Betrayal (Obsession Book 2)

by S. M Phillips

  Adrenaline is pumping through my body like wild fire and the longer she holds onto me, the more I want to kill her. I want to completely destroy her and I've never felt the need to hurt someone so strong before. As soon as I feel her grip loosen, I pull my body up slightly and eye Darcie. Minnie's still saying something to her, but all I hear is white noise, so I decide to make my move. My hand automatically goes to her throat and taking her by surprise, I push her back into the bar, hard.

  "I'll only say this once, so I want you to listen to me loud and clear. Keep your fucking hands off me and get out of my bar." My breathing is shallow, but from the look on her face and as her eyes grow wide, I know she's understood exactly what I've just said to her.

  Darcie watches me closely with her face completely composed and then she laughs. "You don't get to tell me what to do. This isn't your bar anymore, something that you keep forgetting."

  "To hell it isn't. Like you so kindly pointed out, Jensen isn't here is he, so it's my goddamn bar. Now get the hell out or I'll personally drag you out." I warn and I mean every goddamn word. I don't know where all this is coming from. I've always shied away from violence, or at least I've tried too, but Darcie makes my skin crawl and crave blood like no other. My whole body is vibrating with hate and anger. If only I'd reacted like this in the past, then maybe I'd still be living my normal day to day life.

  "You're just gonna sit here and let this happen Min?" You're fucking unreal. You don't even know her."

  "Well, she's got a pretty valid point, Darce. Jensen isn't here and you know how he'd react if that shit went down while he was here. Why don't you go sleep it off? I'll cover for you and I'll see you tomorrow." Her face is serious as she raises her wine glass to her lips.

  "This is bullshit." She shouts as I loosen my grip on her throat. "This isn't over." She snarls at me, and I know that it's far from over. Oh no, this is only just the beginning.

  "Walk away Darcie." Minnie calls after her, before turning to me. "You go and get yourself cleaned up and I'll take over here. Go."

  I take a few minutes to fully analyse the girl staring back at me. Who the hell is she and where has she come from? My hair is a mess, my face has a heated glow and my eyes are glossy and distant. It looks like everything has finally gotten to me and I've cracked. A little too late, but I've finally cracked. Trying to stay strong for too long will do that to you.

  I don't recognised this girl at all. She looks like an empty shell of who I once was, but something has definitely changed within me and I'm not sure that I like it. I try to clean myself up a little bit. I'm at work and I need to at least try and make myself look presentable.

  Jensen

  "You're a sick, twisted son of a bitch, but I guess you already know that, hey?" I shout, the dryness in my throat causing my voice to crack and my throat to burn. I'm still sat in the fucking darkness and Dominic is only a couple of feet away. Even though he hasn't spoken, I can tell because of his heavy breathing. I don't know what kind of sick buzz he's getting from this, but I will get out of these restraints and the bastard will get what's coming to him. With my own fucking hands, that's for sure.

  All I can think about is Anna. I just can't shift her goddamn image from my mind. I have to get out of here. I need to find a way to get out of here so that I can check that she's okay and this sick fuck hasn't done anything to her. Just the thought alone has my whole body burning up into a raging inferno. Maybe he doesn't know anything about her and she's okay. I silently pray to myself that the above is correct.

  "Fuck." I mentally curse to myself. What the hell am I supposed to do? I can't even say anything to the sick fuck, because if he knows my weakness and Anna is my fucking weakness, he'll hunt her down just to get to me. Scrap that. He'd probably hunt her down too, just to bring her here and make me watch what he does to her.

  "Hey boss." I hear a voice somewhere in the distance, coming from opposite side, I'm not too sure. But I lock that firmly into my memory, because if this guy's gotten in here, he's likely stood by the fucking door. I can't fucking see shit, so instead I strain my ear so that I don't miss anything.

  "So what you got?"

