“I think that would be a good idea.”
He crosses the bedroom towards the doorway but pauses before he leaves.
“I guess… I guess this will be the last time we see each other.” He says, sounding hoarse.
“Probably.”
“And that’s alright with you? It doesn’t matter to you if I walk out of here and we don’t see each other again?”
“Of course it matters.” I snap harshly, glaring at him indignantly.
“Prove it.”
His provocation is the final straw and I throw my arms in the air in disbelief and vexation.
“How? How can I prove it? You’ve made it obvious that you despise me now, the only reason you came back here was to make me suffer!”
“You think I hate you?” He asks me, sounding incredulous.
“I know you do.”
There’s a momentary silence before he speaks again, leaving me stunned.
“Green, come here.”
My mouth falls open with shock before I narrow my eyes at him in suspicion.
He just called me Green.
Cole hasn’t called me that in years and it could be a sign that some of the resentment he’s has been harbouring for years is starting to melt away.
Or it could be a trick…
“What did you call me?”
“You heard. Now come here.”
His command is stern and I can’t bring myself to disobey him. I gravitate towards him and his authoritative tone without question, standing directly in front of him.
“Now what?”
“Green, I’m sorry. I’m sorry for allowing the love I once had for you turn into hate. I’m sorry for being jealous of you living your life while I was locked up in prison and I’m so sorry for terrifying you tonight and threatening you. What I can’t apologise for is the fact that I still want you. I want you just as much as I did back then and that’s why I have to do this.”
“Do what?”
“It will only hurt for a split second.” He assures me, placing both of his hands on my shoulders.
“Cole, what are you talking about?” I waver, trembling uncontrollably.
“I’m talking about this…”
His fist launches towards me, almost in slow motion. I scream and try to run away from him but his knuckles managed to scrape the corner of my cheek and I’m knocked out cold…
Chapter Eight
The excruciating pain and the throbbing inside my temples must be what wakes in the end. I groan, cradling my head in my hands as I try to prise my eyes open. It takes me four attempts before I can make out anything and scream when I notice a broad silhouette of a man watching me.
He’s sitting on a chair which is right next to the bed where he must have placed me. I can’t see anything but the outline of his body and that’s when it all comes flooding back to me.
Cole.
He broke into my apartment last night and then he hit me. He punched me in the face which rendered me unconscious and then he must have brought me here.
I have no idea where I am but the silence is formidable. I long for him to say something because I honestly don’t think I’m capable when it comes to conversing. My throat feels like sandpaper and my tongue is stuck to the roof of my mouth. It must have been several hours since he brought me here because I desperately need a drink and my limbs are sore from being still for so long.
“You’re awake.” He says, stating the obvious.
“What did you do to me?” I ask, sounding croaky as I place my hand against my cheek which is still pounding.
“I hit you.” He replies simply, in a matter of fact manner.
“Why? How could you do that to me?”
“Because I had to. I had to do it so I could take you with me.”
“And where are we?”
“That’s not important.” He answers brusquely, folding his arms across his chest.
“It is to me.”
“All that matters is that we’re together now and no one is going to come between that again. Not even you.”
“Cole, this is crazy.” I mumble, closing my eyes again. “You can’t do this… You just kidnapped me.”
“Call it what you want.” He shrugs, making out like it’s no big deal.
“I really need a drink.”
“There’s a bottle of cold water right next to you.”
I wince as I try to turn my head, tormented by a shooting pain which prevents me from moving my neck.
“Cole, there’s something wrong. My neck really hurts and I can’t move it.”
He jumps up from his seat in concern and gazes down at me with a look of consternation and fear in his eyes.
“Where is the pain? Is it here?”
He lightly strokes his fingertips down the side of face and then caresses my collarbone, avoiding the spot where I complained about my pain.
“What have you done to me?!” I cry, scrambling to get away from him.
“Stay still.” He demands, holding me in place. “I want to check that you’re ok.”
“You’re crazy.” I retort sharply, scowling up at him.
“I’ve told you that many times, Serena. You should have listened to me back then.”
“Maybe I should have.” I agree, reluctant when it comes to allowing him to touch me.
He continues to examine me with care, gently turning my neck from side to side. He’s been so tender and affectionate, it’s actually difficult for me to repel him. I can feel myself falling, falling right back into that dark and dangerous web which he will use to entice me. The seconds tick by and I do nothing, permitting him to explore the damage he might have caused before I finally snap out of it and slap his hand away.
“Serena…” He warns me, speaking firmly.
“Don’t call me that. I don’t want you to say my name and you certainly don’t get to touch me.”
“Fair enough.” He replies dismissively. “I know you’ll change your mind.”
“I won’t.” I argue stubbornly.
“You will, Green. We both know that.”
He picks up the bottle of water on top of the chest of drawers besides me and brings it to my lips, carefully moistening my lips before he tells me to take a sip.
“I want more.”
