I hugged my legs to my chest and leaned my forehead against my knees, tears rolling down my cheeks. I haven’t cried in a long time. Maybe the last time was when my mother and Isabella died. After that, I don’t remember shedding a tear at all. But now, I felt like I was at the lowest point of my life.
My best friend just told me to stay away from her, and my father just hired some maniac in his twisted attempt to knock some of his twisted sense into me. After escaping that unthinkable situation, I now watched Nicholas beating the living hell out of that man, and I couldn’t help crying—in frustration, in relief.
The man managed to free one of his hands. This was enough for him to punch Nicholas on the jaw and then quickly push Nicholas off him. He got up on his feet and ran in the direction of my house. I could tell that Nicholas wanted to run after the guy but seeing me on the side of the street in shatters, he decided to walk toward me instead.
He knelt in front of me. “Are you okay?” he asked in a gentle tone that made me want to cry even more. I couldn’t answer. I was shaking with fear and relief at the same time. Tears kept rolling down my cheeks as I stared back at him.
He looked at me, realizing my current state, barefoot with torn clothes. He reached one hand over his head to pull the shirt he was wearing off his body. Then he put it over my head, helping me put it on. Now, he was shirtless, and I was decent.
“Are you okay?” he asked me again.
I nodded slightly, whimpering as I wiped the tears rolling down my cheeks.
“Come on, let’s get you out of here.” Nicholas reached forward and scooped me up in his arms. He walked to his car with my head nestled against his chest. Tears kept rolling down my cheeks, and I couldn’t help the sobs coming out of me.
Nicholas didn’t speak as he opened the car door and settled me on the passenger seat.
When he got inside the car, he took a couple of deep breaths to calm himself down. Then he looked at me and asked, “Your choice. Police station or emergency room. I will take you wherever you wanna go.” His voice was controlled but still came out gentle.
I shook my head. “T—take me… somewhere safe.”
“Both the places I suggested are safe.”
I shook my head. “Anywhere but here and there.”
He narrowed his eyes for a moment, contemplating whether he should use his better judgment and report this incident to the police or respect my decision. Finally, he stepped on the gas and drove away.
***
We were quiet for the rest of the trip. Whimpers escaped my lips no matter how hard I tried not to make a sound. I was glad that Nicholas left me to my thoughts. But by the way, he was stepping on the gas and making the sharp curves. I could tell that he was seething with anger.
After a record time of fifteen minutes, he stopped his car in front of his house. Without a word, he came down, rounded the car, and opened the passenger door for me. I removed the seatbelt and started to get out. However, Nicholas was immediately by my side, scooping me up in his arms.
“I’m okay to walk,” I said quietly.
“But I am not okay with arguing about this,” he said in a somber voice.
He walked inside his house, climbed up the stairs, and settled me on his bed. He turned on his bedside lamp, and then he knelt in front of me, staring at my tear-stricken face.
He tilted my chin up to survey the damage that the man had inflicted on me. His eyes narrowed when he saw that I had a bruise on my right cheekbone and a cut on my lower lip.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” he asked again.
I nodded slightly.
“Did you know him?”
I shook my head.
“How did he get in? Wasn’t your house always guarded? Were you all alone there?”
I nodded.
“Why?”
I took a deep breath and tried my best not to cry. “Take a wild guess, Nicholas Atkins,” I replied, giving him a deep, meaningful look.
I couldn’t bring myself to say it. I couldn’t say that my own father orchestrated this.
After a few seconds, he raised a brow, and then he said, “That son of a bitch!”
We both fell silent for a moment. Nicholas was looking down on the floor, taking deep breaths to calm himself. When he finally got a hold of his emotions, he looked up and asked, “And you didn’t want to go to the police for this?”
“Nicholas, he’s still my father,” I argued.
“Did he think about that when he hired some maniac to assault you?” he asked angrily. “He doesn’t deserve your mercy, Ken.”
“I know,” I said. “I can’t… I can’t think about this right now. I can’t even begin to analyze how he could resort to this. I don’t know how to handle this. I don’t know how he could hurt me… how far he could go. And I don’t know what else he will do after…” My voice was shaky, and I was starting to panic. I didn’t know what my father’s next move was going to be. Before tonight, I knew he was a worthless father. Now, I realized that he was Lucifer incarnate!
Nicholas took my hands in his. “Okay, okay,” he said gently. “We’ll think about that later. Calm down. You’re with me. And I will never allow him to touch you!”
I shook my head. “If… if he found out that you helped, he’ll come after you.”
“Then let him. I’m not afraid.” There was confidence in his voice. “I can take care of myself.” He gave my hands another squeeze. “I can take care of you and keep you safe while you’re here.”
I shook my head again. “I don’t want to be your responsibility. You’ve done enough. You saved me. I—I can take care of myself.”
“I know you can. But not tonight. Tonight, let me keep you safe while you figure things out.”
