Beautiful Deception by Celia Crown

Author:Celia Crown
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Six

__________

Maya

“Anyone know what happened to our cars?” Junnie breaks the burdensome silence as she drags her feet further up the armchair.

“Clearing the air,” Kimberly jests while raising her hand. “I didn’t do it.”

“I didn’t either,” Joe repeats after her as he holds his hands up in surrender.

Their eyes fall on me, rudely squinting their eyes before shaking their heads and focusing on the two men sitting at the back. The projector Joe rummaged from the storage room only had a couple of films while the rest were chewed up by rats.

“I was with him last night,” Dr. Kian states, pointing at Remo sitting beside him.

His arms are crossed, stretching his shirt tighter on his thick chest as his head stays tipped down. Remo doesn’t react when everyone’s eyes fall on him, his breath staying even and soft.

It looks like he’s napping.

“You?” Kimberly questions with zeal.

“I was with them,” I say as I shrug imperturbably.

There is nothing to be ashamed about. I’m not sure what they did while I was sleeping, but I’m certain I wasn’t the one who slashed the tires. My family has no history of sleepwalking, and I would be aware if I did.

The issue is that there are far too many variables and people to consider. Maybe the biting temperature caused the tire rubber to be brittle and susceptible to cracking or splitting.

The maids are not allowed to speak, a condition imposed by the host, who owns the villa. The butler is constantly on the go, ensuring that the villa runs well, preparing meals and drinks, and serving guests as needed.

Junnie wants to leave this forsaken place because she can’t stand the thought of rats near her.

The only reason I’m not freaking out is because Dr. Kian prepared me a cup of herbal tea, which is now sitting cold on the floor with three millimeters of liquid remaining. Every time he makes me a cup, he tells me what the herbs do, and I appreciate his attention to detail and consent while dealing with me being so vulnerable.

“You guys are…” Joe mutters, his finger darting between the three of us as he tries to wrap his head around the assumption of our relationship.

There is no relationship. I’m Dr. Kian’s patient, and Remo’s the hired protection. I’m paying for both of their services, so it’s a strictly transactional connection.

“The thing with freedom, young man, is that it opens up endless possibilities.” Kimberly winks at Joe and plucks the yarn on her lap.

“How does that work?” Joe’s eyes sparkle with boyish inquisitiveness as he rests his chin on his forearm and gazes at me.

“It’s not what you think,” I deny as I wrap the blanket tighter around me.

The butler had prepared blankets for everyone to watch an old vampire film, a mood-stirring cinematic video with monochrome images. Junnie seems engrossed in the movie, but I’m about to doze off.

The herbal tea has the unfortunate side effect of making me tired. I’ve gotten enough sleep in the last few days to make up for weeks of not sleeping at home.

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