Tainted

Chapter 10

"You're acting childish . What happened to the mature woman I met that day at the market ?" He shakes his head makes his way over to a closet.

That must be where he keeps his spare clothing for when he stays here .

I wonder, who does his laundry?

I sit up and wipe my eyes as I adjust to the environment around me .

I miss my dorm room. It was familiar and had all my stuff in it. I absolutely hate waking up in a different place each morning.

"I have nothing to wear ." I realize as I stare down at the clothes I wore yesterday. "I dont have my toothbrush or any of my stuff ."I begin stressing as reality catches up with me.

"Here." Vinecent calls and tosses me a dress shirt and a pair of his trousers .
"Wear my clothes for now. I'll be picking you up from school to get your stuff from your dorm. From now on I'd prefer it if you stay with me ."he orders seriously before nodding at the bathroom door."get cleaned up and meet me downstairs."
With that he darts down the stairs , disappearing from sight.

I rush to the bathroom, realizing that I dont have that much time left . School is in the town over . I'll be at least half an hour late . I can't afford to waste any more time.

I hop in the shower, not really observing the bathroom as I should but I shrug it off and clean myself before pulling on Vincents clothes .
The shirt hangs off me like a dress and the trousers fit around my waist but the legs are too long .

Screw it.

I tuck the shirt into the pants and roll up the bottom of the trousers before rushing out the bathroom and slipping my shoes on to run down the stairs, my knotted and unbrushed hair blows behind me as I jump off the last few steps and look around the studio.

Where is he ?

The morning sun's rays beam through the windows , casting a bright orange on the walls and floors . The dust particles glow around the paintings like little fireflies , waiting to come to rest on a surface.

"Vincent!" I call, dragging my feet towards the staircase in hesitation.

I dont want to go back down there.
I can't have the sight of a dead body laying bled out on a table ruin my day.

"Dorothia is waiting outside now hurry up !" He calls from downstairs , his voice echoing against the metal walls .

I stare down the dark staircase , trying to convince myself to go back down but I keep thinking about how living up here for the rest of my life would be a better option.

With an exhausted sigh I slowly descend the stairs until I reach the bottom and immediately notice the absence of the dead woman.

I stare in shock at the clean state of the table and try recall the incidents that occurred yesterday.

He did kill someone right?

That couldn't have been a dream.

"What are you waiting for Love?"he asks as he pushes the door open and smiling towards ."Your parents dont pay thousands of dollars for you to bunk class."he jokes .

I make my way out the building in shock. How is he acting so normal? Does he know the body is missing ? You cant miss it !

"My mom doesn't . I'm in debt ."I squeak and turn around and watch as Vincent locks the door with a rusty metal key and shoves it into his pocket.

"I'll take care of it."he says seriously and rests his hand on my lower back and guides me to the car .

His gentle touch sends shivers up my spine as I climb in the car , his fingers sliding off my back as I slide across the leather seat .
"I don't understand. "I confess and look up and make eye contact with the driver .
His glare causes me to shrink in my seat and immediately avoid his gaze.

Have I done something to offend him at some point ? This isnt the first time.

"I'll pay your tuition fees. "Vincent snaps me out of my fearful moment and grabs my hand .

By now I know not to refuse his touch or he'll get angry again.

"I beg you not to . That's a lot of money!" I protest in surprise. I feel his thumb gently stroke my hand as he nods to the driver to take off.

"Oh but darling it wont make a single dent in my net worth . "He sighs and props his elbow up on the armrest and rests his chin on his hand as he stares out of the window .

He can look so innocent and peaceful when he wants to . Only if people knew the horrifying acts he gets up to behind closed doors. Only if they knew the art they buy is nothing but a crime scene.

And I...an accomplice.

Crap.