Willing Captive (6 page)

I’m mortified. But
the look on his face tells me he’s possibly just as mortified.
Maybe more. And I certainly got the results of my experiment.
Forcing down my flush to no avail, I clear my throat and check my
watch. Nodding with pursed lips, I say clinically, “Forty seconds,
give or take. Not bad, Nox.”

Wide-eyed with a
furrowed brow, he turns on his heel and walks out of my room, the
open door gaping. Not a second later, he returns and closes the
door almost to the latch, leaving only an inch open. And I smirk.
Pulling my panties all the way up from under the towel, I
chuckle.

I guess I won that
round.

Chapter Five
Death wish

Lily

Sitting in the library, wearing the biggest, dorkiest smile I
can muster, I can confirm that this
is
heaven. It’s a shame I’ll have to leave here. And soon. Nox
says he’s protecting me, but I can’t trust him.

I won’t trust
him.

It’s true that I
haven’t been treated poorly in the short time I’ve been here, but I
can’t help but feel I’m being duped. If he would just let me speak
to my father or sister, I wouldn’t have to do what I’m doing.

I take three books
off the shelf and go back to my room. During the course of the
evening, I take small bits of food and bottled water and stash them
in a pillowcase hidden in the depths of my closet.

The time reads
11:51pm when Nox appears at my doorway, checking in as he has been
the whole night. I look up at him and force a yawn. “I think I’m
going to go to sleep. Today was a long day.”

For a second, he
looks apologetic before he nods and says a gruff, “G’night.” He
waits until I slide under the covers and switch off the lamp, then
he closes the door almost completely. I hear him walk down the hall
and I’m bathed in darkness when he turns the hall light off. Now, I
just need to be sure to stay awake.

I wait and wait and
wait as patiently as I can. Almost an hour passes before I hear
footfalls down the hall. I force my breathing to deepen and steady
as if I’m asleep just as the door creaks. The door stays open a
long while and I hear him sigh before closing the door almost fully
again. The sounds of footsteps walking away from my room make my
heart skip a beat.

It’s time.

I hop out of bed,
and quiet as a mouse, I tiptoe over and reach into the back of the
closet for my escape pillowcase. I creep to the doorway and
listen.

Nothing. Not a
sound. I’m good to go.

I carefully
push the door as close to the frame as possible then walk over to
the window. I know Nox put me on the second floor for a reason; I’d
bet he’d never guess that I was the type to climb trees when I was
younger. It’s how I broke my arm when I was younger. It hurt like a
bitch. Pushing the window up as slowly as possible, I stick my hand
on the mesh bug screen and push. Hard. It pops out with little
force and I smirk.

Not very secure for
a safe house.

Taking my pillowcase
of goodies, I step out onto the ledge and look around.

Gutter, three
o’clock.

Shuffling over, my
heart races as I take hold of the white painted steel. I’m not
exactly fond of heights. I clutch the gutter tightly but my hands
sweat so much that I can’t get a good grip.

I wonder what would
happen if I fell? Would I land on my feet?

I
think that’s a great way to break your feet. You are
not
a cat. You know this,
right?

Hmmm. True. I close
my eyes and try to steady myself by taking deep breaths.

It’s now or never.
Don’t be a chickenshit, just do it.

Okay. I wipe my
hands on my sweats and clasp the gutter again. Lifting one
sneaker-covered foot, I check the grip I can get on it. It’s not
bad. Not great, either. I start to climb down, chanting softly,
“Foot. Hand. Foot. Hand.”

Half way down, I
smile when I realize I’m almost there. Just as I mentally cheer, my
grip comes loose, my eyes widen and I mouth ‘oh shit.’ Then I fall
backwards into air and it almost feels like time stops. Everything
passes in slow motion. It takes what feels like hours before my
back connects with the ground. The thud rattles my brain. I wheeze
and double over.

I’m winded.

Mothertrucker!

Tears blur my vision as my body throbs with pain. The pressure
builds in my ears and I gasp when I can finally take in a breath.
Shaking my head, I stand on wobbly legs,
look around, and then
run. I run fast and the heavy pillowcase slaps me on the back with
every step I take away from the house. My escape loot suddenly
feels heavier and heavier. In a panic, I throw it to the side and
run faster.

