I'm startled awake by the lock on my door clicking. I shoot up, confused as I look around. It's still light out, and I can't determine how long I've been out. The tray I'd put on my nightstand earlier is gone, letting me know that someone else had to have come in at some point.
And I slept right through it.
My throat closes up.
The door pushes open and a big frame fills the doorway. I clutch the sheets tightly, staring at the man for a second before realizing he's the guard from yesterday. I can’t recall catching his name, but I remember the way his large hand pushed on the center of my back, guiding me to my prison. His gaze sweeps over my room before resting on me. He folds his arms over his chest and when his suit jacket lifts, it exposes the guns holstered at his side. For a brief moment, I wonder why a guard would be dressed up so decently, before deciding that's the least of my concerns at the moment.
"Ms. Chastine," his deep voice rumbles through the room.
I incline my head in answer, my grip tightening on my sheets.
He lets out a deep sigh. "Get up."
"Where am I going?" I ask him even as my feet hit the ground. A chill runs through my body at the coldness of it.
Why is the air conditioner even on in winter?
"You should learn quickly not to ask questions," he informs me, his gaze moving over me from head to toe. I'm still wearing the same clothes they picked me up in yesterday and the cheap threads are ruffled from sleep. "There are house shoes in your size under the bed, put them on. Gio doesn't like for people to walk around the compound with bare feet."
I note the way he says compound instead of home, wondering what in the hell goes on here. They have servants and maids running around like it's the Ritz hotel, and when Gio gave me his warning yesterday, he'd called this place his home.
"Ms. Chastine," the guard interrupts my thoughts.
"Sorry," I quickly apologize. The man may not be nice, but he isn't exactly mean or cruel, not in the same way Maximo and Giovanni were. And he isn't as standoffish as the man I'd seen briefly yesterday when he rescued me from Maximo. So, the least I can do is try not to piss him off.
I kneel, pulling the comforter up. I spot a pair of fluffy pink house shoes and briefly wrinkle my nose at the bubblegum color before sliding them on. They're soft and when I stand, it almost feels like I'm walking on pillows. I glance up at the guard who is watching me closely.
"These aren't exactly prison grade," I find myself saying before I can think too hard on it.
The guard's eyes narrow slightly before he shrugs his shoulders. "You may be a prisoner here, Ms. Chastine, but your lifestyle will certainly feel far from it." He rubs at his chin. "That is unless you piss off the wrong people. So my advice for you, keep your head down, do as you're told, and the year will pass quickly and without too much pain."
I take a deep swallow. "But there will be pain." It's more of a statement and less of a question as I dissect his words in my head.
A smile graces his lips, but there's nothing friendly about it. "You can't expect everything to be perfect. Enjoy the perks and live through the suffering." He waves a hand at me. "Now come."
He steps to the side, allowing me to pass by him and leave my room for the first time since yesterday. In the hall, he walks in front of me and I understand that I must follow him when he begins to move.
"You didn't eat your breakfast," he says after a moment of silence.
"I wasn't hungry." It's a bit of the truth and a lie. I was hungry, I just couldn't make the food go down no matter how hard I tried.
"Gio won't be happy if he hears that you are not eating, he wants you healthy." He glances over to me, his gaze intense. "When lunch is delivered you will eat it whether you want to or not. If you don't, I'll be tasked with force feeding you, and I don't think either of us want that." Somehow his words come out as both threat and reassurement.
I inhale a deep breath before nodding. "I'll try."
He lets out a tsk, shaking his head as lines appear at the corner of his eyes. "Not try, you will," he corrects me.
I press my lips together, not offering him a response. We continue down the hall and I think we're going to go down the spiral steps that are now in view, when the guard comes to a stop outside a door. He pushes it open and a pristine bathroom comes into view. "Inside," he instructs me.
I pause, tensing up as I stare at him. When his eyes narrow, I quickly step inside, letting out a breath of relief when he remains a step outside of the door instead of following me in. "What you are to wear is stacked in the cupboard, along with towels. I will be standing outside the door, so do not try to escape. If you do, you will be punished, and you'll no longer be offered privacy when you clean yourself." He stares at me and I give him a nod which he returns. "Be thorough." And then he's closing the door, trapping me inside.
My face heats up and I rub a hand along my throat. The bathroom is all white, the floors and walls made of marble. The tub has a showerhead on either side and a collection of soaps and lotion sit inside a holder on the wall. I don't even glance at the large mirror, moving over to the cupboard and finding the towels. A stack of clothes are sitting to the side and I move them to the counter, not bothering to inspect them.
The shower isn't hard to figure out, and I turn the knob to a warm temperature before undressing and stepping in. The water washing over my skin is soothing, yet I know it isn't washing away the commitment I've made for the next year. I try not to focus on the somber thoughts, knowing there's no way to change them. I grab the soap, squirting it into the towel. I'm surprised by the sweet vanilla scent that I inhale.
Someone has nice taste.
I take my time washing, feeling a certain peace that I didn't get while trapped in my new bedroom. I expect the water to start running cold, but it doesn't and eventually I force myself out of the shower. I wrap a big towel around myself as I finally take a good look at the clothes chosen for me.