  "Nothing, yet. Nada. A couple of guys are busy keeping an eye out and as soon as they have what they need, they'll give me a call." The other guy says and I can't help but thinking I recognise his fucking voice. Why the hell does he sound so familiar? Maybe I've overheard him in the past. Maybe he stopped by one of my bars from time to time. This Dominic guy isn't from around here, so it kinda makes sense. Do I possibly know this guy? Shit, being tied up and stripped of my control is fucking grating on me and killing me on the inside.

  "You better make sure you give me a fucking call as soon as you hear something, anything, I don't care what it is. You see, if I don't hear anything soon, baby Blake will be as good as dead and he'll be no good to me then will he, goddamit."

  "Don't sweat it man. As soon as I hear something you'll be the first to know."

  "Good to fucking hear. Now get gone before someone sees you, you jerk-off."

  His words ring around in my ears for a while. To hell I'll be fucking dead. Sure, I've not eaten or drank in god knows how long, but I'm made of tougher shit than that. His words spark something within me. There ain't no way that I'm dying in here. Hell no.

  "Mother fucker." I mutter to myself as something sharp digs into my hand. What the fuck is that? Glass?

  Mentally I want to laugh. I want to laugh so fucking loud, but that will only draw attention from the jerk, which I'm trying to avoid at all costs. Instead, I shake my head at my own stupidity. You've got to be shittin' me. I've been tied up here for fuck knows how long and there's a sharp piece of glass behind me. My mind goes into overdrive as I try desperately to pick up the object behind me. The last thing I need right now is to drop it and make any noise that will be sure as hell to draw his unwanted attention to me.

  "Well, Dominic. It looks like your time is about to come to an end and I'll be getting my sweet revenge after all."

  Anna

  "You caged that inner animal now, or what?" Minnie shouts over to me as I step behind the bar. Her face is pretty poker straight and it's hard to tell what she's thinking. Is she pissed at me? Do I even care if she is? For some strange, foreign reason, I find that I actually do care.

  "Hey listen, sooner or later me and Darcie were gonna come to a blow. It was inevitable. Damn that bitch is crazy." I don't see any point in lying to Minnie. Darcie doesn't like me and I sure as hell don't like her. There's definitely no love lost between us.

  "Hell, yes she is. She wanted a reaction from you girl, and she sure as hell got one from you, didn't she?"

  "I'm not proud of it, okay? I don't usually do stuff like that. It's not me, at all." Maybe if I did I'd be living a completely different carefree life right now.

  "Looks like Junior really knocked something into you, huh?" She asks and I can't help but laugh at her words when I've been thinking exactly the same thing all day. I just hope I don't get into a fight every time I've had a class with him.

  "I guess he did."

  As the night draws on, I'm quite shocked that Darcie hasn't made another appearance at Temptation. She's never really come across as a girl to take shit lying down. But I'll take the peace and quiet while it lasts. Fortunately, most of the customers were too occupied doing their own thing to notice our little showdown, or at least that's what they're making out anyway. To be honest, I don't know what I would have said if any of the punters were to question me on my behaviour anyway. I guess it looks like I'm gonna have to speak to Joey about the rota. No way in hell am I working with that bitch. Not now, not ever. She wants to count her lucky stars that she's still got a job here. If it was down to me, she'd be out as fast as she arrived here, and she wouldn't ever be coming back.

  "She'll calm down."

  I look over to see Minnie watching me closely as I wipe the bar down. She's got a friendly face, but my guards has shot right back up. I'm not a f
an of getting close and personal with new people, let alone getting into fights with chicks that I don't even like. It's just not my style.

  "Well, she can calm down elsewhere can't she? Otherwise she can stay the hell away from this place, permanently."

  "Anna..."

  "No Minnie. Jensen may well have hired her, but I'm not putting up with staff that act like that. I'd rather sacrifice my newly found days of freedom than have someone like that working here." I say loud and clear and I mean every word. Sure, I've had a bit of free time since Darcie's been here, but I'd rather work my arse off than have her marching around with her shitty little attitude on display for all to see. It's not good for me and it sure as hell isn't good for business.

