Chapter 9 Reality Struck

• I was awakened by the distant sound of the television. Immediately I opened my eyes, I saw Maxine cropped up on a chair at the end of the room.
• "Welcome back to the land of the living," he muttered.
• "Where are we?" I croaked, sitting up on the bed and surveying the empty room that had only a bed and a television.
• Maxine stretched his arms, and sighed. "Home, The Garden."
• "Thank God." I sighed, before realizing what he meant. "You mean your home is referred to as The Garden?"
• "Mhmm." He hummed.
• "Gross." I spat out.
• "It's a good name." He stood up. "Hollis totally owe me for this." He murmured and left the room, not even saying a goodbye or any other word.
• My throat felt raw, and my body, emotionally exhausted. I could feel dark isolation seeping through the room like deep depression. I just wanted to go home, to go shopping, boat cruises, clubhouses and the courtroom. I wanted my life back.
• But even I know I couldn't. Not with the continuous attempt on my life and with my father's life at stake.
• I wondered what lies in wait for me henceforth. Maybe breaking my spirit and instilling fear in me was part of the preparation.
• As if in the know, a knock came on the door and Hollis stepped in. "Get off the bed Ugo. Rocco will take you up to our room." He said, voice emotionless.
• I stood up from the bed, trying to gather my thoughts. Our room, he said. 'Are we going to share a room?'. I wondered. "Are we going to share a room?" I asked out loud when I couldn't keep it in.
• "You agreed to this, didn't you?"
• I nodded. "Then move your legs." He said.
• I looked at him, searched his face for that calm, young man that had been trying so hard to woo me non-stop but saw nothing. Nobody would say he was currently forcing me to do anything per se, I agreed to it .
• It didn't matter if I liked the choices, I still made a decision. "I'm not sharing a room with you." I stated, at least I didn't sign away my freedom of speech too.
• "That is exactly what you are going to do," he insisted.
• Hollis called me closer with his fingers, "You will do as I say." He told me once I came closer.
• I avoided his gaze, but stood rooted on the floor.
• "Which way?" I asked, gaze still downcast.
• "Are you talking to me or your shoes, Ugo?" He asked such an annoying question.
• "You." I replied.
• "Look at me."
• I shook my head. Looking at him would obviously mean falling into a trap. The drum of tears I've been battling so hard to keep at bay would definitely get broken.
• He waited, obviously thinking that I would be able to gather enough courage to look at him. But then he gave up when I didn't. "That way," he pointed.
• "Lead the way then." I told him refusing to give it another thought.
• He pulled my arm gently and drew me even closer to him. "I am not your warden, Ugo," he said, watching as I blinked up at him through watery eyes. "I am the Boss, he added. "Don't ever forget that."
• I pulled my hand away from him and saw the smirk on his lips. "I do forget how much you've built your strength and stamina. You might need some taming."
• "What? I'm not some toy to you, am I?"
• "I don't think you've fully grasped the deal you signed. But I guarantee that it will all sink-in in a day or two."
• "Does this deal state that I'm your prisoner too?" He said he wasn't my warden, wasn't he? Because I was so certain that I wouldn't be permitted to leave the premises. Not without him seeking out and slaughtering everyone I loved.
• I would never let that happen. I actually felt a little whiplash from the whole thing and It didn't even help that I'd witnessed a gruesome murder or that I was being used as some sort of white flag to stop the wrath of the so-called Boss on my father.
• To even realize that if I didn't let myself be used that way, my loved ones would die made it all worse. With all the thoughts roaming through my head, it was no wonder that I felt a little unstable on my own two feet. And as for my head, well, it kept shooting off in a dozen different directions every second. I needed to focus!
• I was going to spend several months with this man, a killer, a monster in a man's clothing. I'll have to endure whatever he's going to throw at me for months. I was fucked up, no matter how I chose to look at it.
• Even if he was objectively-attractive, darkly-attractive, if that was a thing. He was still a psychopath who used his position, power and money to bend people to his will. That was the kind of evil bastard I just got myself mixed up with. He wasn't an angel. My senses were slowly becoming clearer and suddenly, I was doing all the thinking I should have done before placing my signature on that stupid sheet of paper.
• "Ugo," Hollis' voice snapped, the sound like a whip cracking in the empty room. I raised my head up to find him looking down at me, those dark eyes unreadable.
• "What?"
• "Move," he said, tone impatient.
• "I'm getting you upset already." I chuckled. "This has always been your plan. You couldn't just handle a simple rejection. So, you had to sit down in that little pissy chair of yours and craft out a plan to get me tangled up in your deadly life, right?"
• "If only you knew what I'm doing for you, you would owe me your life."
• I started laughing, I couldn't help it. "Well you're in luck, at least you'll have me in your space in the coming months."
• "Ugo!" He snapped again. "Move," he warned sternly.
• "This was all your plan." I reminded him.
• "Yes," he agreed as his hand grabbed mine. And I could swear that it didn't leave a strange spark on my nerves. If it did, it was because I was pissed that he was touching me. That was the only logical explanation. "But you are the one being difficult," he added as he moved ahead and pulled me along.
• "Look who said he wasn't my warden," I grumbled
• "If you were expecting a soft-romantic man, Ugo, you are very much mistaken. You had the opportunity once and you threw it away."
• "I don't want romance from you," I insisted. "Why would I, for god's sake."
• We were now in an open corridor. Rocco stood like a statue at the end of the room, staring into space. Two other guards stood at a reasonable distance, taking the same stance. I snatched my hand back from him, crossing it over my chest.
• "Good. Then that's settled. But make no mistake, he turned "I'm going to take my pleasure from you, how and when I deem it fit." He threatened.
• "You dare not!" I challenged, creating a distance between us.
• "Really," he mused. "Let's see how that goes."
• "Every single thing about this situation is disappointing," I corrected him, feeling my jaw quiver. I had a temper. So I try so hard to always remain happy and positive.
• And that was why I surrounded myself with people that really love and care about me. They all knew and understood how bad my temper used to be.
• As a form of control, I would always remain cool and calm in situations I have no power over. Until I grab a full picture of the situation. But then, in some conditions, I almost always end up crying when I get angry. It was frustrating and embarrassing and something my best friend had teased me about a lot.
• Hollis mouth opened as if he was going to snap back at me before he shut it again, thinking for a moment. When he spoke, his voice was calm, patient even. "You will learn that there are benefits to being with me."
• "Touche. You might end up dead one morning."
• He chuckled. "And you'll be my killer?" He asked as one of his dark brows rose.
• "What do you think?"
• "I think you're giving yourself too much credit, Ugo." I couldn't decide if he was surprised, amused or annoyed. Or maybe all of them at the same time. "But I'm banking on that," he added.
• "I imagine there are at least a dozen men who want you dead."
• "Yes, even more than a dozen." He said, shrugging it off.
• "So I'll just wait it out then."
• "You should." He nodded, pretending to think it through. "Someone might beat you to it."