Page 5

T ime passes slowly as I lay in bed staring at the ceiling above me, thinking about everything and yet nothing at all. My feet are aching, though no longer cold, nestled under the blankets for the last few hours. I guess I’m lucky I didn’t do too much damage to them running through the woods; a few scratches and a couple of bruises are all that’s visible after I rinsed off the dirt that covered them.

I sigh, wondering if Jax is on his way yet, wondering what is going on outside the four walls of the room I’ve retreated to in defeat.

I sit up slowly, grimacing as pain flashes through my body, still sore from the other night and now from my attempted escape. As I walk towards the bedroom door I hear someone— him —moving around the living space. I open the door only to find him in the kitchen, pouring himself water and grabbing another muffin from the plastic container.

He barely looks at me but grabs another glass from the cupboard and pours me a cup of water.

“Here,” he says blandly, pushing it towards me on the countertop.

My steps towards the kitchen are tentative. I can’t figure him out, no matter how hard I try. I shake the thoughts from my head. Now is not the time to try and figure out the guy who’s holding you hostage.

I ignore my heart hammering in my chest as I open my mouth to speak, summoning confidence from somewhere deep within me.

“Has Rhett heard from Jax yet?”

“I don’t know.”

“You don’t know?”

“I’m not as involved in this as you think,” he says with a casual laugh. “I haven’t heard anything.”

I nod, convinced he’s lying, as I pick up the glass of water in front of me. Condensation runs down my hand as I take a sip, the sensation blissfully refreshing and calming my nerves ever so slightly.

For a moment I’m so lost in my own thoughts, no longer in this place with someone I don’t know, that I jump at the noise of the front door opening. I see the silhouette of two men standing in the doorway and my heart starts beating a million miles a minute, any confidence I was feeling seemingly carried out the front door by the cold wind as my eyes land on Rhett and someone I don’t recognize at first.

The door shuts loudly behind them and it takes every effort not to jump at the sound. My body goes rigid, except for my hands as I pick at my nails nervously. The guy in the kitchen beside me seems to stiffen as he gives them a curt hello, walking towards the couches and taking a seat.

They walk into the room and Rhett sinks onto the couch beside him. I feel myself recoil from his presence as a familiar panic surges within me.

I try to remain casual, try to look at ease in their presence, but a part of me is terrified about what Rhett might do if he learns I tried to run away—that I did run away.

The other guy puts two bottles of alcohol on the table before making himself at home, and I notice a gash by his eye as he sits in the armchair opposite Rhett. He looks me up and down, his eyes lingering on me in a way that makes me want to cover myself, despite my baggy clothing.

“You looked better in a dress.” He sneers as his eyes rake over my body slowly. “I have you to thank for this you know,” he says, gesturing to the cut above his eye.

Tanner.

I gulp, nodding my head and trying to feign indifference, but inside I’m screaming. It’s as if an alarm is going off in my body but I’m frozen in place and can’t move.

“I’m getting bored of babysitting… When is she leaving?” The guy who has been staying here with me nods in my direction, and I’m thankful for the redirection of the conversation.

“Well, that’s the thing, Jax isn’t coming,” Rhett drawls.

I freeze.

No.

I must have heard him wrong.

I look between them, all while feeling like I’m falling into some vortex, everything inside of me is suddenly out of place, slowly cracking and breaking into a million pieces.

“What do you mean he’s not coming?” I try to keep my voice nonchalant, confident even, but it comes out all wrong, shaky and meek.

I look to Rhett, who is still relaxed on the couch, smiling as if he revels in seeing me like this.

“I mean he isn’t coming.”

“You spoke to him? What did he say?” I can’t hide the urgency in my voice, the grief that infiltrates the words as my world starts to come crashing down around me.

Jax isn’t coming.

“Of course I spoke to him. I told him everything. How he simply needs to get my money and come pick you up. And do you know what he said?” He doesn’t wait for me to answer before continuing, “That you were a good fuck but not worth the hassle, and certainly not worth spending his money on.”

“That can’t be right,” I stammer, tears gathering behind my eyes as I try to remember to breathe. “He wouldn’t say that—he loves me… He’d never say that.”

“He loves you?” Rhett barks a laugh and Tanner joins in too, his next words cutting into me like a knife. “Trust me, he doesn’t love you. You were a fling, just a way for him to get his dick wet, just like you were to me. Nothing more than some fun entertainment to pass the time, but not someone worth worrying about. Or at least that’s what he said when I spoke to him.”

“I don’t believe you. He wouldn’t say that about me… he couldn’t .” As the words leave my lips I’m not sure who I’m trying to convince more—Rhett or myself. “Maybe you misunderstood him. If you could just let me call him, we can figure this out.” I’m grasping at straws.

Rhett leans in and wipes a tear off my cheek, looking down his nose at me. “God, you are just a pretty face, aren’t you?” He smirks. “How can you not comprehend this? He doesn’t want you, Evi, he said so himself. But go ahead and believe whatever you want, just don’t come crying to me when he doesn’t come get you,” he says.

“So what am I doing here then? If you’re not getting money from him, just let me go.” I try not to sound desperate as I plead my case.

He looks at me for a moment as if considering my request before the corners of his mouth tilt up.

“I’m sure I’ll be able to think of a way you can pay me back, so get comfortable. You might be here for a while,” he says, before shifting his attention from me to the TV. “Now, someone put the game on—the Ravens are playing tonight.”

I stand up slowly, my hands trembling as the dam within me breaks and a pain I didn’t think possible fills the void inside of me, seeping into every crevice of my body as an internal battle is waged within.

Jax doesn’t want me.

This is not real. This cannot be real.

He loves me.

He isn’t coming for me.

I’m not worth it.

He doesn’t love me.

If Jax doesn’t want me, then what is Rhett planning on doing with me?

I collapse on the bed, my sobs wreaking havoc on my body, and I cry until there’s nothing left except a hollowness within me. The last thought I have before drifting off to sleep is that the guy who caught me running away never told Rhett I tried to escape. And for some reason that gives me a sliver of hope.