The Divide (The Divide Series Book 1) (24 page)

I stared at him for a few minutes. I had two choices: I could let it heal on its own, which could take about a month, or I could trust this man and it could be healed now. I just had to trust whether or not he was good. But what choice did I have?
If he’s evil and injects something poisonous, you will die a fast death, but if he’s nice, you’ll live.
I rolled my eyes at myself. I looked over at Al and nodded my head. “Okay,” I said. Al came over and stuck the needle into my shoulder and hit the plunger; cold liquid squirmed its way through my arm. He did that four times. After a few minutes, my shoulder started to feel numb and I slowly put my arm down and moved my shoulder. It hurt a little bit, but most of the pain was gone. I looked at him with wide eyes. “It worked.” I could hear the awe in my voice.

Al smiled and started putting everything back in his bag. He zipped it up and walked toward the door. “Try not to put too much pressure on it for the first twenty-four hours.” I nodded and watched him close the door behind him. Digging through my duffel bag, I grabbed some clothes and made my way to the bathroom. 

I stayed in the hot, steamy shower for an hour, loosening up my muscles and scrubbing my dirty body; I now smelled like cucumbers. My stomach growled, reminding me that it’d been awhile since the last time I’d eaten, so I dressed quickly and walked down the stairs. One of the maids had been cleaning by the time I made it downstairs, so she led me to the dining hall. Jake was already sitting down with a woman I recognized immediately and as I walked in the room, both of them looked my way. Aileen gave me a look I couldn’t decipher, so naturally I ignored it.

Jake stood up and moved the chair out next to him. “Mia, are you hungry?”

“Yes,” I said, sitting down. Jake loaded my plate with salad and bread, and I looked at it, wishing it were something else. I’d never liked salads—too many greens—but I forked it up and started eating. I was half way through my salad when the door opened, and Aedan, the man from the Jeep, and Gregory walked in—Gregory had showered, his hair dripping water on his shirt. Aedan sat down at the head of the table while the other man sat next to him. I looked over to the empty chair next to me, but Gregory sat across from me. Once again, annoyance flooded through me. I tried to catch his eyes, but he avoided my gaze.
Maybe next time you shouldn’t slap him.
A plate loaded with food was set in front of him. My jaw dropped. Why couldn’t I have his plate? Looking down at my dinky plate, I frowned. As I looked over at all the other plates, I noticed only Aileen’s plate and mine had salads and bread while the men had plates loaded with pork, potatoes, green beans, and bread. I picked at my salad, wishing it would magically turn into pork and potatoes, but of course, it didn’t. 

“Mia,” Aedan said. “I want you to stay here until we can get you back to your father.”

My head snapped up. Panic started to crawl up my throat and black spots appeared in my vision as my head felt heavy. I tried to swallow a couple of times, but each time was harder than the next. I didn’t want to go back to my father. Ever. I looked over at Gregory, hoping he would say something, but he just paid attention to his food. “My father is probably dead.”

Aileen gasped, though it sounded a little fake, and every head at the table turned in my direction, except Gregory’s—like he was avoiding the conversation on purpose. I would make sure he knew how much I hated him for it later. “Now, we don’t know that for sure,” Aedan said.

“Even if he is still alive, I’m not going back.” I would stand my ground. If somehow they could get him out alive, I would not go back. “How do you even know I’d be safe here?”

“Our army will protect you,” Aedan said with confidence.

“It didn’t protect me in Gildonia,” I said. “So how can I trust you?”

“Mia,” Gregory said, his voice quiet and monotone. “It would be safest for you to stay.”

My heart thumped painfully in my chest, I could hear it pounding in my ears. How did no one else hear it? “What?”

“I agree,” Jake said. “You would die out there on your own. It’s better if you stay here, knowing you have protection.”

I started shaking my head no. There was no way I was going to stay here. They couldn’t make me. “I’m not staying here.” I looked at Gregory pleadingly.

