Page 58

No!
No. It can’t be.
Mitch.
I shake myself out of the stupor and grab my phone. I run into the bathroom and see if there’s anything I can protect myself with. There’s nothing.
Knock, knock, knock.
“We can fix this, Nicole. Just open up. Let me in so we can talk,” Mitch calls from the door. His voice is all apologetic, but I know that’s a lie.
I come out of the bathroom and place my back against the wall farthest from the door. I have nowhere to run to. No way to escape. The only window in the room is right next to the door.
If this were the story of Andromeda, my Perseus would rescue me from this monster. The monster that stands outside my door.
But my hero isn’t coming. My story doesn’t end like Andromeda’s story.
With my back to the wall, I stare at the door. The handle is jiggling and then suddenly, the door opens.
Standing in the doorway is the man I hoped to never see again. The man I hate more than anything. A shudder envelopes me in its fearful grasp.
Mitch waltzes in, not bothering to shut the door behind him. He stares at me, his lips curl up, and his eyes narrow. “Hello, love. How are you doing?”
“What the fuck do you want?” I croak out.
He smirks. “That’s no way to greet your fiancé, is it? Come here and give me a kiss.”
“Stay away from me. Just go and leave me alone,” I plead.
Mitch shakes his head and steps closer. “No, can’t do that. See, you are supposed to marry me. I put a ring on that finger. Do you have any idea how lucky you are to have a man like me as a husband?” His hands go to his chest, feigning hurt.
“You are no man.” My body is pushing against the wall as if it will give way into another door to get me out of there.
“Oh, so we are going to be insulting me then. Okay. So, this is how it’s going to go. You are going to come with me, or I willmakeyou come with me.” Mitch shrugs and puts his hands in his pockets. He pulls out a syringe and waves it, and my blood runs cold. He now stands only a mere few feet from me.
My heart is racing, and my breathing is fast and hard. With my eyes wide I shake my head, “No. I won’t. I left, and I refuse to come back.”
“You don’t get it, do you?” Mitch looks at me, his eyebrows drawing in.
“Get what?”
“The only person who wants you is me. You’re lucky that I do. Do you know your parents didn’t even care that you left? Even your sister wrote you off,” he spits out.
I shake my head. “No. She loves me. She would never—”
“She doesn’t. She played the game like everyone else, Nicole. Or should I say, Allison.” He pauses and smiles. He steps closer to me, and we’re now standing toe to toe. “You were only there to fill the shoes of the baby they were supposed to bring home. That’s it. You are nothing special to them. You are a reminder of the child they lost. I mean, if you dad didn’t beat the shit out of his wife, maybe the real Nicole would still be here.” He shrugs.
“I’m not adopted! And I have never seen my dad raise a hand to my mom!” I scream at him, my fists curling at my sides.
“Oh, but you are. My family helped find you for the Moores. And yeah, after that incident, I hear your dad went soft. Changed his ways of getting his wife under control. Shame.” Mitch tilts his head to the side. “Didn’t you ever wonder why you were so different from them? Red hair, short, and curvy. You look nothing like them. You really mean to tell me you haven’t ever thought, ‘Why am I so different?’” His hands come up on each side of my head, boxing me in. I can feel the heat of his breath on my face.
“So, if I am, then why do you care? Why do you even want me?” I whisper. My body starts shaking, and my eyes remain locked with his.
“Because I love you.” His hand brushes my cheek. I try to pull back, but the wall stops me. “I’ve always loved you. Since the moment we met, I knew you were the one. You were so sweet, so beautiful. I had to have you.”
Shaking my head, I snap, “I don’t love you anymore, Mitch.”
His one hand comes up and grabs a fist full of hair while the other hand goes behind his back. He yanks my head down, and I cry out in agony from the pain tearing through my skull.