So after I apply more ointment to the split skin of my black eye, I sit on my bed and stare out the window, looking for Matt’s black Mustang. Soon I grow tired as I peer into the darkness outside. Disappointed, I sulk down under my covers and stare at the purple walls for a few minutes before turning out the light and drifting off to sleep.
A weight on my arm causes my eyes to pop open. Startled in the blackness, my heart pounding, I hear a soothing, “Shh.”
“Pike?” I whisper as I sit up and reach out for him.
His hand runs down my cheek as he softly breathes, “You still believe in me?”
“Yes.”
Pike tosses the sheets off of me, and the adrenaline kicks in. Like a million bees swarming in my chest, my heart pumps as Pike and I move fast, tossing my clothes and few belongings into a bag. Everything blurs in a speedy haze, and I almost feel like I’m going to be sick. My stomach is in knots with fear and excitement that I’m seconds away from being free from the hell I have been living for the past six years.
When Pike zips the bag and throws it over his shoulder, he takes my hand in his. I can see his smile grow in the shadows of the moonlight, and I can’t help myself when I lean in and kiss him, giving him every piece of my heart for this gift he’s giving me. My fairytale, rescuing me from the evil monster that lurks in the dungeon.
“I love you so much, Pike.”
“I love you too,” he quietly murmurs. “You ready?”
“Yeah.”
With my hand in his, he walks me over to the window he’d crawled in and slips out before helping me out. We teeter along the roof to the edge where Pike tosses the bag down to Matt who is waiting on the front lawn. He quickly runs to the car, tossing the bag in while Pike jumps off the roof and into the grass below. You’d think I’d be scared to jump, but I would jump ten stories down into a pile of varmints if it meant escaping from here. So when Pike holds his arms out, I jump, leaping into whatever life awaits me on the other side.
Once in the car, Matt drives us away as I stare back at that shitty, white house that has kept me caged since I was eight. I’ve spent nearly half my life locked in that tiny closet and forced down into that basement. The car finally turns, and when the house vanishes, I fall into Pike’s chest and begin sobbing like a baby.
Free. Relieved. Saved.
Pike swore fourteen was still going to be my year. I wanted to believe him, but I always doubted. Nothing has ever worked out for me, nothing until now. My cries are loud, but nobody speaks, and eventually, after time passes, I curl up in Pike’s lap and close my eyes while Matt continues to drive into the night.
CHRISTMAS HAS PASSED and Bennett has been home for the past couple of weeks. With the holidays, time has been consumed, leaving little interaction with Declan. We did meet up for coffee before Bennett returned from Dubai. The encounter was more pleasant than our usual tension. We just talked, and he told me about living in Scotland and falling into his father’s business. I almost feel bad for manipulating him so much—almost. My purpose is clear, and no one will stand in the way of me righting the wrong.
To appease Jacqueline, I agreed to meet up with her for lunch with a couple of the other girls. So when Baldwin drops me off at Le Sardine, a local French bistro in the west loop, I see the girls already sitting at one of the white, linen-covered tables.
“There she is,” Jacqueline says as I approach and take a seat.
“Sorry I’m late. I had to take a few calls.”
“Are you all set for New Year’s Eve?” Marcia asks as I take a sip of the water that’s set for me.
“I believe so. I’m just happy Bennett is here. A part of me was worried he’d have to go back out of town.”
“Please. He’d never miss this event, or a chance to show you off,” Jacqueline says. “The man is crazy about you. I’m a little jealous.”
Who is she kidding? Jacqueline is innately jealous and does a shit job at covering her attraction to my husband, but I give a charming smile, responding with, “I’m just happy he’s back home.”
Marcia’s attention goes to the front of the restaurant, and when I turn to see what’s caught her eye, I tense for just a moment.
“He is so fuckable,” she says under her breath, causing Jacqueline to blurt out, “Marcia! My God.”
“What?” she defends. “Look at him and tell me you wouldn’t let him do things to you.”
I watch as Declan talks to the hostess as Jacqueline responds, “You’re married.”
“I don’t care. It’s worth the risk, right?”
“Ask Nina.”
Turning my attention back, I question, “Ask me what?”
“About him,” Jacqueline says as she nods her head towards Declan.
“What makes you think I know anything?”
“Don’t be coy. He owns the hotel you’re planning the party at,” she states.
“Doesn’t mean I know him personally,” I defend. “But from what I do know, he seems like a nice man.” As I say this, Declan catches my eye, and with a slight smile, walks back towards the kitchen. Scooting my chair out, I politely excuse myself, saying, “With that being said, I’ll be right back.”
“Where are you going?” Marcia asks.