The devil you begged for

021

ISLA

~•~

My mind worked on autopilot as I went upstairs, packed the little essentials I brought with me into a duffel bag, and returned downstairs.

Lorenzo was sitting on the couch in the living room, sipping a glass of wine and watching me. I pretended I couldn’t see him. I had made up my mind. At first, I wanted to stay until I was done with school before I left, but what was the point of finishing school if I could end up dead before I graduated? Who knew how many more women thought they would end up with Lorenzo? Who knew if the next woman would be much more fearless than the last?

Even if Lorenzo had told me to leave empty-handed, I didn’t believe he would actually let me go, but that didn’t stop my feet from moving.

I took several steps towards the door, wondering if he was going to stop me anytime soon. He didn’t. He simply stared at me as I opened the door and exited the house.

I didn’t question it. Instead, I hastened my steps and headed towards the gate. The guards didn’t stop me either. Outside the gate, I inhaled and exhaled heavily. This was the first time I was stepping outside alone since I started living in Lorenzo’s prison which he called a house.

I almost wasn’t used to it and that showed me how much Lorenzo had f****d up my life. I was starting to see some abnormal things as normal. I needed to get as far away from him as possible, even if it meant leaving the city. I needed to be alive in order to make him pay.

Since it was a gated community and there was nowhere to get a taxi, I started walking. I had very little cash with me so as soon as I got outside the community and found a taxi, I went to the nearest ATM. I still had the debit card my parents gave me back when they were still alive.

I hadn’t gotten the time to register their deaths nor settle accounts, but I wasn’t in the mood to do that now that I was free. Registering their death would be accepting the fact that they were all gone from this world. I wasn’t certain I could live with that so soon.

“Miss?” The cab driver called out, bringing me out of my thoughts. “We’re here, Miss.”

“Oh,” I handed him the cash and got out with my duffel bag. I stared at the cheap motel where I would spend the night. The sun had already set and in a city like this, it was dangerous to be out alone on the streets at night. Also, I didn’t want Lorenzo to trace me easily. He might have let me leave his house but there was no telling what he was up to, especially after he announced to everyone that I was his fiancée.

The man at the desk didn’t ask any questions. He pushed a key across the counter, uninterested in being welcoming. “Twenty for the night,” he said. “Cash.”

I handed him the cash I’d withdrawn earlier and took the key from him without a word.

“Second floor. Room thirteen.” He informed me just as another customer walked through the door. “The staircase is on your left.”

“Thanks.” I turned around and headed for the staircase.

As I ascended the stairs, the man who came in while I was getting my key caught up to me. “Hey.”

I closed my eyes briefly and smiled politely at him, not responding.

“I see you’re alone.” I already knew where the conversation was going before he said it. “Would you like some company?”

“No, thank you.” I tried to be as polite as possible because men had fragile egos and I didn’t want any trouble tonight. I’d just escaped from one crazy man. I wasn’t about to tolerate another one.

“Come on, sweetheart.” His words made my skin crawl. “No one books a room in a dump like this unless they’re running from something. We can keep each other’s secrets.”

My jaw clenched. I had a long day already and it seemed like this man wouldn’t get the hint if I was too polite. “I said no!” My tone was sharper, louder, bordering on screaming.

He winced at the sound, looking around to make sure nobody heard me. “Fine, geez. Don’t say I didn’t offer though.”

I was more than relieved when he turned around to leave, letting me resume my walk up the stairs.

I finally reached room thirteen, slid the key in, and stepped inside. The room was small and cramped, containing only a bed and a fan that creaked when I turned it on. Still, it tasted like freedom.

I dropped the duffel on the floor and sat on the bed, my hands shaken as though I couldn’t fathom the fact that I was free.

My mind betrayed me by replaying the image of Lorenzo on the couch. Wine in hand. That unreadable stare. He hadn’t moved a muscle. Hadn’t said anything while I walked out the door. He didn’t order the guards to stop me. He simply watched.

What if this was another plan of his and I was just dancing to his tune? Sometimes, I wished I could see what was going through his head. The man was very unpredictable.

I lay down, closing my eyes. I was exhausted. I didn’t know what I was going to do about school. I didn’t know whether to drop out or not, but I was going to decide what to do with my life when the sun rose.

The motel wasn’t safe, but it was the safest I’d been in a long time. For tonight, that was enough.

As my thoughts dulled and I started to drift off, I held the blanket tightly, hoping it would protect me from whatever creeps present in the motel. I let myself believe the lie I’d been telling myself since I left Lorenzo’s house. I was free.