My Guardian Angel

Chapter 16

I must have fallen asleep, because I wake up in a dark room. I sit upright and rub the sleep out of my eyes. I yawn and get out of bed. I unlock the door and look for Julian, but he is nowhere to be found.

He kidnaps me and then he ditches me in his own home.

Frustrated I go to the kitchen and pour me a glass of milk. I take small sips and go over our entire conversation early this morning.

He said that he is trying to protect me, but I think I need protection against Julian. He has become obsessive.

Someone appears in front of me in a flash and I drop my glass. I stand there frozen not sure if I should run or scream.Why does this keep happening?

‘I’m not here to hurt you.’ The man announces.

I don’t know what to say. I stare at him. It is the same man that was sitting in front of me in the library. 

‘How did you get in here?’ I asked. My hands start to shake and I am considering running away, but I have nowhere to run to. I

‘That is not important. What is important is that you need to come with me immediately.’

Without thinking it through I take a step towards him. I feel myself being pulled towards him the more I look into his eyes.

‘Why?’ It comes out as a whisper.

‘Because you and I are meant to be together Ava’ He stretches his hand out towards me and I take it.

Together we vanished into thin air and I pray that somehow Julian will forgive me.  

‘You can open your eyes now.’ He said. I clutched my eyes shut and I was gripping his hand as tightly as I could. I opened my eyes slowly and sucked in my breath when I saw where I was. 

The walls were covered with red rocks and the floor was made out of red sand. This place terrified me. The air was so humid I think I was starting to sweat. I could feel the pain of people suffering and I was starting to regret my decision.

I looked up into the eyes of the man that saved me from Julian. ‘What is this place?’ I asked him.

‘This is your new home my queen.’  He kissed my hand and led me down the narrow hallway. I touched the wall accidentally and it burned my hand. I froze and I knew exactly where I was. I was in hell with a man I didn’t even know.

We reached wooden doors and there was a guard outside the door. When the guard saw us he bowed and opened the doors. It looked like something out of an old movie. It was a ballroom with two thrones at the back of the wall. The one was gold and the other one was silver. It was magnificent.

He led me to the thrones and I heard terrible screams. I looked around the ballroom and I saw big windows on the one side of the room, but the things I saw was terrifying. I saw humans being tortured and burned alive.

When he saw me looking out the window he smiled at me. ‘This is your kingdom now.’ With a jolt I realized that I have given myself to the devil.

‘I think you should take me back.’ I said. I was so scared. He laughed at me and pulled me into his arms roughly. ‘You are mine now.’ He kissed me so hard that my lips felt swollen and bruised. I pushed him away and wiped my lips clean. ‘Who are you?’ I demanded. He smiled at me and within a split second he had me back into his arms. ‘I am Dante.’

‘Dante.’ I repeat. I have never seen someone so evil. You can see the hatred in his eyes. I didn’t know how I was getting out of this one alive.

‘What do you want from me Dante?’ My voice betrayed me. It was just as shaky and nervous as my body. 

‘I have told you that we are meant to be together. What else is there?’ he frowned at me and his eyes turned red. His hands pulled into fists and I knew that I have made him mad.

‘Holding me against my will is a crime from where I’m from.’ Before I could flinch he slaps me as hard as he can across my face and I stumble to the ground. I soothe my aching cheek with my hand and stare up at him in horror.

‘You will never mention your old world again. Do you understand?’ Tears start to roll down my cheeks and I nod in acknowledgement. My life seems to only get worse every time I make a decision.

One of the guards walks me to my prison cell. After my behavior he doesn’t seem to trust me so he has told the guards to through me in a cell until I learn to behave. Good luck with that idea.

I walked silently down the hallway and let the guard boss me around.

‘In here.’ He orders me.

I walk into the cell and he locks the door.

The cell is so small. There isn’t even a bed or bathroom. I fear that when they put people in here they leave them here to die.

I sit on the floor and try to reach Julian as I did before. I close my eyes and think of Julian. An image of him appears in my mind. I fight back the tears that are threatening to spill.

‘Julian, Julian can you hear me?’ I wait for a reply and suddenly I hear him.

‘Ava, where are you?’ I start to cry as relief washes over me. He can get me out of this.

‘I am in a cell. I think I’m in hell Julian.’

He is silent.

‘Julian?’

‘I’m here Ava. I can’t come and get you. Angels are forbidden to enter the gates of hell, but you can get yourself out.’

‘How?’

‘You do exactly what you’re doing now. Just think of the place that you want to go to and feel yourself going there.’

I think of Julian and his study. I see him sitting on that red leather couch of his.

I command myself to go there, but nothing happens.

‘It’s not working. I’m scared.’ I sob even louder.

And just like that our contact is broken. I sit in the cell and think of all the wonderful memories I got to share in my life, because somehow I knew that I was never going to get to see the light.

I am woken up when a guard is opening the gate. It looks so medieval.

‘Get up’ the guard orders. I do as I am told.

He grabs me by my arm and yanks me to Dante. I am being treated like a slave and there is nothing that I can do about it.

‘Good morning my love’ Dante announces and kisses me on my lips. I want to throw up. Love? He doesn’t know the meaning of the word. I pull away and he immediately reacts to my rejection. He punched me in the stomach so hard I cry out in pain and I fall to my knees. He laughs at the sight and he kicks me in the face. I was in pain, but there were no tears. Everything that has happened to me has made me stronger.

I get up and stare at Dante.

‘I will never love you.’ I spit at him in disgust. He slaps me across the face and I can feel the blood escaping from my mouth and nose. ‘I will have to kill you then’ he roars.

‘Do it’ I challenge him. He bursts out laughing and punched me on my leg. I fell to my knees. He pulled my hair and held my face to his. ‘I must warn you Ava. It will be a very painful death. You will be my queen one way or the other.’ and he lets me fall back to the floor.

The guard took me back to my cell after Dante’s beating. I was bruised and bloody. Luckily I didn’t break anything. I lied there in silence smiling that I am still alive. I thought about Nurse Madison that works at the hospital. How I would have loved to have her here.

I am woken up by shouting. I try to get up, but I flinch as the pain from my rib cage travels through my whole body. The pain is unbearable. It feels ten times worse now than it did when Dante inflicted the blows.

My cells gate is ripped out of the wall, but I am fading into darkness. I hear my name being called, but I am too weak to return the call.

I hear voices in the background, but I feel like I am intruding on their conversation.

‘You can’t save her. No one can. She is going to have to save herself’ says a woman.

‘It is my duty Tamelyn. I almost lost her’ a man replies.

‘Please tell me you did not fall in love with your assignment’ she demands.

‘I can’t do that’ he admits to her.

I tried to stay awake, but I faded back into my new home called darkness