2

Elaine

At that moment, fear consumed me.

I had no idea how Maxon could have found the ticket because he never touched dirty laundry due to his OCD about cleanliness. So seeing him standing in front of me, ticket in hand, dashed every last bit of hope I had.

“What the hell is this, Elaine?” Maxon asked before tearing the ticket to pieces. “Were you trying to run away from me?”

I immediately denied it and backed away.

“No, no, I—”

He didn't hesitate to hit me hard.

He connected his fist to my cheek with such violence that I fell to the floor and felt dizzy from the blow. It was as quick as the kicks that followed after that. I moaned in pain from the brute force he was exerting on me.

“Damn, bitch!” Maxon said with disgust. "I own you, I bought you, and you're not going to run away from me. You never will. You are my property!"

Maxon kicked me everywhere.

This time he was much more violent, much more aggressive, and miserable.

He kicked until he was tired.

He kicked until he couldn't anymore and cursed me in a thousand different ways.

My body went into a kind of instant hibernation.

The pain receptors in my body had shut down immediately, and my mind disconnected. I was there, feeling everything, living a living hell, but my brain was blocking it all out.

I just heard his men hurriedly holding him back as tears streamed from my eyes.

“Enough, sir, you're going to kill her,” said one of his bodyguards.

“Get out of the room!” Maxon shouted, and they left.

I closed my eyes tightly and pressed my lips together.

I knew what was coming.

I knew Maxon Scott's routine of violence against me very well.

After he hit me without hesitation and unleashed his fury on me tirelessly, he would rape me to make me understand that I was his. And so he did; the bastard tore my clothes, and without saying a word, spread my legs and slipped inside me.

I kept my eyes closed and imagined I was in the forest, free, happy, and without fear.

“You're mine,” Maxon said with every thrust he gave me. “You have to remember that, Elaine. If you even think about running away from me again, I'm not only going to hunt you down, but I'm also going to torture you in the most painful way possible. I'll kill the people you love, I'll shut down that stupid orphanage you sponsor, and I'll kill every single one of the children.”

I cried harder at that disgusting threat and held back until he had his orgasm.

Maxon pulled away from me in disgust.

When he left, I cried in pain, broken.

The first time he raped me, I tried to defend myself, and he broke my hands. Then he showed up at the orphanage and took one of the girls out for a walk. I was scared when he threatened to sell her to the highest bidder.

I believed him.

At that moment, I understood how crazy she was, and because of that, I stopped going to the orphanage.

It was one thing for them to break me, but it was another thing for them to break innocent children.

However, I couldn't take it anymore.

So I made several plans to get as far away as I could.

I cried for everything I had lost in that moment.

When dawn broke and the first rays of sunlight streamed through the window, I chose myself.

I got up as best I could, found the disposable phone my best friend Kris had given me, and called her.

“Hello, who's this?” Kris asked.

“It's Elaine,” I said hurriedly.

“I'm so glad you called, Elaine!” Kris said excitedly. “The kids are asking about you and—”

“It's time,” I said in a pained whisper. “It's today.”

“Shit, you sound bad. Are you hurt?” Kris asked.

“Yes,” I said with tears in my eyes. “He found the ticket.”

“Shit,” Kris said. “I'll come see you right away. I—”

“No,” I said immediately. “If they see you here, they'll realize you helped me. Just wait for me at the café near the university. Wait for me all afternoon. I'll find a way to get out of here when the housekeeper goes to the supermarket.”

“I don't think that's the best idea, Elaine; they might tell Maxon and—”

“It's the only way; I've got everything ready,” I muttered and swallowed hard. “Just wait for me.”

I hung up and found the willpower to hide the phone and peek out of the room. One of the bodyguards approached and looked at me indifferently.

“What do you want, miss?” asked the bodyguard, and I held onto the door in pain.

“Tell Alba I need painkillers and something to help me sleep,” I whispered before coughing up blood. “I need to rest.”

