Marian
A pinch on my hand drew me from the darkness.
Light flickered in, fading out just as fast as the void before me drew me back under.
Voices were there, but they weren’t quite making sense.
The words were a hum. A joining of jumbled sounds as the light once again flashed through my heavy, blinking lids.
My mouth was so dry. I somehow knew that as I fought to swallow.
Pain. There was so much pain. My head was splitting in two, and the need to heave had me magically rolling the smallest amount to the side.
With the change in position, vertigo had me spinning.
“It wasn’t hard at all. You could write a book with all the claims against him.
I swear, it’s like everyone there knows, they just don’t say anything for fear of being ruined or…
worse. It’s not a secret at all; it’s just not talked about.
Daniel, my lawyer friend I was telling you about, said he’d be sending me pictures soon.
I’ll email them to you the moment they come in. ”
“I knew it. And how is it going with him now?”
“The same. We can’t get on his floor. The guards are everywhere. Not even Susan as a maid can make it up there. She’s tried. It’s completely locked down.”
I groaned, trying to make out the voice I heard talking. Did I know him? I knew him, didn’t I?
“My plan will work. All we need is for him to get in a car and leave.”
“And if he doesn’t fall for the bait? He very well may not.”
“He will. He has to.”
A whimper and cry left me as I turned even more, drawing my knees up so that I could push to sit. I was going to be sick. I knew that, but aside from the panic that brought, I couldn’t think about much else.
“Go. We’ll talk soon.”
A new voice. Another male. “Shh. It’s okay. I just started fluid. You’ll feel better in no time.” This man was a stranger, but something about what he said put me a little at ease.
“Penny?”
“What was that? I couldn’t hear you.”
A strong smell wafted through, twisting my stomach.
A growl sounded in the distance, and it stole my attention from the heavy aroma.
The tone had my lids forcing open. The man at my side was in all black.
He had brown hair and deeply tanned skin, but I couldn’t look at him for long.
The man in the mask was stalking right towards me, and the fear associated with that had me pushing back on the bed.
I didn’t make it far as my other hand caught from the restraint.
It sent a deep sting racing through my arm from the cuts I already had on that wrist.
The masked man stopped at the side of the bed. He didn’t speak, but the one at my side stood at his approach.
“You can take out the IV when the bag is finished. I showed you what to do. She’ll be better soon.”
With that, he grabbed a duffle and headed for the wooden front door. My mouth opened to call out to him, but my head hurt too badly to speak. All I could do was try my best to take in the surroundings. Same room. Same cabin-feel.
“Penny?”
The man pulled up a chair, leaning back and kicking his feet up on the edge of the mattress. When he didn’t answer, I couldn’t hold in the scowl. I was too sick to argue or fight, but I wanted to. As it was, I managed only one word, and it was enough.
“Asshole.”
Silence. For minutes I closed my eyes, letting whatever was in the IV help the effects of the stupid drugs the man kept shooting me up with. The change wasn’t significant, but I was able to hold my lids open without having to wince.
“Water?”
The man stood, walking over to a fridge.
He took out a bottled water, grabbing a cardboard box to bring over.
Pizza. Yes. That had been the smell that nearly made me gag.
It was strong. Not unwelcoming at all anymore, but potent for my senses before the IV had really kicked in.
Now, all I felt was starving. How long had it been since I last had something to eat?
The missing time was messing with my head.
I wasn’t even sure what day it was or when I had even gone missing.
“Thank God.” Tears burned my eyes as I pushed back against the headboard, sitting straighter so that the cuffs would give me more room to try to reach out.
I swayed but managed to keep myself upright.
When the man placed the box on the bed, I took in his hesitancy as he sat on the edge, next to it, holding out the water.
“You kick me again or even attempt—”
“No.” I quickly shook my head, freezing as I caught the bright orangish-red color of my hair.
I swayed, not able to catch my breath as I leaned close to the cuffed hand with the IV so that I could pick up the slight curl.
“I… I… just want to eat. And pay you,” I managed, feeling sickness roll in again as I dropped my hair like poison. “I’d like to pay you and go home now.”
“What’s the matter? You don’t like your hair?”
Quiet. Deep. The voice was strained. Different yet… familiar. Or maybe I just wanted it to be. The red reminded me of my mother. Of a woman I hated more than anything in the world. To see it, to have it again, was too much.
