Chapter Nine
Talia
I am drained and numb. After leaving the office, we went to a few stores.
They got my sizes and picked things out for me because I was incapable of doing much of anything.
When we got to the house, they put everything up while I stayed curled up in Soren’s bed.
Having his scent surrounding me has helped, but I still feel hollow.
It’s late—well after midnight. They keep coming in here and asking me if I’m hungry, but I haven’t spoken. This time, when the door opens, the blanket is yanked off me.
“Get up,” Soren commands. I don’t, so he pulls me out of bed to stand. “Come downstairs and eat.”
“Fuck you,” I growl and slap him as hard as I can. It sends pain searing through my palm, and it doesn’t faze him, but it makes me feel a little better. “I hate you. I fucking hate you so goddamn much. Go fuck your office whore and leave me alone.”
“Are you done being a child yet?” he asks.
“Goddamnit!” I scream in frustration. “You are a fucking piece of shit. You know that? Just fucking kill me and your problems are solved.”
“Are you done yet?” he asks again, grabbing my arm as I stumble. “You need to eat.”
“Pass,” I say, pulling away from him.
“Fucking stubborn ass brat,” he grunts, picking me up and slinging me over his shoulder to carry me out of the room.
“Let go of me!” I scream and hit him as we go downstairs. When he sets me down, he pushes me down to sit before sitting in a chair next to me. The table is full of food, and the guys are here.
“Now shut the fuck up and eat something,” Soren huffs.
“Fuck you!” I scream, pushing back from the table.
“Eat!” he commands, his voice booming through the room.
“Fucking make me, prick,” I snap back. I scream out in pain when he grabs me by the hair and yanks my head back.
“Soren!” Micah growls.
“Open your fucking mouth, you stubborn fucking brat,” Soren demands. I spit in his face, and he forces my jaw open so he can shove a chunk of a roll into my mouth. “Eat it. We all know you can swallow.”
He covers my mouth so I can’t spit it out and doesn’t budge when I try to pull his hands away. Eventually, I give up and swallow the piece.
“Eat,” he growls again. “Don’t make me ask you twice. I will tie your ass to the fucking bed and put a feeding tube down your throat; you will not starve yourself.”
“I fucking hate you,” I remind him when he pulls his hand away.
Instead of fighting it, I do start eating. They all start eating, too, and assume I am done arguing, but I eat so much that I am going to be sick. But that’s the point. I have to find some way to hurt myself, so I’ll take what I can get.
When I can’t take another bite, I excuse myself and go upstairs. Standing in the bathroom, I give myself a few moments of peace before I kneel in front of the toilet.
I have the door locked, which I know won’t keep him out, but it will slow him down a bit, maybe. I shove my fingers down my throat, making myself gag violently. I do it again, and my body reacts instantly, and I start vomiting.
Seconds later, the door slams open. “Goddamn it, Talia,” he grumbles, pulling my hair back as I continue to puke. “I just wanted you to fucking eat. You didn’t have to do all this.”
“Fuck. You,” I say between gasps for air. I vomit one more time before I finally stop. Soren gives me a few seconds before moving me to stand in front of the sink. He yanks the cabinet open and grabs mouthwash before pouring some into the cap.
“Here,” he huffs. I need to get that taste out of my mouth, so I comply and swish the minty liquid around. When I spit it out, he pulls me into the room and undresses me. Once I am dressed in his shirt, he places me in bed so I can lie down.
Soren walks out of the room, and I think he’s just gone, but then he returns with a turkey sandwich. I frown at him, but sit up.
“Eat,” he commands, sitting on the bed next to me.
“What are you doing?” I ask when he sits back against the headboard.
“Making sure you keep it down. Shut up and eat before I stuff it up your ass instead.”
“That’s not how humans work, freak.”
“Yeah, yeah,” he says, waving me off. “You are staying here tomorrow.”
“Fine by me,” I mutter and take a bite of my sandwich.
When I’m done, I curl up as far away from Soren as I can get and drift to sleep.