Chapter 6 – The ‘Palace”
Chapter 6 – The ‘Palace”
Five Years Earlier (16th June 2013)
Finally, one last silhouette got off, this time from the Range Rover. I couldn't see a rifle on him, yet as soon as he stepped forward where I could actually see his face, my eyes widened, and a gasp escaped my lips.
It was him - the guy I had met at Diandro's.
It was Shadrach.
And he had a revolver.
He pointed his gun at the guy holding me captive, and waved it as a gesture to tell the guy to move away from me. The guy instantly did as he was told, stepping away from me, his hands raised in surrender. I wanted to run over to Baxter, but I was too afraid to do so, my saviour more frightening to me than my harasser.
Shadrach raised his hand in the air, pointing his gun towards the sky, and fired, four to five times. I instantly covered my ears, kneeling down on the ground, my eyes tightly shut. I heard retreating footsteps, but didn't dare to open my eyes, too terrified to do so. A few more gunshots followed, after which it became eerily quiet. I sat there in that position, my eyes tightly shut and my heart hammering away in my chest, until I felt a strong presence before me, and the scent of a cologne flooded my nose.
Trembling and gulping in fear, I slowly removed my hands from my ears, and looked up, to find Shadrach sitting down on one knee before me, the gun still in his hand. I would notice how intriguing his dark eyes were, but the only thing on my mind at that moment, was fear. I immediately gasped and backed away from him, as tears blurred my vision.
"Hey, it's okay, don't be scared," he said softly, in a soothing voice, but it was of no effect on me, as I continued to shiver, tears now escaping my eyes. He extended his hand towards me, but I yelped and shifted away from him, my back once again pressed against the SUV. "Calm do-" he started to say, but was cut off by my phone ringing in my clutch that was lying on the ground. I instantly reached for it and backed away from him again, taking out my phone and picking up.
"Hello? Aliza?" Kaden asked.
"Kade-Kaden," I stuttered, in between my sobs.
"Are you okay? Why are you crying?" He asked me.
"Tho-those guys left, but n-now there are more men wi-with guns," I explained to him, my cries making it harder for me to talk.
"Hey, relax, those are the guys I sent to help you. Hand the phone over to Maxon, the leader of those men. He's my cousin's friend," he said, trying to reassure me. He has connections with such dangerous people?!
I tried to stop crying and hesitantly looked up at Shadrach.
"Sh-shadrach?" I whispered, stuttering, and he nodded at me. "Ka-Kaden wants to ta-talk," I stuttered, still afraid of him, and gave him my phone.
He took the phone and to my dismay spoke to Kaden in French, due to which I couldn't understand a word he said to him. The only thing I could catch was something around the words 'ta jolie amie' which, again, I didn't know the meaning of. He kept staring at me while he spoke, making me uncomfortable, and so I looked anywhere but him. After talking to him, he handed the phone back to me.
"Aliza?" Kaden asked.
"Ye-yeah?" I replied, my sobs slightly in control now.
"I've sent a car too, you guys can fit inside it and go home, okay? Please take care of that ass Baxter," he said.
"O-okay," I replied. "Thank you, Kaden."
"It wasn't a problem," he said. "Thank Max- I mean, Shadrach," he told me. I glanced at Shadrach, who was looking at me and so I quickly looked away.
"Bye," I said and hung up.
"You okay?" Shadrach asked me, and I slightly nodded, not looking into his eyes. He got up and offered me his hand, which I flinched away from. "Aliza, I won't hurt you, why are you so scared of me?" He said softly, as he crouched down to my level, his brows furrowed. I still didn't make eye contact and stood up, myself.
I immediately ran over to Baxter who had been brought back to consciousness by Shadrach's men, and finally Klara came out of her hiding place and ran to us.
"Gosh, I wanna go home," she said crying. I didn't reply, feeling angry and upset with her for not trying to help me.
"Your car is here," one of the men told us, and another helped Baxter stand up. The car which Kaden had sent was a very small one, which could only fit the drunk Baxter in the back, as he had to lie down or he'd puke again, and one person in each of the seats in front. The driver was already sitting in the driving seat, leaving just the passenger seat. Klara almost instantly went and sat in the passenger seat, making me frown.
"Where do I sit?" I asked, eyeing the lack of space in the back, as Baxter was completely sprawled across the back seat.
"Um... There's no space..." Klara pointed out while looking inside the car, as if the car was supposed to expand itself.
