I thought Castle would take me back to my room, but I was wrong. Instead, he carried me upstairs to his bedroom and headed straight to the bathroom.

He pulled out a little bathtub stool and made me sit on it. Theo had already left; so I assumed he'd already gone to bed by now and that left me alone with Castle and oddly, I felt safe being close to him. If Castle was with me that other night, I'm sure he would have protected me against his evil pair of siblings.

I'd never been inside Castle's bathroom before. It was big enough to be a bedroom; the tiles were all white marble. A large vintage bathtub sat in the center, transparent sliding doors leading to a shower space. I could see my battered reflection in the enormous masculine sink with matching marble countertop. It was lined up with bottles of shampoo, perfume, and cologne. Everything here was a glimpse into Castle's life before his accident.

I watched Castle as he pulled out the shower heads next to the wall near the bathtub and sprayed some water over his hand to check the temperature before reaching for my dress and lifting it.

He was trying to undress me!

I shook my head; my heart was pounding against my chest. "I'll...I'll do it alone."

My body hurt from staying on the concrete floor for over a week, but I wouldn't admit that to him. Castle regarded me with a concerned look in his eyes, and he didn't take his hands off my dress.

"You can wait outside," I whispered.

He stared at me for a long moment and that made me wonder if he was going to refuse to leave but seconds later; he gave me a nod, placed a bottle of body wash next to me, and stepped outside, sliding the door behind him.

Once I made sure that he wasn't going to return, I peeled off my dress and completely stripped down. I tried to avoid getting the water on my plastered legs and let the warm jet of spray soak me entirely. I took some of the body wash liquid into my palm and scrubbed the lather all over my body.

There was a knock at the door.

"I'm not done yet," I called out frantically, thinking he'd enter, not knowing I was naked.

"Miss. Millicent, it's me, Sally. Mr. Montgomery, sent me here to assist you. May I come inside?"

"Oh, I see," I said, relieved it was her. "Yes, come inside."

Sally stepped inside the bathroom carrying a towel and some clothes. I believed Sally was one of the nicer maids. She didn't seem like an emotionless doll, like the rest of the staff, and I always liked that about her.

After the bath, Sally helped me dress up. I couldn't stand up without support, so I couldn't be embarrassed about being naked in front of her. She dried my hair and even combed it for me. When I glanced into the mirror, I seemed to look fine, but a lot of changes had happened between the naïve Millie who'd joined the employment a few weeks ago and the Millie now who'd endured mental and physical pain. What I'd learned until now is to trust no one, and surely not the ones that seemed "normal."

I was on my own. 

I noticed Sally was wearing a similar ankle bracelet, and that made me wonder if she'd been put through hell too or if she'd accepted her faith and remained silent.

"Sally, how long have you been working for the Montgomerys?"

"Five years." She replied.

"Do you like it here?"

I didn't want to ask her any direct questions and get into trouble.

Her dark eyes met mine in the mirror. "Yes, and besides, Mr. Montgomery made sure my mother is getting proper treatment in one of the best hospitals in the country. That's all that matters to me."

I had no doubt she was talking about Devin. They used people's weakness to bind them to this place, and if that didn't work, they used any force necessary.

"I see," I said. "Was Castle married?"

"No, he dated someone for a while." She paused, "but they broke up a few months before he lost his memory."

A wave of relief washed over me, knowing he wasn't married. It was strange. I mean, why should I even care about things like that when I was only his caregiver? I didn't think it would be appropriate to ask Sally questions about their family background. She could recite this entire conversation to Devin and Dayana, and then they would make my life miserable again.

"You're really pretty." She commented without a hint of a smile on her face, and I wondered if it was even a compliment.

"Thanks."

Castle walked into the bathroom a while later and carried me to his bed. I landed on my back on the fluffy pillows, feeling confused as hell. 

Why was I being put in Castle's bed? 

Sally didn't seem fazed by what he'd done. With a straight face she said, "If you don't need me for anything else, sir, I'll be going to bed."

He dismissed her with one look. She bowed and left the room. I sat upright and straightened the flimsy see-through nightgown. You didn't have to squint to notice the pink lacy bra and the panties underneath. I didn't understand why Sally had chosen this one out of so many other nightgowns, as if this was some kind of honeymoon.

I didn't miss the heated look in Castle's eyes as his gaze moved from the bottom and slowly scanned to the top and his hands curled into a fist. He might have lost his memory, but he was still a grown man with a healthy, able body. Naturally, he experienced urges a normal man would.

I crawled to the headboard, scared of what was to come next. "Castle, please take me to my room." I pleaded, snatching the comforter to cover myself.

