Twisted Fate (8 page)

My head hurt, and it was so cold. I was laying on something hard and uncomfortable. Feeling confused and too groggy to open my eyes, I tried to remember if I’d been sick or drunk. As I tried to roll over, my stomach protested, making me moan and stay on my back. My heart was beating a mile a minute, forcing me to take deep breaths over and over trying to calm myself down. Something wasn’t right; where was I?

A sudden lurch had me groaning as my stomach protested again, and it hit me that the floor was moving. Barely opening my eyes, I could see I was in an empty room with very limited light. The reality that I was somewhere unfamiliar and not by my own doing had panic gripping my throat, making it hard to breathe. Reacting, I jerked to a sitting position, but the pounding of my head sent me back down. All of the movements made my stomach react powerfully, forcing me to bend over to the side and dry heave. Grateful there was nothing to throw up, I moaned again as another wave of nausea rolled through me. Seeing as I had no idea where I was, that I was in trouble, didn’t help calm my upset stomach.

As the floor started to move again, my stomach reacted violently once more. Wiping tears from my eyes then resting a hand on my stomach, I moved my head around and saw that I was in an empty room on a cold tile floor. My head continued to throb more and more as the only thing I could see was a door and a small round window in one of the four walls. How the hell did I get here?

My mouth was extremely dry, and my heart wouldn’t stop beating fast. I knew I was in trouble, and that alone was enough in making me sick. I had no memory of what had happened to me. The last thing I remembered was getting ready to meet my friend Kimberly for dinner to celebrate her birthday. We were going to her favorite restaurant and bar, The Orchid. The rest was a blank.

Another thought assaulted me, making me cry out in a fear that made my body freeze. Had Kimberly been taken too, and if so, where was she? Fear took a hold of my body as I looked around the room again, wondering what the hell was going on. I clamped my hand over my mouth, unable to contain the sob tearing from my throat.
 

Daddy? Help me, Daddy.

Did my father even know I was gone yet? I had no idea how much time had passed. He was going to go crazy trying to find me.

Please find me, Daddy
.

After a few minutes, I felt calm enough to stand and knew I needed to figure out where I was. I forced myself up and slowly walked to the only window in the room. What I saw made me start to shake uncontrollably. Water. Nothing but water. I kept blinking my eyes, but nothing could deny the fact that I was out in the middle of the ocean. The cause of the floor moving was the rolling waves out there, underneath my boat of a prison. Tears started to flow down my cheeks, making my eyes cloud over as I twisted around and sunk to the floor, pressing my arms into my already-tortured stomach.

Everything around me was eerily quiet as I sat there, completely freaked out, not knowing what had happened or what was going to happen. Looking down, I saw I was still dressed in my dark skinny jeans and light pink lacy tank top with my strappy brown sandals still on my feet. Running my hands through my long, dark, sable-brown hair, it hit me like a knife to the stomach how dangerous this really was, and I set my face in my hands and cried even harder.
 

Through my cries, I heard a loud bump, scaring me out of my mind. Jolting upright, I looked around but didn’t see anything. Trying to convince myself it was just my imagination, it happened again, making me scream in a terror I’d never felt before in my life. I couldn’t stop my body from trembling as I heard heavy footsteps getting closer and closer, stopping right outside my door. I scooted as far back against the wall as I could, as if it would open up and save me, sending me back home. Again another bump sounded, and as the tears streamed down my face, I froze, hearing the sound of a key unlocking the door. Shaking my head in denial, I wrapped my arms around my knees as my long hair fell over my face, trying to make myself invisible and begging God to help me.

The door slowly opened, and the light that shined through burned my eyes. I covered them with my hand, still begging God for help over and over in my head. The footsteps started again, coming closer and closer until they stopped directly in front of me. Before I could react, a hand shot out and cupped my chin, roughly forcing me to look up. I instantly recoiled when I saw a man bent down on his knee looking at me with curiosity or concern, I couldn’t tell which. I bit the inside of my lower lip to try and stop my tears, fearing they would anger him. My heart was beating out of control, and my body wouldn’t stop shaking.
 

