The Orange Blossom's Lullaby

Chapter 5 - Nothing's New

Chapter 5

"In God's name, I swear that you will go to Hell if you keep this up!"

I sit in the metal folding chair silently, feeling Damion click a handcuff around my ankle and to the leg of the chair. The cold metal rubs uncomfortably against my pale skin, begging for release. I shoot my head up to him as he starts to move away.

"Wait!" I look at him with widened, pleading eyes. "Please don't lock me to the chair. I'll be good, I promise." I hold my pinkie finger out. What a fucking child. Damion smiles sweetly, and it takes all of me not to flinch in disgust.

"I'm sorry, darling, but I can't trust you not to try to escape just yet. You understand, right?" I sigh and nod my head, not wanting him to raise any suspicion.

There goes my plan to knock him out with a pan.

He sits down across from me and places his  hand over his fork. I stare down at my food. Spaghetti noodles with ground beef overtop and shredded mozzarella. No sauce. Just the way I like it. How this bastard knew, I have no idea. I picked up my fork and twirled it in my fingers. For some reason, my appetite was completely gone.

I wonder why...

"Tara..."

My head snaps up as I face the devil, smiling in an inexplicably white, wrinkle-free collared shirt and black dress pants. Why he dresses so nice, I don't know. But that doesn't matter. What does matter is the face he's giving me. The same face he gave me when he was busy butchering my boss. The bone-chilling smile he held when kissed me after beating Jimmy to death. The thought of that made me sick. What other horrible things was this monster wanting to do to me?

I'm brought back to Earth as Damion slams his hand on the table, awakening my fear of this man. He sighs and runs a hand through his blonde hair.

"Before you finish your food, I need to talk to you about the rules. I'm taking a new job, so I'll probably be here a bit more. Got it?"

I look at him with eyes agape, scared of the notion of "rules". What does he mean by that? Does he think I'm a child? I haven't been a child in four years! Goddamnit, I haven't acted like a child in twelve years. What does he think makes it okay to treat me like one? Well, to be fair, he did kidnap me, torture me, and kill my boss right in front of me.

I shouldn't be surprised.

I nod my head yes eventually, still sticking to the "be submissive and use it to escape" plan. Damion smiles again before motioning to my food. I start to eat, wanting to drown out the sound of his voice with sounds of my fork scraping against the porcelain plates uncomfortably. God, I hate that sound.

"Rule one. You listen to me. I don't like to repeat myself.

Rule two. Disobedience results in punishment."

What does he deem disobedient? That's such a vague rule. I bet he's a sadist. Fucking degenerate.

"I don't have many rules. But I will make more as I go. And you will respect that. Got it?"

I nod yes. Damion sighs and starts to eat his food. The room grew silent except for the sounds of us eating the spaghetti. God, it was good. I hate to admit it, but it was good. Now I sound like I have Stockholm Syndrome on day two. I finish my food at record time. I didn't eat breakfast or lunch (not like I could have, seeing as he was at work) so by the time he got back to my cell, my stomach was running on fumes.

I clear my throat, signaling to him that I'm finished eating. To my surprise, Damion grabs my ankle and unlocks me.

I regret my next action. I think I probably will for the rest of my life.

My hands clench into a fist, itching to punch him in the nose.

It's like my body is on autopilot.

My leg jerks free of his grasp and pushes me to the countertop where the pan is. I grab the saucepan, a bit of marinara dripping onto the ground below me. Damion glares at me before standing up, carefully holding his bleeding nose.

Serves him right.

"Put the fucking pan down right now, Tara." The first time he calls me anything other than that stupid pet name and it's while I'm trying to escape him. I back up slightly, raising the pan in defense.

"Back up, Damion. Please." I add the final word in an attempt to make him less upset. But I think there's no going back now. "Now, back up and give me your keys. You think you can do that Princess?"  I give him a smug look, satisfied with my nickname for him. Honestly, the name Damion makes me want to vomit.

"Tara, you do realize that I'm bigger, stronger, and faster than you. You don't stand a chance." He steps forwards, sending me back two. It's true. That's why I'm scared.

"I said back the fuck up! Give me your keys!" I scream at him, causing him to flinch. My vocal cords are sore from the screaming last night, so my voice cracked on the word "keys". He smiles sarcastically and throws his keys to me.

"Good. Thank you."

God, I'm so naïve.

I should have just listened to my mother.

The moment I reach for the keys he lunges at me. I yelp as I'm thrown down, the pan hitting my hand harshly. My wrist throbs as he grips them, tight enough that, if he were to pull, they'd rip off.

Just like how mom used to hold them.

I feel salty tears drip down my face unwillingly as he shakes me, my struggle gone. He's screaming something, but I can't hear it over my tears seeping into the ground. My heartbeat rises to the top of my head, and all I hear is thudding.

I feel a sharp pain in my cheek.

Then another.

Then I move.

No, that's not right.

He moves.

He moves me.

I don't remember much else. The rest of the night was a daze in and out of consciousness. My mind raced between reality and flashbacks, often making it hard to decipher between each.

I do remember one thing for sure.

It was him tying me to a bed. Then leaving me alone.

In the darkness.

*****

Another chapter done! Thank you so much for the love and support on this story.

What do you think is going to happen to Tara?

Is Damion going to go too far?

Who knows!

-Persephone 🍆😼