Chapter 7
Chapter Seven
ARIEL
I'm starting to get a little antsy at what's going on and what The Reaper is up to.
Suzie has tried her best to keep me calm and take my mind off of what he could be doing, but I'm having a hard time knowing everything is going to be fine.
My brain starts to spiral on if Noah will come back here and find me with her.
If that happens, then that can be the end of both of us.
“Babe, take some deep breaths. I can tell your anxiety is going through the roof right now,” Suzie says in an attempt to calm me down.
I go through the breathing exercises with her to help bring me to my center, but it’s so hard to do. I feel this panic start to arise in me until that deep voice returns behind me.
“Everything is going to be just fine from here on out.”
I turn around and see The Reaper standing right there. His hair is wet, and he smells like fresh soap. Did he really leave me to go take a shower?
What the fuck.
"How do you know everything is going to be fine? I've been with a man who abuses me. Once he finds me, it's going to be ten times worse," I say as tears begin to fall from my face.
“He’s dead. He’s not going to be able to harm you anymore.”
Did he just say dead? The panic within me really starts to bubble up inside of me.
I never said to kill the man. I just wanted to be set free.
I start pacing back and forth in the room because I don't know how to feel.
I don't think I can trust this man in front of me if he went and killed someone.
This is not what I was expecting at all.
I keep my pacing until I run into this muscular figure who places his hand on my cheek.
“Why don’t you come home with me tonight? I can keep you safe and help talk you through what you can do next,” he says.
Can I really trust going home with a murderer?
“What if I’m your next victim you kill off?” I say with anger in my tone.
“Ariel, I will never hurt you. I will keep you safe from this day forward.”
I feel so conflicted inside because that's what Noah said too, but I ended up in this same situation again.
I'm frightened to know he has the capabilities of killing someone, but at the same time, I feel secure.
Maybe I should just give this a shot. I turn to look over to Suzie to see if she has anything to say, but she nods in approval.
This helps me feel a little better knowing that she thinks it's a good idea.
“Will I have the chance to leave if I don’t feel comfortable being in your home?”
He lets out a laugh like what I just said was funny.
“Ariel, I’m not keeping you hostage. You can come and go as often as you like.
I’m just providing you with a roof over your head where you can start new memories and not have to worry about going back to an environment that caused you so much stress and heartbreak.
If you’d like to go back to get any clothes you need, we can definitely do that.
If you want to start fresh, then I can help you build up what you need again. You can trust me.”
The way he says I can trust me has me believing he is being honest. I need to learn how to let my guard down with someone new.
I feel like it's best if I probably just start my life over again without the memories of the items I had before creeping in.
I want to heal and move forward without taking any steps backward.
"Fine, but if you start to get weird, then I'm out of there," I begin to say with a laugh.
“You’re making a good choice. The Reaper here tries to act all big and bad, but he really isn’t. I wouldn’t be surprised if you’re able to break down some of his walls,” Suzie says.
The Reaper gives her an evil eye, as if that part of him is supposed to be secret.
“You’re the first girl he’s ever taken home to,” she throws in.
“Alright, that’s enough. Let’s go have a drink at the bar, then we can head home,” he says.
Me being the first girl he’s ever taken home catches me by surprise.
He seems like the guy who would take many of the survivors home to build up their lives again.
I wonder what is so different about me that makes him want to take me with him.
I put those thoughts to the back of my head as he puts his hand on the small of my back and guides me back out to the bar.