Chapter 27 Princess Monday | 630pm
Princess
The hot water rained against my back like it was trying to scrub off the last few days, and I let it. I leaned forward against the marble wall of the luxury suite’s glass-enclosed shower, eyes shut, heart still dragging. The bathroom was bigger than my old bedroom.
Gold fixtures. Thick white towels with the hotel’s emblem embroidered in navy thread. Everything was pristine, and still, I couldn’t relax.
Steam swirled around me, but my thoughts felt heavier than ever.
My mother was safe at my grandparents' house, and I was safe. But what the hell did that even mean when the man who took me still hadn’t left my mind?
When I could still feel his voice in my chest?
Feel him inside me. I just dragged my hands down my face, trying to wash him off.
The bathroom door swung open, and Mora, my best friend since freshman year of college, started yelling. “Bitch! Are you gonna tell me what’s going on? You’ve been in the shower for almost an hour!”
I stayed behind the glass, frozen mid-rinse.
“Nah, don’t even try to ignore me like any of this is normal.
The church was closed. Your parents weren’t telling me anything.
You haven’t posted on any of your socials.
And thennnn… you wanna hit me with one dry ass text saying ‘come to the hotel’ after days of silence.
Now you’re in here showering like you didn’t just disappear? ”
I turned the knob and shut the water off, wiping my face as I stepped out, trying to find my words. “I’m sorry.”
She crossed her arms, lips pressed tight. “You better start explaining.”
I grabbed a towel and wrapped it around me slowly, the weight of her presence dragging me out of the fog. “I was with a man named Nyce,” I said finally, voice low.
Mora’s mouth dropped open. “Excuse me?”
I didn’t move. I just stood there, soaking wet, heart pounding harder now than it had during the whole damn ordeal. “I need you to sit down,” I said. “Because it’s a long story. And I don’t even know where to start.”
She backed out of the bathroom, her eyes still locked on me like I’d lost my damn mind. I brushed my teeth, even though my mouth still tasted like regret. Then I walked out in my towel to one of my suitcases and pulled out some fresh panties, a soft ribbed tank, and gray sweatpants.
By the time I was dressed and finished spilling everything that happened, Mora was on the couch in the suite’s living area. She had her arms crossed, face tight, but her foot was tapping like she was barely holding it together.
“So, let me get this straight. You were with the biggest gangsta in all of Havencrest? The preacher’s daughter?” she asked. “Princess, are you hearing yourself right now?”
I collapsed onto the edge of the king-sized bed and sat there, staring at the floor. “Yes.”
“For how long?”
“Two days.”
Mora stood up. “Girl, what the hell?”
I looked up at her. “I didn’t have my phone. I didn’t have anything.”
“So you were… kidnapped?” she asked, voice going quiet. “Like… for real?”
I nodded slowly. “Yes. At first.”
She blinked. “At first?”
I rubbed my hands over my face again. “It’s not that simple.”
“No, it’s exactly that simple. Either you were taken against your will, or you weren’t.”
I sighed. “It started that way, but… it changed.”
She narrowed her eyes and lowered her voice like she was trying not to snap. “Princess. You mean to tell me this nigga snatched you off the street, and now you got survivor’s guilt or something? Why the fuck are you speaking like y’all had a vacation?”
“Because it wasn’t a vacation,” I said, sharper than I meant to. “It was… something I can’t explain. And I’m still trying to process all of it. But Mora, you weren’t there, and you don’t know the full story.” I lay back on the bed and stared at the ceiling, my body sinking into the mattress.
Mora’s voice cracked. “Oh, friend. This is fucking crazy.”
“Tell me about it.”
“Why are you acting like this wasn’t a whole crime?”
“I’m not acting like it wasn’t.” I turned to look at her. “I’m just telling you that there were moments where it didn’t feel like one, and I don’t know what to do with that. I mean, we fucked, Mora. You know I haven’t been with anyone except my ex.”
She walked toward the bed and sat beside me. “You don’t have to figure it out today,” she said after a long pause. “But I’m scared for you. Like, genuinely scared. Because the way you talk about this man… it’s not adding up.”
I nodded, eyes burning. “I know.”
“Did he hurt you?” Mora’s voice was soft.
I thought about that. About how I felt like I was unraveling and yet still held together by Nyce’s presence.
I thought about the fear, the confusion, and the pull.
I thought about his voice in the dark, with his hand gripping my waist, telling me he loved my pussy and that I was going to get him caught up.
I thought about the way he eventually looked at me like I was both a hostage and something else.
