Aboveð....Picture of Kate in Tigress' indoor swimming pool.
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"Hold on! Your parents kicked you out?" Claire asks and I just nod.
"So where are you living now?" She asks.
"I stayed at Jake's apartment for a few days and then....." I trail off wiping my tears as sobs escape my lips.
"Then what?"
I narrated the rest of the story to her where I found out Jake sent an audio to Kate to plan the whole framing process which was actually a lie and I got upset and left the house. Then I was being followed by a strange white Mercedes Benz and two men came out and abducted me. Then I woke up and I was in Tigress' house.
Claire is still dazed with all that I've told her. She has a sympathetic look on right now.
"So you ran away from dead duck's house?" She asks and I nod chuckling slightly
"Dead duck?" I ask through chuckles as Claire laughs along.
"That's what she is"
"Can you help me report her? Jake is also there"
"Of course!"
"Thanks Claire" I reply and take a final shot of her hot chocolate drink.
"Right now, you need to rest" Claire tells me as she takes the cup from me and tucks me in.
"But....I need to ...." She cuts me off saying
"We would do that tomorrow"
"Is this your bedroom?" I ask
"Yes but don't worry! I'll sleep in my brother's room"
"No! I can't sleep in your room"
"Just keep quiet and oblige Nikki" Claire states quite exasperated.
I nod numbly and she turns the lights off after saying goodnight to me.
Jake POV
"Where is she?"Tigress yells at me as she continues to dig her heels into my bare back.
" I don't know"I say weakly as I try to endure the pain. I wish I could just stand up and beat her up but that was impossible since I was chained.
Tigress sighs exasperatedly and I feel her withdraw her sharp heel from my back.
"How could you let this happen Damian? You were supposed to look after them especially her!"
Damian is silent as he listens to Tigress's scoldings. My back hurts a bit and my stomach hurts even more because I've been lying on the bare floor with it for hours.
"We are in danger because of your carelessness! If she reports us to the police, its gonna be your entire fault Damian! And you and I will rot in jail together with our boss! So you better find her and bring her here before she opens her big mouth!!!" Tigress yells. Then I heard her heels click clack until I couldn't hear them anymore. She was gone.
I've already gone through torture with Tigress and I hope Damian doesn't add up to it. He bends down and stares hard into my eyes as if he is looking for a treasure in them. Then he removed the chains from my hands and told me to stand up. I obliged and stood up just looking at him. He paces back and forth for sometime before facing me again. His hands on his hips.
"Where is she?" He says with rage
"I already told you, I don't know!"
He stares at me for like hours before pinning me to the wall forcefully.
"You better tell me or I'llâ" I cut him off saying"or you'll what? I have no idea where she is!"
Damian's green eyes are still dark and are fixated on my face.
"Would you just say it?" He yells at me and punches my stomach. I yelp as an agonizing bolt of pain shoots through it.
I just chuckle and he is dazed.
"So you are going to kill me because that psychopath just scolded you? I thought you were supposed to spy on her! Not on us! Can't you see she is distracting you? She obviously has something up her sleeves and she is trying to hide it from you!" I say and Damian is in deep thoughts.
He heaves a sigh and rubs his face.
"You are right about that! I'm not doing my job well" he admits.
I smile amused.
"But you have to give me an answer tomorrow morning! Right now, I've got to spy on her" He says and leaves me in the cell alone. I watch him lock it and he gives me a wry smile before leaving. I sigh. Where are you Nicole? What are you up to?
°~â¢~â¢Â°
The cell is cold and I shudder a bit. I couldn't sleep all night because of Nicole and two, the place was too cold. I hear the dawn chorus and I know it's morning already. Where did Nicole go to? I hope she doesn't leave me here all by myself but I don't think she will. She needs to get help for us! I hear footsteps and I look up to see Damian holding a silver tray with what looked like pizza and a bottle of water. He infiltrates into the small cell with a small smile on his face.