“But Nicholas—”
“Shh…” he interrupted me. “I’m not taking no for an answer. That maniac will report to his boss that you escaped. Your father will be looking for you. This is the last place he would look.”
I could argue with him all night, but he did make a good argument, and besides, I was exhausted.
“Does something else hurt? Are you sure you don’t want to go to the hospital?”
I shook my head. “Trust me, no scars.” He looked at me for a long time, unconvinced that I was telling the truth. “I just need a bath. Get that animal’s smell off me.”
He nodded. “Okay. There are towels in the cabinet. I’ll have a clean shirt on the bed by the time you finish. If you decide to use the shower, press the preset one or whatever. You’ll figure it out.”
I didn’t understand what he meant by that. It’s a shower! How complicated could it be to operate a shower head and two levers?
Nicholas stood up and went out the door quietly. “Are you sure…”
I stood up from the bed and walked to the bathroom with legs that felt like jelly.
“Holy fuck!” The curse came out involuntarily from my mouth when the entire bathroom came into my view.
Damn!
In spite of my disoriented state, I couldn’t help but fall in love at the sight of Nicholas’ bathroom interior.
All white, like his room. The floors were made of white marble. There was a white ottoman under the white table beside the sink. The white table extended into a cabinet with crystal drawer knobs. There were tall white ceramic vases in the corners that had green plants. The entire left wall was made of mirrors.
To the right was a white marble tub that could easily fit two people, besides a glass wall that was covered by white curtains. I was pretty sure that the curtains would open up to the view of the ocean.
The shower was enclosed separately with glass from floor to ceiling. Inside, I could see that its walls and floors were made of white tiles.
I made a three-sixty turn and admired Nicholas’ handicraft in this. He really was a great architect. I would hire him to design my house someday… if I can still afford him, that is.
I stripped out of Nicholas’ shirt, peeled off my underwear, and stepped inside the shower.
I looked around. There was no shower head and no shower levers. Instead, one of the tiles in front of me had a black screen embedded in it. I was guessing this was a touchscreen.
I touched the panel. The screen lit up like an iPad. I heard the sound of water, and then I felt a trickle of cold droplets against my skin. I looked up to the ceiling and saw a chrome square panel in the middle with water holes and LED lights. I looked at the screen in front of me again to find the control buttons.
There were four presets. I realized now what Nicholas was talking about.
The water was a soft, ice-cold drizzle. I pressed one, and immediately, the flow became stronger like a rain shower, and the temperature turned lukewarm. I pressed number two, and the overhead LED light turned bluish white, and the lights outside the shower dimmed, setting an entirely different mood—a much darker one that matched my current temper.
I lied to Nicholas when I said no scars. Because while the physical wounds will go away without a trace after a week, the emotional wounds will leave a mark that I will wear forever. No one goes through this and gets away scot-free.
I must have shampooed my hair three times and scrubbed my skin five times more as if washing away the sweat, dirt, and smell of that maniac would also wash away the fact that my father was the puppeteer of this whole fiasco.
I wanted to hurt him back for what he did to me. I could go to the police and file a case. But how could I do that without the whole town knowing and making a circus out of it?
I survived. He didn’t succeed. Why do I need to make it public? Why would I subject myself to more scrutiny than I already have? As if my hair color, dress code, and difficult personality were not enough for some people to make a field day out of! As if Brett’s father needed one more reason to kick his brother in the gut.
Brett and his father would not let this pass. If they see me now, they would be hunting my father down, shotgun in hand. I was better off staying here with Nicholas while I cleared my head.
I hit the red button on the screen, and immediately the water stopped, and all the lights in the bathroom turned bright again.
Freaking amazing!
I walked over to the cabinet and pulled out a big white towel. I dried my hair and my skin, and then I wrapped myself in the towel. It was then that I had the courage to stare at myself in the mirror. My cheekbone was sore and bruised, my lip was not bleeding anymore, but the cut was visible. My shoulders had bruises, as well as both my arms. I looked as if I had just come from a fight—a fight for my honor and virtue.
When I came out of the bathroom, I found that Nicholas had placed on the bed a pair of his drawstring shorts and a black shirt. I felt awkward about wearing his clothes and going commando under them, but I had to admit, these were way better than the towel I had on.
After two minutes, I was decently dressed in shorts that ended below my knees and a shirt that was way too large for my frame. I pulled the ends of the shirt into a knot on my left hip and rolled the sleeves as close to my shoulders as possible. When I looked at myself in the mirror, I must admit that I looked better. But I knew that it would take a longer time to recover from the emotional trauma.
I didn’t even want to blink. I could still remember that man’s face and couldn’t help imagining that he was just behind me, waiting for that opportune moment to attack.
I shivered at the thought. I could feel fear creeping through me. I immediately opened the door and went down to the living room to look for Nicholas.