15
Layla’s P. O. V.
He towered over me, intimidatingly. Every word he said vibrated through my body. His eyes were like Laser beams. They bore into my face. I felt my heart accelerate inside my chest.
I didn’t know how to handle a situation like this. I wanted to push him away but I couldn’t bring myself to. I was scared of his wrath and feared I’d like the feel of his body against my hand if I did that. I needed to be mad at him. Being on his good side didn’t mean I have to like him. It’s all pretense and so far he seemed to be buying it.
Huh, I mentally scoffed at his foolishness. He thinks any girl would ever choose this life for herself?
I tried to steady my heart beat and mutter something, anything, just to keep him from getting any closer.
” I…” I stammered ” I just need to be with my phone. I get really bored here and I’ve been on my own all morning and…..”
He cuts me off as his face alined with mine, forcing a gasp of surprise to escape my lips. He has a madly synthetic smile dancing on his lips, like he was enjoying making me feel so uncomfortable. Of course, Layla, he was a ruthless gangster who wouldn’t think twice before putting a bullet into your head. I reminded myself as the memory of him pressing his gun against my head crossed my mind.
” I’m not a fool, darling, ” he said into my face, his breath fanning my lips, it felt like if I moved even the slightest bit, our lips would come colliding. ” If you’re feeling lonely, you have the luxury of walking through the entire house, it’s big enough. And perhaps, you may find a way to escape without my knowledge ”
That said, he stepped away, his smile widening by the minute. Then he chuckled sinisterly as he retreated towards the elevator, his eyes not leaving mine.
” Where’s Antoniette? ” I asked before he could reach the elevator doors. He stops instantly, his eyes glistened with mischief.
” Oh she won’t be staying here anymore, ” he replied, spreading his arms apart ” after all, this is supposed to be our honeymoon ”
I felt the anger come into me forcefully, urging me to march down and smack him across the face. But I didn’t. I knew the aftermath of my actions and I needed to think everything through first. Be on his good side, don’t get him angry, plot an escape. I repeated in my head.
” I want you to know that you aren’t getting out of here, Layla. You are mine and you get out of here when you’ve learned that this is the only place you’ll ever be accepted…”
” Why are you keeping me? ” I cut him off ” if my parents stole from you, it would only make sense that you killed me. Why am I still here? ” I prompted him. He hasn’t killed me yet nor has he raped me in my sleep which is obviously the only two things men like him wanted from women, especially ones like me who was thrown vulnerably at him for a crime.Belongs to NôvelDrama.Org - All rights reserved.
” That’s quite an interesting question, don’t you think? ” He said, retracing his steps back to me. He stops right in front of me, an arm’s length between us before adding ” I haven’t really decided on what to do with you yet. Maybe I’d kill you, maybe I won’t. It just depends. ” he shrugs his shoulders.
” On what? ” I pressed.
His smile deepens and I cowered as he rose his hand up to caress my hair before replying ” depends on your behavior ”
He stops caressing my hair and steps back to continue. ” I told Antoniette to leave so you could feel less of a prisoner and seriously, I think that’s the kindest thing I’ve done for anybody before so you should be on your knees thanking me and begging to repay me. If you think that I want you in my bed then you must be going through some painfully disturbing trauma, love. ”
My heart continued to beat fiercely as he continued.
” I’ll make something clear to you now, Layla. There’s a certain rules that you’re going to have to follow if you want to keep your pathetic life. You do not try to escape, you don’t talk unless asked to, you don’t ask anybody you see here to help you escape because, Layla, they will report to me and you would wish I had killed you two nights ago. This is all you need to do and you’d get your life back ”
The smile tugging at the side of his lips annoyed me but I kept my cool, pretending not to be affected by his words.
” Would you kill me then? ” I asked him. I can see my question put him in a confused position.
His smile dropped before he said ” then I will grant you your freedom ”
I scuffed in his face. I knew he’d never do that. So what? He’s gonna put me in his house for how long, feed and clothe me only to let me go at the end of the long run because I obeyed his silly rules of not trying to escape? How psychotic can this man be?
He walks back to the elevator and punches the button, the doors sliding apart. He stops to look at me and said ” I’ll have a dress get delivered to you now, get dressed. We’re going out ”
And he stepped into the elevator, my eyes watching his icy cold ones before the doors slid shut.
I stood there, feeling conflicted, not finding the right word to qualify what I felt that moment. I wanted to break down and cry, I wanted to scream until I numbed the pain out. I wanted to go back to the night I’d last seen my best friend and my ex boyfriend. I wanted to have waited just a little bit more to listen to Emma say what he wanted to say. Maybe he’d have asked me to go some place with him. Then I’d have called my parents afterwards telling them I’d be staying the night at Maddy’s because I had an early shift at the bar the following day. Where as I was hanging with Emma.
Maybe I wouldn’t be here.
Just… maybe.