“Okay.” Her voice comes out low and raspy from crying.
I reach behind her to grab the pill bottle. “I need you to take one of these. I need you to stay here and go to sleep for a few hours. Kitten, I swear to you when you wake up, you will be in my bed and I will be right next to you.”
I can tell she wants to object, and I don’t blame her at all, but I can’t take her with me yet, and still, I can’t just leave her in here while she is in this state. I feel like a knife is twisting deep inside my chest. Then she nods her head slightly and takes a pill from my hand, and I just want to kiss the fuck out of her. She’s so strong; she doesn’t even see it. I hand her a water bottle off the floor and watch her take the pill. Her throat moves as she swallows it, her eyes remaining on mine.
“I'm scared, Ivan.” Her lips tremble, and I vow from this moment on to protect her against everything bad in this world.
“I know.” I pick up the ripped shirt and put it on her. She wraps her arms around herself and lies down on the mattress with her back facing the door. I lean over her shaking body and kiss her hair before getting up. “I’ll be back,” I whisper.
I stick my head out the door and look down both sides of the hallway. When I don’t see or hear anything, I go back, and grab hold of Yulie’s arm. I pull him into the hallway and kick the door shut on my way out. I drag his ass all the way into the examining room down the hall. I toss his lifeless body into the corner, wishing he would wake up just so I could kill him again.
No one should come in here anytime soon, since all the checks were done today but just in case, I lock the door behind me. I stand there for a long moment, letting myself digest everything that just happened. I squeeze my eyes shut, an image of my sister Mira dead in the road appears in my mind.
I fucking failed her and now I’m failing Violet, too.
I might have killed Yulie, but the marks on Violet’s body will take time to heal, reminding me of how I wasn’t there to protect her, how I lied to her. The need to punch something courses through my veins. I want to destroy, rip, tear, kill. I want to feel Yulie’s warm blood coat my hands.
I want vengeance for Violet, something that I won’t be able to give her since I had to make the bastard’s death quick. Escaping this place should be easy but doing so with Violet and trying to remain hidden for however long is needed… that I’m not sure about. I run a hand through my hair. Is she even going to want to come with me after everything she just witnessed?
I don’t know why I ask myself that. Of course, she is. The last place she wants to stay is here. But is she still going to want my hands on her? I’ve grown attached to her, and every single part of my body calls to her. I want her, completely, and enough to give everything up.
Walking back to her cell, I look through the one-way mirror. She is right where I left her, and I just stand there for a moment looking at her. The only way I’ll get her out of this place is if I let her go to the auction, I’ll just need to find a way to take her before she actually walks on that stage. I start pacing up and down the hallway. There is no way in hell I’m letting her cell door out of my sight. If someone happens to come down here other than Gabe to deliver food, I will not look too suspicious just walking down the hall. Every time I walk by her cell, I peek in just to make sure she is still sleeping and every time I see her body still on the mattress, I feel a sliver of relief enter my body.
After what seems like an eternity of pacing up and down the hall, Gabe finally comes around the corner, pushing a cart full of food trays.
When he looks up and spots me heading toward him, he flinches.
“Hey, boss... didn’t expect to see you down here.”
I just give him a brief nod. I don’t have to explain myself to this guy and he knows that.
I walk past him and around the corner where he can’t see me, but I can still hear him. I count him opening and closing six food slots. Four girls were sent out today. I know this because I gave Luca the okay to take them to Rossi and his friends.
When he is done and I hear him walking back down the hall, toward where I am standing. I walk back around the corner as if I’d just returned to speak to him.
“Hey, Gabe… tomorrow is my off day so I’m going to take number five upstairs to pass my time, if you know what I mean. So, don’t worry about bringing her food again until Monday.”
“Sure thing, boss.” He scurries past me, pushing the cart in front of him, and I follow him to the elevator, pretending I’m taking the stairs back up. When the elevator doors close behind him, I turn around and head back to her cell.
I unlock it and step inside. She isn’t moving, the pills having knocked her out good just as I had hoped they would. At least if she's knocked out, her body can heal, and she isn’t in any pain.
I pick her up carefully, cradling her to my chest and make my way up to my apartment. I take the stairs up all four floors. I'm less likely to see someone on the staircase than on the elevator. No one takes the stairs in this place. They’re all a bunch of lazy fucks.
When I finally make it to my place without running into a single soul, I sigh in relief. The less people know about me taking her to my room the better. I walk inside and close the door behind me. Then I head into the bedroom and gently sit Violet on the bed, rolling her body to the side. I don’t want her lying on her back until I get to check on the marks on her back.
Peeling the shirt off her gently, I inspect her marred skin. I clench my jaw and force my hands to steady. Her whole back is covered in long, red, and swollen streaks. Some places are turning blue from bruising and in other places, the skin has actually broken. Her arms and shoulders are also marred, and there is one angry streak that crosses her beautiful face.
I’ve never felt this overwhelmed with guilt and fury in my life. I’m so fucking angry I want to kill everybody in this building. Everyone who ever touched her, scared her, or even looked at her. I want them all dead, every single person. I want to give her the vengeance that I know she deserves.
Pushing my anger aside, I get up and grab my little first aid kit out of the bathroom and start cleaning her broken skin before she wakes up.
Once I’m finished, I want nothing more than to get a whiskey from my office and drown myself in the entire bottle, but I promised her that I’d be here when she wakes up, so instead, I lay down next to her and watch her sleep.
I have no idea how much time passes until she wakes. It might have been hours or days. I don’t know, nor do I care. All I know that I don’t think I will ever get tired of just looking at her.
Even with her face bruised and swollen, she is still the most beautiful person I have ever laid eyes on. Her eyelids blink open slowly and for a moment, I have this fear in my chest that she is going to be scared of me… scared of my touch now that she has seen me kill, but then she smiles. It’s a tiny one and it probably hurts like hell to do it, but it’s the last thing I was expecting from her.
“You kept your promise.” Her voice cracks.
“Of course, I did. I let you down once, and It’s not going to happen again.”
The smile wipes from her face, and a frown forms on her full lips. “You didn’t let me down, Ivan.”
I clench my jaw, holding back my anger. She has no idea of the raging war of insanity that’s taking place inside my head.