Chapter 26 The Best Choice
\[Raelyn’s POV\]
I stare in disbelief as Osiris heads toward my room’s exit. He was actually serious about all this. He was really going to hold me captive like I was some criminal. And what was worse, he thought what he was doing was the right thing.
“You…” I growl, my anger beginning to get the better of me. “You…”
“What?” He asks, turning and facing me. “What is it that you want to say about me?”
“YOU ASSHOLE!” I scream. “HOW CAN YOU BE SO UNREASONABLE? DON’T YOU REALIZE WHAT YOU’RE DOING RIGHT NOW IS A CRIME? JUST WAIT UNTIL I’M FREE! I’M GOING TO MAKE SURE THAT EVERYBODY KNOWS WHAT KIND OF MAN YOU TRULY ARE!”
“Then I guess you’ll never be free.”
Giving me a smirk, he turns and heads out of the room, and when the door shuts and I hear an audible click of the lock locking, I collapse onto my knees.
“No,” I whisper, my panic beginning to grow. “No, this can’t be happening.”
But it was. I was already held captive for three days, and no matter how many times I tried begging my guards to let me free, they did absolutely nothing.
Did this mean that I needed to up the ante? Would I need to do something drastic in order for Osiris to set me free?
Of course, hurting myself crossed my mind, but I knew that I couldn’t do such a thing as long as I was pregnant. I couldn’t put the child’s life at risk because I wanted so desperately to be free. And a hunger strike was out of the question too.
Then what was there left for me? What could I do to get Osiris to let me out of this room?
‘We have to cooperate.’ Talula murmurs, causing my heart to beat rapidly. ‘We need to make him believe that we have decided to go along with him.’
‘But I’m not that good at acting.’ I tell her, hating that this was most likely the only thing that would set us free. ‘How can I possibly…’
‘He won’t let us go otherwise.’ She reminds me.
“Right,” I laugh, leaning back on my heels as I stare at the door in front of me. “Pretending that I was giving up and doing what he wanted truly was the only option left to me.”
And then what? I think, wondering how long it would take for Osiris to believe that I was going along with him. Would I wait until he stopped paying attention and flee? I tried that already, and he easily found me. Did that mean that even if I did go along with him, I still wouldn’t be able to be free?
“This is so frustrating.” I growl, my anger starting to bubble up again. “Why the hell did I have to sleep with such a psycho?”
Because you felt drawn to him. The small voice in the back of my head tells me. You can’t deny that there was something between you then and even now.
Hatred. I tell it, hating that such a thought would even come to me. The only thing I feel for this man is complete and utter hatred.
There’s a fine line between love and hate. It reminds me, and I can’t help but shiver at the thought of falling for a man who would do something like this to me.
I would rather die first than do such a thing. I would throw myself off the roof of the highest building in the city if I ever fell for such a man.
But that didn’t mean that I couldn’t pretend that I was doing just that, right?
It may be my only hope. I think, though, I was certain he wouldn’t believe that I turned over a new leaf after only three days. That meant that I would need to bide my time until I felt the appropriate length of time had passed, and then I would begin my plan of escape.
Sighing, I rise up off the floor and look toward the tray of food that Osiris had been carrying. It was a variety of different things, from fruit, eggs, pancakes, and meats. It was like whoever made it wasn't sure of what I would like, so they included a little of everything to make sure that I managed to find something I would eat.
As I stare at it, I feel a little blip in my heart that irritates me, but I don’t allow it to become anything more than that.
He’s the enemy. I tell it, taking a seat on my bed and sniffing the food in front of me. You can’t fall for the enemy no matter how sweet he tries to act because then you’ll end up getting ruined in the end just like your mother did.
At this thought memories of my mother start to surface, causing my stomach to churn and my appetite to disappear, and as they start to get the better of me, I feel a knot rising in my throat.
“Mom,” I choke out, letting her image appear in my mind as I curl up in a ball instead of eating. “I miss you.”
If only she were still here, I was certain I would have never gotten myself into a mess like this because I would be too busy taking care of her to worry. And even now as the memories start to swarm me, dragging me back to that time and place, I can’t help but wonder if maybe if I had tried a bit harder, would she still be here with me?
Would she have fought a little harder to stick around if she saw how hard I was working for the both of us?
This single thought has plagued me since the day that she took her last breath, and even though a few years of therapy told me that I wasn't to blame and that she had just given up after being betrayed by the one she loved the most, I still couldn't shake the guilt I felt about her death.
"Mom," I repeat, pulling a pillow against me as if it would allow me to feel her warmth there with me. "Why did you have to leave me?"