Page 114 of Cruel Dominion

Fuck, she was right. It’d been days since that bath at Carter’s villa and eau de sad bitch was not in fact my scent.

I really meant to get up right away, but before I knew it, my eyes were heavy and I could barely keep them open. It wasn’t like I had anywhere to go.

I’d run away. Again. That was what I did. That was what I was good at.

I flipped over in the bed, facing away from the window so maybe I could get back to sleep. I slipped in and out of consciousness, the sounds of vehicles and the ocean outside merging with the images and sounds of my dreams.

Vicious images of my father and fire and Carter and blood and Josh and pain and the ocean and drowning, drowning, drowning?—

I gasped, sitting bolt upright in my bed, sobs fighting their way out of my chest. I looked around the room wildly. Right. Summer’s guest room. I was alone.

You’re alone.

You’re okay.

Except I wasn’t.

If Carter just wanted to know what it would be like to fuck the rich girl and then break her heart, that would’ve gone down easier than him taking money to abandon me.

All those years ago, I thought he was different and I loved him for it. I didn’t care how wide the divide was between us. We were the same in the ways that mattered. Coming back to town, I didn’t want to admit it but I still had hope.

At least my dad was upfront about it. Carter lied.

I wrenched myself out of the bed, not ready to think about it anymore. Not yet.

I’d promised Summer that I’d shower, and frankly, it was the least I could do. I went to the bathroom and splashed water on my face.

Patting it off with a towel, I stared down my reflection in the mirror. I looked like hell. My eyes were bloodshot and puffy, the skin beneath them dark and sallow.

It was a face I recognized.

That was months ago, stepping foot in my childhood bedroom for the first time in years. I looked in the mirror over my vanity and saw the reflection of a beaten, bruised, sunken-faced version of myself looking back at me. I didn’t look quite as bad as I had then, but this was a close second.

Tossing my pajamas on the floor, I started the hot water. Steam quickly filled the bathroom, and I sighed when I stepped under the stream. Summer’s jasmine-scented soap was nice, but it made me miss my Dior body wash.

Fuck, Rosie.

Thinking about Rosie made my heart clench. I said I’d never step foot in that house again. Would I ever see her? If I asked her to meet for coffee, would she even come if my dad asked her not to?

I stayed in the shower until my fingers turned to prunes. Finally, I forced myself to turn the water off. I’d have to reenter the world at some point.

I pushed aside the shower curtain, only to meet a pair of crazed hollow blue eyes. Eyes I hoped I’d only see again in my nightmares. My blood felt like ice water in my veins. After everything I’d done to stay out of the spotlight, he’d still found me.

My ex-boyfriend, Josh, stood mere feet from me.

Instinctively, I wrapped my arms around my wet, naked body. All the fear and vulnerability he made me feel came flooding back. All the bruises and black eyes, every mark he left on me. My stomach twisted painfully as I moved to snatch the towel from the hook next to the shower, covering myself.

Run.

Run, Anna.

I froze. I couldn’t think, couldn’t figure out what to do next. He just stood there, staring. His eyes looked hollow. His skin pale. Lips almost purple.

He was using again.

Fuck.

Fuck.

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