Chapter 107: Kira exposed (l)
"Anna Bennett, I think I like you."
The voice was deep, low, and filled with a warmth that made Anna’s pulse race.
Her eyes snapped open and bolted upright, gasping for air as her heart thundered in her chest. The echo of Daniel’s voice still rang in her ears, too vivid, too real.
Her wide eyes darted around the room only to find it empty. The spot beside her was cold.
"Was that... a dream?" she murmured, touching her chest as if she could still feel the vibration of his voice against her skin.
It wasn’t the first time she’d had strange dreams since her rebirth, but this one felt disturbingly real. His tone, his scent, the faint brush of his breath against her ear it was as though he had truly whispered those words.
Anna frowned, rubbing her temples. "Ah. Maybe I’m just losing it." Still, as she sat there, she couldn’t shake the eerie feeling that Daniel had actually said it.
And then, like a lightning strike, another thought hit her.
"Wait... where is he?" She quickly looked around.
His coat wasn’t hanging by the chair. The faint, comforting hum of his presence gone.
"Typical," she huffed, kicking off the duvet. "He causes chaos and disappears before sunrise."
But the memory of last night made her pause mid-step.
The water. The drug. The way he’d looked at her desperate, trembling on the verge of losing control. She had barely managed to get him under the cold shower before he’d come to his senses. And even then... he’d held her like he never wanted to let go.
"Last night was insane," she muttered, pressing her palm to her face, her cheeks burning thinking about she had to trick him to the bathroom. But her embarrassment quickly faded when a new thought struck her.
Kira.
’That sly, two-faced fox’
Anna’s eyes darkened, her jaw tightening. "That sneaky wench. I need to talk to her."
Tossing the duvet aside, she brushed her hair back and stormed out of the room. Quickly getting changed she then decided to head to meet Kira.
But the moment she reached downstairs, the entire mansion felt... tense. A heavy silence hung in the air, broken only by the faint clinking of dishes in the kitchen.
But as she turned the corner, the scene before her stopped her in her tracks.
Daniel stood at the center of the hall every bit the cold, commanding figure he was known for, while the house staff lined up before him, their heads bowed in fear.
"Who stepped into my study yesterday?" His voice was calm, but the undercurrent of danger in it sent chills down everyone’s spine.
Even Anna froze for a heartbeat. The authority in his tone was the kind that didn’t need shouting, it demanded obedience.
The servants exchanged nervous glances, none daring to speak.
Anna’s gaze moved slowly across the row of frightened faces until it landed on the far corner where Kira stood, half-hidden behind another maid, trying to avoid notice.
Her expression was pale, but her eyes... they flickered with guilt.
’There you are,’ Anna thought, her lips curling faintly. ’The snake in disguise.’
Without a word, Anna stepped forward, her presence immediately drawing Daniel’s attention.
The shift in his demeanor was instant his hard gaze softened the moment he saw her.
"You’re awake?" he asked, his voice losing its sharp edge. There was a faint curve at the corner of his lips, something almost... relieved.
Anna crossed her arms, raising a brow. "Yes. And it seems I woke up to quite the morning show."
Daniel’s lips twitched. "Someone needs to answer for last night," he said evenly, but his eyes stayed on her, searching, as if trying to read what she already knew.
Anna held his gaze, then turned toward the staff. "That’s good," she said lightly, though her tone carried steel beneath the calm. "Because I wanted to confirm something myself."
Their eyes met again, a silent understanding flickering between them.
"M–Master, it was me who cleaned the study," said Sara, one of the older maids, her trembling voice breaking the tense silence that gripped the hall.
Daniel’s brows furrowed deeply as his piercing gaze landed on her. "You?"
Sara nodded quickly, wringing her hands. "Yes, sir. I—I just dusted the shelves and wiped the table. I didn’t touch anything else."
Anna stepped forward, her voice calm but edged with quiet authority. "Were you the one who refilled the glass of water on his desk?"
The maid blinked rapidly, startled by the question, then shook her head. "No, Madam. I only cleaned. I didn’t go near the glass."
Anna studied her carefully. Sara’s tone was steady, her eyes clear—genuine confusion, not guilt.
