Mena
My eyes had been covered for the whole trip, and I had no idea where Anson had taken me. Once we arrived, he handcuffed me to a pole, making sure I couldn’t run or call for help. Before he had tied me up, I had managed to slip the ring in my back pocket, and that was a good call because he had patted me down to look for my phone that luckily wasn’t on me.
He had left soon after we arrived, leaving me all alone in this abandoned place. It looked like no one had lived there for a long time, and it gave off the vibe of a squatters’ home.
It was cold, freezing-I was exhausted, nauseous, and lost.
Eventually, Anson returned, carrying a paper bag in his hands. He hummed a tune as he unpacked some food with a smile on his face. He was enjoying this way too much.
“Open 24/7,” Anson held up the sandwich as if I had asked him to do that. Then he approached me, and I quickly turned my head away. It was of no use as he grabbed my chin, forcing me to look at him. I did, and that look in his eyes was unlike anything I had ever seen before.
“I brought you some food. I-It’s your favorite. You have to eat, baby,” he said. “Okay?”
I nodded slowly, not wanting to anger him any further. I was trembling, scared of what might happen if I refused. He held the sandwich to my lips, and I took a bite against my will, struggling to swallow it down.
“Tastes good, doesn’t it?”
Again, I just nodded, not trusting myself to answer. If I would, his anger would jump to another level, and although it wasn’t that high, level three was where I would actually begin to feel the physical pain.
“Where are you taking me?” I asked after swallowing a second bite.
“That’s not for you to know. The sun will rise soon, so we’ll wait until it’s dark again,” Anson replied.
The thought of Naty waking up to find me gone filled me with sadness. It hurt, made me feel like a horrible person, but I knew this was the best way to keep her safe. Anson couldn’t use her against me like he did before.
I did what I had to do to save Mrs. Rodriguez, and I did not regret my decision.
Anson tried giving me a third bite, and I tested the waters by slowly shaking my head, fearing his response.
“Fine,” he clicked his tongue as he got up. “Then don’t eat and starve. Your choice.”
My eyes followed him as he grabbed his gun from the table. He held it in his hand as he paced back and forth, his mood changing by the minute.
I told myself to hold on just for a while longer, until Alessio would be here-but watching him now, I didn’t know if we would have that long.
Regardless, I did still not regret my decision-nothing could make me regret it.
“What is your plan after this, Anson?” I whispered.
He stopped pacing, and pierced his eyes through mine. “What do you mean, what’s my plan?”
“Anson, where will you be taking me?”
He chuckled, “Don’t worry about that,” he said, brushing off my question.
I chuckled back, but not because anything was funny-because of disbelief. “You know they’ll be looking for me, right?” I provoked him, even though I knew I shouldn’t-but he was driving me insane.
Anson clenched his jaw, showing that my words had hit a nerve.
“You know he’ll be looking for me, right?” I pushed further. It was like my mouth had opened on its own because my brain knew not to talk back to Anson.
“And who is ‘he’?” his tone was cold.
“You know who. Alessio,” I said, the name slipping out before I could stop it. That’s when I knew I had gone too far.
In a flash, Anson lunged forward and wrapped his hand around my throat. I moved my feet as I gasped for air.
“Don’t mention that fucking name,” he hissed before releasing me by throwing my head back. I breathed heavily and made a mental note to myself not to try something like that again.
It wasn’t just my life I was playing with, but also the baby’s.
“You love me, right?” I asked after catching my breath.
Anson let out a wicked laugh. “If I didn’t, we wouldn’t be here. We’re here because I’ve been so good to you, and this is what I get in return.”
“But if you love me, why do you hurt me?” I smiled, searching for any loophole to prevent him from laying his hands on me.
“It’s because I can’t…I won’t lose you,” Anson stated. “I’d rather kill the both of us before losing you again.”
Hearing this made my stomach turn. It was hard to understand how this was his sign of love, especially since it didn’t use to be this way. He had never been the best, but he wasn’t like this. He was bearable.
“I’ve wasted too much time on you, so if I can’t have you, no one will,” he added.
“And to achieve all of this, you had to kill Alessio’s uncle and work with the Baldinis?” I asked, trying to make sense of everything. “Were you really going to marry Maxine? And then what?”
“I was going to marry her, then take over every damn business that man of yours owns since it’s money you love so much,” Anson snapped back. “We all know why you left, and that’s because I wasn’t making enough money.”
Right, as if that was the reason.
“That isn’t true,” I whispered to myself.
Anson’s behavior turned even more frightening. “It is true,” he repeated over and over as he began pacing again. Now he was like a zombie, ignoring my presence. It was hard to see someone I once cared about change into this angry demon, it really was.
“No, no, no!” Anson suddenly shouted, his hands clutching his head.
“Anson, what’s wrong?”
“Shut up!” Anson cried, pointing the gun at me. He was in the darkest mood I had ever experienced him in, and it only got worse.
“Anson, you’re scaring me,” I said, my voice shaking.
“I’m scaring you?” he closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. Then he pointed the gun at himself. “This is what you want, right?” he sounded broken and lost.
“Please, stop it!” I begged him, terrified of what he might do next.
“I do love you, and I do love Naty,” he spoke in tears. “I love both of you so much-but there are these voices in my head telling me to do things.”
“What kind of things?” I asked gently. “Help me understand.”
Anson opened his eyes, and I gave him a comforting look. He turned away for a moment, but then he began talking.
“They tell me… they tell me that I can’t trust anyone. That everyone’s out to get me, even you. They say I have to keep us safe, no matter what,” he cracked. “But you won’t fucking listen!”
It was clear he was struggling with something I couldn’t help him with. “It’s not too late to do the right thing,” I said, hoping to get through to him.
“You can take me back, and I’ll make sure to get you the help you need. It’s not too late to do the right thing.”
Maybe, just maybe-I could still reach some part of the old Anson.
Anson took a breath and came closer, giving me a small, soft smile which made me believe he was maybe considering it. “Can you really?” he asked, hopeful.
“Yes, really!”
Without warning, his eyes changed, and they turned dark and angry. He grabbed my face, forcing my mouth into an O-shape. “You little stupid bitch. You really think I’d let you manipulate me again?” he hissed.
Terrified, I shook my head as he had reached a new level. This was the state where he didn’t care anymore, the state where he was so far gone that even I couldn’t talk him out of anything.
Anson grinned, “You and I will stay together forever, and we will live a good and happy life until the day we die.”