Page 48 of Reclaimed

Mark sighed wearily. “It had been raining heavily, and the roads around here can get badly flooded, that was all.”

“I don’t believe you.” My voice shook, betraying the extent of my panic. I didn’t care if my boldness earnt me a punishment – I had to know where Ray was.

“What’s got you so shaken up today?”

“You must both be hiding the truth from me for a reason. Master said he’d be gone for two nights, and now he’s still not back. And you don’t even care!” I could hear my voice getting louder. “He could be in trouble; I need to know where he went.”

Mark leant over and took hold of my arms firmly, lowering his head to my eye level.

“Sweetheart, you need to trust me on this, okay? Your Master is coming back for you. He’s probably just been held up a little, that’s all. He never promised an exact time he’d be back, so let’s not get into too much of a panic right now, okay?”

“Okay,” I whispered. I wiped away a few tears and leant against Mark’s chest. He seemed startled at first but then draped his arms over me with surprising tenderness.

“What can we do to calm you down? How about a drink? Some TV?”

“Yes, please.” I doubted it would help, but I appreciated Mark ’s care, regardless.

Mark wrapped a blanket over my shoulders and handed me the remote.

“Choose something that’ll make you feel good.”

Minutes later, he returned with a cup of tea and a large glass of wine.

“I wasn’t sure which would calm you down the most, so I brought both.”

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” He picked up his dinner and turned back towards the kitchen.

“You’re going?” I felt stupid as soon as I’d said it. I had no right to demand anything of Mark; it was meant to be me seeing to his needs, not the other way around. He’d already shown me more care than I ever would have thought he was capable of. I couldn’t also expect him to waste his evening babysitting me. “Sorry, I didn’t mean—”

“Do you want me to stay?”

“I… I just… You make me feel less lonely.”

“Then I’ll stay.”

From the outside, I must have looked as though I was feeling much calmer, but inside, my mind was working frantically. I was determined to find out where Ray was… or find some way to get hold of him. The most obvious place to find out any secrets had to be his office – it was the only room I wasn’t allowed in. But I had no way of getting in without the key. Would he have taken it with him? Or had he hidden it somewhere in our bedroom knowing that I wouldn’t venture in there while Mark was sleeping in there? Mark! Mark must have the key. I remembered seeing Ray pass something to Mark when he first arrived, when I brought in their drinks, and Mark had slipped it into his pocket. A plan was starting to take shape in my mind. I was quiet for the rest of the evening, thinking everything through, which probably helped reinforce the impression I needed to give Mark in order for the plan to work.

Eventually, Mark reached for the remote and switched off the TV.

“You should be getting some sleep, little one.”

“I don’t want to go until Ray’s home.”

“He might not be back for a while yet, but I’m sure he’ll want you… well-rested for when he gets back.” He smiled to show he was teasing, but I was beyond the point of being able to find it funny.

“I won’t be able to sleep until he’s back.”

“He won’t be pleased with either of us if he gets back and you haven’t slept.”

“I can’t sleep alone again.” It wasn’t hard to make it sound pitiful – I really couldn’t face another night without my Master. “Please let me wait for him.”

There was a pause while Mark decided what to do with me.

“What if you slept in with me?”

Bingo.

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