Chapter 15...or 16...or maybe the real chapter 14? my numbering got off somewhere :/
I ran up the stairs in the spiraling abyss of confusion, not really aware where I was going, just fixated on the fact I had to flee, that I needed to get out of that room. Eventually I ended up adrift in Damon's room, unsure as to where else I could run to. Although Damon's room wasn't a very safe place either at the moment, I tested my luck once again.
Gosh, how could I be so stupid as to just blurt out his name like that! It hadn't even been a full day yet since I had found it out. How could I be soo.. be soo... STUPID, that was the perfect word to describe my actions! Stupid! Stupid! Stupid! Stupid! I face palmed myself as I plopped onto the bed.
I spread my arms into the soft satin sheets and willed myself not to cry. There was no point in tears. It wasn't going to solve anything. This wasn't some magical Disney movie where tears could make people come back to life and make all my problems and sorrows disappear...although life would be much easier fighting off giant fire breathing dragons, evil witches, or heartless stepmothers, than dealing with what I was now. At least that way I would know that no matter what happened, I would get my happy ending.
I sighed and distracted myself by tracing the movements of a panel on the fan around in circles. It seemed to slow down when I focused on just one panel, but when I looked at it as a whole it looked much faster.
"Hey, you okay?" Bax asked walking into the room.
"Peachy."
He let out a heavy breath, which sounded like a laugh. "Look, if you need anyone to talk to. I'm here for you," he said, one corner of his mouth slightly turning up into a smile.
I returned it, "Thanks, but I'll be fine, really. It's not a big deal. I'm pretty used to it now. I-I just need some time alone. You know, to wallow in self-pity and drown in my river of tears."
He smiled again, letting out a small laugh, "You're a strong girl."
"Uh...you totally missed out on me breaking down in Damon's office earlier today."
"Oh, yeah, Nadya told me about that after you ran up here, or rather was discussing that, along with some other things with Damon, so I overheard a brief preview."
I nodded, not sure what else to say, but I wondered why and what else they were discussing. Those 'w' words (who, what, when, where, and especially why) seemed to be more common in my life now than they ever were in any of those puzzling science courses.
"Sooo, yeah. I better go now. Damon will be coming up soon to talk to you...or yell at you...or something along those lines."
"Right. I can't wait for that." At least this time I can be prepared and well, stay emotionally stable.
He sighed, "Yeah, I think I'll leave you to that."
"Gee thanks you jestful joke of purple extinction."
"Huh?"
"Oblivious as ever bonehead barney...thanks for leaving me here all alone."
"Oh that again?" he chukled, "Quit freaking out so much. You'll be fine, as always. He won't kill you."
"Maybe not, but that doesn't mean he won't put me through agonizing pain...at least to my ear drums."
He laughed, but began to walk out of the room. "Oh and by the way Alaure..."
"Yeah?"
"Thanks for figuring out his name. It was getting on my nerves to calling 'master'. As if the guy doesn't degrade me enough...that haughty pinhead and his hoity-toitiness."
I laughed, "Hoity-toitiness? I think the word you're looking for is nincompoop."
"Perfect," he grinned,"...well, see you later, hopefully. I've already gotten in enough trouble with D because of you."
"Hey! It wasn't my fault!"
"Yeah, I know," he chuckled, "I just like teasing you."Well you're not the only one. What is it about me that makes me so fun to tease? I don't even have any amusing reactions. More importantly, why did Baxter disobey Damon so much? And why on earth did Damon put up with it?
I rolled my eyes at Bax, saving my questions for some other time as he walked out of the room and I resumed staring at the rotating ceiling fan when barely two minutes later another voice broke my concentration.
"So I suppose you never will learn your lesson, huh kitten?" Damon stated.
I propped myself up on arms to look at him. I was completely thrown off by his attitude. He didn't seem mad at all. In fact his face was wiped of any emotion which made me nervous that he would burst any second. I stared at him like a deaf person, mouth slightly dropped, completely dumbfounded.
"What are you thinking, kitten?"
Finally I decided to say something."Kitten?"
"You know how the saying goes: curiosity killed the cat. You're like the curious cat. But it wouldn't be a very great pet name if I just called you cat, so you're now kitten."
