Arrogant Billionaire: Love vs Hate

Chap. 12

"I always believed there's a fine line between love and hate"
-Susan Blommaert
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My head throbbed painfully as I slowly forced my eyelids open. For a moment everything around me looked blurred and distant, as if my vision was struggling to adjust. Gradually the room I was lying in began to come into focus. I pushed myself up on the unbelievably soft bed beneath me, wincing slightly as the ache in my head intensified.

As the room finally came fully into view, I stared around in amazement.

The place was magnificent.

Glossy, expensive furniture decorated the massive room, and an enormous chandelier hung from the ceiling, scattering warm light across the polished floor. Everything about the place looked luxurious and elegant. It was easily the most magnificent bedroom I had ever seen. The room itself was enormous—almost three times the size of my own bedroom at home.

My jaw slowly dropped at the glorious sight.

Wait.

My room?

This wasn't my room.

The realization struck me like a thunderbolt and panic immediately rushed through my veins. Why was I sleeping in someone else's room? My mind began racing as fragments of memory slowly returned.

The parking lot.

Waiting for Mom.

Darkness.

My breath caught in my throat.

Was I kidnapped?

That single word sent chills down my spine. My heart began pounding wildly. Normally, when people talked about kidnappings, I imagined dark abandoned buildings, creepy warehouses, or some terrifying forest hideout. But this place looked like a palace.

Why would someone kidnap me and bring me here?

Is this some kind of mansion?

Did some crazy rich prince kidnap me and trap me inside his palace?

Why would he even do that?

I groaned quietly, annoyed by the ridiculous questions popping into my mind in the middle of such a crisis. Ignoring my own thoughts, I immediately began searching for my phone.

It was nowhere to be found.

Of course it wasn't.

Makes sense, my sarcastic inner voice muttered. You're kidnapped.

I ignored it and scanned the room more carefully, hoping to find some kind of clue. A small photo frame resting on a dresser caught my attention. Curious, I walked over and picked it up.

The photograph showed a beautiful woman standing beside two children—a little boy who looked around five or six years old and a girl who seemed to be around ten or twelve. All three of them were smiling brightly at the camera.

For some reason, the little boy's face seemed strangely familiar.

I frowned slightly, trying to recall where I might have seen him before, but nothing came to mind. After a moment I shrugged and placed the frame back exactly where it had been. If I wanted answers, standing here staring at photographs wasn't going to help. I needed to figure out where I was.

A glass door leading to a balcony caught my attention. I walked over quickly and pushed it open. The cool air outside brushed against my face as I stepped onto the balcony. The balcony was huge and located at the height of a two-story building. The mansion stretched far beyond what I could see from this angle.