Total pages in book: 87
Estimated words: 83195 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 416(@200wpm)___ 333(@250wpm)___ 277(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83195 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 416(@200wpm)___ 333(@250wpm)___ 277(@300wpm)
She spots me immediately and comes striding over in a long, lavish green coat. She looks gaunter than the last time I saw her. She might’ve cleaned up a little during her time with Alek but it’s likely she’s using again.
“Yo, girl, you changed the locks? My key doesn’t work,” she says.
I furrow my eyebrows. “Yeah, you haven’t lived her for months now”
She licks her lips. “I need to grab some things.”
I stare at her in disbelief. “You do realize that someone broke into the apartment shortly after you left. And in the hospital you said I could sell everything if I wanted to.”
Her eyes widen. “You sold everything?”
“No. Well, except for the broken shit. There’s only like a box left in your old room.”
“Can I go through it?” she asks, wide-eyed.
I’m uncomfortable with her being here, especially knowing Alek is on his way. But at least this way, once she’s taken her shit, it’s done. I hadn’t even remembered that box in her room until now, and I haven’t had a need to get a new roommate.
“Sure, but try to make it quick,” I say, and she lights up with a bright smile.
“Thank you. I know I kind of fucked you over a bit when I left, but thank you for being such a good friend.”
I eye her incredulously. That’s certainly not the impression I had about the way we left things, But I’d rather her feel this way than remember the horrible things I’d last said to her.
“Were the stairs always like this?” she asks as we walk up them, she’s breathing heavily.
“Yep, they’ve always been a killer,” I reply, but I’ve gotten used to them now. I grab my keys and open the door, then switch on the light. I quickly scan the apartment to make sure none of Alek’s belongings are in sight. He keeps a few article of clothing here now, but everything is in my wardrobe.
I take my coat off. “The box is just in your old room.” I point toward the second room on the other side of the bathroom.
“Thanks,” she says as she licks her lips. She doesn’t look well, and it’s unsettling. I consider messaging Alek that she’s here, but a small part of me is hesitant. What if he comes rushing forward for her again? It brings insecure feelings to the forefront of my mind. Old hurts that haven’t yet healed. But I trust Alek and where we are in our relationship right now.
So I pull my phone out of my pocket.
“I saw your photos in the paper from the red-carpet event,” Cinita calls out. “Looked really nice.”
I don’t like the way she says it, because I know the photo she’s referring to is the one with me and Alek. My mother sent me a photo of it from a magazine. We haven’t spoken since they showed up here, but I know in a small way she’s trying to reach out again. I still have mixed feelings about her efforts considering she didn’t deem me as ‘successful’ until now.
“You must feel pretty lucky,” Cinita says, and before I finish my text, I look up at her, and my stomach drops. She has a gun pointed in my direction. “Put the phone down,” she orders with a smile.
Oh fuck. Goose bumps erupt along my skin, and the temperature in the room feels like it drops. She licks her lips again as she yells. “Put down the phone, Lena!”
I do as she says, taking a shaky breath. “What do you want Cinita?” I ask cautiously.
She chuckles, as if I’m the deranged one. “I don’t know, maybe a bullet to your head.” I wince at the reminder of the comment I’d made about her only months ago. “It was me he was in love with.”
“You never loved him,” I accuse, and she makes a point to hold the gun higher, reminding me I really don’t get an opinion here. It just fell from my lips. Adrenaline is pumping through my veins. Fuck, is she going to kill me?
“Maybe not. But at least he listened to what I said until you came along.” She glances around the apartment. “You’re dating a guy who could literally buy you anything, but you’re still holed up in this shitty place?”
She looks at the photo I have beside the TV of me and Archer, and my jaw tics. What if she goes after my family once she’s done with me?
“You know I sent Alek a ransom demand for myself a week or so ago. Buddied up with one of my friends and sent him another woman’s finger, telling him it was mine. We asked for a lot of money, and would you believe how shocked I was when he never came?”
She has crazy eyes as she stares me down. I didn’t know any of that.