Behind Her Smile

Chapter Twenty Six

Chapter Twenty Six: Hakuna Matata


Dex hums hakuna matata to herself to stay awake.

She didn't know how long she has been up, but her eyes felt droopy and irritated. She refused to succumb to sleep. It disturbed her that someone had visited her when she was sleeping and she didn't notice.

That and she didn't want to have another nightmare.

She couldn’t fall asleep knowing someone had so easily dropped by and put something in her cage without her knowledge or awareness. She shudders at the thought.

She had a hunch it was Rosie, but why would she give her two sleeping pills? What purpose did it serve her?

Dex had contemplated just throwing them away, but she stops herself before actually doing it. Instead it is currently in her bra since she had no pockets. Hey a girl has to do what a girl has to do...to keep her pills.

"Means no worries for the rest of your days!" she sings to herself loud enough to silence her thoughts but soft enough not to be heard by any other.

"It is our trouble free philosophy."
She stiffens when she hears footsteps above her. The door opens and two of Axel's goons start coming down the steps. She had seen both of them before when they drop off her food. Rosie hadn’t come back after she had thrown her food at her.

"Hakuna Matata." She finishes dryly.

One of them had brown hair and the other had blond hair. She had dubbed one of them Brownie and the other Blondie (you can guess which is which), since she had never bothered to ask their names. All she knew is that they were loyal to Axel and she wanted nothing to do with them.

"Axel wishes to speak with you. Do not cause trouble and we won't have any problems, alright?" Brownie asks her as Blondie jingles the keys.

Dex raises an eyebrow. "Can I stay here if I say no?"

Brownie looks surprised at her answer and looked unsure how to respond back. He looks at Blondie for a moment before looking at Dex once more with a high chin. "No. It was a warning." he nudges Blondie and Blondie begins opening the cage door with a set of keys.

Dex stands up and wipes of any dirt of her legs. She couldn't resist when she knew she couldn’t win.

Blondie comes in and grabs her by the arm.

Really? Is that necessary? Where is she going to go? Dex glares at him. "Easy there, fella. I want to have some circulation in my arm."

Blondie's eyes widen and he loosens his hold on Dex's arm as he guides her out.

Brownie grabs her other arm as she reaches the foot of the stairs. Dex rolls her eyes. "You know I had mastered the art of climbing the stairs and I have no need to be guided up by the both of you." She says with enough sarcasm to drown an ocean.

Brownie just stares at her for a moment, then he blinks and steps behind her.

Dex looks to Blondie as she climbs the stairs. "So what’s your name?"

Blondie opens his mouth.

"Don't answer that!" Brownie interrupts and Dex chooses not to throw him a glare in favor of not tripping on the steps.

They make it to the top step, but Brownie grabs her wrist before she could.

Dex turns around truly miffed. "What is it now?"

Brownie just dangles a blindfold in his left hand.

"Really?"

"Axel's orders."

"Of course it is. Where is the trust?" Dex grumbles but she grabs the blindfold before Brownie or Goldie could force her.

Once she secures it behind her head, she hears the door open.

.............

Rosie watches from the shadows as Dex is led upstairs by Jared and Max with a blindfold.

She gulps.

She hopes Axel doesn’t harm her. She had no idea what she would do if Axel hurts Dex. She would probably do something to get herself killed and then what would happen to Kit?

Rosie shudders. She would die before she let anything happen to him.

That is why she got into this mess in the first place.

She closes her eyes as the guilt seems to weigh her down. Even her back is hunched. She hadn’t been able to sleep at night because images of Dex's furious face comes to mind.

"I’m sorry. I really am. You have no idea." She whispers to no one.

She hears yelling coming from upstairs and her forehead creases in worry and concern.

For the both of them.

Even though she knew she should hate him after all he had done to Dex, she couldn’t. She hated herself more for it, but it was the truth.

Rosie flinches when the door slams open. "I will never be happy with you, Axel! When are you going to get that through your thick skull, you psycho!" That is obviously Dex. Rosie just could imagine her blazing eyes and angry face.

Surprisingly Axel responds much more calmly than Rosie would have expected. "This is your home now, mi amor. Whether you like it or not. I have let you run around but no more. You belong with me."

"You let me run about??! I was running away from you!"

Rosie bites her lip. She wishes Dex wouldn't antagonize him like that. But that is like asking fireworks not to be colorful.

"I will not let you disrespect me anymore Dexina. Take her down to the basement. Don't let her back up until she learns manners."

"Oh I'll show you some manners. Let go of me! Let me go, you oaf!"

"Stop it, Dexina! Stop! Why are you so violent?"

"Maybe because I am being held captive? Ever thought about that?" Dex replies sarcastically.

Axel is silent for a beat. Enough for Rosie to peek curiously to see what is happening. She couldn’t see the face of Dex, but she could see the thoughtful face of Axel as he grabs Dex by the shoulders. "What happened to you? You were not like this before. You are innocent and sweet."

Rosie listens in interest. Dex? Innocent and sweet? Is Axel sure they are talking about the same person.

Dex scoffs. "You want to know what happened to the old Dex? The one that was naïve and thought herself in love."

"We were in love. We are in love. You have always loved me."

"No. You killed that love when you put a bullet in my brother's brain." Rosie closes a hand over her mouth to smother a gasp. Axel has killed Dex's brother?? No wonder she hates Axel so much. She couldn’t imagine ever losing Kit in such a brutal manner. "I watched him die, Axel! Do you seriously think I will ever forgive you?"

Rosie watches as Axel frowns at Dex. "But he deserved it. He forced you away from me."

Rosie gapes in disbelief. Is he serious?

Dex screams and lunges herself at him. She is sobbing as she punches Axel repeatedly in the chest. Axel forces an arm around her back to bring her down on her knees. Axel pulls a syringe from his pocket as Dex is screaming obscenities at him. The sight was so heart-wrenchingly painful that Rosie had to turn away as a few tears leak out from her eyes.

She puts a fist in her mouth to muffle her sobs as all she hears is silence.

When she had cried herself out and the sadness and self-pity is pushed to the back of the brain, she begins to try to figure out a plan.

...............

Ro waits until well past midnight before he sneaks out of his room and tiptoes into Kit's room. Well his borrowed room.

He didn't care how foolish it was. He is going to rescue Dex. He had no idea how Axel is treating her and the unknown is killing him. He wouldn't be able to sleep soundly ever again until Dex is in front of him and well. He wasn't going to wait another day!

He opens the door inch by inch because he is afraid it will squeak. Thankfully it doesn’t and he tiptoes into the room.

Because Ro had been sitting in the dark for so long, his eyes had adjusted, so he is able to see that Kit had laid his clothes he had used scattered on the floor.

Typical, Kit. Ro rolls his eyes, which is not nearly as satisfying while in the dark.

He rummages through the pockets of the jacket to see if maybe the address is in there.

Nothing.

Maybe it is in the phone? He searches for the phone on the bedside table (no it wasn't there) or to see if it is charging by the wall (not there either).

Ro then looks in the only other place he could think of, save for checking the bed, and looks in the pockets of the jeans. Bingo. He takes out the phone but when he does a small slip of paper flutters out.

Ro picks it up and opens it up. He smiles in triumph when he realizes what it is.

Kit makes a noise which nearly makes him jump. Ro looks back to make sure he hadn’t woken up and when he is satisfied that Kit is asleep, he tiptoes back out of the room. He very slowly closes the door, then breathes a sigh of relief when he realized he had escaped undetected.

Ro hurries to his room to grab his shoes and keys and walks out of the front door.

Little did he know that someone was observing him from a window with the intent to follow him.

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