Chapter 19 Dangerous Games
Dangerous Games
Breathe in. Breathe out. Breathe in. Breathe out.
Air left my lungs in slow gusts, the burn expanding in my chest as my leg muscles strained under my own weight. My thighs ached as they fought against the force of gravity with each step I took, but the anguish was worth it as I clenched the water balloon in my hand.
Raising my arm, I chucked it ahead of me and waited with high hopes to hear it splatter all over one of my intended targets.
“Missed me!”
An exaggerated snort followed.“That’s three for three, Jaden. You should be ashamed,” Clive commented.
Carla scoffed. “Don’t listen to them, Jaden. They don’t know what the hell they’re talking about.”
I ignored her as I took another three steps up the main stairway, exhaling slowly through the tightening tension in my calves. It didn’t help that I had just completed a hundred lunges about thirty minutes before this.
“Just a few more steps and they’ll be in sight, Mrs. Davis,” Theresa, my physical therapist, encouraged me.
“Right! Then you can really nail those bastards,” Carla added enthusiastically.
I nodded as she handed me another water balloon from the bucket she was carrying, my gaze returning to the top of the winding stairway where Clive and Owen continued to taunt me.
Almost halfway to the top, I threw the water balloon, holding my breath as I waited to hear it break against something.
“Ah, that one grazed my arm!” Owen shouted excitedly.
“Getting closer!”
Three more steps and a deep leg stretch later, I could finally see the top of Clive’s head. Taking the water balloon from Carla, I leaned over into the angle of the stairway and hurled it upward, the splash actually sounding promising this time.
“Well, now my shoes are wet,” Clive announced dispassionately.
Owen laughed obnoxiously like he was genuinely enjoying himself.
“Serves you right!” Carla shouted up the stairs, causing Theresa to giggle quietly to herself.
Another three steps and I was finally beyond the curve of the stairway, both of the blindfolded faces of my bodyguards now in view.
Clive was stationed a few feet beyond the top of the stairs while Owen was slightly further back, the pair of them patiently waiting like they were standing in front of a firing squad.
“I’d take wet shoes over bunny slippers any day,” I retorted, ignoring the burn in my thighs as I chucked the next water balloon. It landed squarely in the middle of Clive’s forehead, the water drenching his face and soaking the top of his white dress shirt.“Bullseye,” I stated smugly.
“Nice throw, Mrs. Davis!” Theresa cheered beside me.
Clive groaned as he shook the water from his face, a red mark blooming on his skin from the impact.
“You do realize you didn’t have to wear the slippers, right? You could have just stayed barefoot.”
“I know that, Owen,” I replied lightly, flipping the next water balloon in my hand as I stopped at another third step. “But I’m a good sport, and now it's your turn to show the same enthusiasm.”
My next throw landed in the middle of Owen’s chest, his body jerking slightly as he absorbed the surprise impact.
“Nice one!” Theresa praised again. “How are the legs?”
My knees were feeling wobbly, and my sciatic nerve pain was starting to compete with the acidic tightness of my muscles, but it was well worth it if it meant I got to exact a little consequence-free revenge against my joker bodyguards.
For every third step I made up the stairs, I got to chuck a water ballon at them from my position. They were allowed to dodge them, of course, but that was a little difficult to do while blindfolded.
Darren’s version of petty revenge for Clive and Owen’s bunny slipper prank was just as unsurprisingly creative as it was motivational.
“Legs are doing just fine,” I lied, not wanting Theresa to disturb my fun with another breather break when I only had six more steps to go.
Clive exhaled a laugh. “She’s lying, you can hear it in her voice.”
“Shut up, Clive,” I warned before tossing another balloon at his face.
Despite the blindfold, he dodged it last second, allowing the balloon to soar right past him so that it landed against the side of Owen’s neck.
“Ack!” Owen griped as he cringed into himself, the water soaking into his shirt that was now completely drenched from the first balloon.
“Well, I’m sure she can hold out for another few steps,” Theresa replied with a wink.
Smirking, I took two more water balloons, released a deep breath, and climbed my final steps, hurling the balloons until I finally reached the top.
“Have you had your fun yet, Jaden?” Clive asked, his suit pants now sporting a large wet spot at his hip while Owen’s face looked like a glossy tomato.
I glanced down at the bucket Carla was holding to find eight more water balloons inside. Darren had named this the bonus round.
“Almost.”
