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Tick.
My heart was beating so rapidly I was certain I’d have a heart attack.
Tock.
And there was no ignoring the fact the black hole surrounding my mind and my world had already swallowed me up.
Bang!
I jumped from the imaginary gunfire I heard in the back of my mind. There was no making sense of the way I was feeling or the visions splashing through my mind in shades of crimson and black.
Red for bloodshed.
Black for death.
I’d obviously watched too many stupid movies in my life.
The soldiers continued talking, moving about the house freely. I’d even heard the housekeeper’s quivering voice, more fearful than she should be but Kane had grilled her as if she’d known something about the attack. I couldn’t stand it any longer, the nervousness and the way my mind was spinning out of control manifesting itself in the scratches I’d inflicted on my arm, now red and raw from the constant nervous tic.
I tried not to think but the fucked-up images in my mind were impossible to ignore, anger and uncertainty continuing to spiral as if a thick coil of rope was being wrapped around my neck. What would happen if Daniel died? Where would I be?
Then louder voices draw my attention and I glared toward the living room doorway, uncertain what to expect. From where I stood, I was still able to tell the front door had been opened, the loud voices becoming a dull roar of orders being barked and anger being spouted off. I shrank back against the wall, surrendering to the horrible chill I’d felt since learning about the attack.
After closing my eyes, I pressed my hand against my aching head. But footsteps nagged at me, grabbing my attention all over again.
As I lifted my head, all the sounds I’d heard before were suddenly drowned out by the sight of the man entering the room.
Blood.
His shirt and face were covered in dried blood, his entire disheveled appearance something nightmares were made of.
All time stood still, the only sound that of my blood pumping so wildly it echoed in my ears. He took a deep breath, walking toward me so slowly I believed he was gliding.
What the hell was I supposed to say at this point?
My heart beat a dull rhythm as we studied each other, Daniel remaining a full foot away, but I still felt suffocated by his appearance, the blood staining his clothes. He reeked of the stench of copper, the tiny cuts on his face impossible to ignore. For a very brief second, it felt as if the blood was staining my hands, as if I’d caused the accident. Maybe I had in some undetermined way.
Even as the silence continued, the epiphany of the life I’d entered into freely under the guise of money and the promise of a new life began to decay like a rotting body in the grave.
Only then did I know what needed to happen.
And so, I issued the words that I only hoped I wouldn’t regret.
“I want an annulment.”
CHAPTER 12
Daniel
There were three things I couldn’t stand in my work.
Insolence.
Disobedience.
Chaos.
All three kept me on edge, which wasn’t good for my psyche or anyone else for that matter. When I was enraged, I didn’t fall back into grabbing my mother’s kind personality as an influence, coming close to mimicking my father’s behavior instead. I’d worked on it over the years, enjoying time spent with animals as a way of corralling the beast inside.