“Mia,” Aedan said. “Why would you want to be out there? Why are you afraid of staying here?”

Because I know what you really are, and you’re just as sick as my father, maybe even worse.
“I have a better chance of staying alive out there.” Aedan’s cool expression dropped, now turning cold.

“Now, Mia, stop acting like a child.” His face turned red and his eyes shined with anger. “If your father’s dead, you have to lead.”

“I thought you just said my father’s still alive?” I was stalling so I could think my way out of this.

“Mia,” Gregory said. I turned to look at him, and my heart sank. His face was completely expressionless. “He’s right. You need to stay here. You’ll be fine. I promise.”

My body started to shake. Was he really saying what I thought he was saying? “Gregory, can I talk to you in private for a minute?” I pushed out my chair and got up, not giving Gregory a choice in the matter, and left the room. I made my way down the hall, stopping at the front door; turning around, I tapped my foot until Gregory stood in front of me. “What are you doing?”

“Mia, listen,” he said. “They’re right, and you know it.”

“No they’re not,” I yelled. “Staying here will get me killed or turned over to Kieran, and you know it.”

“That’s not true,” Gregory retorted. “They have more men here than they did in Gildonia.”

I wanted to wring his neck. “Why are you siding with them?” My heart pounded even harder in my chest and I wouldn’t be surprised if it pounded its way out of my chest. “You’re supposed to be on my own side. What happened to ‘Trust me, Mia’?”

“I’m on my own side,” Gregory said calmly.

My heart was now swimming somewhere in my stomach. “What do you mean?”

“I’ve always been on my own side,” he said carefully. “I think it would be best to go our separate ways.”

I thought getting punched in the stomach with a hammer wouldn’t have hurt as badly as this. I should’ve known he would do this. This whole time my tiny brain, as he’d referred to it, had decided to think about trusting him. And now, here he was, handing me over like I’d known he would. I put my hand on my side to keep from falling over. “Fine. If that’s what you want.” Tears clouded my vision. I shouldn’t have been hurt by this. I shouldn’t have been on the verge of tears because he would leave me behind. My heart shouldn’t have dropped in my stomach from the look of relief displayed on his face.

“It is,” he said. “And remember, everyone has to do something that makes them uncomfortable. 

“I’m sorry I slapped you,” I rushed out. “I was mad, but I didn’t mean to let it get that far, and I’ve regretted it since the moment I sat down in the Jeep. I don’t want you to leave. I need you.”

Gregory fisted his hands. “Mia, look, it would be better if we went our separate ways.”

“Why?” I could feel a tear slide down my face. “Why are you doing this?”

Gregory moved toward me, but I moved back. I couldn’t have him touching me. Gregory stopped and dropped his arm. “Mia, this is for the best, and you know it.”

I swiped angrily at the fallen tears. “Leaving me is for the best? Fine. If you hate me that much, you should have left sooner.” I pushed past him and up the stairs. As soon as I got to my room, I slammed the door. I flew to the bed and let the dam break and I couldn’t control the tears that flooded out of my eyes.

I didn’t know how long I had stayed in the bed. The tears had finally dried up an hour ago, leaving me exhausted. I wanted to feel embarrassed, but I didn’t. It shouldn’t have hurt that bad, and I should’ve known he would end up leaving me to fend for myself. I stared up at the ceiling. It hurt to keep my eyes open. I kept thinking back to the day we’d first met and how rude he had been to me.
You knew this was going to happen one day.
Rubbing my swollen eyes, I knew my face looked a mess; if I looked in the mirror, I would see a blotchy, red face with sad eyes. Soon I would get my shit together and escape on my own, but I would give myself this time. Nobody needed to save me, I could do this on my own, and I was determined to do it. 

Everyone kept trying to get in, but I'd locked the door and ignored them. I had no plans on seeing anyone because once I stepped outside of this room, I would have to listen them go on and on about a plan to get my father. But the thing was, I didn't trust them. Any of them. That was what I learned from Gregory leaving, I could trust no one but myself, and from here on out that was what I was going to do. 

