Au Pair

All Rights Reserved

© 2017 Luna Black

~*~

My legs burned. It was a mixture of the physical strain I was putting on them with swimming with a heavy dress and the salt water rubbing against my freshly waxed legs.

My eyebrows were experiencing the same amount of pain, but I would have rather endured that for awhile rather than being in the boat another second longer.

The water was freezing and extremely dark. I couldn't even see my hands and part of me was extremely terrified of being eaten by a shark or stung by a jellyfish.

However, I couldn't focus too much on those fears when I kept pushing through the water.

I couldn't breathe properly. Salt water rushed into my lungs and fire began to spread through my chest, but I simply coughed and kept forcing my arms against the water.

It was dark outside, too. The moon was shining bright and full in the sky, but the light wasn't bright enough to alleviate my fears.

I finally reached the pier, holding unto the wooden stand to support myself as I dragged my feet out of the water.

The dress pooled around my waist, leaving my breasts totally exposed and I shivered uncontrollably as I walked out of the water.

My teeth chattered and I tried to squeeze my arms in a feeble attempt to regain feeling in them. Once I could breathe a little more properly, I grabbed the skirts of the dress and tried my best to run up the sand and further away from the water.

Thankfully it was night and the sand was cool because walking barefoot in the sizzling hot sand was not one of the things I wanted to check off my bucket list.

The beach was totally isolated. No one walked by and no stores seemed to be opened. I whimpered, blinking as the wind began to caress my already cold skin.

A sob wrecked through my chest as all the adrenaline that fuelled me died out. I trembled in fear and total amazement that I had killed Mikhail so easily. I had escaped from him and that's all I cared about.

My heart ached in my chest, twisting in a different array of emotions and I cried all the tears I had held back during the days I was imprisoned.

All the emotions that I ever experienced, shook through me. Pain, anger, sadness, happiness, but most of all fear. I was away from Ulysses and Mikhail, but I was still expecting them to walk out from the shadows and drag me back to the sex trafficking ring.

I heard a group of people laughing loudly by and I realised that I didn't recognise the language they spoke. They could have been tourists, but my brain registered everything as being in a different country.

Another sob shook through my body and I ran away. They could have taken me back to Ulysses. To someone like Mikhail.

The police could have been in on it, so I couldn't go straight to them. I'd have to go to a hospital. I needed to be treated for all the water in my system and the other fücked up shït that could be wrong with my body.

I walked out to the main road, trying to hold my body together with my arms and looked around, searching for any sign of medical help.

A slightly deranged happy laugh bubbled past my lips as I looked at the large building with the red media cross on the side and began making my way to it.

My body was exhausted, my brain was terrified of all the shadows lurking in the allies and I couldn't stop shaking in fear.

I groaned, resting my hand against a brick building as I heaved out. My eyes watered and my knees buckled weakly. My mouth tasted like salt water and vomit, it was the grossest feeling ever.

It felt like hours had gone by until I finally saw a building. The sky was slightly brightening with the sun and more cars drove by, but no one stopped when they saw me.

Through a miracle, my feet managed to reach the hospital. The glass doors slid open when I stood near them and I collapsed, unable to take another step.

~*~

I woke up in the dark, alone and trying to stop the acceleration of my heart.

It was a nightmare.

Ulysses wasn't here trying to suffocate me with a pillow. Mikhail was dead in his boat and I was in a hospital. Not in a cell with Alexia.

I couldn't remember much from my arrival to the hospital. Once my knees gave out, my head smacked against the cold floor and I was out.

I breathed in deeply, trying to relax, but it seemed to backfire. My lungs burned and the heart monitor began to beep loudly.

My chest squeezed painfully and the oxygen struggled to get through my lungs.

The door slammed open and a nurse rushed in. Her voice was soft as she tried to calm me, but I couldn't stop the panic attack.

"Sedate her!" A doctor commanded, flashing a light in front of my eyes and tried to keep my IV in place as my body trembled around the bed.

Her bright green eyes were the last thing I remember.

~*~

This time I woke up with a loud gasp.

I dreamt that I was drowning and Ulysses was pulling me down, making sure that I wouldn't be able to fight him off and survive.

I coughed and wiped my tears, breathing in heavily as my eyes fluttered open.

My jaw fell in amazement and tears quickly welled my eyes as Mrs. Maggie smiled at me sweetly. She was sitting next to my bed, with a plate of food on her lap.

"Dani-love, you're awake!"

I sobbed, sitting up and threw my arms around her. It was a mixture of relief and security. I would be okay. Mrs. Maggie was by my side, the worst had ended.

I couldn't stop crying. The tears were hot and thick against my cheeks and my sobs quaked through my chest. My entire body trembled and Mrs. Maggie quickly placed the plate next to her to hold me.

Her fingers caressed my hair, stroking it gently and she rubbed her hand up and down my back comfortably.

"Oh, sweet child," she murmured, "I cannot begin to imagine the terrible things you went through." She squeezed me gently, "But you're safe now. It's going to be okay."

She smelled like macadamia nut cookies. Like home and security and everything that was good with the world.

I don't know how long she held me, but I knew I needed the comfort. I needed the physical reminder that not everything in this world was terrible. I needed her affection.

I sniffles, forcing myself to pull back and she smiled, her gentle fingers wiping my tears away.

"How are you feeling?"

I shrugged. "Exhausted."

She nodded, slowly taking a seat but pulled it closer to keep caressing me. "I can only imagine. You have been asleep for two days."

