Page 28 of Dark Therapy
“Okay,” I said softly, the weight of his concern wrapping around me like a protective blanket. “Thank you. I just… I thought I could deal with it on my own.”
“I get that, but you don’t have to,” he said gently. “You’re not alone in this. I’m here, and I’ll always be here.”
After I hung up with David, the house felt eerilyquiet, the stillness amplifying the thumping of my heart. I tried to focus on the living room, grounding myself in the familiar surroundings, but the shadows seemed to stretch and curl like fingers, reaching for me.
I lit a few candles, their flickering flames casting dancing shadows on the walls. I settled onto the couch, wrapped in a thick blanket, but despite my efforts to distract myself, my mind drifted back to that box and what it contained.
I pulled out my phone, scrolling aimlessly through social media, hoping for a distraction, but the images blurred together, each one reminding me of the life I wanted to escape. I wanted to believe that everything was going to be alright, that I was safe now, but the gnawing feeling in my gut told me otherwise. The memories of my past were too fresh, toovivid, and the threat of Ben loomed over me like a dark cloud.
I glanced at the time; it was past midnight. I tried to keep my eyes open, sipping from a mug of tea, but I was exhausted. Each time I closed my eyes, I was met with images of moths fluttering against cold metal bars, the suffocating darkness surrounding me. I fought against sleep, knowing that I couldn’tafford to let my guard down, but it was a losing battle. The weight of the day settled heavily on me, and the moment I succumbed to sleep, I was pulled into a world where nightmares awaited.
?????????
I opened my eyes to a suffocating darkness, the dim light barely illuminating the contours of the room around me. A heavy silence settled in, the kind that envelops you and makes you acutely aware of your own breath. As I blinked to clear the haze from my vision, panic clawed at my throat.
I was in an empty room, the walls painted a cold gray, and the air felt stale, almost as if it had been trapped here for years. I stood up and tried to move, but a sudden jolt of fear coursed through me as I realized my wrists were taped behind a sturdy pole that reached high to the ceiling, rendering me immobile. The rough adhesive dug into my skin, and I tugged instinctively, but it only tightened its grip.
The dim light flickered above me, casting erratic shadows that danced across the walls, and the cold metal of the pole sent a shiver down my spine. My heart raced, pounding against my ribs like a caged animal desperate to escape. I took a shaky breath, fighting against the rising tide of fear that threatened to drown me.
As my eyes adjusted to the light, the details of the room began to sharpen. The floor was bare concrete, cold beneath my feet, and the only furniture was a solitary chair pushed against the far wall.
The heavy door creaked open, and my heart stopped. The dim light behind it silhouetted a figure, a shadowy outline that slowly stepped into the room. My breath caught in my throat as the figure came closer, revealing a familiar face that sent chills down my spine.
Damien.
He walked in with a terrifying calm, the kind of stillness that promised destruction. A large box dangled in his hands, incongruously mundane in the suffocating tension of the room. His black hair fell messily over his forehead, and those piercingwhiskey eyes burned with a manic energy that turned my blood cold. The door clicked shut behind him, the sound reverberating like the final nail in my coffin.
He set the box down with a deliberate thud, his movements slow, calculated, predatory. “Look what I brought you,” he said, his voice dripping with a mockery that made my stomach twist.
I pressed myself against the pole behind me, its cold, unyielding surface a cruel reminder of my helplessness. “What do you want?” My voice cracked, betraying me as fear clawed its way up my throat.
His grin was sharp, wolfish, the kind of smile that only promised pain. “What do I want?” he echoed, his tone a mockery of my own. He took a slow step closer, his presence swallowing the air between us. “No, Millie. The question is, what the fuck were you thinking?”
“What are you talking about?” I whispered, my pulse thundering in my ears.
He tilted his head, studying me. “You’ve been bad, Millie. Real fuckingbad.” His voice darkened, low and dangerous. “And you know what happens to bad girls, don’t you?”
He moved closer, his breath ghosting over my skin as I turned my face away, my chest heaving with shallow, panicked breaths.
“I don’t want anything from you,” I said, my voice trembling. It was a weak lie, and we both knew it.
“Oh, Millie.” He chuckled darkly, the sound more menacing than any scream. “You think this is about what you want? No. This is about what youoweme.”
His thumb brushed over my lips, rough and unrelenting, the contact sharp enough to make me flinch. His touch wasn’t just invasive—it wasbranding, staking a claim. “These lips,” he murmured, his voice low and venomous. “They’re tainted now.Dirty.”
I jerked my head back, my mind reeling at his words. “Tainted? What are you talking about?”
His eyes darkened, gleaming with an unholy mix of rage and deranged amusement. “Thatkiss,” he spat, the word dripping with venom. “Withhim.” His voice turned icy, every syllable laced with fury. “You think I wouldn’t find out? You think I’d let that shitslide?”
Realization slammed into me like a physical blow. My lips parted in shock, my mind racing to connect the dots.Jake.
“You’re here because of that?” I stammered, my voice rising in disbelief. “Because I—”
“Because youbetrayedme,” he snapped, his voice a low snarl that filled the room. He leaned in, his breath scorching against my ear. “You thought you could kiss him and erase me? That you could share something so fuckingintimatewith someone else?” His tone twisted, his words sharp enough to draw blood. “You belong tome.”
“I don’t belong to you!” I spat, the words ripping from my throat before I could stop them.
The room fell into a suffocating silence, his grin fading into something darker,deadlier. His head tilted, his eyes narrowing as he studied me like I’d just thrown down a challenge.