Page 58 of The Sting of Love
It’s only slightly less, however, because I know what awaits me there. Willow. I wish I could go back to last week when she felt like mine.
That will only be a feeling that exists in my dreams now.
She was never mine.
Chapter Seventeen
Willow
Day three…
Today is the start of my third day in this house.
It’s early. I don’t know the time specifically, but I’m guessing it’s probably around nine. I woke with the sun, barely able to sleep as it was because of my plans for today.
I’m going to try and escape.
I only have half a plan, and from the looks of outside, I think it’s going to be hard. The sea looks more troubled, clashing fiercely against the rocks, and the gray clouds in the sky forecast rain.
I swallow past the lump in my throat and go over everything in my mind.
The first part of the plan is to go downstairs and eat breakfast. Armand has been checking on me to make sure I eat. Yesterday morning was the only time we spoke.
After he told me that I basically wouldn’t be going anywhere, things became difficult. I stopped talking, and he stopped trying to make the situation seem any different to what it is.
I appreciate the explanation he gave, but I’m a grown woman, and I need to take stock of my life. My escape to Italy wasn’t supposed to end like this.
Icy winds blow through the window and lift the curtains. The chill washes over my skin, reminding me of the next part of the plan. The craziest part. The escape itself.
That’s where I’m going… through that window.
It’s the only way out. I may be able to leave this room, go into the kitchen and a few other rooms but the doors to leave the house are all locked up tight. As are the windows downstairs. All are locked from front to back. I checked when Armand wasn’t watching. Some of the rooms downstairs are locked too. My guess is they’re locked because they have some sort of exit.
So… that window there across from me is my only hope.
Yesterday I analyzed everything. The balcony has a sturdier grip, and I could climb across it, but if I fall, I’ll be landing straight in the sea, and I don’t know how deep the drop is. The water is dark blue like the wide expanse, so I think it’s reasonable to assume it’s quite deep. Through the window, however, leads down to a little section of the beach, but…there are all these jagged rock formations coming out of the sea. If I fall, I could die, but if I make it, they’ll help me get over to the beach, and then I’ll be able to head for whatever road we used to get here.
It sounds like death, but I can’t allow Lurlene to suffer for something she has no part of. I need to get this done. That’s how I need to think.Positive. Like I really can do this.
When I was a kid, I used to climb trees all the time, much to Mom’s displeasure. I also was the only one of the girls who snuck out of the house and never once got caught.
I did it for years from when I was fifteen and straight up until college, my parents were none the wiser. I’m relying on my previous expertise to help me today, although I’m well aware that sneaking out of a house with a ten-foot drop is not the same as sneaking out of this mansion with what I’m guessing is a twenty-foot drop. Like my previous endeavors, I’ll be using the curtains at the windows to assist me.
I get off the bed and put on my shoes. I’m wearing a T-shirt and a pair of joggers that were part of the clothes that had been left out for me the other day. The weather is colder than it has been since I’ve been in Italy. It’s just my luck that the cold would get me today.
On a breath, I tie my hair back into a ponytail and make my way downstairs. It smells of breakfast again, and Armand is in the kitchen making eggs. It’s almost like Groundhog Day.
He looks at me and gives me a tentative smile when I walk in.
“Good morning,” I say first.
“Buongiorno, Bellissima. Did you have a good sleep?”
I don’t know what sort of question that is, but I’ll answer in the manner I think is fitting. “I did, considering I’m being held captive. I slept like a log for a few hours. I guess being kidnapped does have its perks.”
“Good. I’m glad to hear it,” he answers ignoring my sarcasm, and I bite down hard on my back teeth. He knows I’m angry, and he’s just pissing with me.
“Good?” I challenge, my voice rises with my annoyance.