“I do not.”
“Why not? It’s who you are.”
I didn’t speak as I leaned in and took a big drink from the water he was offering. When I nodded, he pulled it back, placing it down to turn to open the box. I couldn’t sit still as he took out a slice of pizza. But he didn’t hand it to me or offer any.
“Why don’t you like your hair?”
“Why does it matter? Why dye it back?”
“Like I said, it’s who you are.”
“I am a lot of things. One thing I am not is hers. This color is a curse.”
“You’re the curse.”
Tears filled my eyes at the hatred, but they didn’t fall. “I am.”
“So, you admit it. You’re a bad person.”
“The worst. It’s my job. It’s who I am.”
“And you like destroying people? Their livelihoods? Their lives?”
“I destroy those who deserve it. I won’t apologize for that. Can I …? I’m hungry. I feel sick. I need food.”
Seconds went by before he thrust the slice in my direction.
I couldn’t ignore how badly my hands shook as I desperately grabbed it.
I took a bite, not able to stop from moaning at the taste.
I was suddenly too ravenous to care about how hard it was to eat at this angle.
I ate and ate, pushing away the slight nausea.
And with each bite, I got stronger. Better.
I finished the pizza, moving right into the next slice that he handed over, and then the next one after that.
I was so consumed in my need that it took me a moment to notice the man wasn’t eating.
He was watching me. He was watching my every move as if it was something worth seeing.
It had me slowly pushing the last piece of crust into my mouth and carefully chewing.
Only when I swallowed did I brave to look back at him.
“I’d like to pay you now.”
His head went back and forth.
“If you don’t want my money—”
“I want Bastian’s. You’re going to call him.”
“Bastian?” My eyes lowered as I forced my memories to come in clear.
So…I had been wrong. Bastian hadn’t sent this man to take me.
My fiancé truly had wanted to be with me.
And here I was, trying to pay off this masked captor a fortune to kill the man who truly wanted to connect with his future wife?
Was I so untrusting and cold as he implied?
I knew I was, but I also knew these games.
I was just wrong this time. Very, very wrong.
The man turned more towards me, keeping his voice low like he always did.
“You get one chance. If you go off script, it’s over. Do you understand?”
I nodded, feeling my pulse spike as he put a paper in front of me. My brow crinkled as I shook my head confused.
“This can’t be right. This is pathetic. Two million? I offered you one-hundred-fifty million. All you’re asking is for two? Did you fail math?”
The man’s head cocked to the side as he pointed to the paper.
“Fine. Bastian is worth more than you could even fathom, and you ask for two stupid million.” My eyes rolled. “Water?”
The bottle was brought to my lips, and I took another long drink, nodding as I cut my head to the side.
“Two fucking million. Not ten? Not twenty? I’ll take two measly million in crypto please. Two. How about two hundred million? That’s more believable for who you’re asking. I’m not even sure Bastian will take this seriously.”
A sigh left the masked man, and he placed down the water, withdrawing the phone from his pocket. He stood, and for minutes he paced. I looked between the paper and him, trying to understand why he suddenly seemed so unnerved.
Back and forth.
Heavy footsteps.
When he paused and faced my way, I wasn’t sure what to think. I shifted, still sitting as he came to take a seat not a few feet away on the edge of the bed again.
“Script. You deviate, and the money will not matter. You will never leave.”
“I won’t. I won’t say anything.”
The stare lasted for what felt like forever. I knew the masked man spoke the truth. But I also remembered the threats. Hadn’t he threatened Bastian? He’d said that, hadn’t he? That he’d kill them? Kill them all?
There was hesitation, but the phone lifted. Ringing filled the interior. He put his finger over the mask where his lips would have been for me to stay quiet. I quickly nodded. Two rings went by before Bastian’s stuttering voice echoed through.
“H-Hello? Hello?”
The masked man lifted a device to his mouth as he began talking. The deep tone I heard coming through had the hair on my arms lifting.
“I have your fiancée.”
“I don’t believe you. Prove it.”
A nod had my eyes burning with tears.
“Bastian, it’s me.” My lip quivered. “I’m here.”
“Marian? Oh, God, Marian, are you hurt? Are you okay?”
I waited until I got another nod.
“I’m okay. I’d really just like to come home now, so if you could just pay this man, that would be great.”
“Pay?”