Page 35 of Releasing the Djinn
Standing in her closet, Nadira bent down to grab the last shirt that was sitting folded at the bottom of her open suitcase. For the past twenty minutes, she had been yanking clothes from her suitcases and angrily stuffing them in drawers or hanging them on hangers. This was supposed to be taking her mind off of Idrak but all she found herself doing was cursing his name with every action as her anger steadily increased. Of course, he was gone again when she woke. For the past few nights since that day they fought in the garden, he had gone right back to his routine of disappearing as soon as she woke, leaving her dreadfully alone in this huge cage of a house.
Putting the last of her meager, tired clothes in the huge stately closet, she leaned one hip against the center island and crossed her arms over her chest. In the dim light of the morning, she had felt Idrak next to her, his warm scarred skin pressing against her cheek as he held her in her sleep. With her guard down and her emotions unchecked, she had even smiled openly as she snuggled deeper into his muscular form. Only to be left alone like the fool she was when she awakened.
Anger surged higher into her chest. She hated him for this, she hated him for making her feel this way. He was her captor, he betrayed her and assaulted her. Why was she the one standing in a closet on the verge of tears for him? Why was she so inexplicably lonely when he wasn't around? This was what she had dreamt of when she was still trapped in her parent's house. A life living on her own in her own place, cooking what she wanted, buying what she wanted, and dating who she wanted. If she thought about it, she did get all of that, in a weird, slightly twisted way. But why wasn't she satisfied, her mind questioned.
Staring down at her empty open suitcase, she noticed something tucked into the far corner of her bag. Kneeling down, she grabbed the familiar earthen suffused stone. Just a cold, dead, lifeless stone it sat in the palm of her hand so unlike the torrid heat that compelled her to it on day one. Somehow the stone had trapped all seven-plus feet of Idrak's powerful body within it for centuries. Just what type of power could cause that? It seemed so different and cruel compared to Idrak's display of his powers. Each and every kernel of information the djinn shared with her about his captor seemed cold-hearted and evil, whereas everything Idrak has done thus far felt entirely considerate. But surely Idrak could perform the same magic as the one who captured him, right? If his power was truly how he said it was and worked on his will alone. Could Idrak trap her in a stone if he wanted? The thought jolted her. Standing up straight with nervous energy, she felt jittery and a little nauseous for a moment as she considered that horrible thought. No, she thought, rebuking the notion. Idrak was not like that she assured herself. He was mischievous, demanding, occasionally even little scary, but he was not cruel. Delving deeper into her heart, Nadira knew that without a doubt. Shuddering, all she could do was hope she would never have to come face to face with whomever or whatever put the djinn in the stone.
Rolling the stone around in her palm, she glanced around the mostly empty closet, searching for a place to store the empty stone before settling on the drawer in the center island. Pulling it open, she was startled again to see the stacks and stacks of crisp money looking back at her.
Suddenly an idea bloomed to life. Grabbing a thick stack of money and replacing it with the stone, Nadira shut the drawer. Finding her purse, she stuffed the money inside before grabbing a pair of jeans and a faded yellow blouse that had seen better days. On Monday, she would be going back to school. And though she wasn't going back necessarily as a free woman, her new cage was admittedly much better than her old one, so why not take advantage of all the offered perks. Besides, she thought angrily as she jerked her pants up past her thighs, she sure as heck wasn't going to wait around here all day waiting for Idrak to grace her with his presence.
Letting out an annoyed sound, Nadira looked down at her jeans, which seemed so much tighter than the last time she wore them. Stepping in front of the mirror, she froze, her hands still clasped around the top hem of the jeans. Staring back at her was a reflection she barely recognized. For the first time in nearly a week, she looked at herself, really looked. Rounder than she had ever remembered, her face looked brighter and fuller. The dark circles that had haunted underneath her eyes were gone. Her complexion was no longer sallow and gaunt but seemed to glow with a bronze, golden hue. Traveling down her body, she examined the flare of her hips and the evident strain of her once baggy jeans clinging to her thighs and now appreciated the four-square meals Idrak forced her to consume daily. For the first time, maybe even in her whole life, Nadira felt good about herself. Pivoting on her heels, she bit down a smile as she admired the shape of her ass. Running a hand through her shining black hair, Nadira smiled as she buttoned her pants.
