"You look worried, my rose," Blake said, cutting through the silence of the car.
It took me a moment to even register what he'd said. "Huh?"
He raised an eyebrow. "I said, you look worried. Terrified, actually, ever since we left the gas station. Is everything alright?"
"Yes," I said, curtly, then he raised an eyebrow, and I sighed, "or maybe not. I'm not sure. I'm sorry, master, it's just been a long and confusing day."
He let out a sigh. "I know, my rose, and I know that I am the reason for that." I frowned, looking up at him. Was that remorse I heard in his voice? Surely not. He shook his head. "The truth is, I haven't been fair with you, Rose. I have been tormenting you, punishing you, and making you angry so that I would have an excuse to lash out at you. I guess I've just been stressed about tonight and I took it out on you. I'm sorry, Rose."
I stared at him, incredulous, and he frowned. "What? What are you staring at?"
I shook my head quickly and looked down. "Nothing, sir, I'm sorry. I just didn't expect that."
He lifted his hand and gently placed it under my chin, guiding my head up. I was surprised to see that he was smiling. "You're cute when you're meek, Rose. You should be like this more often."
I felt my cheeks burn. "Cute when I'm scared, you mean," I said quietly.
I expected him to snap at me again, but he just chuckled. "Yes, I suppose so, Rose. Or I suppose you're just cute all the time."
He leant forward and kissed me. It made my stomach churn. He pulled away and threw me a small smile.
"Come on, Rose, compose yourself." He said, nodding to the window. I glanced out, surprised to find that we were at the gates down into Blake's private carpark. I took a deep breath, shifting in my seat to try to ignore the longing deep in my chest to kiss Blake again.
I looked back across at him as we dropped into the carpark. He was still looking at me, a smile on his face. At that moment, a flash of light passed across his face, and my breath caught in my throat. All of a sudden, he didn't look like the man who kidnapped me. He looked like someone enamoured. He was enamoured with me.
Then the light changed, and I instantly felt horrified, guilty that for a single moment, I saw him as anything but my tormentor.
I blinked away tears and looked away. If Blake noticed the change, he didn't say anything. He just gently took my hand and rubbed my thumb gently.
I didn't dare pull it away.
The limo slowed, and we pulled up to the elevators, and Blake gently tugged my hand, bringing my attention back to him. He gave me a grim smile. "Listen, Rose. There are some bad people coming tonight, and I am the only one that can protect you from them. I need you to trust me to do that."
"Okay," I said, distracted.
"No, I'm serious. Some of these men want things that they can't have, and that doesn't bode well with their egos. The only way I can guard you is if you do as I tell you to. Do you trust me?" He said.
As if I could ever fucking trust you.
"Yes," I said, lying through my teeth, "I trust you."
He smiled, relieved, then nodded. "Alright, let's go party then, shall we?"
With that, he opened the door to the limo and climbed out. I watched as he dusted himself off, then turned, and leant back into the car to help me out.
I don't think I would have been able to get out without him.
He led me into one of the elevators and hit the button for the ground floor. Blake threw one last wave at the limo driver, then the doors shut.
Blake took a deep breath and squeezed my hand as we rose. "Are you ready, Rose?"
I glanced across at him. No. Yes. Maybe. I didn't know. I didn't know what I was going into. He said that these people were bad, but how bad were they? What did they want? I had no way of knowing, and something told me that Blake wouldn't be too keen on sharing.
So I just mutely nodded. It was as good of an answer as any.
The elevator let out a ding, and the doors slid open, revealing the foyer we had walked through that morning. Chatter and noise filled the air, along with light music playing, and I knew that the party had already begun.
"This way," Blake said, gesturing to the hallway to the ballroom, even though there was only one way there. He gave me a confident smile, but I knew it was fake. He was nervous. Some small part of me wanted to comfort him.
I ignored it.
He led me down the hall and into a hub of life. The barren ballroom I had seen that morning was already steadily filling with people, chatting in groups, and mingling amongst glasses of wine and servings of refined finger food.
"Blake!" A cheery voice called out from nearby. We both turned to find a tall blonde guy walking over with a grin on his face. "The host finally arrives. Aren't they supposed to be here from the start?"
"It's good to see you too, Matt," Blake replied, grinning back. "I'm glad you could make it."
Blake held out his hand to shake, but instead of the formal shake I was expecting, Matt took the opportunity to bring Blake in for a man hug, before breaking away and grinning. "I'm glad I could make it too. Especially so I could meet this lovely woman..." He trailed off, turning his attention to me with a charming smile. "Who's this, Blake?"
