New to the Family

Losing My Sanity

 Theo's coughing and Jared's snoring kept me awake all night. I was lying on my back staring at the ceiling. My mind kept thinking back to Jared and I in the barn. I grabbed his hands and started dancing with him. I didn't do it to try and keep him happy so that he would not punish me. I did it because I wanted to. It was something I would have done with Owen. My mind must already be slipping away from me.

Jared stirred in his sleep before rolling onto his side. I turned my head to see Jared was facing away from me.

I had to get out of here and I had to get out of here now. I could not wait any longer. If I waited then I was going to lose my mind. I was going to turn into Lindsay. I would soon do everything in my power to try and be the perfect wife. I did not want to go back to the basement, but I had to risk it.

I lifted the corner of the sheets and slipped out of the bed. Goosebumps spread across my bare legs. Jared had dressed me in one of his old shirts like he normally does. I had rolled up the sleeves of the flannel so that it was bunched up around my wrists. I picked up my glasses off of the nightstand.

I tiptoed across the floor until I got to the door. I held my breath as I opened up the door. I looked over my shoulder to see Jared was still asleep. I snuck out, but kept the door open a crack so that I would not wake him when I got back into the room. I crept down the hallway. When I got to Theo's room, I tapped on the door with my knuckles. I pushed the door opened and peered in. I could see in the strips of moonlight that Theo was lying on the bed with a stack of pillows propping him up.

"Leah?" he called out.

I stepped in and shut the door behind me. I hurried over to his bed and sat on the edge. I reached over and turned on his lamp. His skin was pale and his lips were tinged with blood. Dark bags were under his eyes.

"We have to get out of here," I said. "And it has to be now, Theo."

"What's going on?" he asked. "Did Jared hurt you?"

"No." I shook my head. "I just need to get out of here, Theo. I'm losing my mind."

"I'm in no shape to get out of here."

"You don't need to do anything. Just give me the keys. You have to have the keys to the truck. I can do the driving. Please, Theo, I'm begging you. I can't stay here any longer."

Theo covered his mouth as he started coughing again. I grabbed some tissue off of his nightstand and handed them over. Theo muttered a thanks before coughing into the tissues. His breath was wheezy in between coughs.

"Let's get you out of here," I said. "You know that you have to get out of here eventually. Gabe is going to get you a wife in a few years."

"No, Leah," he said.

I chewed on my bottom lip as I watched Theo go into another fit of coughing. He wiped blood away from his mouth. My eyes burned with the tears that were threatening to erupt. Theo was my only ticket out of here and he was not letting me go.

"You have to come with me," I said.

"No," he said.

"I'll tell them you're gay," I said.

I shouldn't have said it, but I did. I had to threaten Theo. It was horrible to do, but I needed to convince him to go with me. His eyes grew wide and he shook his head.

"They'd never believe you," he said.

Theo's bedroom door open, and my heart pounded in my chest. I turned to see Jared standing in the doorway. Jared was scowling. He snapped his fingers.