Left To Die, Finally Free Chapter 06

Left To Die, Finally Free Chapter 06

I drifted in the dark for what felt like an eternity.

In my dream, my mom and dad stood at the foot of my hospital bed, their eyes red and swollen.

“Viola, don’t be scared. We’ll do whatever it takes to make you better.”

That’s why I’d said yes to The System, the second it found me.

It froze time in my real world, the night I left.

I’d done it.

I’d finished the mission, hadn’t I?

So why was the

mpty? Why couldn’t I find them?

“DAD! MO

The fi

and my eyes flew open.

incent’s.

and painful.

poke, his voice low and rough.

ing about mom and dad again, huh? You remember what they told us? To stick together, to ying to kill yourself, how are they ever gonna rest? Be good, Vi. Listen to me.”

ge exploded in my chest, burning through

my throat raw.

st a fucked up mission world! I want

face went sheet white.

but a bitter, broken laugh.

as right. You’ve lost your

every single thing abo

myself up, slam

o die! I w

these people.

og in my veins.

ck to my real life, my real family!”

bed rail as hard as I could, over and over.

White pill down my throat, holding my mouth shut until I

nstantly.

big for my mouth.

very single thing, but I couldn’t move.

he said, his voice cold and hard.

“I’m not gonna let you destroy it. That sedative’ll keep you calm, keep you from hurting yourself. It won’t hurt you.”

I stared daggers at him, screaming in my head.

Where the fuck was he taking me?

The door opened.

Marco, Draven, Luca, and Rosa stood in the doorway, watching.

“Rosa’s had a private wellness retreat built out on Long Island, these last four years,‘

Marco said, his voice tired.

“It’s for people who need to fix their heads, to atone for what they’ve done. You’re gonna go there, get your mind right. Death doesn’t wipe the slate clean.”

I couldn’t do anything but lie there, helpless.

Luca stepped forward, lifting me into his arms like I was made of glass.

“No more schemes out there, okay? Get strong. Even if you put on weight, I’ll still be able to carry you.‘

Draven leaned against the doorframe, his eyes red and wet.

“You lied to me again, Viola, I’ll forgive you this time. Just… come back different. Come back to me.”

I stared at them, burning with hatred, and couldn’t make a single sound.

Rosa smiled, her eyes crinkling at the corners.

“Alright now. I know Viola’s gonna see we only want the best for her. No men allowed on the retreat grounds, Luca. Put her in the limo for me? I’ll ride out with her.”

The stretched Lincoln bounced down the Long Island Expressway for hours, finally pulling up to a compound hidden in the trees.

Rosa flipped the limo curtain open herself.

“Viola, trust me. You’re gonna love it here.”

Her voice was bright, but her eyes were cold, dead, empty.

Her goons ripped the door open, yanking me out of the car so hard my chest wound split open again, warm blood soaking through the bandages and into my dress.

Rosa’s sweet smile dropped off her face entirely.

“Before we let you into the retreat, we gotta get you clean.”

She nodded at the goons, her voice ice cold.

“She’s filthy. Scrub her down.”

They threw me into a freezing, mud–filled pit in the backyard.

The dirty water burned my open wound, rough rags scraping over my skin as they scrubbed me raw, laughing and jeering from the bank.

I couldn’t move, couldn’t fight back, couldn’t do a single thing but take it.

This wasn’t a wellness retreat.

It was a cage.

Rosa had built it just for me.