CHAPTER 2

Angelina's POV

There was a loud thump resonating in my skull and I let out a groan as I raised my hand to my head.

I heard clinking and squinted my eyes open to check for the source and I gasped when I realized there were chains on my hands.

I sat up quickly and took in the dirty cell I was sitting in. It was black with cement walls and it reeks of piss. 

It was completely dark except for a small window too high to reach that allowed a little light to come in, but it didn’t help the fact that half of the cell was drenched in darkness.

The thoughts slammed into me at full force and I remembered the men who grabbed me at school and held a cloth to my mouth while in the car so I wouldn’t remember the way or draw attention to them.

I drew my legs to my chest to help with the coldness of the cell and mentally cursed myself for not wearing a jacket earlier.

I felt a prickle at the back of my neck that let me know someone was watching me and I tried to peer into the shadows but it was too dark to make out any shapes.

“Hello,” I said quietly but it echoed off the walls, “Is anyone here?”

No one responded but I knew I was being watched.

“Kidnapping is a federal crime,” I continued, “I don’t even know why you took me; no one is going to pay you a ransom so you might as well just let me go.”

I was ready to give up on someone answering when I saw someone emerge from the shadows. He wasn’t among the men who took me but he could pass off as one of them.

He has the same muscular build and his hair was as dark as night but tied up into a man bun at the back of his head. I couldn’t see his eyes clearly but they looked almost completely black as well.

He also had tattoos going up the length of his left hand.

“Who are you?” I asked, “And why am I here?”

           “Don’t pretend like you don’t know why you were taken.”

“Of course, I don’t know, you nitwit,” I spat, “If I knew then I wouldn’t have to ask.”

       “Be careful; you’re at my mercy.”

“You’re a sick fuck,” I retort sharply, “Who kidnaps a girl at her college?”

He let out an animalistic sound and started towards me but then took a deep breath and my breath hitched.

At the last moment, he stopped, took a deep breath, and took a few steps backward. I realized I had also shuffled backward as well because now my back was against the cold wall.

“You’re in no position to dish out insults, human.”

          “Well you’re in no position to kidnap a girl either, human,” I tried to make my voice firm but he smirked as if he knew how scared I was.

“I don’t have time for this,” he muttered, “Tell me the secrets and you can go.”

        “First of all, tell me where I am.” I pretend to be cooperating.

“You’re the one chained to the floor; you don’t get to make negotiations,” he snarled, “Now tell me the secret.”

         “What secrets are you talking about?” It suddenly dawned on me that I didn't even know what he was talking about

“Tell me the secrets and stop pretending not to know.”

       “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I yelled, “But okay; I took five dollars from Leslie’s bag but I swear I was going to return it, I also cheated on my bio exam and I was paid by Josh and Max to do their reports.”

“Stop playing around,” he growled and fear crawled up my spine, “Tell me about the secret that you and your father are keeping.”

       “My father?” I asked, “My father and I weren’t close enough for me to know of any secrets that he could have kept.”

“You’re lying.” He accused with gritted teeth, his eyes boring into mine. Still, yet I couldn't figure out what color it was.

      “I’m not,” I shouted, becoming frustrated, “Why would I lie? I want out of here as much as anything but I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Tell me the secret that your father is hiding with you.” I repeated, not ready to give up.

       “I don’t know,” I screamed, “I haven’t seen my father in two years; he left me and I have been by myself since, so if it’s him you want then you have a better chance of finding him without me.”

He cleared his throat and straightened.

“You’re obviously not ready to speak,” he fixed his dark eyes on me; “You will stay here until you decide to tell me the truth about why your father killed my wife.”

     I went still with emotions. My father killed his wife?

“My father would never do that.” I defended. Even though it's been a while since we last saw and I had no idea why he left, I knew the kind of man he was. My anger toward him was still there but I knew he wasn't capable of killing anyone.

“Your father is no saint, human,” he said with venom lacing his tone, “He is a monster; just like you, seeing as you don’t want justice.”

          “My father is a perfect gentleman and he would never hurt a fly; you’re lying,” I laced my voice with just as much coldness.

“Shut up!" He railed at me in anger.

I knew how hurt he must be for losing a wife but that wasn't enough reason to kidnap an innocent girl like me.

        “You’re the real monster because you kidnapped an innocent girl.” I tried to be as calm as possible.

“This is my final warning", his tone full of authority.

This tone got me pissed and I spat again, uncaring about the consequences.

    “Shove your fucking warning up your ass. You’re a disgusting monster and I know that my father is innocent and you’re just a sadistic beast looking to punish someone for something that you may have done yourself.”

His nostrils flared in anger by the time I was done and I could hear growls emitting from his chest.

“Baxter!” he yelled suddenly and three men entered the cell. I instantly recognized them as the men who took me, “We need to teach our little guest some respect.”

They smirked as if they understood and one of them left only to return with whips.

“What the hell are you doing?” I stammered in fear and the dark-haired man just smiled and walked away, “Wait, you can’t use those on me.”

         “Don’t worry; this will only sting a little,” one of them mocked.

“She’s human,” another laughed before leaning in, “It is going to sting a lot.”

        “Stay away from me or I’ll call the police,” I tried to threaten but one of them grabbed my arms and pulled making me fall face first to the ground.

I let out a groan as my cheeks dragged against the rough cement floor but all I heard was laughter.

“Your little task force wouldn’t know what to do with us,” someone whispered into my ear, “Now hold still.”

I tried to jerk my hand out of his grip but he wasn’t having it. His hands were like steel bands and I was so focused on trying to get out of his hold that I didn’t hear the crack of the whip until it was too late.

I let out a blood-curdling scream.

“How many are we giving her?” one of them asked.

        “Just enough to bloody her up a little,” the one called Baxter replied.

This time I heard the crack of the whip and I tried to brace myself but I let out a scream to rival the first.

“You bleed so pretty, human,” I heard the one in front of me say and I lifted my head enough to spit at his feet. “Feisty, I like it.”

       “Let’s see if she still spits by the time we’re done with her.”

Another whip landed on my buttocks and I let out a yelping scream of help.