“You shouldn’t drink so fast, just small sips for now, ok?” He advise me sternly.
“Is my neck ok?”
“It’s just bruised. I think you landed on it when you fell.”
“You mean when you knocked me out?” I challenge him bitterly.
“Yes.”
He lowers his head with shame as he takes a seat in his chair once more. I can tell he’s unhappy with what he did but that doesn’t mean that he despises himself enough to regret it completely.
“Cole, why are you doing this? Where are we and how long do you plan on keeping me here?”
“You mean you don’t know?”
“Don’t know what?” I persist angrily.
“You’ll always be here.” He informs me. “I’m keeping you forever.”
The next few days are so blurry, they all merge into one and I start to lose sight of what day it is and even what time. The room where Cole keeps me is so dark. I can barely make out the outline of the door, let alone anything else.
Cole continues to come and sit with me on a regular basis but normally leaves when I refuse to speak with him. I can tell his little plan is not coming together and his expectations have been shattered. I suppose he thought I would calm down after a couple of days and forget all about the fact he has kidnapped me and tied me to a bed in some sort of dungeon.
At least that’s what it feels like.
I wasn’t tied up at first because I guess he must have figured that I was in no fit state to try and escape. However, my neck is much better now and the agonizing pain which I woke up to inside my head has subsided. I refused to take the painkillers which he offered me because I was scared he might have drugged them and th
at’s why it probably took me a little more time to recover from my injuries.
I sometimes wake up and find him watching over me, other times I wake up and I can tell he isn’t even in the house. I have no idea where he goes and no longer care to ask him.
The life I created for myself over the past three years is now over. I realise it’s probably been over from the moment Cole was released from prison, I was naive to think it wasn’t.
He promised me he would find me. He swore he would make sure I wouldn’t be able to run from him again and now he’s gone and done it.
I’m his prisoner.
The door opens and Cole walks in, startling me because he normally doesn’t come to see me until later on. I can only guess that it’s around lunchtime and that’s why I’m confused. Cole is always here first thing on a morning and then last thing at night, leaving me to spend most of the daytime on my own.
“Why are you here? How come you’re here so early?” I ask him warily, awaiting his response.
“Because I can’t take this anymore, it’s stupid the two of us being apart like this. I’m wandering about upstairs and you’re miserable down here, it’s just not right.”
“You’re the one who has me tied to a bed, Cole. No one has forced you to do this.”
“Of course they have. The police forced me, they left me with no choice.” He argues, clenching both of his fists with indignation.
“What are you talking about?”
“I’m not allowed anywhere near you.” He reminds me. “They told me I had to stay away from you for the rest of my fucking life and I’m not prepared to do that! I can’t do it and most importantly… I won’t.”
“And this was the only thing you could think of?” I scoff maliciously.
“It’s not like I planned it! I just knew I had to see you. It took me three months to find you and I’ve been watching you in secret for the past four weeks.”
“You’ve been stalking me?” I exclaim indignantly, struggling to believe I’ve really been observed for such a long time without being made aware.
“If that’s what you want to call it.” He retorts, sounding arrogant and cavalier about the whole thing. “Anyway, I thought that would be enough for a little while until I saw you leaving your apartment out all dressed up that night.”
“It was for my birthday, surely you don’t begrudge me that?”
“You think I don’t know you just turned twenty-one? You think I actually forgot the day you betrayed me and tore my fucking heart out?” He questions me, raising his voice as he stalks across the room towards me.
“Just carry on with what you were saying.” I placate him, holding one hand up to stop him coming any closer.
My right arm is tied to the headboard behind me and I long for him to untie me so I can start to feel my circulation again.
“I saw you leaving your apartment wearing that dress and that’s when I knew something was different. I watched you for an entire month and you barely left your apartment besides going to work. I put two and two together and figured you must be going out for your birthday and that’s when my rage started to consume me. I couldn’t believe you were actually willing to go out and celebrate after everything that happened three years ago on that date. I also wanted to keep an eye on you because you were asking for trouble with that outfit you were wearing and I wanted to make sure no one else came near you.”
“So you followed us to the restaurant?” I prompt him, needing to hear him say the rest.
“Yes and then onto the bar you decided to go to afterwards.”
I knew someone was watching me that night, I could feel it when I left the restaurant with Kevin. What I can’t understand is why I was unaware that Cole was watching me any of the other times besides that one occasion. I guess I instinctively picked up on his fury when he saw me with someone else, somehow managing to sense how close Cole was and how potent his rage was towards me in that moment.
“So it was you. You’re the guy who kissed Corrine?”
“Who?”
“One of the girls I went out with from work. She has red hair and she’s not exactly the type of girl who goes unnoticed.”
“Oh, her.” He groans, rolling his eyes. “The one with the huge mouth and annoying laugh.”
“That’s right.” I chuckle lightly, remembering the amount of times I’ve rolled my own eyes at Corrine.