He pulled his t-shirt over his head and tossed it onto the floor, never taking his eyes off me. His chest was broad, sporting six-pack abs with a lean waist, a body of a Greek god, and a face that depicted innocence, although I couldn't say his thoughts were exactly as pure. He unzipped his pants and let it fall, which left him standing with only a pair of boxer shorts on.

"Castle..." I said more firmly, "Do you understand what I'm saying?" I tried to say each word slowly and clearly. "Take. Me. To. My. Room."

He climbed into bed, and I scooted farther away. I was shaking by the time his gigantic body slipped into the same comforter that I'd taken.

I had flashbacks of when I used to live with my uncle, and I couldn't believe that the same would happen to me right now. Castle could pin me down with just one arm and do with me as he pleased. I wouldn't even be able to move. No one would come to rescue me.

He leaned towards me and I shook my head, "Castle, no."

He gave me a perplexed look before reaching around me and turning off the bedside table lamp.

"Sleep," That's all he said before sleeping on his side of the bed.

What the hell happened?

I stared at his huge muscular body in the dark with tears blurring my vision. Because of my experiences in the past with the men in my life, I was under the impression that every man wanted to hurt me, but to see Castle turning away and giving me space did all kinds of things to my heart. Later that night—or probably in the wee hours of the morning, I woke up distressed and imagining I was back in that dark basement downstairs. Sweat trickled down my body and my throat felt dry. I'd woken up screaming...

"Shhh...I'm here, Millie..." The voice sounded distant.

"Millie..." 

Why was he so far away?

"Millicent!"

Castle had a firm grip over my chin as he brought his face close to mine, and I stared into his smoldering whiskey eyes, nestled in his lap, in his bed. He pushed my hair away from my face. His hands were large but his touch was delicate and I was doing my best to not lean into it.

"Castle..." I whispered into the darkness, "I don't want to go back there." He was so close, the heat of his body sent shivers down my body as he continued to stare at me in his usual sensuous way. He didn't prefer speaking with words so much as he liked to convey with his actions. He continued to hold me so I wrapped my arms around him tightly, and buried my face into his hard chest.

"You..." he said, and paused, searching for the right words, his face sinking into my hair, "You smell like me."

It was perfect to have him hold me and I slept peacefully that night, glad that there was at least someone in this house who was kind to me, who cared about me.

*~*

The days passed as my legs started healing again; the cast came off, and I was walking slowly without using crutches. Sometimes Castle would carry me from my room to the dining room downstairs. During the time, I tried my best to avoid any conversations with Devin or Dayana because it was easier to pretend things were normal in this house. They were forcing me to stay here, and the beating was just Dayana trying to prove their point, and I'd received the message loud and clear.

Castle didn't like to make long conversations, but he knew how to get his point across. He chose his words and didn't talk unless it was necessary. He was also an excellent listener. As I'd initially thought that he couldn't understand conversations or what was going on around him, I realized how wrong I'd been. Castle was aware of a lot of things, and I was pretty sure he was hiding something from me, too.

It didn't matter. What did matter right now was the fact that he treated me like an equal and not like I was an employee in this house, but also his friend. I had intentions to keep things that way. I wanted Castle to trust me completely; it was the only way that I could beat Devin and Dayana at their own game.

I was having my evening coffee in Castle's room and he was sitting on the floor watching the trains moving on the tracks. I failed to see what was so fascinating about the toys that he'd stare at them for hours.

There was a soft knock at the door. "Miss. Millicent, it's Lydia."

"Come in," I called out.

The maid walked in with a tray and a glass of water. She placed them on the coffee table. "It's time for Mr. Montgomery's medication."

I smiled at her, "Thanks, Lydia. I'll make sure he takes them."

Lydia bowed and left the room.

I picked up the cup having four pills.

Castle hated taking the meds, and I'd done some research over the pills that were prescribed to him. The prescription was from one of Devin's private doctors, and they were supposed to help Castle cope with his trauma and anxiety.

I emptied the cup into the toilet and flushed them down.

A satisfied smile tugged at my lips.

Castle needed his memories back, and those pills were making sure they didn't.

Devin's medication had to go.

I went back to his room and sat down on the floor beside Castle, watching the trains as they zigzagged. Castle glanced up to me, bewildered about the pills that I hadn't insisted him to take this time.

I casually brushed the dark locks away from his face. "Wanna keep a secret? Just between you and me?"

"What secret?"

"You won't be taking any medications from now on, but if Devin or anyone else in this house asks you about it, we're going to pretend that you are. Okay? It's going to be our little secret."

He grinned, and it was the first time that I'd seen Castle look so happy. I felt like cupid had struck me with a few of his arrows.

"Our secret." He promised. 

* * *

Please Like and Comment if you enjoyed reading the story.