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“I promise you’ll be okay, Deary. I’ll be next to you every second of the day!” She reassures me. I think it over for a minute, weighing the pros and cons.

Pros, I can go outside, see things I’ve never seen before, see actual people, get to spend time out in the breeze, and go shopping for the first time. Cons, what if my father is there? Will Riot let me? I try to think of other cons, but those two are by far the loudest in my head.

“Would Riot be okay w-with it?” I ask, and she full belly laughs.

“Oh, forget that son of mine. If he’s going to keep you locked up in here, I’m taking you shopping,” she huffs, not going to take no for an answer.

“May I dress?” She smiles at me, and I run to the bedroom to change. I put on dark blue jeans with rips on the knees and mid-thighs, with a dark green band tee and some black combat boots to match Riot’s. I believe he ordered those. Who else would?

My anxiety skyrockets when we get in the elevator, expecting the doors to open at the bottom and I get snatched, taken back to my father’s house.

When the doors open and the lobby is empty other than the receptionist, I exhale a large breath of relief. Linda starts walking towards a hallway, her heels clacking on the shiny tile floor. I don’t see much of the lobby other than the fancy floors.

She leads me down a dimly lit hallway towards a janky-looking door that has a bright exit sign above it. She pushes it open and walks out to an alley where a deep rose red Audi RS Q8 sits. It’s drop-dead gorgeous. I love how deep the red is, almost looking like blood. “It’s gorgeous,” I gasp. She giggles, pressing a button on her phone that unlocks the car.

“I’ll tell my Dmitri to get you one, in a moss color,” she grins from ear to ear, mentioning the moss.

“Why does he call me that?” The words come out foreign, not understanding why he, of all people, gives me a nickname, and it’s one that I don’t know the meaning of.

“His favorite color is green, specifically a mossy green, like your eyes, baby doll.” She gushes.

Driving down the city streets, my face stays glued to the window. I watch everything pass by. The people walking to work, the street artists, the homeless people, people on bicycles weaving around the traffic. Everything is mesmerizing. Everyone has a different story, a different life, something unique to only them.

As we arrive at the mall, I see parking lots flooded with all sorts of cars of all colors. So many people here, going about their everyday, whereas this is my first time ever being at a mall, my first time in almost twenty years being outside.

Linda pulls into a handicap spot towards the front, using her seniority to her advantage. “I love being old,” she chuckles, getting out of the car and leading me to the front doors.

Going inside was like nothing I’ve ever seen before. So many stores, so many people, so many opportunities to run. Running away crosses my mind so many times. To leave and start over. Linda won’t be able to catch me, but what do I do when I’m away? I don’t have any documents or experience. Hell, I barely even talk. What good would I do in society? Nothing.

We walk for hours. Our arms full of so many colorful bags, full of everything. I’ve had a sort of bad feeling the entire time, like I’m being watched, or followed.

“I need to use the bathroom,” I say quietly, leaning into Linda’s side when I speak. She nods and starts leading me to the bathroom.

I drop all my bags onto the bench, and Linda sits next to everything. I go in and do my business first, coming back out to guard the bags as Linda uses the bathroom.

Before she comes out, I see someone I prayed I would never see again, my father. His eyes are feral, filled with rage, spice, and definitely not anything nice. My heart skips a beat, my eyes going wide as he stomps towards me. He grabs my arm with a force that rips a small cry from my mouth. His eyes shoot over to me, I just gave him a reaction he’s always wanted.

He pulls me into the men’s bathroom, shoving me roughly against the cold stone wall as I yelp. “What the fuck are you doing here?” He seethes, spit flying in my face. “You’re supposed to be my fucking debt. Did you open your slutty legs to get him to let you go? You’re a fucking WHORE, Penelope.” He can’t say anything more before some random man rips him off of me, throwing him into one of the stalls.

“Are you okay, sweetheart?” The man asks me, offering me his arm to lead me out. I take it, letting him walk me to the outside hallway. “I’LL FIND YOU, PENELOPE,” I hear him scream from inside the bathroom, making my entire body tense and a cold shiver travel down my spine. I see Linda standing with our bags and I’m unaware I’m crying until a few tears drop onto my hand. I let go of the man’s hand, running into Linda’s arms, fully sobbing at this point.

“It was him,” I whisper into her shoulder, and she coos to me, trying to soothe me. The man lingers for a moment, awkwardly standing behind me as I sob into Linda’s shoulder.

He clears his throat, grabbing Linda’s attention. “Should I call the police?” I hear him question.

I feel Linda shake her head. “No, it will be dealt with. Thank you so much for helping her. I forever appreciate you,” she replies to him. I hear him say a couple other words before his steps fade away.

Linda grabs our bags and leads me out to her car, piling everything in the trunk. I rest my head on the window for the journey back to the penthouse, everything blurring together as my mind screams at me.

This is my wake-up call. I will never be safe, I will never be loved, and I will never have a purpose. I don’t know why God put me on this Earth; maybe he was mad and just took it out on me, but I’m tired. Just tired.

*This book is an advance reader copy and is to not be distributed anywhere. [email protected]*

11

Chapter Eleven

Star Shopping - Lil Peep