  As the night draws nearer to closing time, I'm completely beat. My muscles are tense and my ankles feel like they have doubled in size. If I could get away with falling asleep at the bar, then I would. "Only a couple more of hours to get through." I mentally tell myself, hoping it will help to spur me on and make the clock tick that little bit faster.

  "Hey stranger. We keeping you awake?" My eyes open instantly and I'm suddenly alert at the sound of that voice. It's been ages since I saw him last and deep down, I didn't think he'd come back to Temptation again.

  "Hey yourself." I smile warmly at him, while taking him in. He stands before me confident and completely at ease within the bar. It's always good to see a happy, friendly face anytime of the day. I'm not too familiar with the locals around here and it's not a common occurrence for me. "What are you doing here so late? We'll be closing up soon."

  "Nah, don't worry about me. I'm just passing through and thought I'd stop by to say hi." I raise my eyes suspiciously at him and he must notice my wary expression as he leans over the bar and continues, "Actually, I was hoping to catch the big guy. He around?"

  "Err..." I stumble, unsure what I should be saying here. Is it really wise for me to be truthful and say no?

  "No biggie if he's not. I just thought maybe I could discuss business with him, that's all."

  "Oh fuck." I mentally shout to myself. I'd totally forgotten about him showing an interest in buying this place. I guess a lot's been skipping my mind since I saw him last.

  "He's pretty caught up right now." I reply and hope that he can't see through the huge lie that I've just told him. "I'll remind him, for sure."

  "All right. Well I'd better be heading off anyway." He slaps his hands down on the bar and then pushes himself back, throwing me a wink in the process. In another world, maybe he'd be right up my street, but there's no denying that Jensen has completely ruined me for anyone else. "I'll be in touch. Hey, do me a favour?"

  "Uh-huh?" I nod, yet I'm unsure why he'd want a favour from me.

  "Watch what you're doing, okay?"

  I watch him turn and leave and I'm not sure what it is about him that draws me to him. Maybe it's his carefree smile, or the fact that I don't feel threatened by him. He said he wanted to be friends and so far, that's all he's tried to be. Well after his little incident before Jensen stepped in, anyway. He seems familiar somehow, but I know that I've never met him until he came in here a few weeks back. I'm just going to put it down to his calming presence along with his no expectations that put me at ease. I'm not sure why he'd be asking me to watch what I'm doing though. Maybe it's his way of being polite.

  "Right, that's everything done for another night. Let's get out of here."

  My shoulders relax and sag at Minnie's words as a welcome reminder that it's finally time to go home. I can practically hear my bed calling me. Tonight's been kind of steady but the time's dragged like hell and it's felt like it's taken an absolute lifetime to get here. In between serving the customers, I spent most of my time in a world of my own with my eyes constantly roaming between the front doors and Jensen's office, hoping and praying that he'd finally come walking through one of them and my little world would right itself again, if only for just a little while. If he really has just upped and left because he needed space or whatever, I just wish that he would have told someone instead of me going out of my goddamn mind with worry. I knew he was bad news right from the start, but I didn't put him down as an inconsiderate bastard too.

  "You ready, ladies?"

  I look over to the door and see Boyd casually leaning against the doorframe. Why am I so fucking surprised? Between these two, I'm never going to get a moment of peace or privacy ever again.

  "We're coming." I huff back, unable to bite back my frustration. Jeez the sooner Jensen gets back, the sooner this lock-down shit can end. I thought by coming here I'd be able to find me again, and maybe do stuff that I wanted to do when I wanted to do it, but I guess not. Not until they back off anyway.

  "Don't be a little diva, Anna." Minnie nudges me while passing me my bag. "He's only doing what Jensen would expect him to do and you know it. Don't hold it against the guy." My eyes lock on hers. Her pretty face is warm and friendly, hoping I'll listen to her and give Boyd a chance, but I don't know if I can. I don't really feel like getting into a huge debate about it with her right now and I offer her a weak smile in response.

  "I'm still allowed to be pissed though. Just because Jensen expects something doesn't mean that I automatically have to like it. You, I can just about manage, but this guy following my every move? Now that's something else."

  "Soak it up and weep girl, because it's happening whether you like it or not."