I returned a very apathetic and exaggerated nod.
"What are you thinking?" he asked.
"Why."
"What do you mean 'why'? As in why do I care what's on your mind?"
"I just don't get it." He was being awfuly talkative today, much more than usual.
"Get what?"
"I don't understand what I could possibly know that you would need to determine so badly. You're an educated guy, I'm sure. No idiot could just randomly become one of the world's richest and most successful businessman at such a young age, so anything I would know that would even slightly pertain to you, I'm sure you would know more about. Even if you didn't, you have so many resources at your fingertips for you to easily find out what you're looking for, so I'm completely at a loss as to why..."
"Yeah, I'm still not answering that. You may even end up figuring it out on your own anyways...or not," he taunted.
"Why not just make my life here a tad bit easier and tell me?"
"Oh come on, kitten! What would be the fun in that? You, trying to snoop into my office. Me, watching your every move and kicking your butt when I catch you red handed. Kind of like today when you thought you could get away reading my letters without being caught. You may have figured out my name, that was pretty simple and reckless on my part, but you're not likely to get much further than that."
We'll just see about that.
I shrugged. "'kay."
We stared each other down for a while, neither of us sure what to say next.
"Do I scare you?"
I narrowed my eyes at him. "What d'you think?"
"I think you're absolutely terrified of me. Sure you're stubborn, hardheaded, and you act like you're not just some twig-like, frail, nerdy girl, but the second I carry out a threat you look more defenseless than a helpless, innocent stray kitten that just got run over multiple times on a highway, squirming around like a rag caught in the wind, bleeding everywhere, barely alive. Pretty cute picture isn't it? Your nickname just became about a hundred times more fitting."
"You're sick," I spat, disgusted at the kind of thoughts he had running through his head. I was more of a dog-lover and even that was a disturbing image for me.
"Yeah, I kind of am. I don't know why on earth you thought I would sympathize with you over your dead mother earlier down in the kitchen," he scoffed insensitively. Wow, it was like every time I found some good in him, he reminded me that it was just an accident and that he really was heartless. "By the way, I did end up getting first dibs. Those were some damn good desserts. Good to know that you're actually useful in the kitchen. I'm actually considering not disposing of you once I get what I want from you. I might just have to keep you here for the rest of your life if you become a little less aggravating. I'm sure Nadya would be ecstatic at the news of having a little helper running around. She seems to love having some help and company."
I couldn't tell if he was being serious about anything, so I just kept my mouth shut. All I knew was that he was sounding seriously demented.
"Why so serious, kitten? Usually I can't get you to shut up. What's wrong?"
"I think I should be asking you what's wrong. Why aren't you yelling at me for everything?"
"Why should I waste my breath? You're never listen anyways, right kitten? I might be telling you something for your own good, but you never listen to me. You will never listen to me. I don't care if you end up hurting yourself in the end. Like I said, curiosity killed the cat."
"Well at least the cat died a noble death"
He rolled his eyes at me and scoffed, "Go ahead and die your "noble" death. Join your mother. Tell her I said hi. I told you once that ignorance is bliss, but I guess you just don't trust me. I could give you the answers to everything you want to know and it won't get you a single step closer to your goal. Want to know why? Because your paws can't take a step off this estate. You're stuck here, and as long as you're stuck here, you can't do a single thing beside meow in melancholy. And honey, believe me when I say that you will never slip through my fingers. You just don't seem to get in your thick cranium that the more you snoop around, the less freedom you'll have. It's not me; it's your knowledge which will constrict you. You're just trapping yourself in your own cage. The moment you found out my name, you kissed your chance of me letting you go, goodbye."
Obedience. How could anyone resist defying anything and everything the person they hate said? Why should I be obedient? Trust. How could I trust someone who had kidnapped me? Patience. How could I just sit here and wait for something to happen when I may never see my best friend again, when I may never get out of here? Give up. How could I not try? I wanted to say all this and more, but I was still shocked from every single word Damon had said to me, silenced by the realization of my mistakes. At the same time, though, I couldn't bring myself to regret what I had done.
