Page 32 of Orion Ruined

MAISY

My whole body is shaking. My heart hammers in my chest and I can feel my pulse in my head. They’re behind me… Any second, they’ll burst in and kill me. I deserve this. I got people killed. I lied to these three men, when all they did was protect me and look after me.

I’m waiting for my judgment, my punishment, and as I do I realize they never mentioned Rosey, my sister. It’s like she doesn’t exist. We were both sold to Milan, the two of us! And yet, there’s no talk of Rosey. It hurts. Apart from me, there’s not one human being alive who will make her existence real. If I die, she dies too. Wherever she is.

Anxious of what’s to come, I lie down on my bed and let go, sobbing into my pillow. Why did my mother die on us and leave us in the hands of that man? I miss Rosey. I miss my partner in crime, my twin. I used to feel her being alive, like she was still close to me, and then one day, it just stopped. I wonder if it was because we hadn’t seen each other for so many years. I miss her so much, and now I won’t ever get to see her again. It’s over. I won’t live to see the day. Instead I’ll die here, in this bed.

Orion will only have to change the sheets. I won’t fight, so there’ll be no mess for him.

I must have dozed in bed, and as I turn onto my side I feel cold metal on my cheek. I open my eyes, startled. Orion’s sleeping next to me, wearing a black hoodie, sweatpants, and sneakers, all muddied up and dirty. His face is cut in a few places and he has a reddish bruise on his jaw. His body’s facing me and his hand, the one with all the rings, is resting on my pillow, palm down. That must be what I landed on in my sleep. His knuckles are red and swollen.

I lift my head, confused. I was to die this morning, but he’s here, yet I’m still alive.

I sit up quietly and, not knowing what to do, go to the bathroom. If I’m to die now then I’ll be ready. I wash my face, brush my teeth, and look at myself in the mirror. The words my mother would often say to Rosey and me come into my head: “This is it, girls. This, right here, is your life. And it’s going to go however you believe it will.”

Those words have always given me hope to not just accept where I end up. I hope Rosey remembers them too.

I take the hairbrush with me and walk back to the bed. I sit down next to Orion, start brushing my hair, and lean in closer to check out his neck tattoo. He usually wears a buttoned-up shirt and tie, but this time, in his hoodie, I can see more. There’s a scar that the tattoo covers and I’m trying to make sense of it.

His husky voice sends vibrations through me. “What are you doing?”

I immediately jerk upright as he opens his eyes. “Nothing. I was wondering when you were going to kill me.”

He cringes in pain as he sits up. “Is that why you’re brushing your hair? To look pretty before your death?”

“Just get it over and done with, Orion. I’m sick of waiting.”

Orion massages his red knuckles. Seemingly becoming aware of his muddied clothes and the dirt they’re leaving on the sheets, he shifts his feet off the bed.

“Why are you in my bed? And why am I still alive?” I demand. I hate feeling like every moment will be my last.

He regards me for a moment and sighs. There’s a slight annoyance in his eyes. “We agreed to honor our promise, Maisy. We’ll help you get those videos and get Milan off your back. You’ve been through enough already.”

“So you’re not mad that I didn’t tell you the whole story?”

“Kai and Logan aren’t. I’m still undecided. Pissed, more like. But I tell you now, if there’s anything else from your past that you’re still keeping to yourself, so help me God, I’ll be the one that puts a bullet through your head.”

“I never lied to you, Orion.” Just a little white lie.

“You omitted pertinent information.”

“We’re not in a court of law.”

“If we were in a court of law, you’d be charged with perjury. And there’d be consequences for your actions!”

I roll my eyes, annoyed.

He eyes the dirt he left on my bed, and gets up. “I’ll bring you fresh sheets.”

“I can wash these. I want to do something useful around here.”

“Suit yourself. You’ll find everything in the basement. I’m sure you remember where that is.”

I think of him exercising in his basement, and seeing the boxing ring and gym, but I don’t remember a washing machine. “Thank you.”

“We’ll talk more when I’m back.”

CHAPTER 6

---