Page 33 of Mad Love

Royal shook his head. “Don’t think like that. Your girl’s a fighter. She doesn’t break easy.”

“I told her I’d protect her.” Hell, I’d vowed to protect her, and I’d fucking failed.

“Then don’t give up on her.”

I met his gaze. “That’ll never fucking happen.”

CHAPTER 14

MADDIE

I started to wake up, plagued by dreams of bright lights and skull-fracturing heavy metal screams. Had it all been a nightmare?

Please, God, let it have been a nightmare.

My head was freaking killing me. I cracked an eye open and gasped, because this room wasn’t another room at Highwater. It was clean and decorated in soft blushing pinks and whites. The sheets under me were soft and luxurious.

My joints ached, my body protesting every tiny movement, but I needed to know where I was. Pushing myself into a sitting position, I looked down at the duvet wrapped around me, my pale hands looking out of place on the white covers.

This wasn’t Highwater, and it sure as hell wasn’t the cabin where Gary had held me hostage before. It wasn’t my room at Pacific Cross, or the room I shared with Ryan at his beach house.

I swung my legs over the edge of the bed and winced as pain throbbed between them and radiated across my belly. Bruises dotted my thighs and calves, and I honestly wasn’t sure where a lot of them had come from.

Panic spiraled in my chest, my breaths coming in short, ragged pants as I did a quick mental inventory about why I’d be hurting there. I looked down, seeing that I was fully clothed, but unease coiled in my stomach until I felt sick.

I definitely hadn’t been wearing shorts the last time I’d checked. I’d been in the itchy pants and thin cotton shirt from Highwater.

Slamming my eyes shut, I took deep breaths and tried to compartmentalize how I was feeling, tucking my emotions and fears into boxes I could unpack later. Right now I had bigger issues to worry about. Like where the hell I was.

My feet settled on the warm wooden planks of a heated floor, and I slowly padded to the window on the other side of the room. Looking out, I saw a world of white. Snowy mountains loomed in the distance, and even more snow was falling. It was hard to make out much due to the thick blanket of white covering the world.

It looked picturesque and perfect.

And like I was nowhere near civilization.

I tried pulling up the window, but a closer look showed it was nailed shut. With a hiss, I slapped my palm against the frame. Of course.

I spun away and looked around to see if there was a bathroom. Luckily that door wasn’t nailed shut, and I quickly locked myself inside to do what I needed to. When I looked at myself in the mirror above the sink, I flinched.

I looked like shit. My hair was a mess. I was pale, and there were more bruises on my throat and arms from the needles that had been shoved into me over the past week or so.

After drying my hands, I ran my fingers through my hair, flinching when I hit a massive tangle. I dropped my hands to the edge of the counter and looked myself in the eye, steeling myself for whatever was going to happen next.

I turned and exited the bathroom, ready to kick down the door to wherever the hell I was.

Except I stopped, because I definitely wasn’t prepared to see my mother standing in the middle of the room.

So much for preparing myself.

She looked like she had when I last saw her in the remediation room, dressed in a pale yellow skirt with a flowery blouse and kitten heels. Unlike before, her eyes were clear and sharp, and her hands were clasped in front of her.

“Maddie,” she greeted with a warm smile that almost bordered on motherly.

“What the hell is this?” I demanded, looking around. The room’s door was behind her, and I had a feeling I could shove through her, but there was no way of knowing what was on the other side.

A small smile turned up the corners of her mouth. “Why don’t we sit down?” She waved a hand at a sitting area, two upholstered chairs and a table between them with a covered tray. “Please, sweetheart.”

I flinched. “Don’t call me that.”

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