Chapter Twelve

Chapter Twelve

I roll on my side slightly and flutter my eyes open and I find that I am still at the hospital. The door to my ward gently opens, and a man walks in with a scaffold. He has gloves on, a nose mask that hides more than half his face, and he has a deadly aura about him.

He walks queasily over to me with his head bowed. I feel uncomfortable by his presence but I have no idea why.

“Galena Fields?” he asks in a grim voice to confirm my identity. His voice sounded like the lick of a vengeful demon, cut out from a horror movie.

“Hmm.” I nod.

He gives a dry, dirty chuckle, like he had found a long lost prey.

He slides the ward coat from off his shoulders and it drops to the floor, revealing the black outfit he had on. He pulls the mask from over his face and tosses it over to the floor, then he produces a slick knife from his pocket, “Remember me?” He asks deviously.

I tremble in fear and confusion. I had no idea who he was. How the hell was I supposed to remember him?

“I am Roland Bones!” he thunders and drives the knife to my heart.

I cough blood while he stands there laughing with blood dripping from his eyes.

“How does it feel?” he whispers and I gasp in fear, jerking up from the bed.

I darted my eyes around, finding out that I was only dreaming for a while, and there was no one with me. Fear cursed through me, as the experience felt so real.

Who was this Roland Bones? And what may I have done to him in the past?

* * * * *

I had just been discharged from the hospital, but somehow, I wished I had stayed a little longer. That way, I wouldn’t have to face Mia and Ethan.

“Where will you go from here?” Like I don’t have a home.

Brandon was standing behind me with a grim countenance. His hands were slid into his pockets, and his pounding veins pondered over his clear skin, that protruded out of his rolled up sleeves.

“Home.” was my short reply. My voice was quiet, and my heart raced with so many thoughts that almost broke me.

“Will you be safe there?”

Well. that question depends.

“It doesn’t matter.” I turn to face him, “I never want to see you again. I’d appreciate it if you stay out of my life.” I say quietly.

He heaves, running his hands over his hair frustratedly.

“Give me a reason to stay away.” came his cold, simple reply.

I swallowed the lump in my throat and tilted my head slightly for emphasis, ending my statement with a slight nod, “You’ve done enough.”

He looked at me, his expression unreadable and his eyes darkening with unknown emotions by the passing seconds.

“Fine. You have my word.”

I am taken by surprise by his words, I wasn’t expecting him to give in so easily, but I nod gently and walk out of the hospital to the main street. I flag down a cab and sink into the back seat after handing my address over to the driver.

Many thoughts flash through my mind. I think of my mom and dad, how they may be faring, wondering if life has been unfair to them as it has been with me. Somehow, I missed them to the point of crying. I had been through a lot of rough days for the past week, so it was only normal for me to want to cry over little things.


Suddenly, my mind goes back to Brandon, and it feels so nauseous at that point to recall that the same man who had taken advantage of me, believing I was only a slut, was the very same that took care of me throughout my stay in the hospital. Phew!

What I could not understand was his entitling behaviour - how he felt so entitled to keep me safe and maybe, happy.

“Isn’t it obvious that anytime I left you alone, you got into trouble?”


His words squeamishly replayed in my mind. That was kinda… um, true, but eww, I hate to admit it. Well, it wasn’t so. It just became that way after our first encounter.

I shake my head painfully to get him out of my mind, but then Mia! How can I explain this to her? What if she calls the cops on me, and my parents get to find out? Oh no!

“We’re here.” An almost distant voice spoke.

“Ma’am?” The driver coughed, jerking me out of my thoughts.

“Oh, thanks!” I said quickly, feeling embarrassed while I clambered out of the car. I quickly paid him and he gave me a slight nod before driving off.

I sigh as I stare at the house in front of me. I missed this place somehow, but I wasn’t sure if I wanted to be there anymore. I took hesitant footsteps to the door, but when I got there, the door was slightly open.

How come?

I fearfully push open the door and I shriek in fear as I bump into someone. I stagger to get a balance, and when I am fully composed, I dart my eyes in terror to see who it is.

I am met with the grim, wrinkled, and ever sour face of my Landlady. She is fuming at me with her eyes regarding me haughtily.

What was she doing here?

I glance across the room, and it is a total mess. It looked like babies had a dinner party, or a crafts class here and my Tv was turned on, buzzing with animated drama for children’s entertainment. What was this woman up to? Did she start a nursery in my home?

My jaw drops as I turn to face her, waiting for an explanation to this madness, but none comes. Instead, she eyed me demeaningly and took gentle, twisted steps towards the door.

“You have two weeks to move out!” She announces before she gets to the door.

“What do you mean by two weeks to move out?” I ask with irritation beclouding my voice.

“What I mean?” she turns to face me, “what I mean is your rent has been due for two months,” she takes slow steps towards me with her walking stick clapping at each step she took. “And what I actually mean is I have revoked this apartment from you and given it to someone else!” She says indignantly, hostility evident in her voice.

“But… How could you do that?” I stammer.

“How could I not? It’s my house!” she thunders.

“By law,” I glare at her, my voice getting bolder, “you cannot just revoke an apartment and give it to someone else without at least six months notice given to the previous owner.” I then put my index finger over my chin in a thoughtful position, “unless you have another apartment for me to move into?”

I watched her expression grow more bitter, and her already distorted face contorted into a more grimmer look, as she couldn’t hide her anger anymore. Her breathing hitched as she glared at me before stalking out as fast as she could, with her ever ticking walking stick.

I sigh in relief as a satisfied feeling gushes over me. This felt like winning, and oh, there’d be a lot to clean. Before I could think of anything else, there was a soft, almost hesitant knock on the door. I opened up the door and my jaw instantly dropped at who I saw.

Oh no! Why was he here!?

Did the universe hate me this much!?