Page 76 of Fixation of the Mind

Waking up the next day, I felt fully refreshed. After so much turmoil, so much worrying, the push and pull with the guys, I was finally feeling at peace.

Carefully getting up, I looked back at the bed. The boys were out cold, smiles on their faces. Even though they’d taken care of me last night, they hadn’t expected anything in return, just wanting to make my night restful since I’d been having nightmares.

I wanted to do something for them. I wanted to cater to them. Thinking about breakfast, I realized that I didn’t know much about how to cook, but I could definitely go pick something up.

Blowing kisses at their sleeping faces, I crept out of bed, grabbed some leggings, boots, and an oversized sweater. Twisting my hair into a messy bun, I snuck out of the house and took the car.

First stop: the restaurant. I saw a cute mom and pop dinner on the way back to the house that I wanted to try. I got one of everything, wanting to make sure the guys would be nice and full and have whatever they wanted. That took about twenty minutes, and my phone started blowing up while I was on the way to the second stop. The three of them were calling and texting me like the world was ending.

Pulling up to the coffee shop, I got out and picked up. “Hello?”

“Where do you think you're going?” Roux growled.

His question was followed by a panicked Ravi. “Whatever we did, we can fix it! Just come back!”

“Wait, wait, wait,” I said, trying to calm them down since I was obviously on speaker now.

“No, Rin. I think we’ve waited long enough. When we find yo—”

I interrupted before this got out of hand. “Who said I'm trying to get away from you?!”

They finally paused, and I continued with a sigh. I didn't know this would be that big of a deal. “You guys seemed tired, and I didn’t want to wake you. I thought since you three took such good care of me last night, I would surprise you with breakfast and fancy coffee in bed.”

Silence greeted me until Ravi's confused voice broke it. “Wait, so you're… You’re not trying to leave us?”

I laughed this time, a good long one, before I replied. “No. At this point, I know it would be useless, even if I wanted to. I just wanted… to do something nice for you guys.”

They were silent again, but it felt uncertain. It only reminded me that they'd experienced very little kindness in their lives and made me want to do even more for them.

“I have breakfast already, and I just got to the coffee shop down the road. I'll be back in ten minutes.” Walking into the shop, I saw the line and amended my estimation. “Maybe more like fifteen.”

“We have a coffee maker at home,” Rion's curt voice said, and I giggled. So impatient.

“No, that's a cappuccino maker, Rion. Not everyone in the house likes cappuccinos.” Over the past three months, I’d noticed that hardly anyone but Rion touched the cappuccino maker, seeing that Roux usually made himself tea and Ravi would grab either a soda or a cold sugar bomb coffee from a coffee shop.

Ravi's mischievous voice came through the line. “My love, have you been watching us?” The glee in his voice was contagious, but I bit my lip to keep from smiling too wide, not answering him.

“Well, this feeling is different. Going from the watcher to the watch-ee. It's actually kinda nice.” I could picture Ravi rubbing his chest, eyes dazed. Rion would be looking down in confusion, while Roux's frown grew deeper the happier he was. That picture alone gave me butterflies.

“I'll be home soon.” Blowing them a kiss, I hung up. I needed to get off the phone before I said something ridiculous.

Getting to the counter, I put in the order and waited for the four cups before taking them to the car. Luckily, I managed to dig out the keys one handed without dropping anything. Getting the door open was another feat, but I made it work. I set the coffee on the seat next to me before looking down to grab my seat belt.

I wasn't paying attention until a set of arms wrapped around my neck like a boa constrictor. Clawing at my attacker’s arms, I desperately tried to pull them away to get just a fraction more air, but it was no use. The grip became tighter and tighter as my lungs burned and my vision blurred.

The guys were going to freak out when I didn't come home soon. In a split second, my hand brushed against the smooth surface of my phone. Grabbing it while I was still conscious, I slipped it into the side of my tall boot, hoping that Rion might be able to trace it.

As my vision lost its battle with the darkness, I sent out a silent plea. Please, come find me.

***

“Get up, get up!” My head snapped to the side as the sting on my cheek woke me up. I went to cup my cheek, but my arm wouldn’t move. A few useless yanks helped me realize I was tied to a chair with my arms behind my back. What the hell? Why do I keep getting kidnapped?! The guys are never going to let me out on my own again!

I wasn't that surprised when I saw Neil standing in front of me, arms open, smiling like a used car salesman. I didn’t want to look at him for longer than necessary, so I took a moment to survey my surroundings. It looked like I was in some kind of security surveillance room, one side featuring a bay of monitors, a large control panel, and a row of metal shelves along the wall. Several buckets on the shelves were labeled with chemical names I couldn't pronounce, but I had no trouble understanding the toxic sticker on all of them. The oddest part was seeing several dirty shovels in the corner, along with gardening gloves and a body lying right next to the wall. The air smelled of fresh dirt and leaves, and my mind wracked itself for an explanation until I thought back to the place the boys told me they buried bodies: the forest reserve.

That’s not good.

“There’s the little bitch of a princess. Welcome!” Neil came closer, showing all his teeth like a predator about to feast. I should have known that confrontation at the gathering was going to bite me in the ass.

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