I smiled back at her, watching as her eyes twinkled back at me. "It's nice to meet you, Maggie. My name is Gracelyn and yes most people call me Grace!" I say with a smile. I was immediately pulled along with her. But she pauses, as we both hear an irritated growl from behind. We both turn and face my guard. He eyes us both very carefully.
"How about I just show you around?" she asks. He nods his head in approval but continues to follow suit. As we walk she continues to talk, "Those stairs there will lead you down to the basement where he has some torture cells so stay away!" I nodded in agreement to what she was saying as I knew all too well what those stairs lead to. I was held in one of those cells when he first brought me here, horrid pictures of my torture suddenly flashed through my mind causing a shiver to run down my spine at the memories. "Master keeps his worst enemies in the cells located at his base camp which is stationed somewhere on the grounds. It's a secret where its precise location is and most of the gang's activities are held there."
She began to move down a long hallway, and I followed her grateful to finally have someone to talk to. "I know you've already seen the dining room, but here is the kitchen!" she says as she gestures to the huge room. I stand there in awe as I glance around the immaculate room. The artistry in the cabinet design spoke of elegance. It definitely put my small townhouse's kitchen to shame. I noticed immediately that a few guys were hard at work cooking various dishes. The aroma wafting through the air was turning up my appetite despite the fact that I had just eaten breakfast.
After that, she continued to show me around this huge home of his. "This room is Granger's," she said pointing to a closed door and I remembered how that man tortured me and then almost shot one of my friends in the head. He was on my list of people here to hate, and I didn't see myself removing his name from that list anytime soon. After showing me all of the rooms the guys lived in, she took me upstairs to the second floor. In the first room we stopped at, I glanced in the double door frame and there sat a TV almost as big as the wall. "This is what he calls the theatre room. We watch movies together every Saturday night." It defiantly looked like a smaller version of the cinema's and the seats looked inviting. The seats all seemed very comfortable and were arranged so that anyone sitting in any of them could see the screen easily.
Continuing down the hallway, she pauses in front of a single wooden door. "This door leads to Mr. Van Doren's and his late wife's room, may she rest in peace." I heard her say, the door was just down the hall from where he's been keeping me. "And that door is the master's bedroom." she says pausing to look at me. "and your room."
"Yes!" I didn't even want to admit it, but I felt like it wouldn't do me any good to hide it from her.
She smiles at me, and I notice my guard standing close by. "Well okay then, I'm sure that's enough for now. I've got to get back to work, but I will see you around," she said as she made her way down the hall leaving me right in front of his room. I watched her disappear behind a corner before I heard my guard clear his throat. I glance up at him.
"Back in the room, miss!" he snaps. I nod my head at him, before turning around and making my way back inside the room. I grab a book off a shelf and settle in for a day of reading. The book's title was familiar to me, however, I had never had the chance to just sit down and read before.
I didn't realize how quickly the time had passed while I was reading the book. I got so engrossed in reading that I was going to miss my supper but luckily a maid brought me some food. After eating, I was right back to reading that book. I mean what else was I supposed to do?
The sun had finally set behind the mountains. I was lying on the bed flat on my stomach to flip the pages easier. The door to the room suddenly burst open, he walked into the room with anger plastered all over his face. I quickly sat up in the bed, on full alert as I watched him carefully. "Get ready, you are to accompany me to a party!" he ordered.
"Haven't you ever heard of knocking?" I asked him showing my annoyance at the interruption. "I'm not going anywhere with you!"
"You are coming with me, no matter what! You are my wife, you have duties as such," he spoke through gritted teeth.
I looked at him angrily, he was getting on my nerves. Even if he thought that he was my husband and that I did indeed marry him, there was nothing special about our relationship. Nothing of value here. "I am tired of repeating myself to you. I hate you, I hate you with every fiber of my being, so why don't you annoy someone else instead? I am not in the mood to be your plaything tonight." I stared straight into his eyes and shivered. Like always, they had a raging storm in them.
"Why do you always defy my orders?" he growls. "Here I thought that we could go and enjoy ourselves like a regular couple."
"Your talking about us being a normal couple isn't cute. You took me away from my friends, away from my father who is dying by the way. You threatened to shoot my friend in the head just so that I'd marry you... you stole me away from my regular life and dragged me to this, this hell hole. For what? What was this all for anyway?" I snap at him my voice laced with venom as I jab him repeatedly in the chest. "Please Jasper, let me go home! My father needs me!" I wiped the tears back from my eyes and glanced at him. He was staring at me weirdly.
"No." was all that he said.
"Why- why are you doing this to me?" I asked him.
He grabbed my shoulders, "Look I am sorry but this is the way that it must be. I can't let you go home, not right now. I have to figure a few things out... I am sorry." He spoke seriously, and sympathetically to me.
I didn't want to accept that, "But my father will be so worried, I am all that he has. Please."
"He's not worried about you at all, he's safe and being cared for," he said with a smirk.
"What do you mean by that?" I ask him.
"Nothing, just get ready, you're coming to the party," He growled and then left. I stared at the door for a good minute wondering what he meant by that. I step up to the closet, I didn't want to admit defeat but I knew that if I didn't do things his way then he would just force the issue and I really didn't want to know how far he would go to get what he wants. Scanning through the clothing, I found a deep red spaghetti-strap dress. It was mid-thigh in length and filled with lace. I had to admit that it was pretty. I put the dress on and walk to the bathroom to look at my reflection.
Staring at the girl in the mirror, I had to admit that she has seen better days. The bruises on my face were going green, I was in no condition to go to a party. But I grab the makeup bag that had appeared overnight and begin applying concealer on my face. I did my best to cover up the bruises. I grabbed a glass of water and down four ibuprofen so that I could move freely enough to dance. My body ached from the bruises that were healing there. I didn't have much of a choice here, he was forcing me to go.
After I felt ready enough, I opened the door. I quickly noticed that the guard was still standing there outside of my door. "I'm ready to go, will you take me to him?" I ask him.
He simply nods his head and begins walking down the hallway. I follow suit without saying any more. I step into the room as the guard just motions for me to go inside and I stop in my tracks. There he stood, with his father at his side both fully dressed up in suits. "You look perfect!" he says stepping up to me and grabbing for my wrist. "Now let's go."
"She did a good job of covering up those bruises your men made on her." I heard his father say as we all climb into a limo. I sat down on the seat next to Jasper and stayed quiet.
"Thank you, this means a lot to me," he says grabbing a hold of my hand.
"What does?" I ask.
"You coming to this party as my wife, it means a lot to me. This is a celebration party my father holds in honor of my mom who passed exactly two years ago to the day. It was cancer that took her from us," he says. I could almost see tears in his eyes.
"Your welcome," I replied, as the limo came to a stop in front of a large redbrick building. His father climbs out of the vehicle as soon as the chauffeur opens the door. Jasper slides out afterward and I follow suit. He was still holding onto my hand, refusing to let it go. I followed him inside and was surprised to see the place all decked out thumping with music and bodies. He leads me towards the back of the place, finding an empty table we take a seat and watch as his father mingles with everyone. I watched as they all danced and swayed to the music, but I felt so trapped as he held on to my hand.
"What would you like to drink? Champagne?" he asks.
I simply nod to him, he flags down a waiter and orders a bottle of champagne and two wine glasses. I continue to sit there in silence as I watch his father mingle hoping beyond hope that I get the chance to run. I didn't care that they said I was his wife, I was not here by choice. I still itched to escape.