Page 10 of Mind Maze

I’m not crazy.

Irecognizeher. Iknowher. I’mafraidof her.

The plane’s engine vibrates as we fly across the US to New York. Everyone—Caius, Theo, and Orion—are relaxed. Annoyingly so.

As for me?

I can’t take my eyes off the woman.

There’s nothing outwardly horrible about her. Sitting beside Kaitlyn, both of them coloring in their own coloring books, she looks sweet and matronly. Her honey-colored hair is swept into a loose but practical bun. Even her outfit—a plaid dress and boots—is stylish yet demure. She wears a soft smile as she speaks lowly to Kaitlyn.

It’s her fingernails that make me shudder.

Red. Long. Terrifying.

She reminds me of the monster all those years ago—a monster Dad said didn’t exist. It’s what started me on this whole “Romy’s crazy” journey that led to multiple prescription changes and endless therapy sessions over the years.

Fabricated.

Made up.

Not real.

“Your mind is an unreliable narrator,” Maura used to say often, always followed by a throaty chuckle that made my skin crawl.

If anything good has come out of this Crowne abduction, it’s that I no longer have to see Maura. This is probably a time when I need her the most—when my mind is a chaotic mess and I’ve been forcibly withdrawn from my medication. However, not being made to talk to her about all my mental anguish is freeing.

Because she made you feel crazy.

They all did.

Bitterness burns like acid in my throat. I tear my gaze from the suspicious nanny and inspect my phone just to keep my eyes off the woman.

Caius reaches over, plucks the phone out of my hands, and slides it into his pocket before I can protest. When he takes hold of one of my hands and squeezes it, warmth surges through me.

This is the most frustrating part of all this.

I’m developing feelings for him.

I suppose that’ll happen when your pretend boyfriend murders your rapist. There’s just no coming back from that. Tricking Dad and Bastian into believing we’re a real couple won’t be so difficult.

What’s to stop me from blabbing anyway? Megan’s safe now. I could just refuse to leave Dad’s place. He’d protect me.

Or would he?

He didn’t protect me all those years ago from the monster, from my therapist, from the confusion that constantly plagued my mind.

But Bastian did.

The pain of seeing Megan and hearing my brother’s voice a few days ago is something I keep trying to push deep into a hole. I don’t want to admit that I’ve been duped by him—by all of them.

I don’t understand any of it and my thoughts truly are unreliable at this point.

Orion’s intense gray eyes bore holes into the two of us. We all know this thing between me and Caius is a ruse. They know I don’t believe it, yet we all pretend anyway. To what end?

Maybe finally getting to see my family will bring some much-needed clarity. I’m sure there’s a simple explanation that Bastian will provide. It’s possible it wasn’t even his voice I’d heard.

Liar.

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