"Alright," Anna said after a pause. "You can step back."
Daniel turned his head slightly, watching Anna from the corner of his eye. Her calm composure contrasted with the tension that thickened around the room.
’What is she planning?’ he wondered as he watched his wife move to stand beside him.
Anna clasped her hands in front of her and faced the entire staff. "Let’s not beat around the bush," she said evenly, her voice slicing through the silence like a blade. "Last night, someone drugged your Master."
A collective gasp rippled through the hall. The servants’ faces turned pale, eyes darting at one another in shock and disbelief.
"Fortunately," Anna continued, her tone tightening, "he’s fine now. But that doesn’t erase the fact that someone in this house deliberately tried to harm him."
Her gaze swept across the staff one by one until it landed on the far corner of the room.
Kira stood there, half-hidden behind another maid, her head bowed and her fingers clutching the hem of her apron.
"Isn’t that right, Kira?"
The way Anna said her name soft, almost pleasant made the blood drain from Kira’s face.
She looked up to meet Anna’s gaze, only to find a smile that wasn’t kind at all.
"Y–yes, Madam?" she stammered.
Anna’s smile didn’t falter. "Then why the hell did you do it?"
The air crackled.
Kira froze, eyes widening as her heart plummeted to her stomach. "W–what are you saying, Madam? Why would I do something like that?" she stuttered, trying to keep her voice steady. "I swear, I didn’t!"
But Anna wasn’t fooled.
She remembered last night vividly, the faint noise she’d heard from the corridor, the glimpse of Kira slipping into Daniel’s study, and the gut instinct that had told her something was wrong.
Crossing her arms, Anna arched a brow. "You know exactly what I’m talking about, Kira. You’re the one who drugged Daniel."
A shocked murmur spread through the other maids.
Kira’s breathing quickened as she shook her head violently. "No, no! I would never do that! I didn’t—"
"Stop lying." Anna’s tone sharpened like a whip. "You were there when my mother visited, weren’t you?"
The question hit its mark leaving Kira stunned.
"You served her the juice, then pretended to leave," Anna continued, stepping closer. "But you didn’t. You waited, and later, you stole what she left behind."
Daniel’s eyes darkened as he watched the exchange unfold. Anna’s words were calm, but her precision cut straight through the pretense.
Kira’s lips trembled. "I—I don’t understand what you mean—"
"Mariam," Anna interrupted smoothly, turning to the older housekeeper. "You took out the trash from my room that night, right?"
"Yes, Madam," Mariam replied, looking uneasy.
"Did you see anyone near the main bin afterward?"
Mariam shook her head. "No, I didn’t."
"I did," came another hesitant voice.
All heads turned to see Gwen, one of the junior maids, stepping forward nervously, clutching the edge of her apron.
"I saw her," Gwen said, her voice trembling. "Kira. After Mariam left, I saw Kira go toward the trash bins. She... she looked around first, then picked up something before leaving."
The entire room went silent.
Kira’s face turned ghostly white. "T–That’s nonsense! You’re lying, Gwen!"
"I’m not!" Gwen cried, shaking her head quickly. "I saw you!"
"Enough," Daniel’s voice boomed, low and cutting. The entire staff flinched.
Kira’s knees nearly gave out at the sound of it.
Daniel took a slow step forward, his eyes like sharpened steel. "If you truly came to help me, Kira..." His tone was deceptively calm, each word landing heavy in the air. "...then tell me—how did you know I needed help?"
The question hit like a thunderclap leaving Kira gasping like a fish but no words came out. Her mind went blank.
"How," Daniel repeated, his voice now dangerously quiet, "did you know I would need you in that room at that exact moment?"
Dread filled Kira’s heart, sinking deep like ice into her veins. The longer Daniel’s gaze stayed on her, the more she felt the ground slip from beneath her feet.
"M–Master, I... I didn’t—"
"Or was it something you planned long before you came into that room?" Daniel’s voice cut through hers, calm but deadly sharp. His eyes bored into her like blades, stripping away every flimsy layer of denial she tried to cling to.
Her throat constricted. The weight of his stare made it impossible to breathe.