Chapter 8: Chapter 8
“You are all clean now, Lynda. I am just curious to know where your rich boyfriend was to help you when you needed him the most.” Boss Morris says this in a sarcastic tone as he grins at the cash from Liam.
“He is…” I start, but Liam cuts me off as he faces the ignoramus jerk.
“That is none of your fucking business. I suppose we are done here. Let’s go, Lynn.” Liam says, pulling me with him as he leads us out of this disgusting place and from the suffocating faces of these psychopaths.
“Hold on!” Before we can walk out of the door, the cold voice of Boss Morris halts our steps, making us turn around. What now? They got what they fucking wanted, right? I hope the greedy con bastard isn’t asking for more money. “When are you reporting back to work? I mean, even if you moan your entire life, that won't solve anything.”
Sick bastard! Heartless son of a bitch! After this, he still thinks I am coming back? He must be more sick in the head than he seems if he thinks I would ever want to associate myself with dangerous maniacs like him again. Only God knows what would have become of me if Liam wasn’t there. Fate or sheer luck, I thank the heavens for whatever made our paths collide like this. How will I repay him for this and the emotional support he has given me in the last couple of hours?
“NEVER!” I was lost in fathoming ways to repay this God-sent guardian, and I forgot that I had a question to respond to, but he did it for me. He gave them an unbent answer, as if he read my mind. That would have been my precise riposte. I would be a big dumbass to return here ever. Screw these bastards!
Without further ado, Liam leads me out, and out we go, hitting the road back home. The ride back home is filled with lull, with only the sound of the stereo buzzing, which isn't adequate to disrupt the silence. I am lost in an internal war with fate, wondering what it holds for me, and Liam is engrossed in his own thoughts, which I can’t wrap my finger around. We are two lost souls.
As we stroll back into the house after the thirty-minute drive, I am engulfed in a whirlwind of sentiments. I am glad that I am at least free from those sick morons, but what next? That is just a single problem solved from a bucketful of problems.
What next?
I wait for the bank to come and kick me out. Where will I go then? Where will I start? It seems like I am in a dark jungle.
“Where are you lost?” Liam asks as he soothes my hands with his thumbs. I didn't even realize he had my hands caged in his.
And he is another problem. How will I repay him? Heck! This tangle of problems is pulling me deeper into its depths every single minute. Problems keep arising even after solving some. I hate this life! I scorn this quagmire! I am so sick and tired of this!
“I am too embarrassed to even say thank you.” I mutter, heaving out a breath I didn’t know I was holding.
He squeezes my arms tighter in a soothing gesture that tickles my spine. “Don’t be, Lynn. Nobody wishes to be caught up in such sh*t. And don’t feel indebted. It's not a debt.” He urges a small, beautiful grin to lighten me up, but unfortunately, I am too drowned in misery to reciprocate his smile or warm up to his assertions.
“How can it not be a debt, Liam? Do you even know what you have done for me?” I sob, and he rushes to cup my face across the table, our faces coming too close as he wipes away the tears.
“I know, Lynn, and I am not asking anything in return. It is okay. Those sick bastards won't bother you again, and that is what matters.” He says this as he dries the tears from my eyes with his thumbs, and I lean in to his warm palms. But not for long until the sixth sense spanks me back to reality.
This is wrong. Maybe I can’t suppress my plight and vulnerability to him, but at least I should draw some limits. Savoring his affection like this is so damn wrong! I jerk my head up from his palms, leaving them hanging in the air as I sit up right, drying the rest of the tears and sucking back the rest.
Enough with the crying now! If there is one sensible thing that that sick bastard, Morris, said, it was that crying will not solve anything. I have cried enough. I understand the pain won't go away right away either. It will take time. It may take a lot of time to heal from this. But I’ve got life ahead of me. I've got to do something really quick before this quagmire rips me apart. I've got to get a hold of myself while I still have this chance.
Yes. This chance! Because I don’t have any other choice.
I may not know what lies ahead for me on this road I am embarking on. I may not know how slippery or bumpy this road is. My decision right now may be blurred by uncertainties. But it’s the only choice I have. And I am taking it. Whatever it entails, I am taking it. Whatever repercussions I will have to face later for this, I will face them all head-on.
But in all honesty, I am hoping that I am not screwing myself this time around. That this is not another problem I am diving into. That this will end in bliss.