Ms. Calloway (Book 2 in the For Better Or Worse Trilogy)

Chapter 3

     I wake to warm gentle fingers pressing gauze to my forehead. Blinking away the blurriness, red slowly creeps into my line of sight, followed by pale skin and a scatter of freckles. "Good morning, sunshine." Cam says sarcastically, using a strip of tape to tape down the gauze on my forehead. After he's finished, I try to sit up, but immediately regret it. A splitting headache overwhelms me, causing me to gasp from the sudden blinding pain. "I'd recommend not sitting up too quickly."

     "Now, you tell me that?" I moan, bringing my hand to my head. The memory of what happened quickly washes in, bringing another round of sharp pain to my head. "You hit me." A soft whimper leaves my lips, partly because of the pain and partly because of how close I had been to freedom.

     "More like you ran into the butt of my gun. Very clumsy of you." Packing up his medical kit, he flashed me a tired smile.

     "I didn't run into anything." Anger boils in my gut. Who do these people think they are? Did they all take a class in dodging responsibility? Instead of answering, Cam simply shrugs as if my memory of events could be questionable. "Where's James?" I didn't see Cam as the type to be a caretaker. Actually, I imagined him more of the type to burn ants with a microscope during his free time.

     "He's thrown the responsibility of keeping you alive on Maia and I." He talks as if I'm some kind of pet that he's stuck sitting, until his dad gets back from his vacation.

     "When is he getting back?" I'm surprised by the knot forming in my throat. At least I knew James. I didn't know Cam or Maia, nor what they were capable of. It's not like I could trust James, but at least I knew what I was working with. Now, my life was in the hands of complete and utter strangers.

     "He's not." Clearly annoyed, he stands from the bed with the med kit held beneath his arm. "Don't worry, we've been given strict orders not to harm you in any way. Can't say that Maia will be so willing to follow the rules though. She's pretty pissed about that rock situation."

     Fear is slowly creeping into my toes, climbing my body like the creatures from my worst nightmares. I thought I was alone and afraid before. I didn't know anything then. "H-How much longer?"

     He gestures to the small tv tray on the other side of my bed, where a plate of chicken and peas waits for me. "Dinner." And just like that, he walked out of the room without another word. This man talked even less than Roman. One of those people who only talked when it was important enough. As if every word was valuable.

     Stunned and afraid, I don't move to follow. There's no sneak attack. No plan. No hope. There's no point. Roman was right. I am a princess. A princess stuck in her tower with no one to save her, but the 'prince'. A true damsel in distress.

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     For the next two days, the only face I see is Cam's. Words are very few and far between. Sentences are nearly nonexistent. He brings my meals and removes the bucket from the corner. For the first two days of isolation, I felt embarrassed that James would have to see something so disgusting. By day four, it seems almost normal. This scares me. On the fifth day is when I finally meet Maia, without hitting her with a rock.

     As soon as she comes in, I scramble to the corner of the room, pressing my back firmly against the wall. Cam's warning rings clearly in my ears. Understandably, the woman would be pissed with me. I also take note that she doesn't have any food in her hand. "W-Where's Cam?" Any other time, the stutter in my words would have embarrassed me, but this time, I'm too nervous about her motive to be embarrassed.

     "Everyone always likes Cam better. Don't get me wrong. The red hair is hot, but I look better in a pantsuit." She closes the door with her free hand while her other hand is occupied holding one of those huge metal buckets. The kind of one people use to step on grapes.