I wouldn't give up. I was determined to find a way out. I knew I could. Even if it takes me years, I know my time for escape will come. I didn't believe him either. He had no reason to look out for me. I had always been an observant person, and I had seen many people use this tactic on others to get what they wanted.
I wasn't stupid and I wasn't going to fall for it for one second...but just maybe, I could pretend to fall for it. I smiled deviously in my head. It was time to really crack down on lying low, and getting Damon to trust me and fall for my act. I was finally going to make progress. Mission Escape Commence, I was going to get out of this shit hole for sure.
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
The next week and a half could not have passed by any slower or been any drier. I felt like a machine, going through the routine motions of the day. All I ever did was help Nadya cook or clean, and occasionally read a book Nadya would give me. It was almost like high school again, but I needed to lay low now, at least until I was off Damon's radar.
He watched me even more carefully now, but I think I was finally starting to throw him off into believing that I was broken. I had even managed to avoid Baxter although I felt lonely and bored without his constant teasing. That also meant no video games. Yep, life here in the billion dollar house was a dreary existence. Bax was the only non-gloomy thing in the house, and the reason why I was still somewhat sane.
It wasn't until one Sunday afternoon that something interesting happened. The house had been completely quiet as we all relaxed in the living room. Bax was out somewhere, Nadya was sitting by the fire with a book, Damon was sprawled out on the couch, reading something on his laptop, and I was snuggled into the armchair reading a book when we all heard the chime of a doorbell, reverberating through the house. I looked up as my confused eyes met Damon's. I could see his face contort from confusion to contemplation to distress and finally to fear.
"Nadya," he said, the anguish evident in his voice.
"I'm on it."
"Not the cellar. It's locked. There's not enough time. Go to the studio."
"Come on Alaure," Nadya said, frantically motioning me to the door.
"Wha-What's going on?"
"Questions later! Just move!" Nadya grabbed my arm and pulled me up the stairs. We nearly sprinted down the hall to the other stairwell that led to the third floor. I was surprised by how fast a woman of Nadya's age and body mass could move. The sound of the doorbell chiming echoed through the house once more, and I heard Damon's footsteps click against the marble floors in the foyer. I was completely out of breath once we reached the top of the stairs, but that didn't stop Nadya from dragging me to one of the doors. She yanked me in, coming in behind me and closed the door.
"In here," Nadya ordered opening another door. I could barely see anything because the lights were so dim, but it was obvious that this room was a mini recording studio. Guitars lined the walls, a drum set was tucked into the corner, near it was a grand piano, and several other instruments were scattered around the room. The room Nadya was motioning me into was the sound proof room that had a window staring out into the rest of the room and control panels. We sat down on the wall below the window and finally relaxed...somewhat anyways.
"Okay, so you want to tell me what the heck that was about?"
"We weren't expecting visitors."
"Huh? So what? Why is that such a big deal? It could have just been Bax."
"You don't understand. No one simply "visits" here uninvited. Bax always uses a key or at least calls if he forgets it, and one of us will open the door. That doorbell is almost never rung. Quite frankly, it's more of a show piece now."
"So what does that mean? Damon has some long lost, dreaded family members he doesn't want to see?"
"No. It means that there are most likely cops here."
A glimmer of hope ran through me. The police! They could save me! In all my years of living I had never been so ecstatic to see a police officer.
"Stay here, I have to go back down to Damon." I hesitantly nodded at Nadya who rushed out of the studio. Could I really do this? Was it really this simple? All I had to do was turn the knob to both doors and bolt to the police! But what if either Nadya or Damon caught me first? I had to plan this out right. I needed to wait just a little longer until they came up here. I had to be sure or else everything I had tried to do for the past two weeks would be completely destroyed. I walked out of the soundproof room and stood by the door to listen for footsteps.
Officer's POV
The three of us stood waiting by the door. It had been a while since I'd been around here, not that I'd been here very often considering the distance. It was kind of refreshing to be able to come back here, but I wish it had been for different reasons. After what seemed like several minutes, the door swung open and the three of us walked in. I raised my eyebrows at Damon, acknowledging him.
