Chapter 26
Emerson
I don’t know how he does it, how he makes me rethink everything about myself. He always casts some sort of doubt in the back of my mind. In the short time he’s had me, he makes me think about my life and the things I thought I knew. And that unnerves me.
Up until I was kidnapped, I thought I knew who I was, what I was. I never looked at myself any other way, but Gannix seems to think there’s a side to me I’ve never seen before. Maybe he’s truly crazy.
He has my arm wrapped around his as he talks to some people when a few women come to pull me away from him. I’m actually surprised when he allows them to, although he doesn’t let me get too far.
“So, you’re here with Gannix. How did you two meet?” How the hell do I tell her he stalked me and then stole me?
“At a party with mutual friends.”
“Well, you’re a pretty lucky woman. I’ve never seen Gannix bring a woman to any of his events,” the redhead tells me.
“Why is that?” I ask.
“He’s very private. There’s been rumors,” she adds.
“Such as?”
“I shouldn’t say,” she replies, taking a drink from her glass. I can see the look in her eyes. She wants to tell me everything she knows, and all I have to do is press a little harder.
“I haven’t heard anything.”
“Nothing?”
“No,” I say, smiling at her.
“Well, I heard he’s somewhat of a recluse. Amber, the blonde over there,” she motions to another girl. I glance over and look back at her. “She knows some of the men who work for him, and supposedly, he has some secrets of his own.”
“Such as?”
“She said that she heard he was harmed as a child, in what way we don’t know, but that he is scarred from it.”
“Scarred?”
“Yes.”
“I’ve never seen any scars on him,” I add as I think back. Then again, I’ve never seen the man naked unless I was drugged. Is that what he’s hiding from me? He expects me to expose my scars to him, but he’s hiding some from me? I don’t know why that makes me as angry as it does, but it pisses me off.
“From what we’re told, they aren’t ones you can see easily.”
“And how do you know this?”
“Just rumors.”
“Maybe you should leave the rumors where they started,” I snap her before turning and walking back over to Gannix. I don’t know why I feel like I need to protect him or why I’m pissed at him at the same time.
Gannix looks down at me, a strange look on his face as he watches me. I cross my arms over my chest, being as defiant as possible when he excuses himself from his friends. He rests his hand on the small of my back and leads me across the room into a dark corner.
“What’s with you?”
“What do you mean?”
“Why do you look angry?”
“I was told some things, and it’s annoying me,” I tell him.
“What things?”
“What does it matter? You like to keep secrets, don’t you, Gannix?”
“What are you talking about?” he asks, his brows furrowed. I huff out a breath before trying to walk away from him, but he doesn’t let me get far. He grabs my wrist and pulls me back, slamming my back against the wall, causing the air to whoosh from my lungs. “You’re going to answer me,” he growls.
“No, I’m not. You know what, fuck you, Gannix.” I try to pull away once more, but he’s too strong.
“Fuck me? Is that what you want? You want me to fuck you, Emerson?”
“You’d have to drug me first, right?” I sneer at him.
“Is that what this is about? The drugs?”
“It’s about everything! You stole me, you stalked me, you sold my goddamn house! And then you have the fucking audacity to tell me that when you fuck me, I have to be drugged? What the hell kind of shit is that?” Now, I’m angry, and thoughts run wild through my head. Is it because he’s hiding something from me, or is it because I’m not good enough without the drugs?
“That’s what this is? Because I drug you?”
“Am I not good enough without the drugs? Is that it?” I question him. He shakes his head but doesn’t say anything, and that only serves to piss me off more. “Let me go.”
“No. Never.”
“You’re not going to keep me, Gannix! I don’t want this. I don’t want you,” I snap at him. His eyes keep burning through me, and a look I’ve never seen before crosses his face. It’s one of anger and fury.
“You don’t want me? Well, that’s too fucking bad, Emerson, because I’m not letting you go.”
“I’ll run. Every chance I get, I’ll run,” I tell him.
“And I’ll find you. If you happen to make it out of my house, I’ll hunt you to the end of the fucking earth and drag you back.”
“For what?”
“Because you’re mine.”
“And you don’t care if I want this or not?”
“No. I don’t.”
“What kind of relationship do you think this is going to be then?”
“The kind where I keep you,” he growls.
“Against my will?”
