He stood up.
“I’ll be going now, will you be fine on your own?” He asked me.
I couldn’t admit that I was scared that Josef would jump out from somewhere and he would finally take me away, this time he would succeed and I’d never see Christian again.
“I’ll be fine…” I didn’t even finish my statement and Jeandre was already out of the door. I looked around, the pain in my body was already easing, the bandage on my head felt like a headband I only had to pretend it was a fancy fashion accessory.
I climbed off from the bed and walked to the window, I was lying and telling myself that I was just watching people move about but in reality, I was waiting to see Josef walk in so that I would have enough time to escape.
***
CHRISTIAN
I walked through the doors and the first person I see in the crowd is Kylee. She was walking towards the exit. At first my mind can’t place why she would be out here at all because I had to deal with a lot of things and my thoughts haven’t settled.
She looked and saw me, she stopped walking and I stopped too. Her eyes were red and her lashes were wet. She had been crying, instantly my thoughts went wild.
“What happened… Is Jenna okay?”
Kylee winced and I let go of her shoulders, I didn’t even reminding reaching forward to hold her.
“Jenna is fine” she said softly.
“Then why are you out here?”
“I’m leaving, I’m going home” she explained.
“Did you leave her to be on her own?” I asked her in fear.
Her eyes momentarily widened and she shook her head.
“No, j didn’t leave her alone, she’s with Jeandre”
I wanted to tell myself that she was safe with Jeandre but the rising anger didn’t let the thought dissolve.
“I gave you one job Kylee. I told you to stay with her and watch her over her. You know what she has been through ”
I was so angry I didn’t care about my feelings, and slowly I lost all reasoning.
“I’m sorry I__”
She knew what Jenna had just gone through, I wanted her to watch over Jenna because she was the only person I trusted.
“Isn’t that Jeandre?” I asked looking up ahead and truly it was Jeandre.
Walking towards the exit majestically, his eyes caught us and I looked down at Kylee.
“This is who you left her with and now he’s also leaving ”
“Never in my life have I ever been disappointed with her. Never, she was like different being when it came to efficiently and even when she failed, time and time again, I never felt disappointment only pride that she was capable of handling tasks.
But now the disappointment was heavy on me, I could taste it on my tongue, I could feel it wrapping itself around me like a fur coat then anger seeped in like dry heat.
“I swear I didn’t know that Jeandre would leave her too, I didn’t think about it”
“Thank you” i told her, my tone was bitter and sarcastic. I left when silver lined her eyes and I walked towards the elevator.
When I got to Jenna’s room, it was empty. My nightmare was beginning to grow sharp fangs and tear their way into reality. I couldn’t stop picturing Josef escaping and coming back to drag her away, even after I ensured he never saw daylight.
The room was empty and there was no sign of her, I was loosing it. She had gone missing again, I failed her one more time.
“Jenna!” I yelled.
I opened the next person’s door, I looked inside.
There were two men sitting in two chairs and one woman laying in the bed.
They stared at me questioningly as I scanned the room.
I shut the door and I went to the next room.
“Christian…” It was Jenna’s voice behind me.
I turned around sharply and she ran towards me, I hugged her tight and it took strong will not to at the amount of relief I felt.
“Where were you?”
“Bathroom. You look like a kitten abandoned in the rain, a very attractive mess” she said combing her fingers through my hair.
I closed my eyes and drank in the sensation of her hands, this is real I told myself.
This is real, she’s really here… I tried to convince myself that it was her fingers in my hair, she’s the one in my arms but the person in my arms felt too fragile and she smelled like antiseptic… Not citrus or feminine fragrance.
I opened my eyes and she smiled at me but slowly, her smile faded and she stopped soothing my head.
“What’s wrong?”
“I feel like this is a dream and I that I’m going to wake up and the news would be that they haven’t found you yet”
Her lips curled downwards at the side and she closed her eyes.
“How was your life before you and me?’ I asked her bad her eyes shot open.
“Boring… ” She said with a smile, she was being optimistic. Nothing was worth smiling about.
“Mine too, but now how is your life with me?”
Her eyebrows crinkled.
“Very active, if that word isn’t an understatement” she laughed a little and sighed.
I wondered how she managed to be laughing when she was the victim. Then a thought struck me, the ones that are thrown into the darkness are the ones that grow into it.
She has seen a lot of wickedness, she’s faced torture right from every tender age and now she laughs in the face of misery.
“Would you continue, to be with me even through the worst times, times like what this?” I asked her.
“Mr Christian, is this a vow?” She asked with a very wide grin.
“Yes. Since you don’t fall through with promises” I joked and I found myself laughing with her.
“The thought of leaving you has never crossed my mind wait are you thinking of leaving me because I look like shit?”
I laughed again and shook my head.
“Never, you have me bewitched my darling and you are beautiful, what are you talking about this is how your hair is everytime we’re together because you know, I can’t keep my hands out of it and these dark bruises” I ran my hand over he bruises on her cheeks. “I tied you up and you told me to fuck you like you’re a dirty slut and I hit you too hard a couple of times, because you asked for it rough”
She bit her bottom lip and her eyes glowed with mischief.
“You’re getting me excited “