"Sorry to bother you Mr. Ferragamo, but we're looking for a girl named Jayden," I said as I pulled out the picture of her that her parents had given me, "and we were led here, so we ask that you to let us search your house. We understand that it is in your rights to deny us, but this may entail more questioning and interrogation in the future. We also ask that you tell us any information you may have on this young lady."
"Well I'm sorry to say that I've never heard of her in my entire life, I'm sure I would have remembered such a pretty face, but you're free to look around," he grinned cordially.
"Alright then, thank you sir. Boys, may I speak to Mr. Ferragamo in private for a moment." The other two nodded at me before walking off towards the living room. As soon as they were out of sight I turned to him. I didn't have to say a word before he held up three fingers, indicating the third floor. He grinned at me.
I smiled back at him before going off to the boys and telling them to check out the first and second floors. Damon went off with them as I climbed the stairs to the second floor. I walked all the way down the hall until I reached a spiral stairwell and climbed up to the third floor. I scanned the room and began to look around objects. Just as I was about to check out all the rooms, I heard one of the doors creak open. I snapped my head to it and saw a girl peering through the door. I grinned at her and walked to it.
Alaure POV
I opened the door just a crack and winced as the door squeaked. I crossed my fingers and hoped with all my life that it wasn't Damon. As I took a better look, I saw a police officer standing in the game room, grinning at me. Elation washed over me and a giddy feeling filled my insides, threatening to burst out.
I wanted to run over to the officer and wrap my arms around him, but I couldn't bring myself to believe it. I feared that if I made one step he would vanish like a dream or some secret alarm that Damon was hiding would go off and Damon would find some way to trap me up again. Luckily I didn't have to move because the officer walked over to me. I began breathing heavily as if I was meeting a celebrity or something.
"Hello there," he said, leaning down to my level, "what's your name?"
It took me a while to get my tongue straight, but once I finally managed to do so I stuttered out, "A-Alaure."
Suddenly something in me went off. I had seen this man before.
"Well how did you manage to get here?" The way he spoke to me was similar to the way one would talk down to a child.
Nervousness churned in me as I once again stuttered my response, "I-I-I don't know."
"Well I do."
I furrowed my brows as I thought harder about where I had seen him before.
"What do you mean?"
He pinched my cheek gently. "You've been a nosy little girl haven't you?" I stared into his muddy brown eyes and it finally hit me.
"You! You're the officer I went to for help about Jayden!"
"Indeed I am silly Alaure. In fact I'm here looking for her."
"Oh thank god," I sighed in relief, but at the same time, I wasn't fully at ease. Something about him made me feel uneasy.
"Have you heard anything about your best friend?"
"No," I frowned, "but I have a bad feeling about...about..." I couldn't bring myself to finish. I didn't trust this guy. I would have trusted any other cop but him.
"About what?" he prompted.
"About what happened to Jayden," I said, covering up what I was really going to say. Out of nowhere, an odd thought occurred to me. Why hadn't he done anything for me yet? Before I could ponder the question any longer I heard footsteps come up the stairs. I assumed it was just Nadya, but when I saw Damon I felt panicked until I remembered that I was with a cop and he was finally busted. I smiled at him, but was thrown off when he smiled devilishly back me.
As soon as his eyes locked on Damon, the officer strode over to him, pushed him against the wall and cuffed him as he said, "Mr. Ferragamo, you are under arrest for kidnapping. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say or do can and will be used against you in the court of law, you have the right to an attorney if you can't afford one, one will be appointed to you."
Although I kept a stoic expression, on the inside I was cheering. A silence fell over us after the officer had spoken Damon's rights, but it was abruptly broken as both Damon and the officer burst into laughter. My elation quickly deflated to befuddlement.
"So I see you had no trouble finding her, Jones. How's she been?"
"Not bad actually. She shockingly wasn't trying to be obvious. She didn't run out screaming to me or anything," he laughed, "Honestly it seemed more like she was being curious."
"Of course you would be, kitten," Damon addressed me. I couldn't bring myself to say anything as all hope drained from my body and my face went pale.
"I don't know how, but you've done a good job with her," Jones continued, "She didn't even start blurting things about you. As far as I would have known, she belonged here."
Damon walked over to me and smiled. He ruffled my hair a little before saying, "Good kitten."
