Fear. That emotion that has the ability to have your limbs frozen. It has the power to have you either fighting with everything you have just to survive or have you running as fast as you can.But it all boils down to survival. So in a way, is fear good? I was on that cold dirty floor, in a room that was filled with the smell of a decaying body, just waiting for the worst as the guard towered over me. He raised his hand and as if it was all in slow motion, I saw it coming in my direction and yet I could not do a single thing about it. He hit me across the face so hard that everything went dark for a few seconds, a ringing appearing in my ears. Pain shot from my jaw straight to my right ear. I could hear nothing and I moaned out loudly, hurt. I was now flat on the floor, not even able to move until after a few seconds. My vision cleared and I was brought back into the world of reality. But oh, it was not over. He closed the distance between us and grabbed my throat with his strong
The guard’s expression softened slightly, though the memory of his pistol reminded me of the danger I was still in. With a final warning, he turned and led the way.This time, although I was still scared for my life, I followed him. I stayed a small distance until we reached the end of the paved path. There was a huge tree and the lake looked magical. If it was under any other circumstances, this would have been nice. But my life was literally in danger. The full moon’s light reflected on the soft rumbles of the lake and I could not stop staring at it.I was not even a painter but I wanted to paint the scene really bad. “You’re about to meet the person who killed your ex,” The guy said as he placed his hands in his pockets. “He would be here in less than five minutes.” I wanted to speak but to be honest, I was scared of this guy. He no longer appeared to me as that harmless stranger who wanted to help me. The image of him hitting me and almost shooting me with his pistol was etched
Fallon Knight. The name did not ring a bell. It did not sound familiar at all. Could Ben be lying to me? He just confessed to killing Mitch!After releasing a shaky breath, I took another step away and said, “You just told me that you had nothing to do with it, Ben. You lied. How do I know that you’re not lying to me right now?” It was getting windy, the coldness of the night making itself known. “Hear me out, okay?” He took a step closer and I flinched, causing a hurt look to cross his face. He then shook his head slowly as he continued, “Linda, I’m not the bad guy here, trust me.” I forced a smile. I could not believe that my brother was a murderer. “You have five minutes to make me believe otherwise,” I replied, wrapping my arms around my body.***Ben’s POVI could see the fear in my sister’s eyes. She looked so weary and drained. I hated that I was part of all of this, but that was not going to change the fact that I was. What I needed right now was to gain her trust; to let
Ben’s POV[Flashback continues]Clouds. They were so pretty; so very beautiful. The light from the sun made them seem magical. I was sitting on a plane, by the window. The first-class seats were much nicer, with so much space. Usually, I flew with the economy. Not because I did not have money to fly with style, but because it gave me a sense of normalcy. There was a guy sitting not too far from me and I had caught him staring at me over five times already. He was very good-looking, especially every single time that he would bring the wine glass to his rosy pink lips. Honestly, yes, I was attracted to the guy. But the thing was that I had a fiance, even though he was cheating on me. So no, there was no way I was going to entertain whatever game that this guy had started. I focused on the clouds and before I knew it, a few hot tears were sliding down my face. I quickly wiped them away, my heart burning. I was on my way to Iowa as Fallon had told me. Good thing that she was helping
Ben’s POV[Flashback continues]The ride to the hotel was quiet. I liked that the cab driver did not say a thing, he just did his job. I was stuck in my head, that was for sure. I could not stop playing in my head the images of the love of my life with another man. How could he do this to me? A question I was tempted to ask myself was ‘What did I ever do to deserve this’? But we all know exactly what I did to deserve it. What was missing? What didn’t I have that Mitch had to look for in another person? I’m not going to lie, I was hurting really bad. The depression was slowly eating my brain raw. And so was the rage and pain. When the cab came to a stop, I looked out the window and saw the hotel. It was huge and fancy. I paid the guy and even added a little extra due to how quiet he was being. Then I proceeded to get out of the car, grabbing my backpack and placing it on my back before heading right into the grand building. Inside was as luxurious as outside, if not even more. W
Ben’s POV[Flashback continues]Waiting, I was waiting for him to say something. In fact, just anything would help. But all I was met with was a face of shock, worry, and regret. “Are you not going to say anything?” I asked him, releasing the grip on my phone a bit. “I have screenshots of your messages, ones of your call log, and even a full video of you and your lover f*cking each other on a king-sized bed.” He gulped, his face getting white like a ghost. “Why do you have screenshots of my messages?”I was taken aback. I scoffed. “Are you being serious right now? Are you hearing yourself?” I could feel the anger in me rising to another level. “I caught you red-handed. I caught you cheating on me, Mitch! And that’s what you’re going to focus on right now?!” I took a few steps close to him, and man, I wanted to punch him so hard in his face. I wanted him to pay! It amazed me and really made me upset that he could not even take accountability for what he had done but was finding a wa
Ben’s POV[Flashback continues]My heart was pounding and I could feel beads of sweat forming on my forehead. What had I done? It was not like I did so intentionally but still, I had done it!“I need you to help me help him, please,” I cried. “Ben, what do you mean by you think you killed your fiance?” Fallon replied, her voice monotonous. “I don’t understand.” “I came in the room to talk to him, like you suggested, right? Then things got heated. I pushed him and he fell, his head hitting the dresser,” I explained, tears spilling from my eyes. All of this felt so surreal. “Okay,” She said in response. But it was way too calm. “Did you not hear me? I think I killed him!” “Calm down, Ben. I heard you the first time. Now, will you let me handle it?” I swallowed, wiped the tears from my face with the back of my hand, and replied, “Okay, okay.” I sniffled. “You have been going to the gym regularly, yes?” “What the f*ck does that have to do with any of this?!”“Answer the question,
Ben’s POV[Flashback continues]Something was making noise. It sounded like a drowned echo but when my eyes fluttered open and I groaned, twisting and turning on the floor, I realized that it was my phone ringing. I tried to sit up, my head still holding on to the headache that I had. It seemed like after I had left Mitch’s room and came to mine, I had fainted or so. The phone kept ringing and to be honest, it was so annoying. It was making my headache even worse. I grabbed it from the floor and answered in a weary voice, “Hello?” “Ben…good, you have not done anything stupid.” It was Fallon, the mysterious woman that I had gotten myself entangled with. “Everything has been taken care of, you have nothing to worry about. But…there IS something that I need you to do. Not for my sake, but for yours.” I stood up from the floor, sighed, and then replied, “What is that?” “Well…the police are outside, in the next room. They have made it a crime scene. An officer would be at your door in