RUINED ALREADY [18+]

|Eleven|

♦PENELOPE♦

I had often thought that I was destined for chaos. I thought I was supposed to suffer for the sins of someone's past. Probably an ancestor's wickedness. I believed in karma and I was living it.

I was stupid to believe that perhaps the God I'd long stopped believing in was proving himself when he sent Emilio to me. Turned out the devil had done it. Now he and his horde of demons were probably in hell laughing at my demise.

I had not seen Emilio del Guardo in one month. He had taken his fill of me, had his fun, grown bored of me and opened an old round and conveniently dropped off the face of the earth.

I went back to my absolute resolution: men were pigs. Why did I have to fall stupid over a man like that? He lacked any sort of personality, he was angry and rough and snarky. Not to mention how vile the fucker was. I hated him. If I ever saw him again I didn't know what I'd do to him.

That morning he had left me with Brad I didn't fully recover. Brad had prod me for information. It was the first time I'd ever seen Brad so angry. He was like a different man. SBD I scared after everything that had happened didn't react well. I didn't tell Brad anything, though. I would never share that with anyone. When people got too deep in my mess they always died. Just like Laz and Juan slit his throat right before me. He killed his own cousin. That sick son of a bitch couldn't handle the fact that a man had fallen in love with me despite everything he had done to me.

I hadn't forgiven myself for his death. Funny how life was. The day before he was planning to get me out in the night and the next thing he was dead. I still carried that pain with me after all those years.

After the way Emilio had disgraced me I'd resigned my job at the bar. A professor of mine had gotten me a position as a PA for a young fortune 500 CEO. So far the job was good and my boss Mr Coleman was not what I expected him to be. He wasn't those stuck up suits I'd read about in romance novels. He was formal and stern at times but it was to be expected by him. I worked there in the day and went to school at nights.

Everything felt lighter now and I wanted it to stay that way. The darkness felt as if it gradually melting away until I went home and remembered what happened on that on table.

A shadow loomed over me and I looked up to see Mr Coleman standing over me.

"Aren't you leaving?" he asked.

Jeff Coleman was a fine specimen, I admitted. With dark blonde hair and light green eyes, he was a wet dream come true for most women. But I had no illusions or fantasies about him. I didn't think I would for any other man.

"Ah, yes, Mr Coleman. I was just...thinking."

"You do that a lot. I've watched you at times when you think no one's looking. You cry a lot."

"What?" I was stunned.

"Tell me, Penelope. Am I working you too hard?" he teased, "or is it something else."

"It won't affect my work," I promised.

"I never said it did. But I can't have you crying every day. People will think I'm a monster boss. So is it me?"

"Ah, no. It's...private."

"I see."

He stood there watching at me and I could see the concern in his eyes as well as something else that left a bad feeling at the pit of my stomach.

"You shouldn't worry about me, Mr Coleman. I should get going though. Class begins at six."

"I just wanted to know you were alright. Safe journey."

I bid him goodnight and left the office. As I reached the underground parking lot something shifted in my peripheral vision. A man stood a good distance away partially hidden behind s wide column. Something was off about him though. His face was covered in tattoos and upon closer inspection I noticed that the tattoos were perfect my done to match the skeletal structure of his face, every single bone and teeth were since accordingly to how a skeleton face would look.

I'd seen him before on the evening of Halloween hunched against a post. My blood froze when he smiled, a wide mouthed grin that had me opening my car door so fast and climbing in. As I breezed out of the lot I risked a look back he was gone and I knew Halloween was long gone.

Who was he and what did he want?

♦♠♦

I arrived home at eleven and as soon as I stepped into the house I knew something was wrong. There were footprints along the floor board that gradually disappeared as I followed them. I stopped in my track and gasped as I looked to the ground and saw pink rose petals scattered all over.
Only three persons knew about my live for the flowers. My mother, my father and my brother. All of whom were dead. So where the hell did this come from?

The sudden opening if the door had me grabbing the first thing I saw. A vase of hydrangeas. I spun around and found Brad lurking.

"Christ!" I cried out, shoulders slumping. "You scared me half to death!"

"I'm sorry. Suzanne was concerned. She said she saw a man come into the house using a spare key."

"What?" I squeaked.

I felt the dizziness coming on and I swayed. Luckily Brad caught me."

"What did he look like?"

"She couldn't tell. She said he was tall and muscular and covered in black. But she did caught a hint of skin where his glove didn't cover. She said it was closer to light brown."

"I-I. Brad something left scattered roses in my house. I saw this man at work in the parking lot. He had tattoos all over his face like a skeleton's. I saw him on Halloween and I thought nothing about it because freaks were rampant that night. A witch and vampire attacked me."

I suddenly laughed but Brad didn't find my hysteria funny. He took my hand in his and pulled me into his arms as the hysteria turned into tears.

"It's okay, love. Do you want to stay with me tonight? I get the creeps standing here, Penelope. I'm going to be honest. I don't want you staying here tonight."

I didn't want to stay here tonight either.

Brad had considered calling the cops but what would we say?

Officer I came home to hear someone broke into my house and left footprints and flowers. But after checking the house nothing was taken.
Brad insisted on calling the police. But unfortunately this wasn't a curious matter as rape and human trafficking or fraud. No cops came which was depressing.

I grabbed a few things and went with Brad to his house.

"I'll fix up a guest room for you."

"OK."

I sat in the living room and looked around the room. There were huge paintings that had not been there before I came here the first few times.

Something about the theme of the paintings spoke of something macrabe. It was abstract but as I examined it. I stood before the larger one and stroked the lines of red and black and brown. Beneath that I noticed the scene of a woman curled up on her side with her knees under her chin and her arms wrapped around them.

"The room's ready," Brad's voice came.

He noticed what I was standing next to.

"Did you do this?" I asked.

"No, I bought it."

"Oh."

The room Brad gave me was directly opposite to my house. I could see anyone who walked up. I thought he did it intentionally to give me a piece of mind.

But what he didn't intend was for my piece of mind was for me to actually see a man going to my door and picking the lock.

And the dirty fucker carried a bouquet of pink roses.

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