  "Hey Boyd. I've been wondering something. You ever considered getting a job as an FBI agent or a P.I, or some shit?" I ask and his eyes snap up to meet mine in the rear view mirror. I can't make out whether he looks confused as hell or pissed off at my questions. Either way, right now I couldn't give two hoots.

  "Hell no ma'am. I enjoy what I do already." He replies after a few moments of silence. His face is now relaxed again and he rolls his shoulders, while his hand comes around and he rubs the nape of his neck. Oh, someone's pretty stressed all right. Well, welcome to my fucking world, buddy.

  "Which is what, exactly?" I ask, knowing that I'm just irritating him more, yet eager to get more information out of him. I'm not sure what it is, maybe the fact that he's constantly around me lately, but I can't help feeling that something is off with him.

  "Now that's for me to know and you to find out, ain't that right Min?"

  "Oh give over winding her up. You want her to feel comfortable around you or not? A bit of a heads up Boyd. Quit acting like the worlds biggest jerk-off and you might just be in with a shot."

  I look from Minnie to Boyd with my mouth slightly agape as they talk about me like I'm not even here. It's starting to feel like I'm a guarded criminal who's got one hell of a bounty on my head.

  "You'll get used to him soon enough. I promise." Minnie whispers into my ear.

  "That's highly unlikely." I think to myself. Maybe if he wasn't living in my house, or in my face all of the goddamn time, then I might see things differently, but I guess right now I'll never know.

  The rest of the car journey home passes by in silence. I've tried to make conversation and I'm not getting anywhere fast so I decide to leave it for now. Minnie's also quite quiet, which isn't like her at all. I glance over at her a few times and she seems completely lost in thought. Her perfect wrinkle free face is now ruffled around the edges. Somewhere deep down, I know that she's just as worried about Jensen as I am. When I've got a hunch about something, I'm usually right. Just call it female intuition.

  "Holy fucking sweet mother of Jesus." Boyd shouts as we come to an abrupt halt outside my house. I'm amazed we don't get whiplash after how quick he slams on.

  "What?" I shout, sudden panic beginning to creep into my system at his worried expression.

  "Oh my god. I don't believe it." I turn to Minnie as she howls down my ear, jumping up and down in her seat like an over excited school girl. "Boyd, tell me that you're seeing exactly what I'm seeing. Please god, tell me you do and I'm not imagining this."

  "Uh-huh. I sure do." He whistles back
at her and his eyes are as wide as saucers.

  "What's going on?" I ask, but Minnie is out of her seat and out of the car door before I get a chance to stop her. Is it Jensen? Oh god, please say it is. Placing both of my hands on Boyd's headrest, I slowly turn my head to the side to see where or who Minnie has ran off too, and that's when I see him.

  Everything around me stops. This has to be some kind of messed up dream. This cannot be happening. How the hell can he be here, and more importantly, why the hell is Minnie so goddamn excited to see him?

  Somewhere in the back of my mind I'm aware that everything in front of me is happening and I know Boyd is saying something to me, but all I can hear is the loud thud of my heart as it accelerates and almost explodes out of my chest. Every inch of my being is pleading with me to make a run for it. I know I need to get away as fast as I can. To run and get the hell out of here. No matter how much I try to move, desperate to escape the past that is now just inches away from me, standing outside my door, but no matter how much I tell myself all of this, I can't move. My whole body is rigid with shock and I can't fucking move. I can't function.

  "Breathe. Just breathe goddamnit." I chant under my breath, but it's no good. My chest is far too tight and I'm struggling to breath.

  "Anna... Hey Anna, are you okay? What's happening back there?"

  My eyes lock once again onto Boyd's in the rearview mirror, but no words come out. I can't run and I can't speak. Sooner or later he's going to see me, and then what am I supposed to do? No one was supposed to know that I'm here, so how the hell has he found me?

  "Hey Anna, you coming or what? It's freezing out here." Minnie calls out, her face beaming as she pulls away from the man that I never wanted to see again, and he looks right at me.