The Essential Bride

The Essential Bride (19)

For hours I did nothing but lay in a comfortable, unfamiliar bed, facing away from the massive bay doors dreading the light they let in. I watched the shadows change in the room, dance across the walls as the sunset, unmoving. I barely took in the decorations of the room, it was a light baby pink with light white furniture, but other than the floral bedspread nothing else jumped out at me.

I rubbed my sore eyes, swollen and itchy from crying. I wished there was tissues near me so I could blow my nose, my head was pounding from being so full. I felt defeated, like a balloon with a pin hole. This was it, this was my life now. How was I supposed to adjust to this? Living in a mansion, in the middle of no where, in a foreign country.

Say I even considered running away, even if I had a slight chance to get away from Leon, which I knew was already out of the question I couldn't risk the welfare of my Mom, Stephanie or any of my other friends by leaving Leon. He would go after them, even if I couldn't go back to them anyways because they didn't even remember me.

That made the tears start again, the deep ache in my heart for my mom. I was it, I was all my mother had and she didn't even remember me anymore. I had no way to check on her, to see how she was doing, how she was going on without me. Would I even want to though? My own mother was able to forget me, would I want to know how easily she could move on without me?

I cried in to my pillow, that was soaked by tears and continued thinking, digging myself in to an even deeper hole, all of these new feelings surfacing. It was easy to suppress my fear and sadness while traveling, because my mind was elsewhere, but here? My family and friends were all I had to think back on. What had I done to deserve this? To be whisked away from my mom for this?

The worst part is I had no way of changing my fate, I had signed my life away without batting an eye, and I wouldn't change it for the world but I didn't even know what I was signing. Leon had taken advantage of me at a pivotal moment in my life, all for the sake of taking me, because of this ridiculous bond he skirted around while talking to me. He kept saying "you don't understand yet, but you will" but even when i learn of it, it wouldn't matter. I would never want this to be my life, I would never accept this.

There was two knocks on my door, then nothing. I said nothing, just buried deeper in to the blanket wishing they'd go away. Whoever they were, they weren't important and I did not want them to see me the way I was. I had too much pride for that. They never knocked again and that surprised me.

The sun had finished setting, leaving me in darkness. I was thankful, I planned on ignoring my hunger pains and just sleeping. I never wanted to leave this room again.

There was another knock at the door what felt like an hour later, and I ignored it again wishing sleep would take me. Without warning the door opened, and I tucked my face under the covers so whoever it was couldn't see me.

The air around me eased considerable with whoever entered, I knew instantly who it was and my heart sunk.

"You know, the servant rushed to me in a hurry insisting you'd run away." Leon spoke softly, sadness laced in is voice. "You're very good at causing a panic within my staff." He laughed humorlessly. "But I knew better, I knew right where you were the entire time." I knew what he was saying, I knew what he was really implying 'I know you've been crying all evening and night' and I felt my cheeks heat up. My whole face warmed, I tried breathing through my nose mindlessly, sniffling sadly, regretting it.

"What do I do?" I cried, not leaving the blankets. I didn't want to think of how he knew, I didn't want to think of this 'bond' that he was so happy to bring up. The bond meant nothing to me, but it let him have so much power over me somehow.