“You’re right, I did kiss her.” He says bluntly. “But it meant nothing.”
It’s as though he just plunged a knife straight into my chest. It’s as though I’m seventeen again and consumed by envy, defeated by its lethal poison and powerless to stop it.
“Why did you do it?” I murmur softly. “Was it just to hurt me?”
“I didn’t know that she would tell you about it, how was I supposed to know that?”
“So you must have kissed her because you wanted to.” I whisper, fighting back my unshed tears.
“Serena, it wasn’t like that. I had just watched that guy dribbling all over you at the restaurant and then he did the exact same thing at the bar. It took every ounce of self-control I that I have to keep myself from tearing him apart right in front of everyone. I could keep myself from smashing up the whole bar so I left to get some air in the hallway. That’s when I saw that stupid bitch you work with who couldn’t even walk straight. I planned on trying to get as much information as I could out of her about you but it was clear she wasn’t going to give anything useful away. In the end I just decided to give her what she really wanted. It was pathetic the way she was drooling all over me and I wanted to see the hurt and confused expression on her face when I shoved her aside like the piece of trash she really is.”
“How can you say that? How can you be so cruel?” I yell, struggling to sit up in bed.
My wrist is still tied and I cry out in pain, realising how useless it is to try and break free from my situation and this room.
“How could you let that guy touch you?” He roars, firing back at me.
“You mean Kevin?”
“Don’t even speak his fucking name, Serena! I swear to God…”
“There is nothing going on with me and him or anyone else for that matter. He’s a colleague of mine from work and I didn’t even know he was going to be there.” I explain. “Corrine has been trying to set me up with him for months but I’m not interested.”
“That’s not how it looked to me.”
“I don’t care how it looked, that’s the truth!”
“So why the hell did you go out with him the following day? Why did you meet him in that coffee shop if there’s nothing going on between you both?”
“You followed me again.” I sigh wearily, closing my eyes with exhaustion and fatigue.
“Of course I did. I had to find out who this guy was and what he meant to you.”
“Cole, if you’ve laid one finger on him…”
“You’ll what? What will you do, Serena?”
He narrows his eyes at me and waits for my response, appearing superior and smug.
“I’ll go to the police.”
I’m shocked by my own statement, not sure if I really meant it or not. I don’t know if I could ever do that to Cole again. The phone call I made was the hardest decision I’ve ever had to make and I don’t think I have the strength to put either one of us through that for a second time.
“You really think I’m going to make the same mistake twice? You think I’d let you near a phone?” He taunts me.
“So you’re planning on keeping me down here forever? You really have lost your mind if you think that’s even possible.”
“I don’t want to keep you down here, Serena. I want to be able to show you the rest of the house and I want you to see our bedroom… if only I could trust you”
“Whose house is this? Where are we?”
He smirks at me, relishing in my discomfort and confusion.
“This is our house, Green. Yours and mine.”
&n
bsp; “You’re deranged.” I inform him sharply, turning away from him.
“Serena, I’ve spent the past year planning all of this and making the arrangements which were necessary for us to live here.”
“How could you do all of that when you were in prison?”
“I have contacts.” He replies evasively.”
“God, I don’t even want to know. Is there no end to your criminal activity?” I retort disdainfully.
“Listen, I want to untie you. I want you to let me take you upstairs, run you a hot bath and give you something to eat. Please let me do that for you, Serena.”
He’s practically begging, switching back to the Cole I once knew. It’s a painful reminder of the man he used to be and I find myself softening towards him, craving the affection he once would have shown me.
“And… and I won’t have to come back down here?”
“Only if you try to escape.” He answers me directly.
“You know there are times when I’m going to have to leave the house, don’t you?”
“I realise that but I’ll make sure I’m with you when you do.”
“Cole, you can’t be with me twenty-four hours a day.”
I exhale loudly, squirming with discomfort and vexation. I need to get out of this room and I’m not ashamed to admit that I’m willing to do anything to make it happen.
“Can’t I? Just watch me.”
He turns on his heels and shuts the door behind him, leaving me in darkness once more.
He waits another half an hour before he comes back for me, apologising for the delay before he gently unties me. He winces when he sees the abrasions to my wrist, covering me with kisses as he promises he will fix everything.
“Baby, I’m so sorry.” He whispers, carefully lifting my fragile body from the bed. “I’ll make it all ok again, I promise. You don’t have to worry about a thing now because I’m here and I’m going to take care of you.”
I’m so weak, I honestly don’t think I have the strength to stand. Cole tried to convince me that I had to eat something over the past few days but I refused, nibbling on a dry piece of toast when my hunger became far too intense for me to handle.
“I feel sick.”
“Shh, it’s ok.” He soothes me, placing a kiss against my forehead. “You’re just hungry. You’ll feel so much better once you’ve had something to eat.”
That Summer (Part Two) Page 12