One Deception

Chapter Six

“Good,” Rosalie, sighed, relaxing just the tiniest bit now that I had quieted down. It was silent for a moment; both of us sitting in our own tormented thoughts before she spoke again. “Do you remember what I was trying to tell you a couple days ago? Before Liam and Niall came in?”

I tried to think back, but all I could see from that day was Niall shoving me to the ground, demeaning me as a prop for his feet. I could hear Rosalie’s taunts before her pained cry when Liam hit her, feel Niall’s hands retying the rope. But no matter how hard I tried; I couldn’t remember what she had tried to say prior. 

“No,” I finally murmured, shaking my head. “I can’t remember.”

“That’s fine,” Rosalie said quickly, almost urgently, glancing at the door as if she expected them to come bursting in again at any moment. “I was trying to talk to you about escaping. Do you remember now?” She looked more hopeful than anything, also a bit concerned. 

I was sure it was out of fear that I’d freak out on her again. 

And in truth, I really wanted to. 

“What?” I hissed instead, grimacing slightly as I tried to lean forward, only to cause the rope to press against my injuries. My ankle was still swollen painfully and my chest hurting, but the pain was far from my mind with this news.

Rosalie seemed excited that she had gotten a real reaction from me at all. I knew that I hadn’t been exactly responsive lately, but being in this place long enough just does that to a person. There’s only so long that you can go on fighting before it’s too much strain. 

“Just think Miranda,” Rosalie said eagerly. “You and I can escape out of here and run for help. Those five are always out, we can escape when they are and they we’ll be long gone by the time they figure it out!” 

I shook my head desperately, begging for her to just understand. “We can’t,” I tried to argue. “Don’t you get it? If they catch us they’re going to kill us, and they won’t hold back. We’re nothing to them.” 

“I’ve been thinking about it and I’ve got it figured out,” the younger girl shot back, nodding her head so furiously I thought I would snap her neck. “See these windows?” She tilted her head back to indicate the windows behind her, shining dusty sunlight into the room. 

I nodded slowly, concerned and unconvinced. 

“If we can just get free of these ropes, we can use a chair to break one of them and use the other to climb out,” she elaborated, her eyes alight with anticipation and excitement at the prospect. “We just have to get off the property and find help in a public place. We can do it.” 

She was so painfully confident in her plan, so painfully sure that we’d escape and that would be that. It was so untrue though. 

I used to be like Rosalie, as hard as it probably was to believe to anyone who’d seen me now. Here I was, only a shell of my old self, not as loud and rambunctious, not as confident and outgoing. Now I was withdrawn, trying not to be noticed, able to even mentally check myself out of the world. 

I could never do that before. 

And all it took for me to realize was an instant where I had pushed too hard, gone to far with one of them. Where my throat was not even a centimeter from being slit and my life being over. 

“Perk up love,” Louis smirked, standing in front of me with a glass of water gripped in his hand, the liquid taunting me, just out of reach. “You’re going to be with us for a while.”