 
“Sorry I wasn’t here when you woke up,” he told me, still grasping my chin. His voice was smooth and deep, edgy. In any other setting I’d like it, but I despised it here. He was responsible for this.
 

“Where am I?” I whispered.
 

“Yeah, no way I’m telling you that, but don’t worry, you’re not in any danger.”

That made no sense; danger was everywhere.
 

“If I’m not in any danger, then why am I here, and where is my friend Kimberly? I was on my way to meet her. Was she taken too?”
 

He didn’t say anything, just continued staring at me, my chin still in his rough hand. The longer he silently stared at me, the more nervous I became. I tried to back away from him, but again found myself fighting the wall.

“Dammit,” he cursed again, inching closer to me. “Look, I know you’re scared, but as long as you do as you’re told, you’re not in any danger. Your friend isn’t here, just you. You were the one they wanted. She’s safe.”

“Good Lord, what’s that supposed to mean?” I couldn’t stop from asking, still shaking, though relieved to hear Kimberly was safe. “I have no idea what’s going on, and I’m scared to death. Who are you?” I pleaded with him, hoping he’d tell me so I’d at least know something.

Out of nowhere, the enormity of the situation hit me, making me gag. My hand flew to my mouth as I bent over, trying to stop the dry heaves wracking my body. I heard him swear as he rushed out of the room, returning just as quickly. He shoved a large bowl in front of my face, but I pushed it away, having nothing to throw up.

When the gagging had finally subsided, I collapsed against the wall and closed my eyes, trying to catch my breath. I was so tired, wanting nothing more than my bed back home, which only reminded me I might never have that again. I whimpered at the thought, trying to hold back the moan that was threatening to erupt in my throat from fear or exhaustion, I wasn’t sure. The stress was consuming my mind and body; all I wanted to do was go to sleep.

I heard him set the bowl on the floor, then cried out when his strong arms wrapped around me and lifted me off the floor. “What are you doing?” I shrieked, alarm shooting through me like ice.

“Seriously, relax, I’m taking you to where you’ll be sleeping. You need a bed, not this god-awful tile floor.”

I decided not to protest, the sound of an actual bed too much to resist. I stayed stiff in his arms, though, not trusting him at all. He still hadn’t told me anything about why I was there, or even his name.
 

We left the room and he walked, holding me for what seemed like hours. Each turn he took was making me dizzy and sicker to my stomach. Moaning against his chest, I kept my eyes shut tight, trying to keep my head from swimming. Every few seconds he’d tell me to relax, which only frustrated me more. How the hell could I relax? I wanted to punch him in his solid wall of a chest, but decided against it as I didn’t have the strength or the guts.

He suddenly stopped and lowered his arm to open a door, kicking it open with his foot and making it slam against the wall behind it. He walked in and deposited me on a small, lumpy bed. I instantly pressed myself against the wall, not knowing what he had in store for me, Looking up, I realized I was seeing him for the first time, and for one brief moment I forgot everything.

He was tall and had the broadest chest I’d ever seen. The grey T-shirt he was wearing molded to it perfectly, showing every defined muscle through it. His head was shaved, but from the little growth coming in, I could see his hair was dark. His jaw was sculpted and hadn’t been shaved for days, and for some reason appeared to be clenched. His eyes were a striking golden hazel, which looked like they were made of steel by the way he was looking at me. He was a beautiful man, I couldn’t deny it, but before I could think any further, he pulled a rickety old wooden chair from the corner and sat down next to me, startling me back to reality.

“Penelope,” he started, making my eyes dart to his at the sound of my name crossing his lips.

“How do you know my name?” I asked, my eyes going wide.