"Hungry?" He asks to my surprise and my stomach grumbles in response. I hope he didn't hear it but I nod and reach out for the tray. I guzzle the pizza. I haven't eaten since yesterday.
"I hope it is not poisoned" I tell him whiles picking another slice.
He chuckles slightly
"No it's not"
I shrug and bite the slice in my hand. It wasn't so delicious but it was good.
"You were right about Tigress! I think she is hiding something" Damian tells me as I continue to eat the food he gave me.
"Why? What did you find out?"
"She is behaving strangely. It's like she is being secretive. Whenever she sees me around her, she straightens up all of a sudden and pretends to be good. I feel like she is doing something."
"Hm interesting!" I say and take a gulp of water. Damian stays quiet and he watches my every move.
"You need to keep your eyes on her. She is up to something"
"I know! Something that boss wouldn't like at all"
"So, tell me Damian! How long have you been living with this psycho?"
Damian chuckles.
"Just six months"
"Six months? Wow! I wouldn't even stay with her for a month not to talk of six months"
Damian frowns slightly.
"Why are you in this risky business?" I ask him and his green eyes meet my grey ones. He ruffles his hair and opens his mouth to talk but then he closes it again as if what he is about to tell me is very essential.
"It's for a purpose" he states simply without looking at me.
"What purpose? You are in danger!"
"I know okay?! I'm not a kid!"
"So what is this purpose?" I ask him and he softens a little bit but then that frown appears on his face again.
"I.....I need revenge" Damian finally says and I coil a bit. I see the tears in his green irises and he ruffles his hair even more making it messy.
I was about to ask him what revenge but then he spoke up.
"My boss killed my parents when I was just 13 years old. My dad was his worst enemy. They competed with each other but then my dad was always successful. This made him envious and he killed them" Damian states and his cheeks are stained with tears. I'm in a daze.
"You mean, your current boss? The one who sent you to spy on Tigress?"
Damian nods. "He is a beast!"
"So how did it happen? How did he kill them?"
Damian was about to speak when we heard the click clack of heels. He quickly gets up and wipes the tears.
"Awwwm, are you lonely?" Tigress taunts me when she reaches my cell. She is wearing a short blue skirt, red stilettos and a white crop top.
Damian goes to stand beside her.
"I'm not lonely Tigress. "
She chuckles and enters my cell. She squats right in front of me and grabs my neck with her manicured fingers.
"You better tell me where Nicole is or you pay with your life" she tells me with an evil smirk and I chuckle.
"Look Tigress, you can do anything! You can even skin me alive! I sincerely don't know where she is."
Tigress gives me an amused smile.
"Alright! If you wouldn't tell us, fine! But I promise you if we find her ourselves, she is going to be burned to death"
"You wouldn't dare!"
"Try me! No one jokes with the Tigress! So you better speak up and save her life before it's too late"
My heart pounds against my ribcage. "I swear I don't know"
Tigress smirks.
"Fine!"
She withdraws her hands and stands up to her full height.
"You have a visitor! Wanna see her?" She says and I straighten up looking at her face smeared with make up.
"Who is it?" I drawl darkly.
"Who else than Kate Sanders?"
I huff. What does she want from me? I hope she isn't coming to seduce me again.
"No. I don't wanna see her"
"But she is already here! And you two will talk" Tigress states firmly and walks out of the cell to Damian.
"Damian, get him fresh clothes and give him something to eat as well! When you are done, take him to the poolside. I need to take care of something"
With that, she left walking away confidently and slipping her dark shades on.
"You heard her" Damian tells me as soon as Tigress is gone. I sigh
"Why is Kate in love with you?"
"I don't know Damian"
He chuckles. "I can tell when a girl is in love with someone"
"I don't love her!"
"Well, I think she is determined to win your heart"
I scoff under my breath as he laughs at me.
"Come on man! Let's get you dressed" Damian says and pulls me out of the cell. He takes me to a bedroom and he told me that's where he sleeps. It was beautiful to admit and clean.