With all my confusion building up, I finally spoke, "Wait, I don't get it. What's going on?"
Damon turned to Jones, "She's kind of a slow one. I have a feeling she cheated her way through high school and into college."
Jones shook his head disapprovingly and sighed.
"I did not! I'm sorry that the stupid American education system doesn't teach kids what to do when they're kidnapped by psycho rich men and completely unaided by corrupt policemen who are supposed to be helping said kid. It didn't really fall under any topics in Calculus or Organic Chemistry!"
"She's kind of annoying," Jones said.
"Tell me about it. I can't wait to get rid of her, although, she does make good food."
"Hello! I'm right here!"
"Why are you keeping her around anyway?" Jones asked.
"Yeah Damon, why?" I prompted.
"Wait, she knows your name?" Jones exclaimed.
"Yeah, curious kitten, remember?"
"Ah, right, right."
Damon whispered something inaudible in Jones' ear that made Jones' eyes go bug-eyed.
"Oh shit! Damn, that's...that's just insane!" Jones exclaimed once again.
"Yeah I know. That's why I have to put up with her...for now."
"You're just trying to tease me aren't you," I said to Damon.
"Yeah, somewhat."
"So now what do you do, Officer Jones," I practically spat, "You go back to California and pretend you never saw me?"
"Ah, now she's catching on!"
"Say 'hi' to my professors for me," I retorted sarcastically.
"It must stink that your dad doesn't care enough about you to look for you, huh Alaure?" Jones grinned.
"Maybe a decade or a decade and a half ago that would have been like a knife in my heart, but it's a pretty good thing now," I said nonchalantly as if we were talking about the weather over a cup of tea.
"Jones, come on now. You know that if she breaks down again I'm going to have to be the one to deal with it."
"Alright, sorry. I better get going now before the boys try to look for me. Take care bud, and you better invite me over sometime soon. Hopefully not to help you cover up any of your damned messes again."
Damon chuckled, "Yeah alright man. Sorry about that. I'll see you around."
"Alright, see ya."
They did that manly half-hug thing and Jones made his way downstairs.
"I can't believe this," I whispered disbelievingly to myself, "There was a cop in this god forsaken house, a freaking cop, and he didn't do anything for me! Nothing. Zero. Nada. Zilch. Goose eggs." Is this really how corrupt the justice system had become? A little bribery and a little camaraderie was all it took to sweep things under the mat?! I couldn't even begin to imagine how many people's lives had been ruined and how many more could have been saved if law enforcement actually did what they were supposed to. Unbelievable. I hate them. I hate them all. USELESS! I just stood there with my mouth hanging open, my head shaking side to side disbelievingly for the longest time. It would have made much more sense if this whole day was just a dream.
"I told you early on that you wouldn't be able to escape didn't I? And if by some miracle you did, you would just find yourself back here. I have more connections than you think. You figured that out for yourself, didn't you?" He came closer to me and put his arms on both sides of the wall I was standing on. "You know that I'm Damon Ferragamo. You know that I'm a multi-billionaire. You know that I'm extremely powerful. So why do you keep underestimating me?"
I just stared at him; eyebrows furrowed and managed to mutter out, "I don't know."
Fun Fact!Baxter's name was originally Jones. I was never really content with the name and somewhere in the process of writing my draft I met a guy named Baxter (well his name is Charles, but he goes by his middle name, Baxter) and well I really liked it so I changed his name :D
Sad Fact :( The little picture Damon painted of the kitten being run over was something I saw myself when I was driving with my parents from Austin to Houston. It literally looked like a rag twirling around in the wind. If I could have, I would have pulled over and taken it to a vet or something D: It was seriously one of the saddest things I had ever seen.
So what did you think of this chapter? :D :P What's running through your head? Are you frustrated yet? Confused? Did you totally see this coming? Not surprised at all?
Thanks for all of the support all you readers have given me thus far :D
Thanks for sharing my story. Thanks for commenting. Thanks for voting. Thanks for everything :)
Seriously! You guys make me so happy, make me smile so much (especially with all those sweet comments) I wish I could just bottle up that feeling and store it for those sad moments.