Chapter Thirty-seven

Chapter Thirty-seven

I quickly had my bath and changed into casual trousers and a hoodie. One of the many unnecessary clothes he got for me, like I was gonna spend the whole year here. I searched on the bedside table to retrieve the hair band I had left there earlier, but it was nowhere to be found. I pulled open a few drawers and still, it was nowhere in sight. I couldn’t just walk out with my thick, curly hair hanging down like that, so I wasn’t giving up my search anytime soon.

I checked the next side table that had drawers also, but it was not there. Could the maids have taken it out as trash? Not possible. It must be somewhere around, maybe if I looked a little closer right? I pulled open the closed drawer of that table and shuffled the contents gently with my hands but it was not there either. I got frustrated and straightened myself up, clenching my fists and jittering my pressed down teeth, trying so hard to stop myself from yelling.

As I bent back over to close the drawer again, something interesting caught my eyes. They seemed to be pictures - I’d be so lucky if they were pictures from his childhood. I smiled triumphantly at my thoughts and ventured to pull them out, but I stopped halfway through.

“Wouldn’t that be intruding into his privacy?” I asked myself rhetorically. I thought for a while but soon gave up on the thought, and went ahead to fetch the pictures out of the drawer. As they came fully into view, my mouth dropped open in fear and surprise at the contents of the photographs. He had been the blackmailer all along!?

* * * * *

I tried phoning my mom to tell her about everything that had happened, and maybe, ask for her help - even though I hated doing that so much, but I guess I had no other choice at that point, cos my life was really at risk. I really had to escape from this man, from this place, from everyone else.

My mom had severally wanted to support me, but I didn’t want any of that. I wanted to learn how to be independent. I wanted to give her, and not the other way around. My parents, they had enough and to spare. Enough to make me decide not to work for the rest of my life, but no. Galena Fields can’t do that. She really wants to see what it feels like making her own money, being successful without the help of her parents. But right now, there was nothing at all I could do, other than seek help from the same sources I didn’t want it from at all. Not like I had anything against them, but it’ll just be odd, after all these years of finally making them see reasons why I should stay on my own, make it on my own, then I show up like this just because of one asshole called Ethan.

As I walked nervously through the streets with my phone in hand, I kept trying to phone my mom and dad, but their contacts redirected me to the voicemail several times, frustrating me more. I felt like eyes were on me from many angles, watching me, judging me, spiting me. I walked faster as my feet could carry me, ignoring all the text messages on my phone totally.

I stood by a spot that seemed safe to me and waited for a cab, and just coincidentally, a cab halted in front of me. The driver peered over the window to me with a warm smile as he greeted me. I felt suspicious though, but I thought it was the old fear I already had that was taking its course.

As I got in and closed the door shut, I could feel the stench of alcohol in his breath and I got a bit hesitant on whether to continue my ride with him, cos it was really weird to see a driver drinking on duty.

“Where are you headed?” He asked with that strange, warm smile, but just as I was about to give him my address, a voice spoke from behind distracting me, and before I could turn my head to the direction of the voice, a hand appeared from behind, muffling my face with a piece of cloth and everything went blank.

Brandon appeared before me with his shiny dagger, and soon, I am dancing in clubs filled with strippers and lustful men, drinking and laughing loudly. Brandon shoves me to a corner in the hallway, placing the dagger over my chest, smiling weirdly at me but his face suddenly changes to Ethans’ and I scream and push him away, running through the hallway as fast as I can, but the hallway never seems to end, it just goes on and on.

As I keep running, I feel like I’m losing my breath and so, I stagger to a stop. When I turn around to look back, I notice that the hallways have become darker and he is nowhere in sight. I gasp at the realisation and turn around fearfully, darting my eyes in every direction possible, but I see no one, and the creepy feeling only gets worse, the chills I get on my feet are near outworldly.

As I turn to scan the direction opposite where he had been, I see him running furiously towards me with his shiny dagger swinging with the motion of his hands. I take on my heels, running away from him, and suddenly, I am caught up in that same ugly place, the cross of the four passageways in Brandonz hotels. Why was I always coming back here?

On the passageway opposite my direction, a strange tall lady is walking furiously towards me. Brandon is walking beside her and they both seem to be shooting daggers and stones from their eyes. Who was she?

As I look to the passage on my right, I see Gin standing there, looking gloomily at me, and Mia is seething with rage on the passage on my left as she walks furiously towards me. Gin on the other hand looks on with pity, but he is crying with blood - black blood, and I am too scared to go anywhere near him. I am cut up in the middle of these gruesome people, seeking a means of escape, and soon, Gin starts walking away into the darkness, but before I can run to that direction, I see the man from my dream, in the hospital, that Roland Bones, coming towards me with a gun in his hand and with a vengeful look.

I stand helplessly watching them take slow, menacing footsteps towards me. They draw closer to me on every side, and they all stretch forth their hands to grab me, with long monstrous nails growing from their fingers. Just before their hands can make any contact with my skin, I scream with a heart wrenching cry, cringing and struggling.

I hear strange laughter from around me, and it feels like my world has shifted and I am in a totally different place. I gently flutter my eyes open and I am met with the teary eyes of my mom staring back at me.

“Mom?”

How did I get here???