My heart plummets
into my gut when I see a wall in the distance.

A very high wall.
Perhaps twelve-feet tall.

Shit!

I run the length of
the wall looking for some form of exit. My heart races and my face
flushes in aggravation.

No. No. No!

This wasn’t meant to
happen! I need to get out of here.

I approach what
seems to be the only exit to this house and, fuck my life, it’s
manned. Two men inside a small room sit and talk while watching
what looks to be a CCTV of some kind. Oh, damn. I didn’t know there
would be cameras here. I hadn’t factored that in. I stand and run
in the opposite direction toward the back of the house. It takes
about four minutes in a full sprint. This house is damn big.

I’m sweating, I’m
frustrated, and I’m about to give up when angels sing in my ear. A
gate. There’s a damn gate! Thank you, Jesus!

Smiling big, I place
my hands on the lever handle and push down.

Clunk

Shit! No! NO!

The effing gate is
locked! My throat clogs and I choke out a sob, while pressing down
the lever hard and fast repeatedly as if that’ll somehow make it
unlock. Tears fall down my face and I nod in resolve. Only one
thing to do now.

Climb the wall.

Lifting my foot high to the lever handle of the gate, I let
out a yelp when something grips my ponytail tight as well as the
waist of my pants and drags me backwards. Reaching up, I hold onto
the strong hand that still holds my ponytail firmly. I’m being
dragged along like a freakin’ dog.
My mouth opens and filth spews out, “Let go
of me, you fucker! I knew you were full of shit! Protecting me, my
ass!”

Suddenly, I’m thrown
by my hair onto the porch. My scalp throbs. I look up and I almost
wish I hadn’t. A fuming Nox stands in front of me. Through gritted
teeth, he hisses, “Get in the fuckin’ house, Lily.”

Standing on unsteady
legs, I stand as tall as I can and whisper shakily, “No.”

“
Get in the house.” His cheek tics.

A little stronger, I
repeat myself, “No.” My voice strained.

The veins in his
neck bulge when he roars, “Get in the fucking house!”

My entire body jerks
in shock and I shut my eyes tightly. Bringing my balled fists up to
my temples, I screech, “No! You can’t make me!”

My nose tingles and
I hate myself for wanting to feel the sweet release of the tears
that are stuck behind my closed eyes.

A soft hand gently
squeezes my shoulder. I hear Boo tell Nox, “Go on. I’ll take her
inside.”

Boo’s hands gently
pry my fists away from my head. She coos, “Come on, Deedee. Let’s
go up to your room and have a little talk.”

I’m devastated. I
just want to go home. I choke on a sob, “I want to talk to my
dad.”

Boo nods, “Okay. Let
me talk to Nox. I’ll do my best, but,” she looks around cautiously,
“you’ve seen him. If he says no, it means no.”

Putting her arm
around my waist, she guides me up the stairs and into my room. I’m
too exhausted to argue and let her lead me gently but firmly. Once
we reach my room, I throw myself on the bed dramatically and she
chuckles, “So, you went all MacGyver, huh?”

My top lip twitches
and I have the insane urge to burst into laughter. I explain, “No
way. If I were MacGyver, I totally would’ve gotten away. MacGyver
is badass.”

Boo walks
around the bed and lays on it next to me. “You know, I had the
biggest crush on MacGyver when I was younger. I don’t know whether
it was his wittiness or that silky blonde mullet, but,” she sighs,
“I really had it bad for him.”

My twitch turns into
a smile, “Although the silky mullet is mighty tempting, I think it
was his scrappiness I liked most.”

Boo blinks.
“Scrappiness? What the hell is scrappiness?”

I roll my eyes at
her. “Oh, c’mon! He could use anything normal and make it
extraordinary. He was scrappy!”

Her brows rise and
she nods. “Scrappy. I like it.”

We fall into an
awkward silence. I stare at her while she stares at me. Not able to
stand the silence any longer, I blurt out, “I’m not sorry I ran.
I’ll do it again and again ‘til I speak to my father. It’s a simple
request, and if you’re really protecting me, then it shouldn’t be
an issue.”

