8. - Corey -
Chapter eight
- Corey -
C orey woke to the glow of the city lights winking through the windows and her stomach grumbling loudly. Coffee had stemmed the hunger pains, but they were back in full force now that she was awake. Her head was still killing her. The rest of her body was too, but she had gotten used to that in the last few years. Her watch told her it was 11:00 p.m. She’d slept the entire afternoon.
She stretched in the bed, luxuriating in the fact that she had a bed, and that she was alone. It had been a long time since she’d slept so much. She’d been burning the candle at both ends for quite a while, and she considered trying to go back to sleep for the rest of the night.
A cramp from her empty stomach made the decision for her.
Corey slid out of the bed, wearing the sweatshirt and boxers one of the twins had left for her, and padded over to the bathroom.
Her cheek was swollen. The ice pack had helped to ease some of the acute pain, but now that she could see it, it hurt just as much—a dull ache ringing up the side of her face into her head. It didn’t look pretty either, the blood having pooled under her eye as she slept.
Corey splashed some water on her face. She didn’t have a toothbrush, and she scrounged through the cupboards for some mouthwash. She only found various-sized towels. It was otherwise empty .
Corey considered whether the guys would be awake. She needed to sneak some food from the kitchen and then check out the elevator door. She didn’t think she was going to escape tonight. Even though she was essentially a prisoner, Corey felt surprisingly comfortable. They hadn’t bothered her at all while she slept, and they had even let her shower and change clothes. And a guy hadn’t made her coffee in ages, never mind offering her his own fancy espresso.
But still, having all options open was necessary. Them doing the bare minimum didn’t mean she could trust them.
They hadn’t actually hurt her—embarrassed and degraded her, sure, and she didn’t know what these guys were into, or if this treatment would last. They may very well just kick her back to the streets when they realized that no one was coming for her, since she was quite literally a nobody.
Or as Jason had threatened, they may just kill her.
Corey used her fingers to comb the long waves of her hair and looked at herself in the mirror again. She worked to rearrange her face to a bored expression, and then she headed out to scavenge for food.
The kitchen opened to the large living room, and Corey could see the twins sitting on the couch, the thick muscles of their shoulders visible above the back of the sectional. Jason’s scar marked which twin he was. Dammit, why did they need to be shirtless all the time?
They had the television on, some show or movie she didn’t recognize playing at a medium volume on the massive TV. The lights were dimmed low. She made her way over to the fridge, figuring it was better to take what she wanted than to ask for permission, an attempt at a show of dominance rather than looking like a weak, submissive thing. Corey pulled the fridge open and took in how full it was—there was a myriad of different produce, along with multiple containers of prepared meals. It was the first sign she’d seen in this penthouse that people lived here. At her ex’s, there’d barely been room for fresh groceries amongst the leftover pizza boxes and beer cans .
“What are you doing?” one twin asked her.
She looked back to see them both turned to her on the couch. Matching dog tag necklaces glinted in the low lighting.
“Making something to eat,” she said nonchalantly, shrugging her shoulders at them and pulling out an apple like she didn’t have a care in the world. While looking over what else there was to eat, she crunched into the fruit. Opening the dairy drawer, she considered the fancy cheeses. There was a bag of bread in the fridge as well, and she pulled it out with the butter, deciding a gourmet grilled cheese was a good option—her comfort food. Corey brought everything over to the stove, pulling open the drawers underneath and finding the pans. She sparked the stove, buttered the pan, and threw two slices of bread on, all the while avoiding looking up at the twins. Corey rummaged through the other drawers, finding the cutlery.
Finding one of the sharp knives to slice the cheese, she looked up. The guys were still watching her. Kayden looked amused. Jason looked furious. While she pulled out the knife with one hand and put it on the counter, she used her other hand to take another knife from the drawer and slide it into the front pocket of the sweatshirt. Corey slammed the drawer shut dramatically and went back to the stove with self-satisfaction. She sliced the fresh cheeses and put them on the toast, covering it up with the other slice.
While her grilled cheese sizzled, Corey turned her attention to the two guys, who seemed to have abandoned their movie in favour of her.
She studied their faces more intently, looking for differences. Jason’s face had an almost permanent scowl. So far, she’d only seen it interrupted by a sneer. Though his features were identical to Jason’s, there was more levity to Kayden’s expression, just enough that Corey thought she might be able to distinguish them from each other.
“Thanks for the clothes, by the way,” she said to Kayden, in between bites of her apple.
“Why do you think it was me? ”
“Well, it wouldn’t have been him.” She gestured to Jason with her chin and caught Jason’s nostrils flaring slightly as he looked away from her and back at the television. He reached for the glass of amber liquid on the table in front of him and took a swig, the crystal reflecting the light with a flash.
Corey pulled the pan off the burner and turned off the stove. She found a plate and a glass in another cupboard, and filled the cup with water. Sliding her food onto the plate, she rested the pan in the sink and put the ingredients back in the fridge. She looked up to find Kayden still watching her and Jason fixated on the television.
“Well, enjoy your movie!” Corey called with forceful cheeriness and made to leave with her dinner.
“That knife you took. Leave it in the kitchen,” Jason said before she could walk out of the living space, turning to her.
Busted.
“No thanks. I think I’ll take it back to my room with me.”
“Your room?” Jason cocked a dark eyebrow at her, a dangerous smile spreading across his face. Corey fought to keep her fear from showing and willed her facade to hold. He propped himself up on the back of the couch, leaning towards her. “I think you have the situation misconstrued. Though you may be a guest in our home, that room is ours, the kitchen is ours, and the food you’re about to eat is ours. We own you, Corey Smith, from now until we say otherwise. Your life depends on us. Tread carefully.”
Corey shuddered under the oversized sweater at his threat, at his white teeth bared at her, at the hard planes of his chest and the muscles that rippled under his skin. He was a beast waiting to be unleashed.
But she was a beast too.
She gave him her best Cheshire cat smile. “If you could have some Advil delivered to my room, that would be wonderful.” And with that, she stalked off, grateful that the bedroom had a lock.