The Man I Couldn’t Escape Chapter 05
“Leila, don’t be scared. I’m here.”
Rayden crouched beside her, working quickly to untie the ropes.
Natasha stood a short distance away, her eyes fixed on them.
As if she’d finally lost her patience, she marched over, raised her hand, and slapped Lorelei hard across the face. “Stop playing the victim! Don’t think I don’t know—you staged this kidnapping yourself.”
“Leila is my wife. I believe her.”
The friction around her wrists sent pain shooting through her.
Lorelei looked up at Rayden, her face completely blank.
Natasha’s eyes went red. She bit down hard on her lip, spun around, and stormed off.
But she was moving too fast. Her heel caught on a rope without warning.
She let out a shriek and crashed to the ground.
At the same instant, a violent yank came at Lorelei’s wrists.
The rope spun downward, dragging her straight toward the edge of the rooftop.
“Rayden!”
But he didn’t seem to hear her.
He ran straight in the opposite direction and scooped Natasha up in his arms.
“Are you hurt?” His voice was filled with panic and regret Lorelei had never heard before. “I’m taking you to the hospital right now.”
Seeing Rayden leave without a backward glance, the two men rushed over and yanked the rope tight. Lorelei’s forehead slammed into the concrete, her body hanging just over the edge of the roof.
“What the hell is Mr. Weber doing? Are we still putting on this act or not?”
“Just let her dangle. Didn’t you see how Mr. Weber just was? She’s nothing but a wife in name only. If something actually happened, Mr. Weber wouldn’t care.”
The wind on the rooftop was even fiercer than inside.
Lorelei’s body had gone numb from the cold, but the pain in her wrists burned, keeping her from blacking out completely. Through the haze, she heard Rayden’s voice from their wedding three years ago. “For richer or poorer, in sickness and in health… Leila, I will love you forever.”
What a liar.
On the snow-white hospital bed, Lorelei forced her eyes open.
“You’re awake?” Natasha stood over her, a smirk on her lips.
“How did it feel being my stand-in for three years? Oh, wait. Ray explained it to me. You’re not even a stand-in. You’re just some random woman he picked up to play with, a tool to make me jealous.”
Lorelei met Natasha’s gaze. Her face showed nothing.
“If I’m a tool, then what are you?
“For three years, the man you love has been sleeping right next to me.”
“You bitch!” Natasha’s face twisted, and she raised her hand to slap her.
“I’ll leave.” Lorelei caught her wrist. “But until then, do me a favor. Both of you just stop coming after me.”
Natasha yanked her hand free and stared at her. After a moment, she let out a cold laugh, spun around, and slammed the door. “You think I’d believe you?”
The room finally fell quiet.
Lorelei closed her eyes, exhausted.
But she hadn’t been alone long before the police walked in from the doorway, all business. “Are you Lorelei Payne?
“Someone reported you for theft. We need you to come with us.”