CHAPTER 3

My knees give away immediately. The sight of blood almost makes me gag, but nothing is going to come out of my throat. I curve into a ball, with my knees beneath my chin.

What did I just do?

The blood continues streaming down the tarred road, painting the ground in red.

I feel Mihir squat down to my level. He touches my hair, taking it away from my face. I flinch from the feel of his hands. 

I’m no longer on the road. I’m in the basement. The dark basement where Mihir punishes me.

“You see what you’ve done?” he asks.

“I’m sorry,” I say continuously. He touches my hair.

“Look at you. It feels so good to see you on your knees after a while. Now, get up.”

I stand up immediately and I’m back on the road. A small crowd has started forming.

“Do you need help to sort it out?”

I feel helpless. I know I shouldn’t be accepting any help from him. But I do. Because I’m helpless. Lord knows what he’s going to tell the police. They would arrest me. He has the money to do so. Talon and I would never have enough money to bail me out. And Mihir has enough money to save me right now.

As soon as I nod, Mihir pats my shoulder and mouths ‘good girl’. With the snap of a finger, two guys come in, taking the body away.

“Now, go home,” he says. “We can talk later.”

The cameramen. They captured the whole thing.

“Don’t worry. I’ll handle everything.”

Mark helps me book a cab. As soon as I walk through the door, I collapse into Talon’s arms.

“What happened? He asks immediately, holding me upright. I try to steady my breathing.

“I killed someone,” I whisper and he lets go of me. I fell to the ground. I stare at him in shock. He crouches down to pick me up again, but I slap his hand away and stand up myself.

“It was an accident.”

“And what if the police come after you?” he asks.

“Mihir said he’d take care of everything.”

Talon laughs in mockery. “You believe him? After everything he did to you? He would ruin you in front of the media and society.”

I give him a bitter smile. “Am I not ruined already? The journalists are calling me whore. Telling me I was having an affair outside my marriage. They even said I’m still living off Mihir.”

Talon doesn’t say anything else after my outburst. I grab the remote and turn on the t.v. As if on cue, the journalist’s face is on the t.v.

“Vanessa Dicompetti has been said to be in the hospital, receiving treatment as of now,” the newscaster says. “Earlier today, she walked right into the road, and suffered a serious collision. Billionaire CEO, Mihir Conoretti has offered to foot the bills of the hospital as the accident happened on his property. Unfortunately for us, Vanessa’s cameraman, Leonardo said he didn’t film the whole accident as he was worried about Vanessa already and tried to stop her from crossing alone as she had been showing signs of depression.”

A few people from the accident site give their testimonies. As far as I remember, they weren’t even there. They weren’t at the accident site.

I increase the volume of the Television as I go to get myself a glass of water. I listen to all the lies, one by one as I stare outside the window.

My phone rings in my purse. I answer the call with shaky hands.

“I believe you’ve watched the news,” he says in his cool voice, practically drenching me in cold sweat.

“Yes,” I whisper.

“Are you ready to accept my offer now?”

Hell, I don’t even know what the offer is. He doesn’t just want me to listen to it anymore. He wants me to accept it now. And I have to do so no matter what. I don’t think I’m ready for a lifetime in jail. Not when I’m...

I halt in my thoughts.

Mihir is still waiting for me to say something.

“Yes,” I whisper. 

“Now, let me meet you at home.”

He hangs up immediately.

Talon is behind me.

“He asked you to come back, didn’t he?” he asks and I nod. There are tears in his eyes.

“I knew that was his plan all along. He wants you back, Heather. He wants to punish you for leaving him in the first place.”

“I know!” I scream. “But I need protection. I’m not going to let anything happen to me!”

“And has anything happened to you?” I find it hard to swallow as the tears prick the back of my eyes.

“Tell my mom I loved her.”

With that, I march to the room and start packing my things. I make sure to leave some clothes as I pack. My cab is already waiting for me by the time I finish.

The sound of my heart beat is roaring in my ears, getting worse with each step I take. The familiar white paint of the Conoretti mansion is the only thing giving me peace at this point. MaryAnne watches me from the balcony of the top floor and shakes her head.

She doesn’t have to say it out loud, I’m stupid for walking right into the lion’s mouth again.

She helps me out anyway. She hurries downstairs and takes the bag from me, putting it in the walk-in wardrobe my clothes once occupied.

“He just wanted you back,” she says. “You should have agreed to anything. Anything but coming back here.”

I want to ask her what she means. But that isn’t really any of my business right now. I hurry to have my bath and make the bed just the way Mihir likes it. Everything is a mess and I feel like I’m supposed to clean up.  I put on my white dress, kneel down and waited.