DELILAH
My eyes feel heavy, like concrete blocks are sitting on top of them. I force myself to open them and mutter a hoarse, “What the fuck?”the moment they’re open. This has to be a dream. Actually, scratch that. This has to be a nightmare. Where the hell am I?
I sit up slowly, my brain swimming in my head like that of a fish in a bowl. The room I’m in looks like a unicorn puked cotton candy everywhere. The walls are two shades of pink, with random princess décor on the walls and a dresser. The bed is white, with a dusty pink accent, and the whole thing reminds me of a little girl’s room. A bookcase and vanity sit off to the far left of the room.
My stomach churns, and I move off the bed. My hands tighten into fists, and I continue to look around the room, hoping I’ll wake up at any moment and realize this is a dream. It never happens, and the dread inside me mounts with each second that ticks by. Something bad is going to happen.
The door handle on the door jiggles, and my entire body tenses up. There’s no weapon for me to use. I have no way to protect myself. The door comes flying open, and I’m caught like a deer in headlights. Every hair on my body stands on end, and the sudden need to vomit almost overcomes me when Nathaniel walks into the room.
As always, he’s wearing a suit fitted to his round body. The white-colored shirt beneath his jacket has the top three buttons undone, and his thick dark curly chest hair peeks out.
The sick glint in his eyes makes me shiver. He’s looking at me like I’m a toy he can play with, a toy he can break and toss in the trash.
“What do you want?” I growl, keeping as much space between myself and this disgusting human.
“That’s no way to talk to the man providing you with a warm meal, bed, and roof over your head, now is it?”
I scoff. “I’ve asked numerous times to leave! I don’t want your help, in case that wasn’t obvious, to begin with.”
Nathaniel tilts his head back and lets out a bellow of laughter. “Your father owed me. A deal was made, and now you belong to me. That was the plan all along.”
“I belong to no one,” I say vengefully. “Whatever deal my father made is void. I want out of this house of horrors.”
His features turn murderous, and he takes a step toward me but pauses, almost like he’s rethinking his actions. My heart hammers so hard in my chest that I wonder if he can see how terrified I am. To others, he would come across as the rich grandparent who lets you do whatever you want, but I know he is much worse.
Like a light being turned off and on, his face changes. The murderous rage dissipates into thin air, and suddenly, he’s smiling.
What the hell is wrong with this guy?
“I look forward to breaking you of that fickle thought. A deal is a deal, sweetheart, and I’ll make sure it’s followed through with.”
His mood swings are giving me whiplash.
“I don’t care what deal you made,” I repeat. “This is kidnapping and against the law.”
“No one is going to save you, Delilah. No one cares about you. No one wants you. You’re mine, and you’ll do as you’re told, or there will be grave consequences.”
Each word he speaks feels like a sword being plunged deep into my stomach. They’re words I’ve heard my entire life, words I’ve lived by and come to see myself as.
I don’t respond to him. There’s nothing I can say to him that will alter his thinking. He made up his mind long ago on who I was and what I meant to him and his son.
“Now that we’ve got that out of the way, I wanted to take a stroll down memory lane.” Acid burns up my throat, and I’m close to vomiting. “Remember our little game… the one Nash ruined before we could finish it?”
The memories of that night come rushing back to the surface.“There you go. Now, be a good girl, get on your knees, and suck me off for a little before I shove my cock into your cunt… I’ll fuck your tight little pussy while you call me daddy.”
It all makes sense now. This is supposed to be a little girl’s room, and he wants to play out his sick fantasies of being mydaddy.
“You can go to hell, Nathaniel!” I snarl my lip, letting my rage out. I know it won’t change what’s coming, but it makes me feel better.
“Charming, you always did need an attitude adjustment.” He shakes his head. “Over on the vanity is an outfit I want you to wear. I’m going to step out, and when I return, I hope you have that on as well as a better attitude to match it. If not, I’ll certainly enjoy beating the disrespect out of you.”
My eyes gravitate to the small vanity tucked in the corner of the room. On the bench seat sits a little schoolgirl uniform. I want to spit at him, scream and tell him there is no way in hell I’m doing what he’s asked, but I simmer the rage down, reminding myself that I will get out of this.
“If that’s what you want.” I give him a smile that’s so fake it hurts to force my lips into the movement.
“See, you’ll come around. All you need is a little persuasion. I’ll be right back.” I don’t miss the way his eyes drag across my body like he’s already picturing me in his fucked-up costume. My skin crawls, and I hold my breath, watching as he wobbles out of the bedroom, the door closing behind him softly.
Once he’s gone, the panic of what is going to happen finally sinks in. I place a hand against my chest, willing myself to calm down, and that’s when I feel it.The phone.I’d been alternating between hiding it under my pillow and in my bra for safekeeping.