"We can both try to fit in the passenger seat," I suggested, but she quickly shook her head.
"I'm sorry, honey, I've twisted my ankle. There's no way I can fit you in," she said, smiling apologetically.
"So what do you expect me to do?" I asked, feeling furious at her excuses. She was doing this deliberately. Why? I didn't know.
"Maybe you can um... Wait here, and I'll send the car back once we've been dropped off?" She suggested, after pretending to think hard.
"What? No. I can't stay here alone!" I exclaimed.
"Maybe this guy Kaden sent can stay with you till I send back the car!" She suggested, looking at Shadrach. My eyes widened in fear.
"No-" I started to say, but was cut off.
"I'll drop you home," Shadrach's deep voice said from behind me, making me freeze.
Present
"And we're finally here," Shadrach smiled, as we approached an enormous mansion. It was behind almost a six feet wall that went round the entire mansion. A huge steel gate was at the centre, behind which I could see a large garden, a stone path way in the centre probably to walk, or well, drive a vehicle on.
The iron gate opened itself, probably by some person sitting somewhere inside, guarding security cameras or something. As Shadrach drove inside, the size of the place began to freak me out. If that wasn't enough, I could see the number of armed guards standing every few metres in the garden. It would be impossible to escape this mansion without getting caught. In fact, the way it was fortified, it looked more like a palace.
"Like your castle, my Queen?" Shadrach asked me, a proud smile on his face. He was deliberately driving very slowly, letting me capture the distance from the iron gate to the main door of the actual mansion, allowing me to scan the area and see just how many guards were waiting to get me if I ever tried to run.
"This place is not mine," I replied, sitting back in my seat, my eyes once again on my lap. I didn't want to give him the satisfaction of seeing any hopelessness on my face, even if that's exactly how I felt in the moment. Hopeless.
"It's your home now, Aliza, and the sooner you accept it, the better it will be for you," Shadrach replied, as he finally stopped the jeep, some distance away from the main door. He got off the jeep himself, walked around it, and opened the door for me. He offered me his hand, but I held the jeep and jumped off myself, not stumbling at all - much to my satisfaction. I tried to walk around him, but he stepped in front me, blocking my way, one of his hands on the open door of the passenger seat. He stepped closer to me and I instantly backed away into the vehicle. His other hand also found its way on the jeep, so that now he was caging me with his arms.
"What do you want, Shadrach?" I asked, not wanting to stay in that position for longer. No matter how much I wanted to deny it, he stirred something inside me, and I hated it. I hated how I could get lost in his dark eyes if I just stood there staring into them for a moment. I hated how his presence around me kept reverting me back to our past, to the time I was young and stupid. To the time I had let him, let that demon in.
"Nothing at all," he replied, his voice not above a whisper. His intense gaze into my eyes made my knees feel weak, and I found myself holding onto the jeep for support. I shifted my gaze to the ground, bowing my head slightly, not wanting to feel his warm breath on my skin.
"Then get away from me," I replied harshly, my jaw clenched.
"Never," he answered, making my heart skip a beat for some unknown reason. "Never again, am I letting you away from myself, Alizabeth."
"I was never close to you, Shadrach, and I will never be. Not today, not tomorrow, not ever," I told him, now looking up at him, my eyes defiant. His lips stretched into a small smile, as amusement danced in his eyes.
"I don't know what I should say, Aliza. I would hate to pop this... Fiery bubble you have formed around yourself, even though I don't really understand what it's based on. I'm gonna let you act all 'optimistic' and fierce. Let's see how long it lasts."
His words sent a wave of annoyance and anger through me, making me scowl. With both my hands pressed against his chest, I pushed him away from myself, and walked past him, towards the mansion. I heard him chuckling behind me, followed by the sound of a door closing, and then footsteps following me. He easily caught up to me, a grin on his face, and he had the audacity to place his arm around my shoulder.
"Get off of me!" I spat in frustration, yanking his arm from myself.
"Woah, okay, my little Revolver," he laughed, probably amused by my ever consistent defiance to him and his actions.
"I'm not your fucking gun, alright?" I said through gritted teeth, turning around to face him. "I'm not your property. I'm a living, breathing person. Not an item that you can compare to inanimate objects!"
"Ooh," Shadrach bit his lip, his eyes slightly narrowed. "Noted." He smiled. Taking a deep breath in annoyance, I turned around and began walking again.
"But Aliza?" He called out from behind, making me stop in my tracks with my back facing him. "You are my property."