Reborn In a Murderer’s Embrace

Colin clambered into bed immediately, settling himself right on the edge. He seemed almost too alert, his gaze fixed on me with an intensity that sent shivers down my spine.

“Aren’t you tired?” I asked, his stare making me uneasy. The shadows of my past life, the ones that culminated in death, seemed to hover around me.

Though I had mostly come to terms with the fact that I had been given a second chance at life, the idea of sharing a room with a murderer was anything but soothing.

“Phoebe.” he said, his voice deadly serious. “They won’t let you go until you’re pregnant. They check on us every twenty–four hours. The food they give us… It’s laced with aphrodisiacs.”

I shot up in bed, gagging at the thought of the dinner I had just eaten. “Why didn’t you tell me sooner?”

“It’s no use,” he said, a cynical laugh escaping him. “Even the air fresheners are designed to stir up the passions to make animals of us.”

For a moment, I thought I saw a chilling depth in his eyes that hadn’t been there before.

“Have you ever… thought about fighting back? Against how they’re treating you?” I asked tentatively.

Was it the abuse and inhuman torture by the Langley family that twisted his mind and led him to kill?

“At first, no. I had lost everything worth protecting. But now I’m thinking about it,” he murmured, looking away into the distance, his voice deep and resonant.

I couldn’t quite grasp his meaning, yet I felt memories pressing at the edges of my mind, eager to break through.

“Phoebe, what do you want?” he asked, turning back to me with earnest eyes.

“I want out. I want…” to find the real killer, to see Melody get her comeuppance, to watch Dexter regret ever crossing me.

“Whatever you desire, I can make it happen,” Colin assured me, his gaze fixed on me with intense sincerity. “Phoebe, just don’t lie to me.”

I felt a twinge of guilt. “I won’t,”

His smile was pure, almost childlike.

“What about your throat… and the scars on your body? How did you get those?” I attempted to lighten the mood with my question, aiming to understand him better.

“A fire… at the orphanage…” He suddenly turned his back to me.

I watched his back in silence, realizing that even in the absence of sound, a body can narrate

13-12

tales of sorrow.

Just looking at his back, I could feel the desolation and helplessness. I reached out instinctively to offer some comfort but recoiled at my own impulse. Copyright by Nôv/elDrama.Org.

Was I losing my mind? Or had I been bewitched by this creature cloaked in an angel’s guise?

Time passed in a daze, and eventually, I succumbed to sleep.

As Colin had mentioned, the room’s fragrance was thick with seduction, stirring an uncomfortable heat within me.

I awoke in a sweat, kicking off the blankets in irritation, forgetting that I was sharing a space with someone dangerous.

He tried to cover me a few times, but I kicked the blankets away each time. Throughout it all, his breathing was hot, betraying his struggle to remain composed.

“Hot…” I murmured, delirious, grabbing at Colin’s arm.

He splashed a cup of cold water on my face.

I snapped awake, sitting up and glaring at him. “What are you doing?”

“If you don’t consent, I won’t touch you,” he stated with solemn conviction.

“Do we really need to have a child?” I asked irritably, grabbing the cup and hurling it at the door. “For them, it’s about genetics, lineage… it surpasses all humanity,” he said, his voice still hoarse from the damage sustained in the fire.

I couldn’t imagine what Colin, once angel–faced, must have sounded like when his voice was clear and melodious.*

“I’m going to sleep. Everything will be better when I wake up,” I mumbled, turning away from him.

Colin’s raspy voice whispered softly, “You’ve really forgotten me.”

I didn’t understand what he meant, and I couldn’t respond. Overwhelmed by discomfort, I forced myself back to sleep.

In the depths of sleep, I dreamed….

A voice, beautiful and haunting, called to me. “Phoebe… Phoebe, come here.”

“Colin, meet me at the orphanage on Saturday. Wait for me there; I have so many questions about the SAT prep.”

“Colin, wait at the orphanage for me.”

“Colin, wait for me.”