“No,” I said finally. “Not like that.”
She reached over and took my hand. “Then what did he do?”
I stared at the ceiling, terrified by the truth. “He made me question everything I am,” I whispered, voice raw.
Mora didn’t respond right away. She just held my hand tighter. And for a while, we sat there in silence. Eventually, she climbed onto the bed with me, and we fell asleep.
???
Tuesday | 12:00am
“Princess.”
I drifted in and out of sleep with Mora’s breathing heavy beside me. I’d heard my name, but it came from far away. I frowned in my sleep, my body slow to respond. My name came again, closer this time, low and unmistakable. My chest tightened before my eyes even opened.
“Princess.”
I blinked hard, disoriented, my vision swimming as I tried to sit up. My heart started to pound, confusion rushing in before fear could catch up. “Mora?” I whispered. She didn’t move. I pushed myself upright, my head throbbing, and that’s when I saw him.
Nyce stood a few feet away from the bed, dressed in a black sweatsuit, still as a shadow.
The low light caught the sharp line of his jaw, the calm set of his shoulders.
My breath hitched. For a split second, I thought I was dreaming.
That my mind had finally snapped under the weight of everything and conjured him up like some cruel joke. But then he spoke again.
“Don’t scream,” he said quietly.
His voice landed in my chest like a punch, dragging me all the way into consciousness. My fingers twisted the sheets, adrenaline drowning out my thoughts. “How did you…” I stammered, voice fraying at the edges.
He didn’t answer right away. He just watched me, eyes steady, unreadable, like he was gauging whether I was about to break or bolt. “I came to check on you,” he slurred, and right then, I knew he was drunk.
I swallowed hard, then I opened my mouth to speak again, to scream or sob or cuss him clean out, but then Mora stirred beside me.
“Mmh… P?” she mumbled sleepily. “You good?”
I turned my head slightly. “Don’t freak out, but…”
“What the…” Her eyes landed on Nyce, and she bolted upright like someone lit fire beneath her.
“Mora, calm down.”
“Calm down?” Her voice rose, already sharp. “Princess, what the fuck is he doing in here?!”
Nyce didn’t flinch. “Relax, shorty. I’m not here to hurt her.”
Mora got out of bed, wrapping the blanket around herself like armor. “Then get out. You don’t belong here. You had her outta pocket for days, and now you pop up like this?”
Nyce looked at me, not her, clearly growing frustrated by the second. “Tell your friend to go home, Princess.”
I stood slowly, shaking my head. “She’s not going anywhere.”
“Stop,” his voice was low now, warning. “Don’t make this harder than it has to be.”
“No,” I said flatly, grounding myself even though I was shaking on the inside. “You don’t get to walk in here and start issuing orders like you still run shit in my life. You set me free, remember?”
He took a step closer, eyes narrowing. “You think I’m here to stop that?”
“I don’t know what you’re here for, Nyce,” I snapped, my voice cracking as I climbed off the bed.
“I told you,” he gritted. “I’m here to check on you.”
“Well, I’m fine. Now, please… get the hell out.”
Mora stepped between us, glaring at Nyce. “I don’t know what kind of trauma bond y’all got, but you don’t get to drag her back into your bullshit.”
Nyce’s nostrils flared. “It’s not for you to understand.”
“You’re right. It’s not.” She turned to me, eyes wide and pleading. “But it is for you to wake up, Princess.”
I didn’t speak. My throat was tight, and my hands were clenched at my sides. I wasn’t ready. For him. For her. For any of this. But something in his eyes, underneath the tension and anger, had me stuck. After a long silence, I exhaled and turned to Mora. “I’ll call you tomorrow.”
Her face twisted like I slapped her. “Wow.”
“Mora…”
She shook her head. “Don’t. Just don’t.” She backed away slowly, snatching her phone and keys off the dresser. “You’d better know what you’re doing,” she said through clenched teeth. “Because I swear to God, I’m calling every cousin I got if he hurts you.”
Nyce didn’t even blink as he smirked. “Then tell ’em make peace with God now.”
“Fuck you,” she hissed, storming toward the door.
He didn’t stop her, and I didn’t either. The door slammed hard behind her, and just like that, we were alone. The silence wrapped around us thick, bitter, and familiar. I stood in it, arms wrapped around myself, eyes locked on the man who’d cracked me open.
“You got two minutes,” I whispered. I barely had time to inhale before his hand came up to my throat in his usual fashion. “Nyce…” I started, but he didn’t let me finish.