I spotted him seated by the window, gazing out at the street. I couldn't even blink; I was too afraid of what might happen if I closed my eyes for even a moment. My breathing came in heavy gasps. It seemed like he didn't care about the situation, even though he was the one who had orchestrated it. Eventually, I gave in and remained quiet, realizing that struggling wouldn't free me from these restraints. While I was preoccupied with watching Atticus, I noticed that one of the guards had injected me with something. That's when I began to feel strangely disoriented. "Atticus!" I whispered as I started to drift off. It wasn't wolfbane; it was some sort of sedative. When I woke up, my lips were no longer covered, and I found myself lying in a bed without any restraints. I quickly sat up in bed and began to examine the room. The only items in this stark white space were the bed and a large mirror. It didn't seem like a place where anyone was currently living; it appeared to have been set up specifically for my arrival. As I gradually collected my thoughts, I started to recall the moments just before I had fallen asleep. And then it hit me - I remembered who had kidnapped me. "Atticus!" I said his name aloud, confirming, "It was him." He had proven to be even more dangerous and repulsive than I had initially thought by kidnapping his own mate, whom he had previously rejected. Up until that moment, I had considered him a self-centered tyrant and probably just a terrible mate. I cautiously got up from the bed, quickly surveyed the room, and then dashed towards the door. Unfortunately, it was locked from the other side. "OPEN THE DOOR!" I wasted no time in my response, immediately shouting. "Let me out!" I yelled and pounded on the door in an attempt to attract attention. I didn't want to stay here because I knew my father would become frantic and believe that I had run away. "What do you want from me?" I sobbed and screamed at the top of my lungs, continuously pounding my swollen palms against the door. "Atticus!" I screamed, my throat growing dry. I began coughing until a commotion from beside me--the sound of the door being unlocked--caught my attention. I hadn't even noticed the bathroom before, but as the door made a noise, I saw Atticus emerge from it. He was dressed in a white shirt with only one button fastened and some blue jeans. He nonchalantly ruffled his hair, acting as if I wasn't even there for a moment. I watched him with eyes filled with terror. He reached for the mirror and ran his hand through his hair a few more times before finally acknowledging my presence. "I heard you were calling for me," he muttered under his breath, not bothering to make eye contact. "You kidnapped me, you bastard!" I yelled through tears."Okay!" He rolled his eyes but continued to admire himself in the mirror. "Atticus! Open this damn door right now," I demanded, my breathing heavy. "Tsk tsk," he clicked his tongue and turned to face me, crossing his arms over his chest. "You're being awfully disrespectful to me when I'm trying to be exceptionally courteous. Hasn't your father taught you any manners on how to address your mate?" He then opened his arms and began to advance toward me. With each step he took, I took one away from him. "You're not my mate. Remember, you rejected me," I maintained a straight posture, though I was petrified of him. "Ooh, ****!" he cursed, reaching out to block my path with his arms, his hands pressed against the wall on either side of me. "Stay away from me," I warned him with hesitation, lowering my voice this time. "I forgot your only lesson was how to ensnare older, wealthy men," he remarked, causing a knot to form in my stomach. "Older, wealthy men!" He was referring to Mr. Holt, right? He must have seen him dropping me off at school, but why would that bother him? "Enough of this nonsense. You're no saint yourself. You hang out with your friend and do things with Rosalie, all while giving me those looks. You think I don't know what kind of person you are?" I yelled at him, his puzzled glances making me feel disgusted with myself. I attempted to push him away, but he shrugged off my hands and forcefully pushed me against the wall, causing pain in my hands. "Oh, **** you! You've got some nerve to question me when you pushed me down this dark path," his words and tone oozed with hostility. He pointed his finger in my face, almost brushing the tip of his finger against my nose, as he tried to convince me that I was the problem here. "Atticus! You can tell your bullshi** to someone else. Let me go!" I said that I didn’t care anymore. We are not fit to be together, pure and simple! "Bullshi*? You call this bullshi*? Let me tell you what exactly is bullshi*!" He bobbed his head, taking a step closer and almost connecting our bodies. I struggled before he could finish and pushed him away, reaching the door again. Just when I thought he was going to take some time in coming at me, he pounced back and punched the door behind me, "IT IS WHEN YOU WRONGFULLY ACCUSED ME AND GOT ME EXPELLED WHEN THERE WAS A CONTEST TAKING PLACE THAT I NEEDED TO PARTICIPATE IN. YOU WANT ME TO SUFFER BECAUSE I CALLED YOU OUT ON YOUR SHITTY BEHAVIOR. THE BULLSH** IS YOU SLANDERING MY NAME JUST SO THAT YOU CAN KEEP ON FUCKING YOUR OLD BOYFRIEND! THE BULLSHIT IS WHEN YOU SNEAK OUT OF YOUR HOME AT NIGHT JUST TO MEET YOUR OLDER BOYFRIEND BECAUSE NOW YOU ARE OF LEGAL AGE," he screamed, reducing himself to tears. He even convinced me for a second that I was this horrible person who was plotting and planning behind his back. "YES! YOU ARE A WHO*E!" he muttered on my face, and something flipped inside me. I took a deep breath and raised my hand to hit him, but unfortunately, he caught it.