6

Amelia’s POV

I woke up on a cold, hard floor that smelled like dried blood, the smell clinging to the damp air. My head thumped painfully, each pulse like a hammer against my skull as I struggled to sit up. Blinking a few times, I tried to make sense of my surroundings. The room was empty, the dim light casting long shadows across the walls. How did I even end up here?

I winced as the movement only aggravated my headache. The last thing I remembered was performing on stage, then wandering outside into the garden for some air. That’s when the men... I closed my eyes, trying to piece it together, but the memory was a blur. It was interrupted by the sound of a door creaking open.

A man stepped into the room, holding a length of rope. Instinctively, I backed up, though there was nowhere to go.

“How did I get here? Were you the one who brought me?” I demanded, my voice shaky but defiant.

“Our boss did,” the man replied, stepping closer.

“Who the fuck is your boss, and what does he want with me?” I snapped, already exhausted and feeling a sense of panic rising in my chest.

“You defrauded him of five hundred million dollars.” the man said calmly, squatting down to eye level. “Kai Alessandro—does that ring any bells?”

The name hit me like a freight train. My mouth dropped open in shock. Kai Alessandro? If it was truly him, I was dead meat. He wouldn’t spare me for a penny, let alone five hundred million dollars. Panic gripped me as I realized the severity of the situation i had gotten myself into. Fear turned to desperation as I thought of my mom—she was battling brain tumor, and we hadn’t even saved enough for her surgery. If I died here, who would take care of her? I couldn’t die now. Not when my mother still needed me.

“I... I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I stammered, trying to buy time, but the man’s hand flew across my face, the slap ringing in my ears, before I could recover, he grabbed a fistful of my hair, yanking my head back. “if i were you, i wouldn’t be lying. You would be doing yourself a favour by not lying to kai’s face”

He was about to strike me again when a voice cut through the air, calm and sharp.

“Carlos, are you hitting a woman again?”

Carlos froze immediately standing and bowing his head as footsteps echoed down the hallway. My heart pounded in my chest, fear and confusion swirling inside me. Who was that?

The door opened, and in walked a young man. My heart stopped. It was him—the man I’d spilled soda on the other day. The same arrogant guy who’d made me repeat my performance. I recognized him instantly, though I doubted he remembered me, especially since I’d been wearing my masquerade mask both times we met. Still, I couldn’t believe he was here. Could he be Kai Alessandro? He didn’t look like the terrifying criminal I’d imagined—too handsome, too calm. But there was something dark in his eyes.

“Boss, this is the hacker,” Carlos said, pointing at me.

The man didn’t even glance my way. Instead, he looked at Carlos, his voice soft but authoritative. “How many times do I have to tell you not to hit women?” His tone was mild, but the warning was clear.

“Mi dispiace, capo,” Carlos muttered in what sounded like Italian, bowing again. I didn’t understand a word of it, but I didn’t need to. It was clear who was in charge here.

The man’s eyes finally met mine, and for a moment, I felt a shiver run down my spine. “So you’re the one who stole from me?” he said, his voice so calm it was unsettling. “I didn’t expect my hacker to be a woman.”

I rolled my eyes in disbelief. “I’m not a hacker,” I shot back. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Carlos stepped forward, frustration on his face. “boss, this was why i had hit her, just let me handle…..”

“Enough,” Kai interrupted, casting a sharp look at him. “Don’t justify your idiocy. There are other ways to make her talk... ways that don’t involve hitting.”

He walked over to a table in the corner, picking up a gun. My heart rate spiked. He said he wouldn’t hit me, but this was worse. Was he going to kill me? Torture me? My mind raced as I tried to figure out what to say, how to convince them they had the wrong person. Carlos shot me a disappointed look, as though he knew what was coming next.

Before I could even form a thought, I felt a sharp, burning pain in my arm. My scream pierced the air as I looked down and saw blood gushing from a bullet wound in my left arm. The world tilted for a moment, and all I could focus on was the pain that pulsed with each beat of my heart.

Pain surged through my body, radiating from the bullet wound in my thigh, but the emotional turmoil was worse. How did I even get here? Trapped in this nightmare, I felt my heart pounding in my chest, my breath coming in sharp gasps as I watched Kai with fear and anger. His calm demeanor made everything worse. He wasn’t phased. He didn’t even bat an eyes, it was like he didn’t have a heart.

