Free Silent Daughter 2: Bound by Linnea May, Stella Noir Page A

do when I leave her alone, she fell to her knees in front of me and begged me not to do it.
    "Please, Master," she pleaded. "I promise to be good! All I want is to be able to use the bathroom while you are gone!"
    I hesitated, but came to the conclusion that I could trust her, so I left her without the leash attached to her collar. There is not much for her to do anyways. She cannot open the windows or the door and even screaming will not bring her far in this isolated location.
    I should be okay.
    She said she was tired because she couldn't sleep well at night and would take a nap while I was gone.
    "To make the time pass faster," she whispered, smiling at me like an innocent school girl. I am not sure how sincere that statement is, but I don't let my doubts stop me from granting her with a little trust.
    By now, I am sure that she doesn't hate me or her situation enough to endanger herself to get out of it.
    Yet, a feeling of uneasiness accompanies me when I leave the house. My mansion is secluded from everyone else in this neighborhood. The windows of Liz's room cannot be seen from the driveway as the room faces the back of the house, revealing nothing but forest and an empty valley. Even if she can to get to her window, it is very unlikely that anyone would see her or hear her screaming.
    I sure as hell hope she won't come up with the idea of breaking the glass and climbing out the window. A fall from the third floor would not end well for her.
    I am so preoccupied with thoughts of her locked up alone in my house that I almost miss the exit that leads up to William's house. It is only a twenty-minute drive, but right now every minute feels as long as an hour, and I am pretty sure that it won't get better once I am in there and have to conduct small talk with a bunch of people I don't care for but need for my reputation.
    William and his wife greet me at the door and led me inside their luxurious home that is even bigger and more lavishly decorated than that of the Barrington family, let alone my mansion. I am the last person to arrive. The circle of people who were invited to this is rather small compared to the event of last week. I have seen most of the faces before but I’m a little shaken when I recognize two of them.
    "You remember my son, Pete," Will says as we approach his young heir. "And his fiancée, Sandria."
    "Sure, I do," I say, smiling at them politely as I shake their hands. "A pleasure to see you again."
    Sandria, Liz's sister, casts me a quick smile, but her face soon turns back to an empty expression. She looks bored and apathetic, almost annoyed.
    I look at Pete, who wraps his arm around her and nods at me apologetically.
    "Please excuse my fiancée today, her family is going through... something," he tries to explain.
    Sandria shakes her head. "It's quite alright — you don't have to tell everybody."
    My pulse races. I try to appear clueless and calm while casting her a questioning look.
    "I am sorry to hear that," I say. "What seems to be the trouble?"
    She looks up at me with her hollow eyes. It is eerie how her facial features are so similar to Liz's, but so different at the same time.
    "My sister," she says. "My younger sister, Elizabeth. She took off... She has been missing since Friday, and we have no idea where she is."
    "She took off?" I ask.
    I realize that this is a good opportunity for me to see how well my plan has worked. They are obviously not on to me at all so far. Otherwise, I would not be hearing this for the first time.
    "She ran away," Pete replies in Sandria's place. "Packed a few things and drove to the station, going God knows where."
    "She left a note," Sandria adds. "Saying that she needs some time away from us."
    That is not how I phrased it, but it's interesting to see that this is what Sandria makes of it.
    "And you don't know where she might have gone?" I ask.
    She shakes her head. "All we know is that she drove off to the station. She didn't buy a ticket there, but we