Series: The Circle of Monsters Series by Sam Crescent
Total pages in book: 44
Estimated words: 41985 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 210(@200wpm)___ 168(@250wpm)___ 140(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 41985 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 210(@200wpm)___ 168(@250wpm)___ 140(@300wpm)
In fact, there was a lot she wanted to do—scream, panic, fight back. It was all useless. No one would listen to her. There was no rescue coming her way.
Running her fingers through her hair, she felt sick. The burgers were a little on the greasy side and had upset her stomach. She placed a hand on her belly, and then stepped away from the stove, looking through the cupboards. She found a couple of cups and grabbed one for herself, only to pause. Should she get him a drink? Yeah, Skye, offer the coldhearted killer a nice cup of tea.
Skye grimaced at her own thoughts and closed the cupboard. She found the bags of tea, and it made her smile to see he had tea in the first place. Shaking her head, she put the tea bag into the mug. The kettle still hadn’t whistled, and she waited. Tapping her fingers on the counter, she watched.
In the back of her mind, she traveled back to that moment where her life had changed forever. There had been a muffled sound, raised voices, and it had pulled her out of her sleepy state. Petrov never brought that kind of business to the house.
Reaching up, she rubbed at her temple, but no matter how hard she tried to think, nothing more came to mind.
The kettle whistled and she was so happy about it, she quickly poured out her drink. Her hand shook a little and she ended up splashing it onto the counter. Gritting her teeth at her own stupidity, she wiped it up. She grabbed a spoon from one of the drawers and started to swirl it around the cup, darkening the drink. She added a few splashes of milk. It was a nice dark amber.
Sitting at the kitchen table didn’t appeal, so she picked up her mug and walked back in the direction of the spare bedroom where she was now staying—for a limited time.
Skye had always tried to find the silver lining in everything. Life would be so miserable without it, and it was easier for her to think of the best possible outcome. She had tried to avoid thinking about her future.
Galen told her she was going to die. So had his boss. If they failed and didn’t take out Petrov, she was as good as dead. Either way, her future was no longer filled with a loving husband, a picket fence, children, or the house of her dreams. None of her dreams would come true. She didn’t want to feel sad about that, but she was.
Skye stared at the bed, but she didn’t want to risk spilling her tea. Instead, she sat at the base of the bed on the floor so her back rested against the footboard. Legs spread out, she stared at the door.
She had to wonder how Galen would do it. Would he kill her when she wasn’t looking so she didn’t see it coming? Would he look her in the eyes as he ended her life? What would he use? A gun? His hands? A knife? Some rope?
She picked up her drink and took a sip. The tea was good. She was about to take another sip when she heard her name being called.
Galen’s voice was close. If he was shouting for her, that couldn’t be good. She was so not getting up and going to him.
He barged into her room. “Why didn’t you answer?” he asked.
“You knew where to find me.”
Galen frowned, his arms folded as he looked down at her. “What’s going on?”
“Nothing,” she said.
“No, something’s going on.”
She shrugged. “There’s nothing going on.” She took another sip of her drink.
“No tea for me?”
“You want a cup of tea?” she asked.
“Obviously.”
Skye lifted to her feet and brushed past him. She wanted to try and be cheery and happy and appear to not have a care in the world, but couldn’t muster up the energy. Not tonight. Her days were few and numbered. It had taken a while to sink in, but that was her future. Not one where she’d experience childbirth, or even sex.
Stepping into the kitchen, she went to the stove, and ignited the kettle once again. She was kind of glad he wanted a cup of tea. It felt good to be the one to get it for him. But it was all playing house, a fantasy and nothing more.
“What’s going on?” Galen asked.
“Nothing, I said.” She didn’t bother to look back at him.
“Skye, what happened? You’re not acting like yourself.”
“Did you talk to Viko?” Skye asked.
“Yes.”
She whirled away from the stove to face him. “When are you going to do it? How are you going to do it? Will I see it coming? Will it hurt? Will you make me suffer?” Tears filled her eyes and she hated feeling this way. “All my life I’ve lived by the rules. I’ve been a hard worker and I’ve done everything by the book. That’s who I am. It’s what I do. I work hard. I always have.” She sniffled. “I … I don’t know any other way to be, and because I worked for the wrong man, who I didn’t know was a criminal, all of my hopes and dreams are gone.” She pressed her lips together. “So, I’m sorry if the harsh reality of my future has just kind of snuck up on me and I’m not exactly sure what I should or shouldn’t be doing.” The kettle whistled and she turned back to the stove and flicked it off. “You know, I did have plans,” she said. “I did want to meet someone. Fall in love. Have kids one day. Have sex at least. Why am I even telling you this? You don’t get it. You don’t want to get it. This is pointless.”