"This," He said, retaking my hand, "is the lovely Rose. She's going through some hard times with her parents, so I'm just helping her out with a place to stay, and a bit of work, until she gets back on her feet."
I felt him squeeze my hand and dutifully nodded, smiling at Matt. "He's been a very charming host, despite the lateness." I forced out.
Blake smiled at me, content. Matt grinned and sighed. "Well, I'll let you go do your host duties and mingle. And don't forget to grab a drink. I'm sure you need it."
He winked at me, then sauntered off. Blake smiled and looked at me. "Champagne, my rose?"
"I'm not old enough," I muttered, and he batted a hand.
"Nonsense. You're old enough for me, so please, have a drink." He said, and with that, he grabbed two glasses from a passing waiter and handed one to me with a smile. "Here, drink up."
I took a swig, and couldn't help but make a face. Blake chuckled. "Keep going. Sip slower. Savour the taste. I promise it gets better the more you have."
I nodded, ignoring the churning in my stomach. Slowly, I took another sip. This time, I managed not to gag, and Blake grinned at me proudly.
"Good girl, my rose!"
At that moment, another voice called out Blake's name, and just like that, we were sucked into the hub of the party, talking to person after person, making the same introduction each time.
I was Blake's charity project, and I hated it.
So, as we spoke, I drank. Glass after glass. Feeling myself getting more and more drunk.
Jordan and I had drunk before, of course. At friend's parties, times when she had snuck some wine from her mums' pantry, that kind of thing, but this wasn't like that. This time, I wasn't drinking for fun. I was drinking to forget.
It didn't work.
At some point, a little later, a man walked over, giving Blake a very fake smile. "Mr Ivy, how wonderful you could make it."
Blake laughed. "It is my party, Gareth. I'm obligated to be here."
The man, Gareth, shrugged. "Good that you're here, nonetheless. And who is this stunning young lady? Will I see her again sometime soon?" He said, raising an eyebrow at Blake.
Blake shook his head. "No, I don't believe so, unless she royally pisses me off. This is Rose."
I smiled at him forcefully, nodding. "It's nice to meet you, Gareth."
He chuckled. "You should be thankful you have met me now, Rose. Let's just say I have a rather unsavoury line of work."
I glanced at Blake, and his grim look practically confirmed my suspicions.
"Well, it's been nice to see you again, Gareth. I'll make sure to contact you if it comes to that." Blake said, before taking my arm and gently leading me away.
I glanced back to see Gareth taking a sip of his champagne, watching me go with a dark look in his eyes. I quickly looked away.
We ran into Matt again, who seemed significantly less sober than when we had first spoken but was also considerably less scary than Gareth, so I was thankful for the change. He and Blake chatted for a bit, and I started to wonder about how they came to know each other. Then, the conversation turned to me.
"So, are you two like a thing now?" Matt asked, and my heart stopped.
Fortunately, or maybe not so fortunately, Blake was quick to laugh and shook his head. "God, no, Matt, why does your mind always go there? Rose and I are strictly friends. You know I would never do that to Iris, she's too precious to me."
You know that you're too precious to me to sell, don't you?
A lump welled up in my throat as I was reminded of Blake's words earlier in the day. As I was reminded Gareth, and of what was at stake if I didn't do as he wanted me.
"Rose, are you alright? You just went pale." Matt said frowning. Blake squeezed my hand, feigning concern too.
I nodded at them both, slipping my hand from Blake's. "Yes, of course, I'm fine. Just need a moment... Where is the bathroom?"
"Just down the hall towards the foyer. Ladies is the door to the left." Blake said, patting my arm. He was giving me a look I couldn't quite understand. Concern, maybe? Or anger? I didn't know. Either way, I needed a break. I needed a moment to breathe. So I nodded and left, following the directions they gave me. The two continued chatting the moment I was walking away.
I made it to the bathroom and quickly rushed into one of the stalls, then paused, marvelling at how there were bathroom stalls in Blake's house. If you could even call this a home. It was more like a resort in which he lived.
I took a shaky breath, and sat down, putting my head in my hands. God, how was I going to do more of this? I had hardly gotten through one conversation without giving myself away, along with Blake.
How could I pretend that everything was normal when really I was falling apart?
"Ophelia?" Called a voice from outside the stall. It was Gwen, and she sounded worried. Just the sound of concern in her voice was enough to fill me with a rush of confusing emotions. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine," I said, blinking away tears and taking a shaky breath, "I'm just overwhelmed."
"Well, I can relate to that." She said, with a sigh. "Wanna talk about it?"
I looked down at the floor. It was made from marble. "Not really."
"Are you sure?" She asked.