Five minutes later, both of my bodyguards were drenched from head to toe with various puddles of water surrounding them.
Thankfully, the staff had removed anything that could have been damaged should I miss my targets, but seeing all the water and broken pieces of balloon everywhere, I felt a little guilty for making such a mess.
At least it was a fun mess to make.
“That was some excellent work, Mrs. Davis,” Theresa chimed in. ”Those stairs never stood a chance.”
“Absolutely agreed!” Carla added.
I tried not to roll my eyes at their corniness, instead choosing to focus on the fact that I had completed the stairway challenge.
My muscles burned and my joints wobbled, but regardless of the aftereffects, Darren had agreed that if I could climb a flight of stairs in one go, then I could officially graduate from physical therapy.
It had taken me three weeks to get here, and while I still had more muscle to rebuild, my independent functionality had irrevocably been reclaimed.
“Thanks, Theresa. I really appreciate all your help getting me here.”
“It was my pleasure, Mrs. Davis. Your dedication to your recovery has been truly inspiring. I’m glad I got to be a part of it.”
As long as I kept my grimaces to myself, she would have no reason to question her professional assessments. Regardless of how badly I wanted to collapse to the floor right now, maintaining appearances was paramount to keeping my independence.
“Well, if you three are done with today’s thrilling exercise, we’re going to go change,” Clive announced as the two of them pulled off their blindfolds and headed to their quarters down the hall. “We’ll find you after our meeting with the boss.”
“Okay, this was fun!” I shouted after them before turning back to Theresa.
“If you need anything else, or have any questions or want some extra assistance, just give me a call,” she said. “I’m going to go report the good news to your husband. I’m sure he’ll be very proud.”
I couldn’t stop the sarcasm in my tone even if I wanted to. “Oh yeah, I’m sure he’ll be ecstatic.”
“I suppose I’ll start cleaning up this mess,” Carla said with a sigh.“Jaden, you should go rest those legs of yours.”
“Good idea,” I agreed.
As Theresa went off to find Darren and Carla started collecting ballon fragments, I headed toward my den where Camaro was currently napping on her pillow in the corner of the room.
Deciding now was a good time to finally collapse, I laid on the floor next to her and stretched out my legs. They felt like they were currently made of jelly, but I knew the feeling would pass if I gave them the break they needed.
Ever since Darren had finally rescinded my stupid training wheels, progress for my full recovery had been consistent and well-maintained. My muscles were slowly recuperating, my strength and balance returning, my coordination and flexibility back to their previous ability.
I still wasn’t exactly in fighting shape yet since I hadn’t started impact training, but at least I could walk a full flight of stairs again.
My mood had skyrocketed as the days passed, and I rubbed it in Darren’s face every chance I got to make sure he knew how well I was doing.
He couldn’t refute my success, even if he wanted to, and for the most part, he’d been pretty supportive lately, even if he secretly wished he could keep me bedridden.
But this whole week, he’d been extra broody and short-tempered, snapping at just about anything and it was getting on my nerves. That usually meant he had too much stress building up and he would need an outlet soon or someone would get killed.
And there was usually only one way for me to resolve that.
Ugh. Good thing I’m limber again.
After about a thirty-minute rest and stretch session, I somehow felt good enough to run a damn marathon. Camaro had also woken up and was nudging my knee for attention. I smiled as I ruffled her ears and kissed the top of her boney head.
“How about we go for a walk? Maybe through the trees? We haven’t been down that path in a long time.” At the word ‘walk’ Camaro immediately jumped to her feet with a confirming bark. I chuckled at her excitement. “Okay, let’s go.”
Making our way through the house, we headed out into the backyard, the salty ocean breeze catching my hair while the sun, in spite of the grey clouds building in the distance, shined brightly overhead.
“Come on, Camaro,” I said, turning and heading for the tree line, picking up my pace quickly into a light jog.
I made it maybe ten feet in before an electric shock struck through my body, eliciting a sharp yelp of pain. I instinctively stumbled back, disbelief and fear punching me in the gut at the familiar agonizing sting of electrocution.
What the hell?
I paused, my eyes darting in every direction, wondering if Darren had intentionally activated my shock collar or if I had unknowingly breached a boundary.
My shock collar hadn’t been activated like that since my time in the basement when Darren used it as a tool for punishment and manipulation rather than a deterrent.
My body shuddered with anxiety at the memory.