I gulped. I had been safe for two days, that had to mean something. "Where am I?"

"Mercy Hospital in Miami, Florida."

I blinked slowly, trying to wrap my mind around the information. "I'm still in the United States?"

Mrs. Maggie nodded, pressing the palm of her hand against my forehead as she gently brushed my hair back.

"How long was I gone?"

"A little over two weeks," Her eyes crinkled at the sides in sadness and her mouth turned upward in a slight frown.

I breathed out, shakily, trying my best not think of it. "It felt like I was there forever."

She nodded, turning to look away and cleared her throat, trying to cheer me up. "I made your favourite cookies. They should still be warm."

I smiled, genuinely. "Thank you, Mrs. Maggie."

"No problem, sweetheart. We have to wait until the Doctor gives you the green light to eat them, but I needed to occupy myself with something or I was going to lose my mind."

"Where's Toby? How is he?"

She raised an eyebrow, staring at me curiously but answered my question. "When we were back in New York Luca had her."

At the mention of Luca, my heart skipped a beat and Mrs. Maggie raised an eyebrow again, watching the heart monitor.

"Where is he?" I croaked, my voice was raw with emotion and a slight twinge of tears.

Mrs. Maggie smiled, as if having fond thoughts. "I sent him to sleep. Boy did not want to leave your side, but he needed to sleep."

I forced myself to swallow and not cry because all the time I slept I was haunted in my dreams, but I was safe. Safe because Luca was there and I trusted him with everything I had.

"How is he?"

Mrs. Maggie sighed, pursing her lips. "How do you expect the man to be, Dani-love? Every lead he had led to a dead end. He was always a step behind."

I frowned, licking my bottom lip with the tip of my tongue. "What do you mean?"

"By the time, they found your location, you were already...taken elsewhere. He found every other woman except the one he loved. You can only imagine how despondent he felt."

"How," My voice cracked and I cleared my throat, "how did you get here?"

"Luca flew us out here," she murmured, squeezing my hand gently. "That's enough for today, Dani-love. Rest up, I promise to wake you when Luca is here."

I nodded, too exhausted mentally to fight her. Her hand was careful with the IVs when it wrapped around mine, but it was warm and comfortable, allowing me to sleep a little more relaxed.

~*~

The fingers around my hand didn't feel as warm as Mrs. Maggie's did. They were roughened up, bigger.

My eyes snapped open and they immediately watered as I recognised the mess of blond hair.

It was pulled in all directions, totally unkept and unruly. Regardless of the messy appearance, it was still Luca and that's all that mattered.

A sob choked through my throat and Luca quickly raised his head. His eyes were dark, the bags under his eyes larger than anything he ever had.

He stared at me for a long time. His blue eyes drowning me in, keeping me locked in place as he memorised every inch of my face.

"Cariño..." His voice was a whisper, the sound a mixture of relief and surprise.

The heart monitor accelerated as I forced myself to sit up and I reached over to hug him. He quickly stood up, wrapping his arms around my waist and I cried against his chest.

My sobs were loud, heart wrenching and as painful as my heart felt. I held him tightly, as if he we were the only thing keeping me together and I needed him to survive.

"I'm sorry," I sobbed, "I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have left when I saw Veronica with you. I just...I panicked and-"

His eyes watered as he pulled back to look at me and placed his hand against my cheek. "This wasn't your fault, cariño. Your sister is a bïtch and I swear on my life that nothing happened between us."

I nodded quickly. "I believe you."

And, I did. He was honest when he spoke, his expressions so easy to read.

"I love you," I murmured, feeling like the words were going to burst in my chest. "I love you so goddamn much."

Luca smiled, the sweet lopsided smile that made my heart stutter like an idiot, and he pressed a gentle kiss to my forehead. "And I love you, cariño; more than words can do me justice."

I laid back down on the bed and kept holding his hand. It was slightly cold, but he seemed unfazed by it. "Luca?"

He glanced up at me. "Yes?"

"Mrs. Maggie said that you were always a step behind," I swallowed back my tears and memories of everything that happened in the last two weeks, "did...did you happen to come across a girl named Alexia?"

He frowned, trying to think about it and grimaced. "I'm sorry, cariño. I cannot remember all the names. I was too worried about finding you. But, I can tell you that every girl was returned to their families." He gritted his teeth, his jaw muscle ticking in anger, "Like Mrs. Maggie said, I was always a step behind. By the time I got to the place you were being held at...it was already too late."

He needed comforting as much as I did. However, he braved a smile, rubbing my fingers gently and raised my hands to kiss my skin sweetly.

"Luca, I-" The words caught in My throat, refusing to be spoken out loud and I bit my bottom lip.

I couldn't tell him what I did. I couldn't tell him I killed to escape the hell I was in. I didn't regret it, I was just afraid that the love that shone in his eyes would quickly turn into horror the moment I told him.

"Hey," He smiled, sweetly and kissed my hand again, "it's okay. We can talk about it when you're ready."

He knew.

The look in his eyes didn't change, though. He still adored me and I quickly realised that it was going to be okay.

Not now and not tomorrow, but eventually it would be okay. I would be okay.

"Stay with me?" I whispered, gnawing on my bottom lip worriedly.

Luca nodded, pulling the chair closer to the bed and against my hand murmured, "Always, cariño."

~*~

Next chapter we get more insight on what happened whilst Dani was away. We're a couple of chapters away from the end and I'm so excited! I'm planing on finishing this before August ends! (:

xo, Luna