He ignored that. “Listen to me,” he continued. “You will learn information on our time frame, not yours. All you need to know right now is that you are safe on this yacht, and I am in charge of you. I know that sounds barbaric, but it’s how it has to be. I’ve been told to keep you safe and to make sure you don’t try anything foolish, like escaping.” He raised a brow at that, as if to make his point hit even closer to home. “My name is Tag. You are not allowed to leave this cabin without me.” He held up his hand when I started to protest. “It’s for your own safety, Penelope. Trust me. I’m all you have right now.”

Those words were like a knife in my heart. My face crumpled, making me fall over onto my stomach. It may have been a childish move but I didn’t care; my life was turned upside down, and I still had no idea why. I kept my face downward on my folded arms, wanting him to leave.

“I’m not going to sugarcoat things,” he said. “There’s a lot you don’t know, and it’s better that way. You were drugged, which is a part of the reason your stomach is acting up I’m sure, plus the movement of the water. I’m going to get you some Sprite and an anti-nausea pill. You might as well get comfortable. You’re going to be here a while.”

He stood up and left, locking the door behind him. I turned my head to look at the empty room, confusion ripping through me. How was I going to get myself out of this?
 

My head jerked when I heard the door open and saw him walk back in. He carried a can of Sprite and set it on the table beside the bed, along with two small, round, white pills. He sat back down on the chair with a thump and leaned back with his sculpted arms folded over his chest, nodding his head toward the drink.

“Take a few sips and swallow the pills,” he told me.
 

I didn’t move, even though I’d clearly heard him. I may have come from a sheltered background, but I wasn’t stupid enough to just do what this guy told me. For all I knew, those pills were poison.

He ran a hand over his head and let out a huge sigh. “Penelope, they’re stomach relaxers, for seasickness. I’m not here to harm you. Take them.”

His face looked sincere, but for all I knew, he’d mastered that look right before he killed his victims. At another lurch of the boat, my stomach recoiled, making me grab the pills and down them in two large gulps. At this point, death was preferred over the situation I was in.

His face relaxed as I put the soda back down. “I didn’t do that for you,” I told him in a surge of defiance. “I figured death would be better than this.”
 

His eyes blazed for a minute, then went back to stone-cold nothing. A few seconds later, a smile appeared on his face, not reaching his eyes. I wasn’t sure what to think and began to regret my outburst.

“Seems there’s some attitude in there after all,” he said, staying still. I grabbed the pillow and placed it in front of me. I wrapped my arms around it and pulled it close, trying to somehow protect myself from him.

“I’m going to remind you again—as long as you behave and do as you’re told, nothing will happen to you.” He looked at me intently as if trying to drive his point home.

“Why won’t you tell me what’s going on?” I blurted, then put a fist to my mouth, scared at what I’d just done.

He leaned over on that ugly chair and rested his elbows on his knees, massaging his temples with his fingers. He seemed conflicted, but why would he be? I hugged the pillow tighter to my chest, waiting to see what he’d do.

He raised his head and looked at me. The gold in his hazel eyes seemed to be burning, making me more nervous.
 

“I just want to go home,” I said softy, not able to take it anymore. I burrowed my head into the pillow and felt my hair fall all around me. As I rocked back and forth on the bed, the drowsiness from the pills began to take effect.

I heard him shift in his chair and then sigh again. I refused to look over at him, partly out of defiance and partly because my eyes were getting heavier and heavier with the effects of the pills. I moved so I could lie down, turning away from him, and closed my eyes. I’d ask him more about what was going on later after I woke up, unless this was all a horrible nightmare.

Suddenly he lifted my waist and legs up, making me cry out. “Settle down,” he said. “I’m just putting you under the covers. Get some rest, Penelope,” he told me, sounding annoyed.

I went still and put my hand under my cheek. I couldn’t open my eyes to see him as I felt the covers pulled over me. The last thing I heard before sleep overtook me was his heavy footsteps walking away and the sound of him shutting and locking the door.