Finding Beauty (Rewrite)

Chapter 5

~Beauty~

Carina had come in the morning not to help Beth escape but to help her clean up.

The sound of locks turning had woken her up and she barely had enough time to unattach herself from the door when it was opened. She stumbled back and onto her feet.

"Did you fall asleep on the floor, dear? That must have been mighty uncomfortable." Carina shook her head. "You poor thing. You look horrible."

Beth snorted. Had she come in to insult her?

The woman bounced back from the small damper in her attitude. "No worries. Nothing a good bath can't fix - or a shower. You chose!"

Carina shifted to reveal that she was carrying a towel, loofa, and bar of soap. She handed it over to Beth and motioned for her to follow.

Beth hated her situation - and was debating whether she should hate this lady - but she had to admit a shower sounded heavenly. Not to mention, Beth was happy that it was her that had come to visit her in the morning and not the Beast. His . . . beastly face was hovering in her mind. She questioned whether she had imagined it a couple times throughout the night. As strange and as unnatural as it was - it was just a mosquito buzzing in her ear. The more pressing issues regarding the Beast was whether he was serious about keeping her trapped here with him and for how long. Was he going to hurt her? And what role did this sweet-looking lady play in it all?

Carina led her to a bathroom, while fondly humming a gospel song Beth recognized. She couldn't help but notice her proximity to the front door.

"Go on inside and take your time. I'll be out here tidying up!"

Beth gasped when she stepped into the bathroom. It was really nice. The shower stall and bath were separate so she could really choose a bath or shower. And the sinks - yes plural - had marble countertop space around it with shiny knobs.

"I know! This isn't even half of what the upstairs bathroom used to be!" Carina added, sounding like she was trying to sell the house to her. Perhaps, she was in a sense.

"Used to be?"

"Trust me, everything beautiful is here on this first level." Tapping her lip, Carina must have decided everything was set as she walked away. Beth had the door halfway closed when she called back, "How do you like your eggs?"

"Uh . . . over easy."

She wasn't sure how she felt accepting food from the stranger who was living with a serial killer. What was she to him? A maid? His mother? And would the food be safe to eat?

"Good, a change of menu! I'm tired of making them scrambled for that boy . . ."

As Beth settled into the shower she decided that the fancy interior of the bathroom didn't matter to her. The only part of it she really appreciated was that the door locked on the inside, giving her the peace that she could keep people out if she wanted to.

~The Beast~

He had changed out of his pajamas for breakfast for the first time in months. Nothing in his dresser seemed quite right for the 'having breakfast with your prisoner' occasion. Everything was too intimidating. He wished for the first time that he owned something that wasn't black or merch from a heavy metal band.

When the smell of eggs and bacon filled his nostrils, he went downstairs with his mask in hand, debating whether he should put it on. He usually only wore it when he was out and after somebody but with the girl there . . .

"Don't tell me you're gonna put that thing on at the table?" Carina asked, her hand gripping a spatula on her hip. "You'll scare her . . . and you won't be able to get the food in your mouth."