Boo looks
apologetic. “I’m sorry, Deedee. It’s not my choice. And I know it
means nothing to you, but I promise you that there’s no one better
to protect you than Nox. I’ve worked with my fair share of people
and he has the best success rate, regardless of the mission.”

I stare her down.
“What would you do if you were me?”

Her eyes sparkle as
she smiles slyly. “I’d run.”

Wow. I’m completely
stunned by her honesty. She opens her mouth to speak when she looks
past me and quickly sits up. She moves to stand by the bed and I
look up at her. “He’s behind me, isn’t he?”

She doesn’t say a
thing but she looks sorry. Without a word, she leaves me lying on
the bed with Nox at the door. He doesn’t say a word and neither do
I. I refuse to turn around and look at him. The silence becomes
thicker and thicker until I hear a loud thump followed by creaking.
My curiosity gets the better of me and I turn.

I don’t believe
it!

He’s brought up a
rocking chair and maneuvers it in a way that completely blocks the
doorway. He sits down, rocking himself gently and remains silent.
His cool eyes dare me to protest.

Oh, you
mothertrucker!

The message is
clear.

I’ve lost what
little freedom I had after my little stunt. My eyes narrow and I
spit, “I hate your guts.”

Nox nods slowly.
“Good. That’ll make my job easier.” My eyes turn to slits and he
says cheerfully with a cruel smirk, “Goodnight, Delilah. Sweet
dreams.”

Lifting his hand, he
flicks the light switch and I throw up the covers and lay
underneath them, making as much noise as I can to note my
displeasure. Sitting up, I grit my teeth and give my pillows the
beating of their lives. Throwing my head back down with a whoosh, I
stare up at the ceiling and silently imagine what I’d like to do to
Nox right now.

The rocking chair
squeaks for a millisecond and I find my opening. “Sssshhhh!”

Nox sighs, “Go to
sleep, Lily.”

I silently scoff.
“You can’t tell me what to do.”

“
Yes, I can.”

“
No, you can’t. You
think
you can but you can’t. It’s an illusion.”

And that was the
straw that broke the camel’s back. The rocking chair creaks to a
halt and he states, “You need to grow the fuck up, lady. Stop
acting like a goddamn child.”

Immediately, I hiss,
“You leave me no choice! I don’t know if a thing you say is true
and I really don’t feel like I’m being protected right now. I’m
going crazy not knowing about my family. If you’d even let me call
my sister-”

He cuts me off, “Not
happening.”

“
I’ll sneak out again.”

“
Then you’ll sleep with me from now on. Good luck with the
whole spy-versus-spy thing.”

Well shit. I don’t want Nox to be my bed buddy.

Silence envelops us
both. The dark is comforting. Just as my mind wanders, Nox asks
quietly, “Do you have a death wish?” I don’t answer and he goes on,
“Someone wants you dead and your father paid a lot of money to make
sure you’d stay safe. So I relax a little around you because, hey,
you seem decent. And you try to sneak out, creepin’ around like a
fucking secret agent and doing a really shitty job of it, too.”

My mind is stuck on
the part where he thinks I’m decent.

He sighs wearily,
“Do you have any idea what could’ve happened? Do you know what
happens if you die?” My eyes water. I don’t say a word but Nox
implores, “Think of the consequences for fuck sake. Think of your
family. How would they feel?”

Tears streak past my temples. Nox asks quietly, “Do you know
what it would do to
me
?”

My heart skips a
beat.

I quietly cry. I
just want to forget about this whole thing. Maybe if I go to sleep,
I’ll wake up at home and this will have all just been a dream, like
Dorothy returning from Oz.

He
clears his throat. “Never lost someone on my watch before. If
something happened to you, I’d spend the rest of my life wondering
what I could’ve done differently, that would’ve kept you alive.
Wounds like that…wounds to the heart…they leave ugly scars that
never fade.” Then he almost whispers, “I’m sorry I pulled your
hair. I panicked and I did what I had to keep you from making a
huge mistake. Your safety is
everything
.” Clearing his throat once more, he states, “It
won’t happen again. Get some sleep.”

It’s then that I
make the decision to never run away from Nox.

Using the sleeve of
my sweatshirt, I wipe away my tears and snot and settle deeper into
the bed. I breathe deeply and exhale slowly.