Total pages in book: 100
Estimated words: 91467 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 457(@200wpm)___ 366(@250wpm)___ 305(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 91467 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 457(@200wpm)___ 366(@250wpm)___ 305(@300wpm)
I looked at her beautiful face in repose and my heart hurt. How could something this beautiful be subjected to such horror? Why is her life so filled with loss? From her childhood ‘til now, she’s faced one fucked up situation or another.
I’d wanted to take her away from all that. To give her a life free from worry and hardships. But of all the things she’d endured before we met, nothing beats what we now face.
I lifted her limp hand to my lips. Her flesh felt warmer now, and she was getting some color back in her face. As far as I can tell her feet had borne the brunt of it.
They were torn and dirty, like she’d ran through hell barefoot to get back to me. The doctor promised that they would be fine in a few days as long as she stayed off of them.
According to him, with good care and time she should be back to normal in no time, but I don’t see how that could be possible. As I watched her with pain in my heart I closed my eyes and said a silent prayer of thanks, followed by a promise.
“I’m going to keep you safe from now on baby. I won’t let anything harm you ever again. And I will find our child and bring him back to you.” Her eyes moved beneath her closed lids and her fingers seemed to twitch in my hand.
I kissed them to let her know I was there and she seemed to settle once again. “I’m so sorry I wasn’t there, that I didn’t save you. I’ll spend the rest of my life making this up to you. Just please open your eyes and talk to me.”
I waited with my breath held but there was no more movement. I brushed the backs of her fingers across my cheek and rested my head against her hand. It’s hard to know what to feel. On the one hand I’m ecstatic that she’s back, and on the other…my child.
I turned my mind to all I had to do in the coming days. First things first is securing her and making sure that no one gets by me to reach her again.
The girl I knew and loved hated being encumbered, but she’s gonna have to deal. Until we get to the bottom of this, not even my family will be allowed to be alone with her.
I’m going to be on her ass every step of the way from now on. She’ll be lucky if I let her take a shower alone once we get home. I have no plans on letting her out of my sight for the foreseeable future.
If that means putting her ass on a leash then so be it. Maybe if I’d done that shit from the start none of this would’ve happened. If I’d been more careful…
But I’d given into her every whim in the past. Even when I wanted to curtail some of her movements, I let her have her way because she wasn’t used to being a rich man’s wife. Wasn’t used to having her movements monitored.
In the beginning I’d played around with the idea of getting her a driver slash bodyguard, which she hated. I’d thought that with time she’d get use to the restrictions, but it broke my heart to clip her wings so I didn’t.
She wasn’t like the other wives of my acquaintances and I never wanted her to be. She was more likely to dig in the garden than spend an afternoon shopping. Or spend a few hours at a soup kitchen feeding the needy than lunching with the Country Club set.
But now that must all change. Now I have to treat her like a caged bird to keep her safe. And what about the child, our child? Why was this his beginning?
What the fuck did he or she do to warrant this shit? It’s hard to kick against fate, to fight those things that are just meant to be. But I’m fucked if I don’t want to tear the whole city down brick by brick for being fucked with.
Anger grew and simmered as I imagined what I would do to those responsible. I just need her to wake up and give me the first clue and I’ll go get my blood and bring him home.
Cade
The longer I sat there in the silent room, the harder it became to sit still and do nothing. There was a fire raging inside me. A storm that was about to erupt any second.
She whimpered in her sleep, the first sound she’d made since she fainted in my arms and I jumped to my feet like a shot to stand over her.
‘Zandi, can you hear me? Open your eyes baby, come on baby, do it for me.” I held her hand against my chest so she could feel the beating of my heart as I leaned over her.