Grabbing her purse, as she exited the closet, she realized there was a pep in her step that seemed to spread throughout her whole body. Taking the curving stairs down, she glimpsed out the windows at the turquoise water of the pool. She would buy herself a swimsuit too. Mentally adding more and more to her list, things she never once considered before, Nadira wondered if she should download a magazine onto her phone for a bit more of contextual research.
"You look happy," the purr of the inhumanly deep voice from behind her nearly made her stumble.
Turning her head to look over her shoulder, she spotted Idrak standing in the living room. Though she could not see his faint gray pupils, she could feel his bright demonic eyes trace over her body and stop in appreciation at the jeans clinging to her flesh.
A bold foreign sense of energy began to pump into her bloodstream, infusing her with an audacious sense of spirit.
Tossing him a knowing smirk, she turned her back on him and headed to the front door. Plucking the car key from the side table she finally turned back to look at him, she could tell by the raise of the ridge of his brow he was shocked or maybe intrigued by her sudden shift in mood.
Loftily, she lifted her chin. "While you do whatever it is you do all day, I'm going to go shopping.
Idrak inclined his head before nodding graciously. "Of course, my darling."
The emboldened sense of confidence that had lifted her moods churned and twisted to a bitter pain at his answer. She wanted him to want her, she thought. She wanted him to feel her disappointment and anger, she wanted him to feel what she was feeling as unreasonable as that was. Taking a sharp breath, Nadira glanced away from his face and tried to ignore the swell of his bare muscular chest. Him standing there looking so good didn’t help matters, she thought sourly.
Doing her best to control some of her irrational rage she folded her arms over her chest and gave him a pointed look. "Well, while you are off doing whatever it is you do, next week I will be starting school again," she told him firmly, daring him to argue with her edict of going back to school.
"I never expected anything less," he said obligingly. "Though I am not certain what you could learn there that I cannot teach you."
Nadira scoffed at that. "All you have taught me is sex education."
"And don't I teach it well?" and though his words were playful and teasing, his tone was filled with the promise of desire.
For some reason that infuriated her. He wasn't taking her seriously at all. He was ignoring what she was trying to say, purposely not reading between the lines.
Before she could even think of her words or their consequences, she let the daring words flow from her lips unchecked. "Yes, but who knows who I can get to teach me the same thing if not better," she threatened.
It was as if once the words hit the air, Nadira's brain turned back on all of her senses, namely her logic. Her eyes widened as Idrak's narrowed into a look she had never seen before. Thinning to tiny white strips, the ridge of his brow furrowed and sank until his eyes glared at her evilly. Her heart began to thud in her chest, and she blindly groped for the door as the ebony demon just stood there silently seething.
Not trusting herself to say another word, Nadira slipped quickly through the heavy front door and shut it behind her. Running to the car, she tried to press the oddly smooth remote but realized there were no buttons. Tugging on the driver's side door handle, she let out a little sound of frustration. Glancing up at the still closed front door of the house, Nadira moved to the back door and opened it. The sudden relief at the opening door lurched in her chest as she stared at the backseat. Where the back four seats should be was nothing. With just the front driver's seat and passenger seat next to it the entire back part of the car was empty save for a weird cushioning that covered the entire floor that wasn't there before.
A sudden wave of heat behind her warned her of his presence. She was only able to turn on her heel to see his scowling face before his hand shot out and shoved her backward into the car. Following her inside, Idrak kneeled over her prone body as the door shut behind him.
Struggling to sit upright beneath him, Nadira shouted as his hands came down on her pinning her shoulders in place. "What are you-"
Her words were cut off by his barking command to no one. "Drive."
Instantly, she could feel the automated car comply and begin to pull away from the house.
Terrified, she looked up at the horned demon as he began to score his black claws down her front and down her legs, magically shredding her clothes to thread. Leaving just her socks and sneakers like last time, his white eyes glared back at her.
"Did you think that you could threaten me with your infidelity and simply walk away?" he rasped, his voice taking on an unearthly echoing quality that made her shiver. Grabbing her bare hip, he roughly turned her over onto her stomach ignoring her grunt of discomfort and cry of protest. His voice spoke again sounding as if there were three of him speaking as he grabbed her waist and pulled her hips up. "Lift your ass and put your cheek to the mattress and prepare yourself, wife."
The sleek white SUV drove down the highway safely changing lanes and making turns, unnoticed by others as it rocked gently at each stop. People crossing at intersections paused for just a moment as they heard faint screams from within the vehicle and just as quickly forgot them. Arriving at the mall, the SUV parked itself close to the front and rocked harder in its place.
