The Man With The Scar

CHAPTER 2

The sound of the iron bars moving woke Avril up. She had dosed off after worrying about her life and the turn it was taking. 

A man entered their cell with a bright flashlight which he flashed on their faces one after the other. 

Avril closed her eyes when the heavy light hit it. Her vision was still blur because of her sleep and the light was making it worse. 

“you... Follow me” the man said 

“me?” Avril asked. She tried to open her eyes but could only do that half way. Even so, she couldn't see anything else but the light. 

“yes. Come with me” he said and pointed the light to the ceiling. The cell became bright and she could clearly see the girls who were all sitting up. They exchanged looks with her and there was assurance and encouragement in those eyes. 

Avril got on her feet for the first time in few hours and she felt a pang of pain run through her, from her legs to her spine. She however managed to stand well and began to walk forward. 

The man turned and began walking while Avril took steps behind him. 

Chidi reached out and touched Avril's hand 

“do as they say. Remember that” she whispered and Avril nodded and walked out of the cell. She followed the man and took every corner he took till they reached a cabin. Two men were seated smoking and playing cards. One of them had a terrible scar on his left arm as if he was burnt by a very hot object or fire itself. 

“this is her” the man who Avril followed said. 

The man with the burnt arm looked up at Avril and puffed out smoke. He assessed her with awkward eyes and nodded then continued playing. 

The man she followed turned around and left. She didn't know what to do. Whether she was to follow the man out or stand there in the room. She looked behind her as he exited through the door and she looked at the men playing cards. She decided to follow the man again and she turned and took a step. 

“and where do you think you're going?” a deep and dark voice echoed through her head. She swallowed and turned back to face them. It was the scarred man who had spoken. 

“I... I... I thought I was supposed... Supposed to follow him” Avril stammered 

“excuse us” he said to his opponent who gently got up and walked out. 

“what? He's leaving? Leaving just me and this ugly man? Oh my God!” she said to herself. She began to worry and pray nothing bad happens to her 

“God please save me. Please’’ she prayed. 

The man stood up and loosened his belt to Avril's bewilderment. She moved back and tried to stay cool 

“lie on the couch” he said and began to unbutton his shirt. Avril's eyes widened. She knew what she was in for but didn't want to accept it. She stood there, not moving at all. 

The man unbuttoned his shirt and removed it then stared at Avril. 

“I see you're the shy one. Don't be shy. Come to me pretty girl” he said and began to move towards her. 

Avril felt her breathing getting faster and her heart thumping fast against her chest. 

“no no.. Get away from me” she said and moved backwards. 

“don't make this hard on yourself. Don't be stubborn” he said and moved closer to her

“get away from me!” she screamed and ran off towards the door. As she tried to open it, he reached out and grabbed her arm. She screamed and kicked him with her leg but he pulled her and threw her to the floor, right behind him. He moved to the door, locked it and threw the key into a small fish tank on a table. 

Avril knew she was in for more trouble. Fear crawled all over her mind and she couldn't help but regret her actions. 

“I would have complied. I shouldn't have acted that way” she spoke out 

“oh really? After you've hurt my pride? I wanted to go easy on you”

“but not anymore!” he said in an angered tone. 

With just one hand, he pulled Avril up and threw her to the couch in a matter of seconds. She hit it roughly with her back and bounced off to the floor, face down. She screamed and he pulled her up again. He began to punch her tummy. He punched her five times and cared nothing about her screams and cries. She crouched down shouting and hugging herself. 

“no one tries to reject me! Get that into your skull!” the maniac yelled and grabbed her hair. She screamed and held his hand. 

“please... I'm sorry. I'm so sorry!” she pleaded 

He pulled her hair and made her hit her face on a wall, making her burst her lip and bruise her eye and cheek. He let go off her to fall on the floor. 

Avril fell with a thud and she curled up, crying loudly. She couldn't help herself even though she wanted to. She desperately wished she could fight back. 

“I'm going to give you a lifetime scar. You'll so remember this moment” she heard the man's voice few feet from her. She lifted her face and saw him with a pen knife. Her eyes widened as she imagined what he planned to do to her. 

“no...” she muttered. And with a God-given energy, she jerked up to her feet and pushed the man's lifted hand to his face. The knife slit through his cheek up to his ear. He let out a very loud scream and dropped the knife to the floor. His blood began to gush down his face, staining his body and also dripping on the floor. 

Avril gasped at the sight of blood. She stood still for seconds with her mouth ajar. 

The man looked towards her with anger and pure evil in his eyes. She knew he would kill her if she remained in that room. 

Taking advantage of his already weak body, Avril grabbed a plate and dashed forward at him. She smashed it against his face, exactly against his open flesh then kicked him. He screamed and fell to the floor. She dashed to the fish tank, pulled out the key and went to the door. Her hands were shaking and she couldn't get the key to enter into the keyhole. 

“come on!” she yelled and kept trying. She got it in but couldn't get it to open quickly. She looked back and saw him trying to get on his feet again. 

“no... Please open! Please!” she cried and finally unlocked it. She gasped when she saw that it unlocked. In a matter of seconds, she had ran out of the room after closing the door. At least, even if he wanted to pursue her, he'd have to open the door and that could buy her some time to run. But run to where? This was his ship. 

Avril kept running, and making turns she didn't know where they led. She looked behind her and didn't see or hear him approaching. 

“but he'll find me. He's going to kill me” she muttered as she hurried along. 

“who's going to kill you?” a masculine voice sounded. She shivered and looked behind her to see who it was. The voice was calm and young, so it definitely wasn't him. 

She was right, it wasn't him. The man standing there was young and tall and good looking. He wore grey trousers and a white shirt. He seemed American. 

“tell me. Who's going to kill you?” he asked again then he looked her over 

Right then, the other man came into view with his bleeding face. He had two other men with him. 

“there she is! Get her! Get her now!” he ordered and the men behind him sprang towards Avril. She screamed and ran behind the young man then grabbed his arms. 

“please! Help me! Help me please!” she pleaded with him 

“hey there!” he said and motioned for them to stop. They stood and looked at him. 

“why after the young lady?” he asked 

“look! Look at my face! Look what the b!tch did to my face!” the maniac announced 

“man! That's bad!” the young man said 

“you did that?” he asked Avril. She didn't answer neither did she make any movement. 

“I swear I'm going to kill her” 

“go get yourself treated Paolo. You're bleeding on my floor” 

“but... But the girl–”

“–I'll take care of the girl. Now get your @ss moving” 

The maniac glared at Avril, grumbled something and walked away 

“what are you two waiting for?” he asked the two men still standing 

They walked away too. 

Finally, Avril could breathe. She lessened her grasp on his arms and let out a sigh. He turned and looked at her then chuckled softly. 

“you're safe at least for now” he said 

“thank you. Thank you so much” she said and a tear slid down her face 

“I like your spirit. Come with me” 

She managed to smile a very weak smile. She followed him and felt relief. She was grateful to God and to the young man for saving her life. 

He said she was safe. But what did he mean by '...at least for now'?