wasn’t out on her own.