Darkness seeped in through the soft, pink curtains. I'd been lying in this bed for hours. Sitting up slowly, I cradled my head between my hands—
time to woman up! Get your sorry ass out of bed and get ready to make a plan—
and slowly made it off the bed and into the bathroom. I turned the shower on, stepped in, and let the hot pellets of water hit my body; I stayed in the shower until the hot droplets turned into cold droplets. By the time I was dressed and had made it back into my bedroom, night had officially fallen.

“Mia?” I jumped at the voice coming from the other side of the room. Aileen was sitting on the bed. How did she get in? I stayed rooted in my spot, not wanting to get close to her.

I cleared my throat. “Yeah?”

“How are you feeling?” she asked, smiling at me.

Trying to fake a smile, I nodded my head. “I’m fine.”

Aileen stood up from the bed and came toward me. “Whatever you say.” She stopped right next to me, placed an arm around my shoulders, and led me to the bed. “Let’s sit down. I brought up some food, and I figured we could talk.”

I walked with her over to the bed and sat down. On the bed, a tray full of meats, cheese, and fruit was arranged, and I picked up a grape and popped it in my mouth. Aileen sat down next to me, but I didn’t look at her.

“I’m truly sorry about your mother.” 

I nodded but kept my mouth shut. I knew they’d been friends, but I didn’t have anything nice to say about anyone. Shoving a couple more pieces of turkey in my mouth, I stopped myself from telling her what I really thought of my mother. Deep down, I knew I should have been upset about what had happened to her, but from the crying fest I had earlier, I had nothing left in me that cared. Maybe that was how I was supposed to survive all of this—shut my emotions off.

“I’m sure we'll be able to get your dad away from them.” She put her hand on my shoulder and squeezed. Quickly, I stood up and walked away from the bed; I didn’t want anyone to ever touch me again.
Being a little dramatic, are we?

I looked at her. “How exactly do you think we'll do that?”

Frowning at my question, she rubbed her hands. “I’m sure the men will figure something out. They always know what to do.”

“Right,” I said sardonically. “Let’s bring back the man who put us in this position to begin with.”

“What do you mean?” She tilted her head at me curiously.

“Oh, come on.” I started to pace the room. “We wouldn’t be in this situation if my father actually did something. I wouldn’t be running for my life if it weren’t for my father, your husband, and all the other ignorant Ambassadors.”

“Mia, you don’t know what you’re talking about.” Aileen stood up from the bed and smoothed down her red dress.

“Then why did Kieran and his men come after my family?” I asked vehemently. “Why am I running for my life? We both know it’s not because it’s a fun game.”

“You no longer have to run for your life. You’re safe here.” She smiled. The smile looked forced, or maybe I just hoped it looked forced. She should have realized this place wasn’t safe for me.

“No I’m not,” I said. “They’ll come for me. Kieran wants me badly enough that he will use every resource he can to get his hands on to get to me.”

“It won’t happen.”

Was she not listening to me? I wasn’t playing this game with her. “I would like to be left alone.”

Aileen sighed. “Fine, but you will come down for dinner in an hour. My husband would like to have everyone present. We'll be discussing what will come next.” She stared at me for a long minute before walking out of the room.

Their next step was going to be very different from my next step. I had to figure a way out of there, and I had a gut feeling that something wasn’t right. Running over to my duffel bag, I shuffled through it and noticed a few long hunting knives at the bottom of the bag. Thank you, Gregory, for not taking all of the knives. A pang hit my chest when I thought of him, but I quickly ignored it. I would never think of him again.
Sure you won’t.
So I looked through the other items that a certain person had put in my bag: brush, scissors, a box of dye, and a fake pair of glasses, and I started to smile. A plan formed perfectly in my head and now I just had to wait until everyone was asleep before I could move forward with it.
Do you really think you can do this on your own?
Of course I could.
Good
. It was time for me to save myself; no one else would.