Ava's POVAfter Vivian left me, I spent the first few hours screaming for help and giving all I had to banging the door for help. A part of me was full of expectations that help would come. I believed it would. It had to. After all, I was still at the mansion, and I was certain that Miguel would find me once he returned or at least I expected him to.All I had to do just now was wait for him to find me which was a bit ironic. I was banking on that murderer to rescue me. But I didn't have a choice. As much as I hated him I had to get out of this disgusting pit of death. I had to admit I was also curious about what he would do when he learned of what Vivian had done.Would he kill her too? For a minute I considered it, and realized that I probably wouldn't mind if he did —not after what she had done to me. I hated her that much. I sighed and scrunched my nose at the horrible smell that invaded my nostrils.I never should have trusted Vivian. I was so blinded by the thought of fre
Ava's POVThe door swung open, and a familiar figure came into view.Never in my life have I been so glad to see someone. My heart swelled with unfathomable joy as I gazed at him.I got to my feet, relieved to see the man before me despite the outcome of our first meeting. It suddenly didn't matter as long as I could leave here."Lewis," I muttered, recalling the name of the guard who had chased me around the compound on my first escape attempt . He had a blank expression on his face as he stood before the door studying me.Yet it didn't matter. What he looked like made no sense to me. All that mattered was that he had found me.I never thought that I could be so glad to see Lewis again but here I was; I could have hugged him at this moment, and to be honest I felt the urge to. I think I would have been glad to see anyone at this moment even if it was that devil.I stepped out of the room as quickly as I could, closing my eyes, and breathing slowly. It was refreshing to be outside
Miguel's POVI sat at my reading table, resting my head on my elbow and staring into space. My mind was cluttered. Three days had passed since Ava went missing, and there was still no sign of her anywhere. My men had searched the whole city and checked all the surveillance cameras but they had yet to find a trace of her which was very s.It was almost like she had vanished into thin air, and sometimes I was almost certain I wouldn't ever see her again. Where could she be?It was the same question I asked myself day and night. Where could she have gone? It just didn't make any sense that she was gone like that. I couldn't believe or accept that I would never find her despite how slim the chances were. I made sure my men were still looking for her while Perez was working on finding who the traitor was that released her in the first place.So far there was still no news on both —I didn't know where she was or who had released her but I wasn't going to give up. Ava was that importa
Ava's POVMy eyes flickered open moments later, and a groan escaped my lips, accompanied by a scrunch of my nose at the persistent stench. No matter how many times I found myself in this situation, I never seemed to get used to it and I prayed for darkness to consume me once again.Unfortunately, the bliss of unconsciousness hadn't embraced me yet; it lingered just out of reach, a cruel tease.I dangled on the precipice of awareness, my grip slipping like a fraying thread. The room swayed, and a dull ache pulsed through my head, blurring the edges of my surroundings. Each breath became a burdensome endeavor, and a relentless wave of dizziness engulfed me. I clutched at my chest, a feeble attempt to steady the erratic beats of my heart."Fifty, fifty-one, fifty-two, fifty-three," I mumbled in a weak voice, counting as if the numbers could anchor me to reality. Draped on the cold ground, I fought to regain control, but it was slipping away like grains of sand through desperate fing
Miguel's POVThe past few hours that followed after I brought Ava to the hospital were very long and draining. The doctor passed a few drips into her and administered a sedative to help her rest so she could regain her strength.According to him, it would take a day or two before she woke up, and during that time, she mustn't be disturbed. I sat by Ava's bedside throughout the evening, watching her sleep and making sure she was comfortable enough. I stuck by her side the entire day until the next morning.I couldn't leave her side. I didn't want to, not after what happened to her the last time I left her alone. The guilt clawed its way to my stomach, and It just sat there filling me with undiluted rage over what happened to Ava. I felt responsible for it.It was all my fault. If I hadn't been stupid enough to have entrusted Ava with that bitch, Vivian, then this wouldn't have happened. Ava wouldn't have ended up here like this. I was filled with so much regret, replaying the mome
Ava's POVI woke up a few hours later, sat up, and found Miguel asleep beside me. He was still here. I almost couldn't believe it. This felt weird in ways beyond which words could convey, and yet I was in some way glad to see him still here. I sighed. It was strange.He was strange. I meant it when I said he was really acting differently. There was something odd about him, he was just —soft. He also smiled at me earlier which was weird and I hated how my stomach kept twisting whenever he was close.And that fear —that worried look in his eyes when he found me, dying in the room. Fuck! It was fucking with my head. Why was he so concerned? Why? I couldn't understand it, or him. Why was he acting like he cared about me?Was it because he was obsessed with finding Fernando? Was he scared that if I died he'd lose the chance to use me against Fernando? It had to be that, right? And yet, that look in his eyes felt truly genuine —like he really cared about me. The look was somewhat h
Ava's POVThe next morning I woke up with a jerk with tears rolling down my face as my heart burned in my chest with the memories of my nightmare.What have I been doing? I needed to leave!Tears ran down my cheeks as the nightmare lingered in my mind, and I was filled with sudden grief. It was the memory of the day of my wedding —the day I watched Fernando get killed. Oh God! I hadn't thought of him in a while, and I was just —Overwhelmed. It was like I had forgotten what had happened, and now it just hit me all over again with as much intensity as the day it happened. The pain felt brand new and damn it hurt. It felt like a knife had stabbed me in the chest.I swirled my head to my side, and was relieved to find it empty. Miguel wasn't there. He wasn't in the room. I didn't even bother to think about where he had gone. The room was bright. It was around seven in the morning, and my heart ached terribly.I buried my face into my palm letting the pain suck me in as thoughts of
Miguel's POVAs Molly's word sank into my head, my heart fractured and darkness consumed me.My eyes darted to Ava's almost immediately but she didn't dare to meet them.Molly was telling the truth. Ava really wanted to escape. She didn't know Molly was one of us.I thought things had changed between us. I thought her attempt to run away would stop from now on. I thought we were closer.I was wrong. Sadly. It hurt a lot. I read her wrong this whole time, thinking we were connecting. It was nothing to her. It meant nothing and it changed nothing.Rage rushed through my veins, betrayal, disappointment... every single emotion that came to mind. It fueled me. "Leave us, Molly," I said to the nurse, and she took one last look at Ava before making her way out of the room.Once we were alone, Ava looked at me. Her gaze was raw, digging through my cold heart. I hated how soft I felt before her. I stepped away from the entrance and dropped the brown bag in my grasp on the table."I thought y