I entered his bathroom and took a shower. I brushed my teeth and shaved my beard which had started to grow a bit. After that, I got back into the room with a towel around my waist. Damian was looking on his laptop. There was a video of Tigress and Kate talking. Kate was in the pool. Her ginger red hair was wet and she was in a magenta bikini. Tigress was still in her same old clothes.
"Is it happening right now?" I ask Damian and he jumps out of his seat frightened. I chuckle
"I didn't know you were back from the bathroom" he says and enters a small room.
He hands me new clothes. Navy blue boxer briefs, a pair of blue shorts and a white shirt.
"It's happening right now! My laptop is connected to most of the cameras in the house! You know, to spy on Tigress" he finally answers.
"Oh I see"
"But I must say Kate is a nice girl." Damian compliments and I nod looking back at the laptop. Kate is in the water alone now. Tigress is gone.
"If you're gonna swim with her, then there is no need to wear your clothes! Just wear your boxers"Damian says all of a sudden dragging me out of my thoughts.
" Maybe"I say with a sigh.
Damian pats me lightly on the back with a gentle smile. I return his smile appreciating his small gesture. He exits the room and tells me he will be waiting for me.
I put on my boxer briefs. I don't wear the rest of my clothes but then I add them to the towel and bolt for the door. I glance at my reflection and I look hot. I chuckle a bit before departing Damian's bedroom.
Damian stood there and he looked at me.
"You are really going to melt someone's heart. Navy really fits you" he taunts referring to my boxers but my face muscles are so tight that I cannot even smile. I wish Nicole was in that pool not her.
"Let's go" Damian says and I follow him down a flight of wooden stairs. The interior of Tigress's house was absolutely flawless. Claire was right. Wait! Claire said her house is four houses away from this house! What if Nicole went to her house? It could be! Nicole is at Claire's house! I'm sure of it! My heart jumps knowing that my princess is okay. She is safe with Claire! Something tells me she is there!
Damian coughs exaggeratedly to get my attention and I look over to see Kate in her hot magenta bikini. Her body is half immersed in the pool of water and her azure eyes rake down my body. She licks her lips and I see her blush a bit.
"I'll.....be leaving" Damian says awkwardly and walks away
"Hello Jake" Kate says and I remember all the awful things I said to her the last time. I feel bad and I just wish the earth could swallow me. Kate was a pretty girl and she didn't deserve that. I sigh and dive into the water. This was the indoor pool, Claire was talking about the last time. I resurface and Kate is looking at me. Her pupils had dilated.
I run my hand through my hair and give her a small smile. Then I asked the first question that popped into my head.
"Why did you come to visit?"
"I just felt like coming. I just wanted to see you" she says and I swallow hard. I have 9 more days to the trip and I am still in this house because of her.
"Kate I....." I trail off not knowing how to say it.
She furrows her freshly waxed eyebrows.
"Why are you doing all this?" I manage to ask her.
She has a thoughtful expression on and I just look at her as I wade through the water. The water is warm, just the way I like it.
Suddenly she swims towards me and I swim backwards until I hit the end of the pool. She smiles and draws closer until we are inches apart. Her pupils are still dilated and she has her eyes on my abs.
"You haven't answered my question" I state firmly
"I'm doing this because I love you"
Here we go again! I sigh as I just watch her trace my biceps with her index finger. I quickly jerk her hand away.
"Kate I'm sorry but you know very well I don't have feelings for you! You are rather hurting me! I need to travel in a few days time but you've got me locked up in this house with a lunatic"
"Yeah right! I know you will tell me you love Nicole! But I heard she ran away and she left you behind. Trust me, she is not gonna come back for you! She is selfish! She only thinks about herself"
Rage is written all over Kate's face. What if she is right? What if Nicole doesn't return? What if she left me behind? No. She cannot do that to me! No! I know she will come back!