Bound to my Enemy novel Chapter 213

Chapter 213: Chapter 213

I try to stay in my room...I really do try.

I sit on the bed, then lie down, then sit back up again. I pick up my phone, scroll, drop it. Walk to the window. Come back, pace....nothing works because every time my mind slows down for even a second.....He’s in the cellar, like Aaron is just... stored away somewhere.

My chest tightens and I don’t even realize when I’ve left my room by the time I do, I’m already halfway down the hallway that leads to the back of the house. The quieter side, the one people don’t wander into unless they have a reason.

My steps slow when I reach the door of th cellar but something about it makes my stomach turn.

I rest my hand on the handle, hesitate then push it open.

The air changes immediately to something Cooler.

There’s a faint smell.....metallic, damp, something stale that clings to the back of my throat.

I swallow.

A guard stands just inside. He straightens the moment he sees me, clearly not expecting me here.

"Ma’am."

"I’m fine," I say quickly, before he can start questioning anything. "I just want to see him."

He hesitates...i can see it in the way his posture shifts slightly, unsure whether to allow it or stop me.

"Zane didn’t say I couldn’t," I add, holding his gaze.

That does it and he steps aside as I walk past him...each step deeper feels louder than it should. The kind of echo that makes you feel like you don’t belong there.

Then I see him...Aaron. And my brain refuses to match what I’m seeing with who I know.

He’s slumped against the wall, legs stretched awkwardly, wrists restrained. His head hangs forward like it’s too heavy to hold up with bruruises cover his face, not small ones. Dark, swollen patches around his cheekbone, his jaw, one eye slightly puffed. His lip is split, dried blood crusted at the edge.

There’s more blood on his shirt...not reall fresh though.

My chest tightens.

"Aaron..."

My voice comes out softer than I expect....his head moves sllowly, like it takes effort just to react.

Then he lifts it and when his eyes land on me.....Everythin changes, something desperate lights up in them. Raw. Immediate.

"Elaine....."

His voice is rough and scraped thin. He tries to move forward, but whatever is holding him stops him short.

"Elaine, thank God," he breathes out, relief and panic mixing together.

I take a step closer before I can stop myself

"You’re... alive," I say, even though it sounds stupid the moment it leaves my mouth.

"Barely," he lets out a broken laugh that doesn’t reach his eyes. "Please...."

His voice cracks.

"Please get me out of here."

I freeze.

"What?"

"I didn’t do anything on my own," he rushes out, words tumbling over each other. "I swear to you, Elaine. I was just following instructions. That’s it. That’s all it was."

My brows pull together.

"Whose instructions?"

He shakes his head quickly.

"Please, that doesn’t matter right now...."

"It does," I cut in, sharper this time and he flinches slightly.

"I didn’t have a choice," he insists, desperation rising. "You don’t understand the kind of situation I was in....."

"Then make me understand," I snap.

There’s a beat then he breaks eye contact.

"I can’t," he mutters.

Anger flares in my chest.

"You can’t?

"Not here," he says quickly, looking back at me. "Not like this. Please, just get me out first. I’ll tell you everything, I swear."

I stare at him...like really look at him and At the fear because it’s not fake.

"I don’t want to die here," he says, quieter now.

And that...that hits me.

I exhale slowly, running a hand through my hair.

"You expect me to just walk out and tell Zane to let you go?" I ask.

"Yes," he says immediately no hesitation.

"Because he’ll listen to you," he adds quickly. "Whether he wants to admit it or not, he will."

I almost laugh but it doesn’t come out because I’m not even sure he’s wrong and that’s the problem....dverything is complicated now.

"I’ll... think about it," I say finally.

I’m not stupid....im not letting someone who almost got me killed free just like that...that won’t be happening.

He nods quickly, clinging to it anyway.

"Please, just try " he whispers again

I turn before I can say anything else because if I stay any longer.... I don’t know what I’ll do

———

By the time I step out of my room later, he’s already there...Waiting like he’s been placed there.

He straightens slightly when he sees me.

"Ma’am."

I stop a few steps away from him, taking him in. He’s... different and not like the others.

There’s something about the way he stands.....still, controlled, like he’s trained not just to obey, but to observe.

"And you are?" I ask.

"Daniel."

Short and Simple....no extra words.

I nod slowly.

"Zane works fast," I mutter.

"Yes, ma’am."

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