Maya
I had just finished work a little earlier than I was supposed to, not by much, twenty minutes, so my car won’t be here yet. I say car, but my new bodyguard is picking me up. I still can’t believe Conrad hired someone. He is under strict instructions to stay close. He is even staying at the house while Conrad is out of town. Joshua is his name, and he is a really nice guy. I don’t think Conrad had to make him stay with me at the apartment. I would have been fine, but I knew there was no point in arguing with him. I know he is only doing all of this to protect me.
I decide to wait outside for Joshua. I don’t need my boss changing her mind and making me stay late. I don’t go far; I just stay outside the building and watch for Joshua. I swear if Conrad and I weren’t keeping our relationship a secret, he would have made Joshua come to work with me. Yes, Conrad is only away for a couple of days, but I will miss him. It will be a little strange not having him here. I don’t mean to be so needy, but he has become my safety blanket and without him, I guess I will feel pretty lonely and cold.
I get lost in my thoughts.
“I knew I would get you alone, eventually. Has he left you already?”
The familiar voice from next to me sends a shudder straight through me. I can’t show him any fear. I take a deep breath and turn to face him.
“No, he hasn’t left me. What do you want?” I snap.
He doesn’t need to know my heart is racing, my palms are sweaty, and I feel sick to my stomach.
“It is time for you to come home now. Your little game is getting boring now,” he says.
“I am not going anywhere with you, ever again.” I snarl.
He grabs my wrist tightly, “Yes, you are. I think you need a reminder of who you belong to.”
The tone in his voice is so vicious and callous. It puts the fear into me. It is the exact tone he used on me before he would hurt me.
“I don’t belong to you. Let me go, Callum.”
I refuse to give him what he wants. I am not the scared, submissive girl I was when we were together.
He didn’t listen, instead, his hold tightens on me, “The harder you fight it. The worse it will be for you.” He threatens and tries to drag me away.
I dig my heels into the pavement and tense my entire body, making it harder for him to move me.
“Let me go!” I scream, drawing attention to us.
He pulls me against him with force, holding both my arms. It hurt, and I am sure it would leave bruises, but I am not going anywhere with him.
“Now, Maya.” He hisses.
I manage to lift my knee and knee him right in his crotch. He yelps in pain, letting me go. I try to get away, but he doesn’t allow that to happen and grabs the back of my coat, making it tighten around my throat. I am struggling to catch my breath.
“You have two seconds to let her go,” I hear Joshua’s firm voice warn.
He lets go of me, but only to grip my arm again, “This is none of your business.”
When we turned to face Joshua, I saw the colour drain from Callum’s face when he saw the man standing in front of him. Joshua is over six feet tall and built like a tank. Callum swallows hard, drops my hand and backs up. Joshua walks towards us, and Callum sprints off before I know what is happening. Coward.
“Maya, are you okay? Why are you outside already? You aren’t supposed to finish for another ten minutes.” he asks, concerned.
“I got out early. Yes, I am okay. Can you please take me back to Conrad’s now?” I whisper.
I am trying to hold back my tears because I don’t want to cry in front of him.
“Yes, ma’am. Do you need to make a stop anywhere first?” he asks.
I shake my head. He leads us in the direction of the car, and we are soon on our way to Conrad’s place. As I sat in the back, I let my tears fall freely. I hate he can still scare me like he did. I hate he still has any sort of effect on me. It isn’t fair. I know I will need to tell Conrad tonight when we talk about what happened. I would rather not, but we promised no more secrets or lies. He is going to be so angry and will probably feel guilty because he wasn’t here to protect me. I cry until the car comes to a stop and pull myself together.
I rush inside and straight to the bedroom. I remove my coat and see the bruising forming on my arms.
“Bastard”, I whimper.
Why can’t he just leave me alone? Will he ever leave me alone? I know he is only coming after me again because I ran away. He doesn’t like losing, and my leaving would have bruised his ego. He doesn’t like he lost his control over me. I was nothing but an object to him, a possession he believed he had the right to do as he pleased too.
I climb into bed, slipping under the covers and curling up, hugging one of the pillows. I feel the tears come again, and I let them fall. I reach for my cell and see a text from Conrad.
Hey, sweetheart. I had a minute between meetings. I wanted to check in and make sure you got home okay xx
Home, he always calls his place home, even for me. I won’t tell him what happened over text. He is heading into a meeting, and I don’t want him distracted.
Hey, handsome. Yes, I am back at your place xx
I miss you. I will call in a few hours, okay? xx
I miss you too, Conrad. I look forward to talking to you xx
Yes, me too, beautiful. I need to head into my meeting. Please make sure you eat xx
I promise I will eat xx
The conversation is left there. He has had meetings on and off all day today the same tomorrow. I would eat like I promised, just not right now. I need a little time to myself. I will probably order pizza or Chinese because I am not in the mood for cooking. I am sure Joshua will keep me company and have dinner with me.
I roll onto my back and stare at the ceiling. I rub the bruises he caused on my skin. I should probably take some photos because I know Conrad will want to show the police. I wonder how much the police need to actually do something about it. I don’t know how it all works because I never went to the police before.
Something needs to be done. I need Callum to disappear forever!