I could tell that she wanted me to change my mind. She wanted me to open up to her. But I couldn't trust her like that. Not after everything she had done to me. So I swallowed the lump in my throat, stood, and opened the stall door.
"I don't want to talk about it," I said, icily. She looked shocked and a little hurt by my coldness.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you." She said, reaching out to take my hand. I pulled it away, dodging her attempt at touching me and shaking my head at her.
"Just leave me be, Iris," I said.
Hurt flashed across her face, and she faltered, unsure of what to say. After a long moment, she stumbled back, letting me out. As I passed, she mumbled, "I'm sorry."
I shook my head and couldn't help but roll my eyes. I didn't want to deal with her manipulative behaviour right now. Not when it was so obvious what she was doing. So I just ignored her vain attempts to get me to depend on her and returned to the party.
Not that it was much of a party.
Even as I walked back down to the ballroom, people passed me in the hallway, heading towards the doors and the elevators.
I watched them as we passed, unable to recognise anyone in the stream of faces. Then one of them, an older man, met my gaze, and he smiled. I quickly looked down, but not before I saw the crease of confusion on his brow. He recognised me. It seemed that a lot of people knew me.
I couldn't decide on whether that was a good or a bad thing.
Back in the ballroom, I quickly scanned the crowd and managed to catch sight of Blake, talking to a group. Since I was gone, the mood of the room had shifted. People were finishing their glasses, collecting their things. The party had barely begun, yet it seemed like it was over, and I had no idea why.
So I went to find the answer. As I got closer to Blake, I could hear him, talking to the rest of the group. He sounded anxious.
"There's no guarantee the weather will permit anyone to get out later tonight, and if you wait until morning, you might get snowed in. I can't accommodate everyone, so though I can't force you out, I'm strongly advising everyone to leave."
The group murmured and nodded in understanding, and Blake gave them a grim smile before turning to find me standing behind him. "Oh, Rose, I didn't realise you were back. Feeling better?"
I didn't bother answering. "What's going on?"
"Like I said earlier, Rose. A storm is brewing. They've issued a warning for all residents in the region to prepare for the worst. So I'm ending the party." He said, bitterly, walking past me towards a clump of people still lingering in the corner of the room.
"But it's barely begun," I said, confused. He rolled his eyes.
"I don't care, Rose. My only concern is that these people are safe, and not my responsibility when that storm hits later tonight. Now would you please get out of my hair." He said, annoyed.
I bit my lip. "Do you want me to go back to the basement?"
He rolled his eyes. "I don't fucking care where you go, as long as it's not in my way."
"Okay," I said, quietly, stopping and watching as he walked away.
I took a shaky breath then turned, and walked through the ballroom, to the hallway, and then back to the main house. When I reached the door to go down into the basement, I didn't even pause. I knew I didn't want to go back down there. But as I walked back into the lounge room, I knew I didn't want to stay there, either, so I kept walking. To the stairs, and up to Gwen's bedroom. Then through it, to her closet. In there, I tore off the uncomfortably tight dress Blake had dressed me in, and let out a sigh of relief when it was free.
I managed to find some warm clothes in my size and quickly got dressed. Then I grabbed the big black puffer jacket by the door and headed back downstairs. I could still hear the echoes of the party coming down the hall. Blake was obviously having a hard time getting people to leave.
Whatever, though. It wasn't my problem.
I didn't put the jacket on until I was about to go outside, along with some snow boots by the door that were way too big for me. Then, when I was ready, I pushed open the glass and stepped outside.
The last time I had done this, I'd started panicking, trying to escape. This time, I just stood there on the doorstep, watching as cars peeled out the carpark and headed back down the road towards the highway.
After a few minutes, I sat down on the steps down the driveway and just watched.
It would be so easy to get up and run after them, climb into a car with one of the guests and get out of here. But I couldn't do that. I couldn't just leave. Not without Jackson. Not without Gwen.
As I sat there, I felt my eyes begin to get heavy, and I fought to keep them open. I could feel myself getting colder and colder, more and more tired, but I didn't want to get up and go inside.
I couldn't.
Fewer and fewer cars were leaving, the party clearing out. Finally, one last car left, and the landscape suddenly went dark. The lights in the ballroom had been turned off.
I felt my eyes drifting shut, and when I opened them again, Blake was there, lifting me off the ground and guiding me inside.
I let him lead me, too tired to fight. Even as he led me, my eyes kept drifting shut. When we stopped, I could barely open them. I vaguely registered him helping me out of Gwen's clothes, then the murmur of her voice, talking to Blake. I felt someone kiss me, then I was lying down, with arms tangled around me, and I let myself drop.
As I fell asleep, I felt like I was safe.
I didn't dream.