The man looked at me carefully and nodded, then I lay down on the bed and waited for Alba to appear. She did, and when she saw me, she gave me the painkillers and sleeping pills right away.

“Would you like me to treat you, miss?” Alba asked gently.

“Please,” I whispered, and she nodded.

I pretended to take the pills and waited for her to leave to get the tools to treat me. Once she was gone, I flushed the pills down the toilet and then lay down on the bed.

Alba returned a few minutes later with a small first aid kit.

She took me to the bathroom, ran me a hot bath, and then helped me treat each and every one of my wounds. She placed cold packs on my skin, and I pretended to be asleep.

“Is the young lady all right?” asked the bodyguard.

“No,” Alba said irritably. “The sir is hitting her more and more, and her body is suffering. So it’s best to let her rest all day and not disturb her. We’ll tell the sir that it’s best to let her rest and that the trusted doctor will come see her in the evening.”

The two of them left the room, and I sighed sadly.

I waited an hour and then dressed comfortably before taking the most important papers, especially the letter that released the orphanage from any eventuality.

I jumped off the balcony, dodging the bodyguards and cameras.

I realized that the car was ready to go to the supermarket, so I quickly got into the trunk and waited patiently for Alba and the driver to leave the house. They did.

I quickly left the mall, got into a taxi that dropped me off three blocks from the university, and arrived at the meeting place with Kris.

When she saw me, she immediately became concerned.

“What did Maxon do this time?” Kris asked, and I shook my head.

“We have to get away from here, right now,” I said, and she nodded.

We got into her car, and she drove me to the outskirts of the city, to her family's vacation home, where she had a suitcase ready for me and another car. I gave her some folders with papers and took off my glasses.

Kris gasped when she saw my bruised face.

“It can't be,” my best friend said in horror. “That damn savage!”

“It's not worth cursing him,” I said sadly. "I just want to leave, but I need you to take the children to safety. I don't want Maxon to use them to get to me, so here's Senator Kelly's permission for the orphanage to be integrated into the Belmont Consortium association. It's a group directly associated with the werewolves and is a patron of many altruistic causes. Once the supernatural beings are indirectly responsible for the children, Maxon won't be able to get close to them."

“Do you know what you're doing?” Kris asked me with concern.

“Saving my life and the lives of those children,” I said firmly.

“Good,” Kris said before hugging me. "I spoke to a friend who contacted many women's shelters and found the safest one in the North, in the sorceresses' territory. It's neutral territory and protected by very powerful magic, so no one can take you away from there if you seek asylum. I brought my friend's recommendation, so you must give it to the leader of the sorceresses, a woman named Amelie. She seems to be a compassionate woman. That's why you must be honest with her."

“Thank you,” I said sincerely to Kris. “I'm sorry I didn't listen to you before. I'm sorry—”

“Don't be sorry for anything, Elaine; just save your life,” said Kris. “Leave as soon as possible, and get to the highway that goes east, but first change cars in the central square. I left another car there; take that one.”

Kris gave me the keys, and I hugged her.

I drove to the central square and found the new car.

Inside, I opened the small suitcase, changed my clothes, and put on large sunglasses to cover my face.

I hurriedly drove east.

Fear was tightening my throat.

Once I got on the highway and passed the security checkpoints, I turned onto the North Viaduct that led to the border, took a deep breath, and pulled out the map Kris had left me to guide me.

When I got to an intersection, I was about to check the map and accidentally spilled coffee on it. The names of the cities were smudged, and I cursed under my breath.

“No way,” I said and sighed deeply.

I looked closely at the map, but I couldn't make anything out, and the reality was that I was bad at geography and orientation. I sighed deeply before deciding to go to the right.

At that moment, the disposable phone rang. I checked it and saw that it was an unknown number, but I answered the call carefully. Something told me it was Kris, and sure enough, it was her.

“Maxon knows you ran away, and he's looking for you,” Kris said hurriedly, and I stopped dead in my tracks. “He's going crazy, Elaine.”

My heart raced, and an icy chill ran through my body.

I was in trouble, serious trouble.

Shit.