Kidnapped

EMILY'S POV

After Marco left that morning, he came back till later that night. 

I felt really bad, I tried talking to him several times, but he didn't pay any attention to me.

The next morning I woke up early and sat in the parlor, waiting for Marco. 

Immediately I saw him coming from the stairs, I rushed to him and hugged him. 

“I'm sorry, I didn't mean to lie to you.” I peeked up at him, “please Marco, I'm sorry, it hurts when you ignore me.” I blinked up at him, my eyes watering.

He just looked at me, not saying anything. 

I pouted and tugged on his suit “please, I'm sorry.” 

He inhaled, giving me the frustrated look. “Don't ever do that again Emily, don't ever lie to me.” 

“I promise, I won't lie to you.” I said, nodding my head. 

“I have a meeting to attend now, I'll see you when I get back. Don't go anywhere without the guards and inform me first. Jonathan is coming with me, but the other guards will remain in the house.” 

I bounced my head up and down, smiling from ear to ear. My reaction made Marco shake his head and smiled. 

He patted my head and placed a soft kiss on my lips before leaving. 

I watched from the window until his car disappeared. 

The silence afterward felt very choking. My body still ached from the flu, but I was better. I was just tired of feeling useless.

I walked to the living room and turned on the TV to keep myself distracted for a while. 

By noon, I had finished watching five movies, my eyes ached. I got up and went to take a shower, once I was done, dressed simply in jeans and a sweater, and made myself tea. 

The guards outside nodded at me when I passed by the window, and I waved back. I was just sitting down to read a boom I got from Marco's collection of books. 

When I heard a knock on the door.

I frowned, no one should be knocking, the guards  were posted outside. The cooks and maids were not here yet.  

I moved slowly, very cautiously, and peeked through the side window. 

A woman stood there, it was the same woman from the grocery store. 

There was no way I'll forget the tall and elegant woman, her Jet-black hair twisted into a perfect knot. Her lips were painted a dangerous red. 

"Emily," she called, her voice melodic and almost sweet. "It’s freezing out here. Let me in."

I backed away slowly, my hands were already reaching for my phone when the glass near the back of the house shattered.

“AHHHHHHHHHH!” a loud scream tore from my throat. 

How had they gotten in? The guards…. Where were the guards? 

How could this happen every time despite how heavily guarded the house was. 

A man in a ski mask barged in through the broken patio door, another followed. It seemed like the guards outside just became aware of the intruder. They started shouting outside, gunfire rang out, and everything descended into chaos.

I ran toward the hallway, trying to get to the panic button Marco had installed in the dining room. One of the masked men tackled me halfway there.

"No!" I screamed, thrashing as hard as I could, biting down on his arm. He grunted, but didn’t let go. I scratched, kicked, shoved. Another joined him, and together, they overpowered me.

"Sedate her!" The woman barked.

"Don’t you dare—!" I tried to yell, but the words blurred. A sharp prick on my neck, and then the world spun violently.

Everything went black.

I woke up with a burning thirst, my head was pounding so hard, I actually thought I'd pass out again. 

After a few minutes, the pain reduced and I opened my eyes, my wrists and my ankles were bound in front of me.

The room was cold, dimly lit by a flickering bulb overhead. The walls were made of concrete. It looked like a basement, but not in a residential sense, this was industrial. And it had been a while since it was used. 

"You’re awake," said a voice that made my blood chill.

I looked up slowly, the woman from the door. 

She stood a few feet away, arms folded, her red coat discarded now, revealing a tight black dress and heeled boots. Her makeup was untouched, not even a smudge. 

"Who are you?" My voice was hoarse, I already suspected who she was, but I wanted to confirm. 

She smiled thinly. "You don’t know me, but I know you."

She began going around me in circles.

"You’re the girl who crawled into Marco’s life like a parasite, the little stray he married."

I clenched my jaw. "If you have a problem, take it up with him."

She laughed, the sound of it sent shivers down my spine. "Oh, I did. I gave him everything: my time, my loyalty and my body. Until you came along with your pathetic little eyes and fragile heart."

So this was Seraphina.

"He ended things with you," I said through my teeth. "Because he chose me."

Her expression twisted, in one swift motion, she slapped me. 

My cheek stung and my head snapped to the side.

"You don’t get to talk," she spat. "Not until I say you can."

The door creaked open and one of the masked men walked in. "We found a tail. Took care of him. But they’ll be looking."

Seraphina nodded. "Then we need to move faster. Get her ready."

"For what?" I demanded, but no one answered.

They left me lying down on the cold concrete floor and shut the door.

I wanted to cry, but I won't give Seraphina the pleasure of seeing me cry.

I laid down there, muttering silent prayers, one of the masked men came in.

He crouched down to my level and dragged me up, "where are yo-" he put a dirty rag in my mouth, cutting me short.