Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 86240 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 431(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 287(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 86240 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 431(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 287(@300wpm)
He nodded and left out of the room. The woman smiled at me, and I knew she was trying to gain my trust. It was Cop 101 when trying to figure out if someone was a victim or a criminal.
Once the room emptied, she sat on the bed. I’d wrapped the suit jacket around me, comforted because it smelled like him.
“Why don’t you tell me your name?”
“Tayla James,” I said. “I was abducted months ago, I think. I’m not really sure.” More words spilled from me before she could ask me any more questions. “My little sister, Tabby, Tabitha, that is. She was talking to someone online. I caught her and after I read through the messages, I knew it was a trap set up by a predator.” A sob burst from my throat. “I thought I was smarter. I was going to confront the bastard and then give all the information to the authorities. But they were smarter. There was a little girl there waiting. And when I sat next to her and confirmed that I’d come in place of my sister, I thought maybe I’d misjudged the situation. Then I was pricked from behind and everything went black.”
I took a breath, and the officer asked, “By the man we took away?”
Slowly, I shook my head from side to side. “No. Ruin,” I said. Her face scrunched up in confusion. “They call him Ruin. My guess is for all the lives he ruins and likes doing it.” Then it dawned on me. “Did you catch him?”
“Why don’t you tell me more about what happened to you until this point?” she asked.
So I did. I’d woken up somewhere. I couldn’t say if it was here. I was never let outside or even saw a window. I had no idea if it was morning, noon or night. Days became less important. The abuse I’d suffered and avoiding it had been the only mark of time. It took a while to explain how Ruin had abused my mind more than my body. He’d been saving my virginity for the highest bidder, though I’d done just about everything else with him.
“I need to know you got him,” I finished.
She ignored my question. “What about the man we caught you with? Was he the highest bidder?”
Reluctantly, I nodded. “But he didn’t want to hurt me. I know it sounds weird. But they made him do it. Ruin threatened to kill him and give me to his men to be gang-raped.”
She gave me that come on expression. “He bought you, but he didn’t want to have sex with you?” she asked sarcastically.
The sincere look on his face when he whispered, “Trust me,” replayed in my head. No matter what anyone said, I believed him. “I know how it sounds,” I said frantically. “But you have to believe me. If I were to guess, I thought he was working with you guys.”
She briskly shook her head. “He’s not one of ours. I’m sure of that. My guess was he was messing with you to get you to trust him.”
Though what she said sounded more plausible, I couldn’t shake my gut feeling. “People can’t fake that,” I said.
Her eyebrow arched. “Psychopaths can.” She touched my hand. “Wait here.”
I didn’t want to believe that a psychopath had stolen my virginity. I just couldn’t. Moreover, I waited, knowing the woman was going to check out my story. At least my name and if I’d been reported missing before deciding what they were going to do with me.
It was hours later when I’d been taken to a hospital. I declined a rape kit, and the officer and nurse were trying to convince me otherwise. All of that was forgotten when my mom came in.
The floodgate opened on my tears. I might have been twenty-four or twenty-five if my birthday had passed. I’d forgotten to ask the date as I repeatedly told the story and gave descriptions of all the people I’d come into contact with during my captivity.
Instead, I cried like a baby as Mom’s safe arms enveloped me. I said sorry to her as many times as she said sorry to me.
“I was trying to protect Tabby,” I said.
“I know, baby. I’m just glad you're safe,” Mom soothingly said while rubbing circles on my back.
The annoying officer interrupted our reunion. “I hope you will encourage your daughter to do a rape kit.”
It was the bottle of cold water thrown between Mom and me. I hadn’t wanted her to find out like this.
Mom swiftly pulled back and held me at arm’s length. “Are you okay, Tayla Serena James?”
I knew that voice. It was used when I wasn’t to tell a lie. Not that I’d told her many of those over the years.
“I’m fine.” Her eyes narrowed and carried the heavy weight of skepticism. “Really, I’m fine. I don’t need a kit.”