AllFreeNovel
Share Us
And Officer Harris finally gave me the name of the man who killed my friend.
7
EVERLEIGH
Every day during my first week followed the same pattern. I spent all day in the office adding up numbers and sorting out accounts, then used the last hour to unsuccessfully hack into their hard drives. I had to at least try finding something, refusing to stop looking for Archer even while I was a captive.
Santino followed me everywhere, so looking around the compound wasn’t an option at the moment.
I chatted with Mariana during breakfast and dinner—me in English, her in Spanish, but somehow we communicated—and fell asleep in the closet and woke up in bed, surrounded by Lucius’s scent.
That morning we were on our way to the office when someone came running up to Santino. After a rapid-fire conversation in Spanish and a mumbled “Behave” thrown my way, he dropped the keys to the office into my hand and was gone.
I knew the way to the kitchen and the office by now, but it felt strange walking by myself. I was excited because my newfound freedom meant I could finally explore the grounds, but also scared because there were a lot of guards. None of them looked like they would ask questions first and shoot later.
Nevertheless, I walked down a hall I knew wouldn’t lead me to the office. I counted three dining rooms, five bathrooms, and at least as many bedrooms on my way. All had bars on the windows.
I finally found a living room. A patio door led outside into the expansive garden. I tried the handle, my hands damp and shaky. Locked. There were also heavily armed guards standing outside. I backed up, deciding not to test my luck further.
After rounding a few unfamiliar corners, it became obvious that I didn’t know where I was. I should have paid better attention, but I was too nervous to make sure I knew where I was going. I’d always been directionally challenged.
My search for the way back to the office ended at a winter garden. There were plants of various sizes in pots all around the room. It had a glass ceiling, and three sides were made out of glass. The sun felt wonderful on my skin. It was the closest I’d come to being outside since coming here, and I soaked up the light as if it were oxygen.
Bending down, I looked at a bright pink flower, running a finger over the edges of the petals.
I was getting back up when someone grabbed my neck harshly. I was stuck in an awkward half crouch, unable to move. “Cabrona. ¿Que haces aqui?”
The voice sent a wave of terror through me. I glanced up, and the gleam in the guy’s eyes was terrifying. The grip he had on my neck was enough to make my breathing laborious.
What was I thinking, wandering around by myself?
“I don’t think you’re allowed to walk by yourself, no?” His threat was obvious, but I had nothing to say in response. We both knew I wasn’t supposed to be here.
He pushed me down on the ground and held me against the cold tiles. I didn’t make a sound, too scared to move a muscle. Nobody had ever laid a hand on me. I was frozen, immobile, stunned. My breathing became erratic; my heart felt like it was going to jump out of my chest and run away screaming.
“My silence will cost you.” He licked the side of my face, and a tear fell. His breath was stale, and he smelled of cigarettes. I nearly gagged when he roughly grabbed one of my breasts. He pinched my nipple hard, and a little cry escaped me. He seemed to enjoy it and did it again, harder this time. “You want more, do you?”
No, I most definitely did not want more. But I wasn’t dumb enough to point that out.
I closed my eyes, pretending I was somewhere else. I was frozen in fear, the thought of fighting back not even occurring to me. I was pathetic. I was ashamed. I was weak. The square root of 798 is 28. The square root of 365 is 19.
His hand wandered down my body. I jerked in his hold, causing him to tighten his grip. Breathing became a struggle. He ignored my wheezing breaths, instead squashing my head against the tile. I prayed for him to stop. I never thought this would happen to me. I’d always been so careful. Guarded. Never went home with a stranger. Parked in well-lit and safe areas.
The sound of footsteps approaching stopped the wandering hand, but nobody came inside. He squeezed my throat one last time before releasing me. “I’ll see you soon, cabrona.”
I stayed on the floor for a long time, unable to move except for the tremors racking my body. When I finally pushed myself up to a sitting position, my legs were asleep and I coaxed them to hold me when I stood up.
The fear of suffering a worse fate if someone noticed I wasn’t where I was supposed to be made me finally stand up. My throat was sore from the pressure he’d applied, and I was unsteady on my feet. The way back to the office was a blur. I took random turns and hoped for the best. I eventually found a hallway I recognized and made it back without running into anyone.
I cleaned myself up in the bathroom adjoining the office as best as my shaking hands would allow. A look in the mirror revealed the hand-shaped bruises already forming around my throat. My eyes were bloodshot, my hair tangled. I half-heartedly brushed my trembling hands through it.
Once I was sitting on my chair, it took me a while to pull myself together enough to work. I made stupid mistakes and had to fix them. I took too long to add up numbers that should have come easily to me. I lost time—time I didn’t have.
A knock interrupted the frantic laps to nowhere my brain was doing. Santino appeared in the doorway. As soon as he saw me, his face transformed into a mask of fury. I flinched, wondering if he’d found out about my little excursion.
He stomped up to my desk, placing his hands on it and leaning over it. “Who did this?”
I melted into my seat, grappling for words. My hand went to my throat. “I don’t know. I’ve never met him.”
