Page 8 of Isabela

I’ve found a few discrepancies in the books, and have reported it to him. Uncle Eli praised me as if I was a dog, saying I saved him a huge headache down the road. Now, it’s been at least a month since he’s sent me work to do. What if he’s the reason behind the discrepancies?

There was twenty-thousand dollars missing when I was doing my calculations for one of the accounts. Did my uncle really think I’d miss that?

I need to look further into this, and I need my uncle to lose his shit at me. Chewing on my lip, I lift my phone slowly out of my small, elegant cross over purse and open my camera, making sure the video button is pressed. I need a witness to whatever happens next. I feel as if I’m going to need it.

Refusing to think about the consequences of my actions, I press my uncle into losing his shit.

“Did my uncle tell you I’m sleeping around at school and covered in tattoos?” I ask the mayor, licking my finger and rubbing the makeup on my arm until it begins to smear. “I’m quite the wild child.”

I’m careful to keep these covered around my uncle, but I’m going to pull out all of the stops. The mayor wants a willing mistress. I won’t be that for him, but I don’t know if he likes rough and non consensual sexual relations.

God, I hope not.

Mayor Markship’s lips twist in distaste. “Elijah, this is not what we discussed,” he complains. He sounds as if he’s being personally offended. “The tattoos don’t bother me as much, since I just planned to fuck her, but I really wanted a virgin.”

“She’s lying,” my uncle growls, taking a step toward me. I barely am able to hold back my flinch. I’m shaking in my heels on the inside, I’m fucking terrified, and I still don’t know how I’m going to manage to get out of this building. Fuck.

“How do you know I am?” I ask. “You’re not monitoring me at every moment. I may be fucking a teacher!”

“Isabela!” Uncle Eli roars. His fist is raised before he thinks and he punches me in the face. I am barely able to gasp as I fall from the blow. My phone just manages to stay in my bag, and I can only pray it’s still recording. I don’t care if all you can see is the inside of my purse.

“Elijah, wait!” the mayor cries out, but I know it’s too late. My uncle kicks me in the ribs, twice, making me bite back a scream. If I cry out, it’s always worse.

“You can have her after she’s healed,” my uncle snarls, stomping on my hand. The mayor sighs as he watches dispassionately as his friend disciplines me.

“Girl, all you had to offer me was your tight ass, and none of this would be an issue,” the mayor mutters.

“Uncle, please,” I whisper. He yanks my hair hard, before he gets in my face and spits. Shuddering, all I can do is feel as it slowly moves down my skin.

“There will be repercussions for your actions, Isabela,” my uncle hisses in my ear. “I’d like to see how you manage to stay in school when you miss all your classes.”

Last time, I managed to hide my bruising with really good makeup, and pretended I had mono. Unfortunately, many of my professors are much stricter this semester about attendance. My Ancient Civilization teacher is one of those people.

“Uncle,” I begin before I scream when he releases my hair to twist my wrist hard behind my back and slams my head on the ground until the blackness takes over.

If there was a way to stay in this space, I would, but there isn’t. Instead, I float here as my uncle stands and speaks to the mayor. My eyes stay closed, I’m not in pain, but I’m aware of every single thing.

“I’m sorry I lost my temper, Charles,” my uncle sighs. “What can I do to make it up to you?”

“Do you really think she’s been whoring around?” the mayor asks sadly. He sounds as if someone just took away his favorite toy.

“There’s no way. She’s a virgin,” my uncle snorts. “She doesn’t date, and the girl is always studying or working. Isabela is almost too good at numbers, she found the missing money in the ledgers.”

“Fuck,” the mayor mutters.

“Eh, it’s alright. I have some very powerful new clients who want to clean their money through the company,” Uncle Eli chuckles. “I’ll make sure my fee never touches the company coffers so she won’t find it missing. I have a feeling she’s going to fail this semester after this incident, and that’s against our agreement. Isabela will have to come home, but first you can keep her for as long as you want once she’s healed.”

“Do you think she’ll heal alright?” Charles asks, his shiny shoes pushing me over onto my back. I’m struggling to hold onto consciousness, the blackness trying to pull me further in. I must be in really bad shape.

“Isabela heals well,” my uncle reassures him. “I didn’t even break anything this time.”

“If she manages to stay in school, I want her for a week to myself,” the mayor grumbles. “My wife always goes on a vacation with her sister for two weeks, and it’s blissful while she’s gone. I deserve to be balls deep in this girl the entire time for this inconvenience.”

“Take her for two weeks…” I hear my uncle comfort him as I drift off in unconsciousness.

I’m safe for now, but I won’t be forever.

Chapter Three

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