I’m shocked I didn’t piss myself. Hearing that just makes me have to go even more. “I really need to pee.”
He nods his head, and I follow him through the curtain. At first glance, I don’t see anyone else there,but in the far corner Phil sits with his feet kicked up and a tablet in his lap. Without acknowledging us, he sets his tablet to the side and pushes himself up from the fold-up camping chair. As he walks over to us, fear has me maneuvering slightly behind Joseph.
Phil comes to a stop just a few feet away. He looks at Joseph first, scrutinizing him for signs of deception. After a momentary stare down, he turns his head and focuses on me. The only thing I see is his face as he screams in mine, spit trailing out of his mouth and down his chin as his lips move, and eyes full of hatred. I slide a little further behind Joseph, and Phil smiles. It’s like his face malevolently deforms.
“Hello, Sleeping Beauty,” he spews nastily sweet. I’d roll my eyes if I weren’t afraid I’d miss his fist swinging at my face. “Glad to see you’re finally awake.”
I bite back everything I want to say to him because I don’t want to be drugged again. When the time comes to get the fuck out of here, I want to be of sound mind and strong enough to make it.
Phil steps closer and reaches for my face. Without thinking, I turn my head and close my lids. It’s damn near impossible to cover the tremble that works through my body. It has become instinct to be wary and react this way toward him.
He grips my chin and forces me to look at him, to accept his dominance over me. If this is what it takes to survive, then so be it. It will be hard to overcome, but I shut myself down once; I can do it again. I stare himsquare in the eye and give him the best deer-in-the-headlights look I can muster.
“You will behave yourself,” he whispers, making Joseph stiffen next to me. “I won’t think twice about putting you to sleep permanently.”
Pushing aside the anger, I allow the fear to overtake me and lower my eyes in defeat. Phil loosens his hold on my face and strokes my cheek with his thumb. There is no comfort in that caress. It’s a snide move on his part, branding a victory over me. He will have many more before this over. But mark my words, I’ll land the blow that counts.
“Are you hungry?” Phil asks as he turns toward the refrigerator, like it is totally normal behavior to threaten someone’s life then make them a peace offering with food.
“Yes,” I hesitate before continuing, unsure of what he will do. “But I’d like to go to the bathroom first.”
Phil turns back around and reaches for me, but Joseph intercepts him.
“I was just showing Hazel where the bathroom is,” he says calmly.
Phil grabs my hand, and it takes everything in me to keep from pulling away.
“That’s okay, Joseph. Why don’t you go finish your nap, and I’ll take it from here? You’ve got a lot of work to do soon and need to be on top of your game.”
Concerned, Joseph glances over at me. I try my best to silently tell him to do what Phil says, and that I’ll be okay. We have no other choice than to do what he wants. Joseph knows this. He walks over to the curtain and pulls it back. Before he lets it drop back into place, he watches as Phil directs me to the bathroom.
“It’s this little room to the left,” he says as he pulls the curtain to the side and steps in, pulling me behind him.
The distinct sound of a string being pulled echos through the room before a light on the wall next to us blinds me. I shield my face, and Phil chuckles. So glad he finds this amusing. When I’m able to focus around me, I begin to feel a little claustrophobic. The room is the size of a tuna can. Phil and I barely fit inside together. There’s a drain in the floor and a shower head on the left-hand side of the wall. The toilet sits on the wall next to the shower head facing the door frame, barely out of the way of the spray. It’s completely empty except for the toiletries that line a small metal shelf next to the shower.
The need to use the toilet has me bouncing on my toes. Without a word, Phil steps out of the room and closes the curtain. I can’t get my pants down fast enough and almost pee on myself as I sit down. The relief is too much, and my eyes begin to water. After what feels like minutes, I finally finish. Dropping my head in my hands I sigh, thankful that Phil gave me privacy instead of lurking while I pee.
“That was the longest piss I’ve ever heard.”
Mycheeks burn with embarrassment as I lift my face and see Phil leaning in the doorway holding a roll of toilet paper. I quickly squeeze my legs together and cover what I can with my t-shirt.
“No need to be all modest, Hazel. I’ve already seen it all.” His eyes travel down to my legs and stop. “Including your new beauty marks.”
My mouth gapes open in horror. When did he take my clothes off? He couldn’t have raped me; Joseph would’ve said so. I would be able to tell. What the fuck happened while I was unconscious?
“Here.” Phil hands me the roll then backs up. “There are some rules to the toilet. We are on limited water supply. So if it’s yellow, let it mellow. If it’s brown, flush it down. And don’t flush your tissue. It could clog the small septic tank. There’s a baggy inside the roll. Stick it in there and throw it in the trashcan. And bring the toilet paper with you. It’ll get wet in here.”
He leaves again while I finish cleaning myself up, doing as I’m told. When I step from the bathroom, Phil points to the trashcan, and I throw the baggy in it and set the toilet paper on top of the others on the counter. Hand sanitizer sits next to it, so I squirt some on my hands and rub it in as I warily watch Phil prepare food. I never thought I’d see the day where Phil does anything for himself. I guess being on the run puts an end to having a staff do things for you.
The smell of bacon cooking in the microwave fills the room as he slices a tomato meticulously, but with horrible results. I doubt he’s ever cut one before. Philfrowns, reminding me of a frustrated child. I clear my throat, and he looks up at me.
“May I?”
“Please, before this damn thing turns to mush.” He sets the paring knife down on the plate and steps to the side, watching me closely.
I wouldn’t dare try something. Not right now. I want to earn his trust so I can use it against him. I pick up the knife and turn the tomato over slicing through with ease. He watches me with fascination, as if I just performed magic. This is a side of Phil I’ve never seen. I wonder just how many sides he has. Keeping an eye on me, he pops some bread in a toaster and gets some lettuce from the fridge. I grab the salt and pepper, sprinkling some over a slice of tomato and cut it in half. I hand one to Phil, almost like a peace offering, and eat the other half. He looks at it strangely before taking a bite.
“You seriously can’t tell me you’ve never had tomatoes with just salt and pepper?”
