Brooke furiously sprung up from her sleep, feeling less sore than she remembered, her eyes skimmed her body, and narrowed their gaze at the unfamiliar bandages wrapped across her body.
"I've been treated?" She couldn't believe it. No one in that house would've gone the extra mile to take care of her like this.
Serena popped up in her head, but Brooke made a face, dismissing the thought. The last thing she wanted was to owe that woman anything.
As she struggled to stand up, Brooke noticed that the bed was a bit higher than Ethan's. Raising a brow, she darted her eyes across the obviously bigger bedroom she was inside.
The room was a luxurious and modern space with a high ceiling and a monochrome color scheme.
A plush, charcoal-gray rug led to the grand bed with white linens and a sleek, black leather headboard.
A showstopping chandelier hung from the ceiling, casting a warm glow over the room's rich textures and sophisticated decor.
"Holy shit!" She sprung out of bed, only to fall from not having her cane to support her. "Ouch." She pinched her temples, hoping it wasn't swollen.
"Where the hell am I?" She tried to recall the last thing that happened, but her memory was all blurred.
Fear gripped her.
Had Ethan transported her to somewhere else? She always feared he'd lock her away somewhere, where she could never escape him.
Had he lost his mind and finally done it?
Not wanting to find out, she quickly crawled under the bed, just a second sooner than the bedroom door was furiously pushed open!
Brooke covered her mouth, when a pair of calculated footsteps marched into the room.
'Ethan?' she panicked, her wounds started to hurt of him pummeling her to the floor for trying to escape him yet again.
The footsteps gently approached the bed, she felt around her for something to defend herself with. But the bed was cleaned spotless, her heart seized a beat when the intruder's feet stopped directly in front of the bed.
A deep clear voice called out, "Miss Brooke, I know that you are hiding here." He started off, "I'm not going to hurt you, but I do want to talk."
Talk?
Brooke didn't believe him. No one who wanted to talk would bring her to an unknown place, while she was unconscious.
"If you don't believe me, I'll have you know I treated your wounds." He explained further, trying to win the woman's trust.
But Brooke wouldn't be easily deceived.
'He could've brought me to a hospital to have me treated, he obviously looks like he can afford it. Just what is the play here? Is he working for Ethan? But even if he isn't working for Ethan, can I trust he has good intentions?' She had over a million and one thoughts all at once spiralling through her mind.
Thane could see Brooke under the bed, he sighted her from the moment he walked in. He only pretended not to see her so she could calm down and feel less afraid.
But seeing how adamant she was not to come out, he figured he needed to be more patient with her.
"Fine, you can hide for as long as you want, I'm not going to stop you." He announced, while pulling a chair closer to the door.
He placed the chair in her line of sight, and sat down. "I'll wait here, until you're ready to talk." He announced, loud enough for her to hear.
Brooke was astonished.
Just what sort of game was this man playing?
'He wants to wait? Why? It wouldn't take more than five minutes to find me. Even if I tried to escape, I couldn't get very far. He can just force me out.' Brooke panicked, she wanted to trust this man, she wanted to so very much.
But a part of her was scared.
Scared that he would hurt her once she played into his trap.
Hence, she remained where she laid, and he sat in silence, going through his phone the entire time.
Their little waiting game spawned into three whole hours with none of them wavering.
'It's been a long time now, he should've gotten tired by now! So why won't he-' her thoughts were disrupted by a knock on the door.
Brooke's heart pounded rapidly.
Had Ethan come to take her? Was he just killing time until her husband arrived?
"Come in." The stranger announced.
On command, a pair of smaller feet, belonging to a woman wearing white socks and black shoes walked in. She handed a tray of food to the stranger then quietly let herself out of the room.
The scent of the food tormented Brooke. She hadn't eaten anything since yesterday, all thanks to Ethan being in a foul mood.
And now, this stranger was about to eat a meal in front of her. Was he trying to torment and force her out through hunger?
Her thoughts were disrupted when the stranger suddenly got up from the chair and approached her. Brooke froze in fear, she guessed that he had grown tired of waiting and wanted to finish her off.
But to her surprise, he lowered himself into a squat and placed the plate of food right in front of the bed.
"You haven't eaten anything, have you?" He slid the plate under the bed so she wouldn't have to reach out to grab it.
Then he returned to his chair and sat back down.
Brooke blinked twice. "He knew." She gasped under her breath, stunned that this stranger had known where exactly she was hiding the entire time, but didn't try to force her out.
"Screw it." She hissed, pushing the plate aside.
She crawled out from under the bed, she used the bed to support her weight, and hoisted her body into sitting on the bed.
And when she laid her eyes on the handsome man staring intently at her, she could not help herself but ask.
"A-Are you working with my husband?" She knew he could lie, but she also knew he could tell the truth.
Thane turned off his phone, he carefully crossed one leg over the other, then replied calmly, "No."
"How can I trust you?" She asked, a small glimmer of hope shining through her eyes.
Thane captured her gaze, then boldly made her the pitch that would bind them together. "Because," he stressed, uncrossing his legs,
"I want to work with you."