A Reborn Bride Pearl Emerging from Dust

"You" He grimaced, eyeing her up and down. "What happened to your face? Did you catch something? Are you sick?"

"That looks like some kind of contagious rash!" Silas exclaimed, dramatically putting himself between Calliope and Lisette.

"What's all this noise about?" Zelda walked in just then, catching Lisette's raised voice. She shot the group a suspicious look, her eyes finally landing on Lisette's face.

She recoiled a step, staring in disbelief. "Lisette, what happened to your face?"

"My face?" Lisette reached up to touch her cheek, but she didn't feel anything unusual. Seeing the horrified expressions on Valerian and Silas, she started to panic. She glanced around nervously, hesitated, and then bolted back to her

room.noveldrama

A few seconds later, a blood-curdling scream echoed from down the hall.

Zelda shot Silas a glance, then looked over at Calliope, her voice sharp. "What's going on with Lisette? Did you do something to her?"

"Me? Why would I do anything?" Calliope sounded genuinely bewildered. She held up her hands in protest.

"My wife didn't do a thing," Silas interjected, crossing his arms. "If you've got questions, ask me. Don't go blaming her."

Zelda rolled her eyes. Before she could respond, Silas leaned in, lowering his voice with mock seriousness. "By the way, Zelda, you might want to keep your distance. Lisette's rash looks like it could be contagious. Wouldn't want you catching something nasty, especially at your age. Young folks bounce back faster, you know?"

Zelda paled. She could sense there was more to this than met the eye, and she was pretty sure Silas had something to do with it.

"What kind of disease is this? Did she pick it up from one of the dogs?" Zelda glared at Silas. "Mr. Myers, is this your doing?"

Silas just shrugged. "Maybe it is. So what?"

Zelda hadn't expected him to admit it so casually. She had a whole speech prepared, but his attitude left her speechless. All she could do was shoot him another glare.

"So, Mr. Myers, what exactly did Lisette catch? What kind of virusas this?" Zelda pressed, clearly rattled. She'd caught a glimpse of the angry red bumps all over Lisette's face, and it made her skin crawl.

Silas just smirked. "Why should I tell you? Remember when Callie caught that virus from a stray dog a few years back? You were all for kicking her out on the street."

He leaned forward, his tone icy. "Now you're worried about Lisette, but where was your concern for Callie back then? No one helped her. She almost died because of a stupid dog, and if she didn't know a bit of first aid, she'd be dead."

He crossed his legs, posture radiating authority as he stared Zelda down.

Zelda shifted uncomfortably, memories of that incident flickering in her mind, though she couldn't quite remember the details. Calliope had survived, hadn't she? That was all that mattered. Zelda never really cared about Callie, but Lisette was different. She couldn't let anything happen to her.

point in holding a grudge?"

"She didn't die, did she? She's fine now, isn't she?" Zelda snapped. "So what's the