Chapter Fifty-Eight

Saffron woke up the next day, her mind blissfully blank for a few seconds, as she sat up and stretched on her bed, a yawn escaping her lips. But by the time she had allowed her arms to fall back on her sides, the memories of all that had happened the night before rushed back to her mind, slamming into her like a freight train on steroids.

Her mother had cheated on her husband with Saffron’s father, and that affair had been the reason why she was dead. Her mother hadn’t died due to the complications of childbirth, like Saffron’s father had led her to believe; she had been killed, three years after Saffron’s birth.

Her mind still reeled so hard from the revelation, making her feel dizzy, as she rose to her feet, and staggered towards her drawer.

For years, she had blamed herself, thinking that she was the reason why her mother had died, and why her father had taken to drinking and gambling, instead of taking care of her, because he couldn’t stand the sight of her.

Time and again, he had chosen his vices over her, but she hadn’t resented him for that. Instead, she had stayed and taken care of him like any good daughter would have done, instead of the other way around.

And when he had finally given her up to the mafia gang for his debts, she had resented him, yes. But, a part of her still held sympathy for him because she knew that staring at the face of the person who had murdered the only person you had loved was hard.

Now, now she had no idea what to think.

Her entire life had been a lie, all illusions of a happier home shattered, now that she knew the truth about her parent’s relationship, and her subsequent birth.

She was the fruit of an affair.

There was more to uncover, Ryder had told her last night but she couldn’t bear to hear any more truths that would break her even more than the truth about the circumstance surrounding her birth had done.

So, she had left his cabin in a rush, promising to meet him today.

But, she knew that she couldn’t remain ignorant forever. Someday, she was going to have to face her truth, but that day didn’t have to be today.

She picked up the bottle of water she had left on her drawer two nights ago and uncapped it, chugging back as much of the liquid as she could stomach in that moment.

Her stomach growled in warning, telling her that she had had enough but she didn’t stop. She continued to guzzle down the water like her life depended on it, until it went down the wrong pipe, making her sputter and gasp out heavy breaths, forcing her to finally take the bottle away from her lips.

Moments passed before her airways cleared, and she could finally breath normally again.

She straightened up, before she walked out of the bedroom, and made her way towards their shared communal bathroom to clean herself up.

She stared at herself in the cracked mirror in the hallway leading to the bathroom, taking in her reflection for the first time since her capture.

She couldn’t believe that it had been months, since she had last allowed herself to look in the mirror, for fear of what she would see. The face that stared back at her, shattered her heart to pieces.

There were dark circles under her eyes, her face looking more pale than it did before, like she had lost all the blood in her body.

It was then that she came to a startling realization that she looked just like her father did, when he was going through one of his withdrawals.

She needed to leave this damned island, before it took more of her than she was ready to give. She needed to leave, before it resulted to her death.

But then, she thought about Ryder, the promise of a future between them, and the growing feelings that they shared.

She thought about how leaving him behind would be like leaving behind a part of herself that she had just began to grow accustomed to.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, before she turned around and resumed her walk towards the bathroom, having had enough of the thoughts that circulated through her head.

Splashing cold water over her face, she gripped the edges of the sink tightly, a sharp gasp escaping her lips as she jumped back, narrowly missing the large chunk of the porcelain sink that had crumbled down.

She stared down at the rubble unseeingly, ignoring the shared looks between the slaves that were present, and the whispers that began to circulate in the tiny communal.

She turned on her heels and left, taking the path that would lead her outside, heading towards the hot spring, where she and Ryder had agreed to meet today.

She had no idea what had just happened in the bathroom today, why the sink had decided to crumble when she had touched it.

Her grip on it couldn’t have been that hard, or could it? Even if it were, she wasn’t strong enough to make it shatter, just because she had gripped it.

But, the sink was old. So, maybe, it had only been a matter of time before it had given up. It would have crumbled under anyone’s grip.

With that thought in mind, she made it to the clearing, but much to her disappointment, Ryder wasn’t there.

So, she sat on the lush green leaves and leaned against one of the trees, her eyes closing on instinct.

When she heard the sounds of footsteps heading towards her, her eyes snapped open, a smile lighting up her face, thinking that it was Ryder.

Her smile however morphed into an accusing glare, when her gaze met someone else’s.

“You!”

“Hello, Saffron.”

The bone-chilling smile on the interloper’s face had her backing up, but there was no way to go, she was already backed against the tree.