A young man wakes up to find he's been kidnapped and being held a prisoner. He's told he won't be harmed and he'll be returned home soon, but can he believe them? Now he has to figure out how to survive while he shares his prison with one of the k...
Robert was running on the treadmill when he noticed Georgie standing in the doorway. She was looking away from him, but he could tell something was wrong. He jumped on the sides of the treadmill so he could see her better. She looked at him and he saw fear in her eyes – they were in danger. She put her palm up and motioned for him to stay where he was. There was yelling and she was wrenched out of his sight.
He jumped off the treadmill and ran to get her, to help her, but he couldn't make it to her in time. The door to her bedroom slammed shut. He tried to open it but it was locked. Then he heard the slapping sound of a belt hitting her skin and she cried out.
He shouted "No!" at the bastard to try to get him to stop beating her as Georgie started crying out more desperately.
Robert woke up, breathing heavily as if he had just jumped off the treadmill. For a few seconds he thought he had to get to her, she needed him, and then he realized it was a dream. It was morning, light was coming in through the gaps in his curtains. Great, he thought, now I'm having nightmares. He tried to calm down his breathing. His heart was still racing and he'd sweat through his t-shirt.
He got up, changed into a clean t-shirt, and went to get cereal. Georgie was in the kitchen with her coffee and reading a book, looking as normal as she ever did. The fact that she was acting like she hadn't been horribly beaten the day before, and that she was reading like a child, tracing the words with her finger again, unnerved him. There was definitely something not normal about her, he thought. He tried not to stare at her while he got his cereal.
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When he sat down at the table with his bowl, she said softly, "It's so kind of you to help me with the chores," setting her book aside. He grunted a response, keeping his eyes on his bowl.
She continued, "I really mean it. It means a lot to me." He was dismayed to realize she was making a lot more out of his offer to help than he'd intended. She was definitely thinking they were going to be closer now. He kept quiet.
"Today, I clean the floor of the music room. It's a big job, but with both of us working, it shouldn't take as long," she said, as if she was afraid he would be upset that it was hard work.
Then she launched into a long explanation of how she cleaned a different room every day so each one got done once a week. She described all the different parts of each job, and what kind of cleaning it required, like she wanted him to know all the details, like he gave a shit. She'd never spoken to him so much. And she was looking right at him, her eyes the purple shade he'd seen before.
He only partially listened, wishing she would stop talking. He'd prefer for her just to show him what to do so he could get it over with as soon as possible. That's how he thought it was going to be when he'd made the decision. Now he was starting to regret it. He wondered if he'd acted too hastily because he felt so guilty. Then he remembered how she'd looked, lying on her bed after she'd been beaten because of him, and fresh shame washed over him. He had to do it. He had to make it up to her. Maybe she thought they would be mates while they cleaned, but that didn't mean he had to.
