Obsession's Embrace

Elise Emerson

I think I've been staring at my computer screen for an hour now with my jaw permanently glued to the bloody floor.

No way. There's just no fucking way my eyes are reading these words. I have to have the wrong information pulled up.

With my mouth still open I open a new tab and search the name "Electra Elise Emerson". Only for Google to pull up the same results.

Two things are possible here.

1. Electra is more than she lets on

Or

2. Electra is fucking with me and this isn't her real name.

Either way, she owes me a god damned explanation. I glare at my screen, push away from my desk, and pace my office. Walking back and forth in front of my desk and thinking.

I pull out my phone, pull up the unknown message box, and type one out.

Me: We need to talk.

It takes a whole minute of pacing for my phone to buzz with her reply.

Unknown: Do we?

I groan.

Me: Get your ass back here now.

My heart picks up pace at the lack of response. Electra doesn't answer me. I stare at my phone and wait, unsure of what to feel about her ignoring the message. More than likely, it pissed her off. But right now I couldn't care less.

When I hear a motorcycle drawing closer, I cross my arms and wait in the living room. I stare at the door when it opens. The look on Electra's face when the door slams shut behind her tells me I was right. She's definitely pissed.

Her fists clench then unclench then clench again in anger. She's trying to hold herself back. I hold my ground.

"Talk to me like that again and I'll-"

"Is your name really Electra Elise Emerson?" I ask.

She sighs and tilts her head, her brows furrowing.

"Yes," she replies.

"I can't find anything about you," I say in annoyance.

"Yes you did," she says.

I shake my head. No. There's no fucking way. It doesn't add up it doesn't make sense.

"You're not her. Her name isn't Electra," I point out.

Electra runs her fingers through her hair and nods.

"It is. My parents wanted to keep me safe. So in public they never used my first name," she explains.

"You're- you're really Elise Emerson? The daughter of the two wealthiest and most fucking famous archaeologists and explorers in the fucking country?" I ask, my eyes widening again in shock.

Electra nods again.

"I followed in their footsteps but they have enemies. A bunch of enemies. So I go under the radar. Nobody's ever seen Elise Emerson. You can't kidnap a ghost. My parents put me in private fighting lessons as a kid."

My mind spins with the information. Electra is the Elise Emerson. A real life Lara Croft. She's rich. She's smart. She's-

"You're in danger," I conclude.

"Always, baby," she confirms.

"So...you stalked me because you felt you couldn't come to me?"

Electra laughs softly.

"I was testing you. I wanted to see what you can handle."

"You were seeing if I'm cut out for your life," I nod.

Electra winks.

"Good girl. You're catching on," she says.

I sigh and plop down on the couch. Everything spins in my head at once. All the information. Everything Electra's done in the past few months. I look up at her.

"The house. With the woods you took me to. That was really your house?"

Electra nods, "it still is. I own it. I don't live there anymore. It was my childhood home. Now it's a hideout. It looks so rundown and haunted outside nobody would think to look there. Nobody knows who it belongs to."

"Why are you telling me all your secrets?" I ask.

She walks to me and grabs my chin, tilting my head further up to keep my eyes on her.

"I trust you babygirl. And I want you to come with me," she says.

"What? Where?"

"Join me and explore the world. Find ancient tombs and treasures. Explore catacombs with me. The possibilities are endless."

Have my eyes popped out of my fucking head yet? She has to be crazy. What about my career? My fans? My friends and family? I can't just leave. I've already left once.

"I can't just leave my life behind Electra," I whisper.

"Don't. You can't. You need to keep your life here as normal as possible. Just like I hide who I am you need to hide who you are. Come with me, baby," she says again.

I worry my bottom lip between my teeth. Thinking about what she's asking me.

"Let me think about it," I whisper.

Electra nods. She doesn't let go of my chin and instead caresses my cheek with her thumb. I stare into her brown eyes. My stalker just told me who she is. Everything about her that could get her hurt or killed if I told anyone.

The power is in my hands now. I hold the leverage. If she was going to hurt me she wouldn't have given me this information. And I believe her because it all makes sense now. Well. The story does. Her torturing me not so much. I think she's just sadistic for that.

When she tugs on my chin, I stand and she slices her hand around to the back of my neck, then into my hair. She grips a fistful of it and pulls hard. I squeak.

"Now that that's out of the way. I think you owe me an apology for ordering me around like you own me," she says through gritted teeth.

I grin.

"Not a fucking chance."