Despite his strained eyes, wobbly legs and swayed body movement, Frederick successfully managed to go to the staff block through the main house kitchen.
He did not even have to search for her as his staff understood and they automatically led him to her without any instruction. When his feet struggled to cooperate upon climbing the flights of stairs, two men carried his weight all the way to the front door leading to her.
All he had to do was twist that knob on that door and he would be able to find the source of his peace. A question he knew the answer to but wanted his eyes to be the witness. Is she safe? Did she hide well? Or did Rafael find out his elaborated secret?
The young man pushed the door open and a glimpse of her long brown hair fluttered, blown by the evening wind from the window. He was confident it was her yet not at the same time. He had to see her face to know it was definitely her.
"Were you caught?" he asked. An excuse to have her turn around and face him.
And when her soft voice responded "No", coupled with her lost brown eyes, he finally cracked a grateful smile and relief flushed through his body.
Almost instantly fatigued took over him as his feet staggered bringing his knees down to the floor. Audrey was quick on his feet, about to help him up but the man assured her that he was fine.
"Don't! You should be sitting down," the young captor warned once again as his brain reminded him of the baby in her belly. He shooed her with his hands, asking her to back away and to continue what she was doing.
"I'm almost done," Audrey responded which prompted Frederick to walk on his knees towards the table and instantly felt a gush of appreciation from his staff.
There was a tray filled with a generous amount of leafy vegetables, some lean meat and potatoes on three different sets of plates with a slice of cake and two different types of drinks.
A handsome smirk etched on his face as he shook his head, only realising how there was some truth in Audrey's words when they were on a call the other day. Of how her complaints were legitimate considering the spread given to her was ridiculously generous if not, enough for them two!
And to think she felt the need to finish them and received such a meal every four hours around the clock? He was surprised she was not as plumper as she should be if she was eating like this for at least two weeks when he was gone.
But he still could not stop himself when he tried to encourage her to eat some more. After all, her last meal was only some sandwiches more than six hours ago. With the little stroll in the garden, surely it would have whetted her appetite.
"You barely touch the food. You should eat a little bit more," he said while stroking her head. "And I'm going to have a little shut-eye over here."
Frederick dumped himself onto the sofa and closed his eyes. He waited until the sounds of metals scraping against the ceramic did he slowly allow himself to lose unconsciousness.
* * * * *
Audrey glanced at the sleeping man on her right every time her utensils touched the plates, worried she would wake the man up as she tried to finish her meal.
However, the man did not appear bothered by the sounds. She felt pity towards the man, believing he must have been extremely tired to be sleeping like a log.
She could not fathom what sort of lifestyle he is leading nor what his day-to-day entails as he had been spending most of his time with her ever since she arrived at his place.
Those two weeks and a little bit more were the first time she realised he was not some jobless rich man. It was only then that she recalled he had been the very ruthless man that had killed her entire clan and he is capable of doing so much more harm to anyone at any time.
Despite this, she did not fear him just like she did on that particular night. At that time, she welcomed death with open arms and thought of him as her saviour. A one-way ticket to freedom. To never feel any pain no more.
Who knew her prayers were answered in a way she never thought they would be? Who would have thought it was possible for her to live while no longer fearing the torture and bearing the pain?
All this time, she thought her death would solve everything. Turns out it was her captor all along.
She took another peek at the man whose name she has yet to learn. It was as though she could fall asleep just by looking at him sleeping.
The way his chest moved up and down rhythmically somehow brought peace to her heart. The way his eyes closed, as though he is an innocent man who led a content life, earned a smile on her delicate face. And the way his arms neatly folded on his abdomen, as though he had a lesson on sleeping mannerisms.
As her mind was fully occupied with the man, and her tummy had been filled, Audrey eventually dozed off on the table without her realising with her head resting on her arms.
A couple of hours later, Frederick woke up with a full bladder and a throbbing headache as the bright yellow light pierced through his eyes. Even with the urgency to relieve himself, he did not waste any time cursing his prisoner under his breath for sleeping in such an awkward position.
Did her pregnancy play a major role in his cussing? Maybe. Maybe not. But for sure his desire is mostly driven to ensure the poor lady never has to go through any discomfort and suffering.
Without further ado, once he had taken a leak, he carried her to the bed, allowing her body to stretch in a comfortable manner before turning off the lights and continuing his sleep.
Little did he know, his kind gesture stirred her consciousness. Enough for her to pretend to be sleeping as she savoured the moment, being treated like a cherished person.