“See? That’s how you do it,” he had said to Carlos, like he was teaching a lesson in cruelty. His smile, so detached, so cold, sent a chill down my spine. It was as if none of this mattered to him—my pain was just part of the game.

He turned to face me, his dark eyes locking onto mine. The fear clung to my throat as he spoke again, his voice eerily smooth. “I don’t hit women, I prefer using a gun.” His words were like venom, seeping into the room, poisoning the air between us. He shot me an apologetic look, but it felt hollow. “This dumbass knows,” he said, nodding toward Carlos, who couldn’t even meet my eyes. “I don’t know why he had to hit you. I apologize on his behalf.”

“Bastard!” I spat at him, the words slipping out before I could stop them.

I regretted it the second it left my mouth. Kai’s expression shifted, coldness creeping in like a winter storm. He aimed the gun at my right leg, muttering almost to himself, “Right leg…”

Before I could plead, the shot rang out. The pain was excruciating. It felt like fire racing up my leg as the bullet tore through my thigh, ripping into muscle and bone. My scream filled the room, but Kai didn’t flinch. If anything, he seemed more focused, like he was in control of everything—even my agony.

“c’mon now, don’t overreact, this isn’t even a real gun, the bullets are made of rubber. You would’ve been dead by now if this were real” he said as his finger ran across the tip of the gun

He aimed again, this time at my chest. "and the heart...." he muttered, pulling the trigger, but nothing happened. The click of the empty chamber echoed in the silence. A small, cruel smile flickered on his lips as he turned to Carlos, giving him more torturing advice as if I wasn’t sitting there bleeding out. “When you run out of bullets, you walk to your target. Make sure the bullet touches the bone.”

Then he did it—he pressed his foot hard against my injured leg. I screamed again, tears blurring my vision. "Please, stop," I begged through the pain, but I knew deep down begging would do nothing. Carlos turned away, clearly unable to handle the sight of what was happening. He looked as though he wished he were anywhere else but here.

Kai stopped, stepping back as if to allow me to speak. I lied. “I’m really not the hacker. You’ve got the wrong person, please let me go!” I was desperate, clinging to any hope that they might believe me, but Kai wasn’t fooled. He looked at me with the same coldness in his eyes, but there was something else there now—amusement.

“Carlos, are you sure you didn’t get the wrong person?” Kai asked, his voice dripping with sarcasm. He was playing with me, toying with my fear like a predator enjoying the hunt. Carlos, trying to remain composed, answered, "I am sure she is the hacker, boss."

Kai turned back to me, a look of false pity crossing his face. “It’s such a pity you got the wrong person,” he said, turning his back on me. “Kill her and find the hacker, she isn’t useful.”

My heart dropped. I had to say something—anything to save myself. “I am the hacker!” I shouted, the words ripping from my throat before I could stop them. “But I was forced to do it, please don’t kill me!” Tears streamed down my face as Kai turned slowly to face me. He wasn’t surprised, not at all. He knew all along.

He crouched in front of me, his eyes moving from my injuries to my tear-streaked face. For a moment, he just stared at me. His silence was suffocating. Then, in a voice that was barely more than a whisper, he asked, “Then why did it take you so long to admit? Were you trying to be difficult?”

“I never wanted to do it,” I cried, my voice shaking. “Please, don’t kill me.”

He stood up, towering over me as I sat in a pool of my own blood, feeling smaller than ever before. "What's your name?" he asked, his tone colder now, businesslike.

“Amelia,” I managed to say, my voice trembling.

“I don’t enjoy hurting women, Amelia," Kai said quietly, though his eyes burned with anger. "But you pushed me. You pushed me really hard." His words were calm, but there was fury simmering beneath them. He turned and walked away, leaving me shaking in pain and terror.

Just as he reached the exit, he stopped, his voice cutting through the air. “Find her a comfortable room. This place reeks. And send for a doctor to treat her immediately. I don’t want her dead, at least not yet. She needs to stay alive until the job is done.”

Then he was gone, leaving me alone with Carlos and the unbearable weight of what had just happened.