“If that’s what I need to do.” I shove at him, trying to push him away from me, but it’s pointless. Gannix just smirks at me with a deadly look in his eyes. Maybe he shouldn’t have brought me out of the house. Maybe that was his mistake because by the time this night is over, I’m getting the fuck away from him.
I take a few calming breaths, making him think I’m calming down, so he loosens his hold on me.
“You done now?”
“Yes. I need a drink,” I tell him. He nods his head and starts to walk away from me, heading for the drinks. I slowly glance around, looking for the nearest exit. Gannix disappears into the crowd, and that’s when I move.
I make my way down the wall to the end, where it cuts off, and see an exit door. I glance over my shoulder once more, but I don’t see him, so I take the chance and go.
I shove open the door and start to take off when I hear his voice.
“Run, baby.” A scream rips from my throat as my hand flies up to cover my mouth. How the fuck did he get out here? I spin to face him and see him standing with his hands in his pockets, leaning against the wall. I’m about to open my mouth when he shakes his head.
“I said run, Emerson. See how far you can get. As you know, I’m a good hunter. I’ve been hunting for a very long time.” His tone is calm. Cool. Almost too calm. I look over at the trees before looking back at Gannix. He doesn’t move or even attempt to move. He stands there, still as a fucking statue, as he watches me.
“I don’t want to do this,” I tell him softly.
“Emerson, I’m giving you two minutes to fucking run,” he warns in a dark tone.
“I …”
“Sixty seconds.” I look over as my heart hammers inside me. Should I do it? Should I run? I could hide from him, right? Surely, I’m faster than him now I’m healed and healthy. I can make it, can’t I?
“Fifty,” he says now as my stomach lurches. I should take the head start. I could make it further that way. I could trick him, run one way, and then circle back. That could work, right? I’m trying to reason it out with myself, although I don’t know how well that’s working.
“Time’s ticking, Em. Forty.” My chest is heaving as I take one last look at him before I take off for the trees. I have no idea where the hell I’m going or what I’m going to do.
I just run. I run through the trees, shoving branches out of my way as I go before kicking off the heels. I can’t run in this shit.
Branches bite the bottom of my feet just like before when I had to run, but this time, it’s different.
I keep going, circling back toward the building, thinking he will think I kept going. He’ll run further into the trees, and I can sneak back out and get the hell out of here.
I slow down and creep back toward the edge of the tree line and listen intently. I can’t hear shit except for the faint sounds of the music coming from the building. I take slow, deep breaths, trying to even out my breathing so he can’t hear me huffing for breath.
Just when I think the coast is clear, I peek out once more. I don’t see anyone or hear anything. He has to be further in looking for me. I take one step when a hand wraps around my waist and one around my mouth. I scream even though no one can hear me.
My body is jerked back into his as he lifts me and moves further into the woods. He’s walking so quickly, and I have no idea where the hell he’s taking me as I kick and try to fight him.
When he stops, he tosses me like a ragdoll to the ground where I roll. Shoving up onto my hands and knees, I debate running again when he steps in front of me.
“Do you have any idea how long my father would make us hunt, Em? How long we’d stay in the woods? Once, it was nearly a week. A fucking week without food and only one bottle of water, so if you’re thinking about running again, I’d think twice. I have all the time in the world.” His words send a cold chill down my spine. His father did that to him? He left him as a child out in the woods for a week? What kind of parent does that? And why the hell do I feel sorry for him?
I start to shove myself up once more when he places his foot on my back and forces me back to the ground. I lay on my stomach as Gannix climbs over me, sitting down on the back of my legs. His hands roam up my back before he rips the fabric of the dress, exposing my skin.
“I’m sick, Em. I’m so fucking sick,” he says as his fingers move over the scars on my back.
“You don’t need me,” I tell him.
“But I do. More than I thought I would.”
“You could let me go,” I suggest as a tear runs down my cheek.
“Would you really want that?” Why wouldn’t I? The rational part of me says yes, I would but the irrational part of me says no because I want to know what Gannix has to offer. I want to know why he went so far for me. What he actually sees in me because I’ve never seen anything in myself.
When I don’t answer, he must take that as my answer. He stands up, grabs me under my arms, and pulls me off the ground, standing me to my feet.
“When we get home, I’m going to make you pay for that,” he warns.
“For what?”
“Running.”