After breakfast Jerome had decided that we would go back to the room I had slept in. On the way there the other inmates had made it clear that they have no desire for me to be here, Tabitha has already threatened my life and Greenwood had explained in great detail that he would eat me like he did his other victims.
As much as Jerome was an unstable psycho he was the best option if I wanted to survive this hellish mansion. When you imagine being kidnapped what do you imagine? An old warehouse? Maybe a dingy basement that smells damp? Yeah me too... But here I am in some luxurious mansion that would be worth more than my dad and I's entire life savings. You would think that in such a luxurious place that you couldn't possible be unhappy but when you're sharing the mansion with a bunch of freaks that have been broken out of an asylum it doesn't seem to be nearly as fun.
Jerome had insisted that we play a game of 20 questions to 'get to know each other' as if we were getting to know a new friend. I had tried to refuse but as I expected he would not take no for an answer which left the two of us sitting cross-legged across from each other on the bed.
"So... what's your favourite colour?" He was the first to question me.
"Red." I answered shortly, the question surprisingly simple.
"I figured, with the hair and all." His fingers laced through my still damp, red hair to which I jerked back slightly.
"Well uh yeah that would make sense..." I trailed, trying to think of a question to ask him. "How old are you?" I had finally decided on a simple question that hopefully wouldn't trigger some sort of angry outburst.
"18, you?" He answered and questioned me.
"16." I replied. I began to ask questions that had been swirling through my mind the past couple of days. "Why did you take me?" I questioned wanting to get an actual answer.
"Well at first it was your hair..." His hands finding it's way to my red hair once again. "Then it was that look in your eyes, pure fear." His eyes darkened and a smirk started to form on his previously relaxed face. "Then on the bus... Wow, I still have no idea how you managed to sleep through that whole thing! Truly outstanding." His expression got more sinister the longer he spoke, his voice slowly deepening. "You were so different to those cheerleaders... They sacrificed your life and you were going to do it. Now that brings me to my next question, Why would you sacrifice yourself for a bus full of self centred cheerleaders?" He had turned the question to me.
"It would be more beneficial for one person to die rather than a whole bus load... Plus they were my friends, well some were anyway and I don't blame them for trying to save themselves." I replied, moving away from him slightly after seeing the crazed look return to his otherwise pretty green eyes.
"God why are you so righteous?! You had the opportunity to let them burn and you offered for me to kill you instead! You aren't a hero Katerina!" His hands balled into fists and he slammed one into the plush mattress making me jump.
"I'm sorry." I apologised, having no idea what else to do, I didn't want to provoke him more than I already had and I knew that if I did it would not be pretty for me.
"Stop apologising!" He screamed and my heart rate started to accelerate. He leant forward so that our faces were almost touching. "You don't have to apologise for everything, trust me when you realise that life is a whole lot more interesting." His voice had dropped to a husky whisper as the words he spoke fanned over my face in a warm breath.
"Sorry. Wait oh sor- I mean I uh oh god sorry." My eyes widened. "Oh wait, god I'm so stupid sor-" I stumbled over my words only to be cut off by Jerome.
"Oh my god you are hopeless just stop before you say something even more stupid." He chuckled as he leaned back, finally giving me room to breathe. I flushed in embarrassment as I looked at my hands. "Are you blushing? You are turning the same colour as your hair." He continued to laugh and my cheeks turned redder.
"You're making it worse!" I exclaimed grabbing a pillow and stuffing my face into it. "Don't look at me." I mumbled through the fabric.
"Don't be like that, didn't you say red was your favourite colour?" He asked and I slowly took the pillow from my face and glared at his grin.
"Not in this situation." I replied with a shake of my head.
"Well I think red is a great colour on you." He joked and I rolled my eyes at him. "Remember what I said about your eyes." He warned and I scooted further from him again, only this time I misjudged how much bed I had left and my hand slipped off the edge causing my whole body to follow suit. In a matter of seconds I was laying in a pile on the carpeted floor with Jerome laughing hysterically above me.
"It's not funny." I groaned in pain as he doubled over in laughter, he was laughing so hard he leant too far forward and landed next to me on the ground still laughing. It was my turn to laugh as I began chuckle to the point that I couldn't breathe and neither could he. For a while we just stayed there, the two of us laughing so hard that it was now silent, nothing but the gasps for air being heard.
"Now that is funny!" He exclaimed and I couldn't even reply because I was laughing too hard. Slowly he sat up and made his way over to the door of the room, still chuckling lightly. There was something different about this laugh though, it wasn't the laugh that had been constantly playing through my mind since the first time we met but this laugh was almost melodic. It wasn't high pitched and maniacal but filled with amusement and fun, as if he wasn't a psychotic mess but an old friend messing around with me. I immediately shook my head of the thought, his hands gesturing me to follow him out the door.
I picked myself up off the floor and followed him into the hallway and to the living room. We were met with Barbra and Tabitha testing their whips on a man with a box covering his head. My eyes widened at them sight of the two mercilessly whipped the man without remorse.
"Hello ladies!" Jerome announced as we entered the room.
"What do you want Jerome? Do you have to bring her around with you like some lap dog?" Tabitha spat her eyes flickering to me and then back to Jerome.
"She's pretty entertaining, and the only girl in this whole place that'll actually talk to me." Jerome replied glancing in my direction.
"That's cause she has to." Tabitha retorted spitefully. I saw Jerome's eyes darken and his hands ball into fists.
"That's not true is it Katerina? You love talking to me don't you?" The psychotic tone that laced his voice was enough to send chills down my spine.
"Of course." I responded immediately, not wanting him to do anything stupid in his anger.
"See? You're just jealous because Barbra here is too hooked up on Jim to realise you like her." Jerome taunted and I saw Tabitha's eyes grow murderous. Her knuckles turned white with the tight grip on the whip and she looked as if she would kill him on the spot.
"That's not true." She ground out through gritted teeth.
"Isn't it? Cause that's what it looks like." Jerome continued.
"Jerome, please don't push it." I whispered and Tabitha's attention turned to me.
"Yeah Jerome, any further and I might have to wrap my whip around your girlfriends neck." She threatened and I didn't doubt that she would.
"How bout I take Katerina and you two sort this out? Preferably before Theo gets back I don't want to have to sit through another 'we are a team' speeches okay?" Barbra butted in as she took hold of my arm and lead me in a direction I'd never been before. Jerome didn't get a chance to reply before Barbra and I disappeared from his view.
"Thanks, I'm pretty sure she would have killed me." I thanked her, my voice small and nervous, not knowing what her actual intentions were.
"You are about to thank me a whole lot more." She opened a door into what looked to be her bedroom and closed the door behind us. "I'm going to get you out of here."
YOU ARE READING
Gotham Gazette // J.V
Fanfiction"Love your hair gorgeous..." Katerina Ferdine's dad had asked her to do one simple task. Bring his lunch to him at work since she was home sick. That was all, he didn't tell her to get caug...
