Chapter 4: Rumors in the Winter House

My cheeks burned with embarrassment, and I kept my gaze fixed on my hands. The only sounds were the soft whisper of fabric and the distant ticking of the old wall clock.

Julian closed his eyes, his face a mask of calm from start to finish.

He lay still, shoulders tense, as if bracing for pain. I noticed the faint tremor in his hands and the way his jaw tightened with each movement. He was used to suffering in silence, and the realization made my chest ache.

“This might sting a bit. Hang in there,” I murmured.

My voice was gentle, barely more than a whisper. I wanted him to know that I was here to help, even if it meant causing a little pain now to spare him more later.

Then, I pressed a thin needle into the pressure point just below his kneecap.

The needle slid in smoothly, exactly where it needed to go. I watched his face for any sign of distress, ready to stop at the first sign of real pain.

Julian’s eyes flew open in shock, staring at my hand. “What are you doing?”

His voice was sharp, edged with panic. He tried to jerk away, but I kept my grip gentle, murmuring, “It’s okay, I promise.”

“Obviously, I’m giving you acupuncture. With the right needling and massage—just an hour a day—you’ll see real progress.”

I spoke calmly, explaining how acupuncture could help stimulate healing, reduce pain, and restore function. I broke up the explanation, pausing to let him react, hoping the steady rhythm of my words would soothe him.

I said softly, “This is my responsibility. From now on, I’ll give you acupuncture and massage every day until you’re better.”

My words hung between us—a vow and a kind of penance. I wanted him to know I was in this for the long haul, no matter what it took.

Julian clenched his fists, his body tense. “Is this just another game, Autumn? Another way to mess with me?”

His voice trembled, thick with anger and something else—fear, maybe, or hope. He searched my face for any sign of a lie.

He suddenly grabbed my wrist, his grip hot and tight, his eyes boring into mine.

His hold was almost desperate, and for a second, I saw the boy he’d been before all this—the one who still believed in happy endings.

When Autumn had ordered his legs broken and stripped him after drugging him, he had never been so flustered.

He’d learned to grit his teeth through pain, to bite back screams. But kindness—real, unexpected kindness—left him reeling. He didn’t know how to respond, and that unsettled him more than any cruelty ever could.

Julian never feared pain, but kindness threw him off balance.

It was a strange, heartbreaking truth. He could take cruelty in stride, but a gentle touch left him exposed. I wondered how many times the world had failed him before I ever arrived.

Kindness can twist the heart, blur the lines between trust and fear.

Now I understood why he distrusted me—why every act of compassion felt like a setup. In his world, kindness had always come with a price.

I didn’t try to explain. I just focused on examining his leg, letting my hands do the talking.

I ran my fingers over the scar tissue, feeling for heat and swelling. I catalogued every detail, determined to do everything I could to help. The silence was thick, but I let it linger—sometimes, words just got in the way.

Before all this, I’d been a holistic medicine doctor—trained at Johns Hopkins, working long shifts in the ER, patching up everything from sprained ankles to broken hearts.

I remembered the steady hum of fluorescent lights, the weight of a stethoscope around my neck, the scent of antiseptic and hope. Medicine had always been my calling, and now I had a chance to use it in a world that desperately needed healing.

When I read the novel, I always felt sorry that Julian’s life had been derailed by illness. Because of his injury, he grew to believe he wasn’t worthy of love and eventually let Savannah go. After she fell for Wesley Shaw, Julian became a ruthless trustee.

I’d thrown the book across the room when I got to that part—furious at the injustice. Julian deserved better, and I swore that if I ever got the chance, I’d give him the ending he should have had.