Insert title here

-wait.

leaning back away from her sink, Stacy glances upward, making sure the kids are still up there before turning around slowly. She doesn’t want to see who may potentially be behind her. To remain cautious, she closes her eyes, sucking in and holding a breath.

“Holding your breath isn’t going to save you, deary.” The distorted, low voice of Anti washes over her like a gentle blanket. It’s too soothing and filled with every sort of danger imaginable. “But where are my manners anyway? Hello, Stacy.”

Cracking her eyes open, Stacy stares forward at Anti. He’s leaning against the counter, smirking at her. He’s glitching, ever so slighty. One second, he’s just casually standing before her, and the next, he’s tapping his fingertips against the surface.

“My kids,” she whispers, voice cracking. “You can’t be here.”

“They’re playing,” Anti says dismissively. “They won’t even notice I’m here.” He moves closer toward her, fingers dancing in the air. “Besides, when else am I going to get a chance to talk to you? My favorite woman.”

Backing up into the sink, Stacy feels behind her for some sort of weapon to keep Anti at a distance. All she can grab is a stray fork. “Please leave.”

Glitching forward, Anti grabs her by the biceps, gripping tightly. His green and black eyes seem to keep her paralyzed, because she can’t look away. “If you even think about trying to stab me, I’m going to make things even worse for you,” Anti growls softly. “And you know I don’t like it when things don’t go my way.

With a frightened whimper, she removes her grip on the fork, one finger at a time, exhaling when the fork clatters to the floor. “What do you want with me?” She’s painfully aware of how close he is right now. His foul breath tickles her nose, resuling in her trying to pull away, or at least turning her head to the side. “You already took their father.”

“And wouldn’t it be a joy for Chase to be reunited with the love of his life?” Anti’s grinning now. “Those adorable children of yours would be so very happy if mummy and daddy got back together. Everyone would be delighted, wouldn’t they?”

“I don’t...” Stacy stares down at the ground. The air between them is glitching more erratically, leaving her with a sense of dizziness and nausea. “What are you getting at?”

His claws dig into her arms. Stacy can feel the blood leaking through the cuts, soaking her sleeves. Biting her lip, she tries not to squirm or pull back for fear of angering Anti. “I came to visit you. Did you forget I own you too?”

“I still don’t know why?” The question slips out before she can stop. They’ve had this conversation more than once. Not that it’s ever made sense to her. What Anti wants, Anti takes, and for some reason, he’s taken her for his own. It’s not like he ever seriously hurts her, just comes and frightens her. Stacy feels almost grateful, he hasn’t touched either one of the kids yet.

Still, the question has him pulling back, staring at her with an expression she can’t make out. His lips are pressed together in a thin line, his eyebrows are furrowed, and his eyes... Stacy can’t tell if it’s anger or resignation at her own ‘stupidity.’ Then, he slaps her across the face. It stings, but there’s hardly any force behind it. Stacy knows Anti well enough to know he can fling people across a room with the flick of his fingers, so he’s holding back with her.

“You’re so fucking stupid,” he snaps. “I am tired of answering this question for you. Because I can, you wench.” Anti grips her jaw next. It’s not hard enough to keep her in place, but still painful enough to keep her from talking. “You’re my insurance.”

Okay, that bit of information is new.

“It’s best for everyone if you just stay put.” With his other hand, he pats her gently on the cheek before releasing her jaw. “Now that we’ve dealt with your stupidity, I came to check on you.”

“I didn’t...” she clears her throat. “We ate lunch.” She wants to ask what he meant by insurance, but the thought of being manhandled again terrifies her. Instead, Stacy rubs at her arms, making a mental note to change clothes later before her kids see the blood. “And then I sent them upstairs to play.”

“Hm. You live a very boring life.” Anti giggles. “I bet you wish you still had friends to talk to, huh? Wonder what dear old Marvin and Jackie are up to these days?”

He turns away. “You’re a forgotten chapter in everyone’s life. Even your ex husband forgot you.” Turning back toward her, he wags a finger. “I’m just counting down the days until you give in, deary.”

“I’m not your deary,” she says defiantly. “I will never be your deary.”

He leans close again, swaying from side to side. With the glitches added, Stacy feels dizzy again, trying to keep up with his movements. “That’s where you’re wrong, Stacy. You’ve always been mine, and I don’t let my toys go easily. Just because you still have the ability to think for yourself doesn’t change reality.”  He strokes her hair, almost lovingly.

“Please leave,” she whispers. Maybe if she closes her eyes, she can pretend it’s Chase caressing her. “I don’t want you near me.”

“Too bad.” Anti gives a sharp yank to her hair. “You bore me anyway.” Shoving her back, he turns again, studying the rest of her kitchen. “Might want to clean yourself up. I daresay your oldest is going to suspect something otherwise.” Anti points up. “I could just pick him instead of you but-”

Stacy starts to protest, to which Anti just laughs. Not a giggle, but a harsh, distorted laugh that’s straight out of a nightmare. “-you probably wouldn’t like that much.”

“Don’t touch Trey!”

“Then next time I come to visit, e̷x̸p̸e̵c̶t̷ ̷m̸e̶!̶” With those words, he disappears. Stacy does not like the implications of what he means, but she knows it’s nothing good. A thousand scenarios cross her mind: he could kill her, take her kids, taunt her with Chase, or... or...

No, she doesn’t like where her mind is going. She’s not a puppet, yet. Like he’d said, she still has free will, and she’s going to make use of it. She’ll just... have to keep trying to find where the others are hiding. If Marvin and Jackie knew Anti was holding her hostage in her own home, surely they’d help. Right?

With a sob, she sinks to the floor, burying her face in her hands. Her kids don’t need to hear her cry.

She’s losing hope though.

----

tag list: (if you want to be added to/removed from the tag list, please let me know!