ABSOLUTE INSANITY: A forbidden bond-Chapter 214: Freedom

Chapter 214

KATYA POV

I stayed seated, the check heavy in my fingers, as if it carried more than just paper and ink. My chest felt tight, my heart hammering like it wanted to escape.

Free. Leave. Gratitude. Change his mind. The words ran through my head, bouncing off each other until none of them made sense.

"Why?" My fingers tightened around the check. It was real. The ink was real. The authority behind the offer... terrifyingly real.

Why was today like this? Why were they all acting... normal, generous, forgiving—like the last few months hadn’t happened? Like the basement, like the danger, like everything I’d been through... didn’t exist?

My eyes flicked up at Romeo, searching his face for something—anything—that would explain this sudden mercy.

He said nothing. My throat tightened. The silence stretched, thick like he was testing how long I could sit with it before breaking.

"Why?" I asked again, my voice quieter now, rough around the edges. "Why now?"

Still nothing.

That was when the frustration finally snapped through the fear. "And the kiss?" The words slipped out before I could stop them.

My grip on the check tightened. "What was that about?"

For the first time since I’d entered the office, something shifted. Romeo’s expression hardened instantly.

The faint calm in his eyes vanished, replaced by something colder. His jaw set, the muscles ticking as if I’d struck a nerve I wasn’t meant to touch.

The air in the room changed. I swallowed but forced myself to continue. "Why now," I pressed, my voice trembling despite my effort to steady it,

"after all of that? After everything you put me through—why....this.. sudden kindness?"

Romeo stared at me for a long moment, unreadable, he slowly brought the cigarette to the ashtray and crushed it out.

The soft hiss as it died sounded louder than it should have. He leaned forward, resting his forearms on the desk, eyes locking onto mine with renewed intensity.

"You should be grateful." he said calmly as if counting his words. "I never let anyone in your type of situation alive, yet I’m being generous in even giving you a check to start a new life"

My breath caught. New life?

"That kiss," he continued, voice low, controlled, like he doesn’t even want to talk about it. "was a lapse. Nothing more." His gaze sharpened. "And I do not repeat lapses."

The words landed hard.

"As for why now," Romeo added, leaning back slightly, his authority settling over the room again like a weight, "because I’ve decided you’re no longer useful."

His eyes flicked briefly to the check still in my hands. "This is me being kind for the first time."

My chest tightened painfully as my mind started to unravel. This was it. This was what I had wanted from the beginning, wasn’t it?

Freedom. A way out. No more walking on glass. No more fear of saying the wrong thing, breathing the wrong way, existing in the wrong place.

So why was I still sitting here?

Why wasn’t I already on my feet, clutching the check, running out of this office before he could change his mind?

Why was I asking questions I already knew he wouldn’t answer?

My thoughts tangled over each other, spiraling faster and faster. This is what you wanted. This is what you prayed for. You should be relieved. You should be grateful. You should be gone.

Then why did my chest ache like something was being ripped out? Why did the word leave feel heavier than stay?

A sharp burn gathered behind my eyes. I sucked in a breath, startled when my vision blurred just slightly. No. No, not now.

A tear threatened to spill, clinging to my lower lash, and panic flared hotter than fear. I blinked quickly, once, twice, forcing it back.

Why was I about to cry? This was stupid. Weak. Unnecessary.

What was this feeling even supposed to be? Hurt? Confusion? Loss? I had survived worse than this. I had been treated worse than this.

So why did it feel like rejection all over again?

I stared down at the check, the numbers still blank, waiting—silent proof that I was disposable, that I could be erased with a signature and a quiet dismissal.

My fingers trembled, just slightly. Get up, I told myself. Take it. Leave. This is your chance.

But my body wouldn’t move.

And that scared me more than anything Romeo had said.

I lifted my gaze again, my voice barely steady when I finally spoke. "My friend...Aria.?" I said, the words scraping out of my throat. I swallowed hard, forcing myself to keep going.

"The one you took with me when I escaped that time." My fingers tightened around the check as if it could anchor me. "Can you let her go with me?"

For a split second, the room was unbearably quiet.

Romeo didn’t look away. His eyes stayed locked on mine, steady and assessing, like he was measuring the weight of the request rather than the emotion behind it.

"She’s already gone," he said finally. The words didn’t register at first. "Gone?" I echoed faintly.

"I let her out," he continued, his tone even, almost indifferent. "Weeks ago." He leaned back slightly, hands resting on the arms of his chair. "She was compensated."

My heart stumbled. "Compensated...?"

"For her brother," Romeo stated calmly. "His death."

Frank. The breath left my lungs in a shaky rush. My grip loosened on the check, my fingers going numb.

Aria’s face flashed through my mind—her anger, her grief, the way she’d lost herself with franks death.

"She has money," he went on, as if ticking items off a list. "Enough to disappear. Enough to start over." His gaze sharpened just a fraction. "So you don’t need to worry about that."

Worry. The word felt wrong. I stared at him, my chest aching with something dangerously close to relief and guilt tangled together.

She’s alive. She’s free. She’s not here. But can I believe him?

"You’re sure?" I asked quietly, finding a way to believe that this man was true to his word.

"I don’t repeat myself," Romeo replied.

Silence fell again, heavier this time, but different. The edge of panic dulled, replaced by something hollow.

My eyes dropped back to the check. "There’s nothing tying you here anymore," he said, his voice firm, final. "Take it and leave"

I nodded once, slowly, even though my hands still wouldn’t stop shaking.

Okay, my mind whispered. Okay.

This was it. Freedom. Even if it felt like it was cutting deeper than any cage ever had. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

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Guys thanks for the power stones to my new book and the golden tickets to this book.

Btw, my birthday is on 11th this Sunday 🥲