Serpentine Desires

The prey

Your comments... are appreciated. I'm not asking for much, am I? 

I watched as Ivan disappeared into the crowded cafeteria blending seamlessly with the students milling about. My heart was racing and my mind still reeling from what had just transpired. I had said yes. I had agreed to leave with him, to run away from all of this—Judas, Lucius, the entire Romanovski world.

I should've felt relief, but instead, all I could feel was the heavy weight of dread settling over my chest like a shroud. I could still hear his words in my head. Two days. That was all it would take for us to escape. Switzerland, he said. A fresh start. Far from the claws of Judas and the webs he built around me.

But was it even possible? Could I really trust Ivan?

My fingers twitched, the memory of his touch still lingering, a ghostly warmth that contrasted with the cold, gnawing uncertainty gnawing at my insides. I glanced down at the table, the flash drive still sitting there like a mocking symbol of everything I thought I had accomplished. Ivan was right—this was a distraction. Judas knew. He always knew. And now, I was caught in a game far bigger than I had imagined.

But as I stood up, the cafeteria bustling around me, one thought began to take root in my mind, growing stronger with each passing second. I had to leave. Ivan's offer might've been riddled with danger, but the thought of staying here, trapped under Judas's suffocating control, terrified me more.

After attending whatever class I could, to stall more time in the university, so that I could think, the only conclusion I came up with was everything but staying with Judas.

It was evening before I could blink and I knew I had to face my nightmare.

I walked toward the gate where Kyle was waiting for me with quick steps and pounding heart. My thoughts kept drifting—two days, two days.

Judas wasn't home when we reached the apartment and I was grateful. That was my only saving grace. His absence was a gift and a chance to prepare without his eyes boring into me, without the weight of his presence making my skin crawl. Only Kyle was at the apartment, and the moment we walked through the door, I felt his eyes on me, lingering too long, too cold.

Kyle was always calm, always composed. But something was different today. His gaze wasn't just cold—it was suspicious, calculating like he knew something was off. He didn't say anything, didn't ask any questions, but the tension in the air was palpable.

I forced myself to act normal, to keep my movements casual, though my heart was thrumming in my chest. I grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge, my hands shaking just enough for me to notice. I had to keep it together. I had to make it through the next forty-eight hours.

Kyle sat at the table, his eyes following me as I moved through the room. I could feel his presence like a shadow, oppressive, looming. He was too quiet, too still, and that only made the anxiety gnawing at me worse. I couldn't trust him. Not anymore. He was Judas's right hand—loyal to the end. Whatever plan they had, Kyle was part of it.

But I had my own plan now. In two days, I'd be gone. 

I locked myself in my room that night, pretending to study, pretending that everything was fine. But in reality, my mind was racing, making mental checklists, preparing for the escape. Ivan had said he'd be ready, that all I needed to do was show up at the rendezvous point. He'd take care of the rest.

I should've felt reassured, but a part of me—deep down—knew that this wasn't going to be easy. Nothing ever was with Judas. The man was a puppet master, pulling strings that I didn't even know existed. And yet, there was no turning back now. I had committed to this. I would escape.