Chapter 1: Betrayed

I woke up because I felt someone lightly slapping my cheek and tapping my shoulder while whispering my name. When I opened my eyes, the first thing I noticed was a woman with a worried expression. I blinked several times before deciding to sit up.

When my head began to ache, I held it with both hands, trying to calm myself.

"Can you tell me what's happening? And where am I?" I asked her.

I was clueless about what was going on. I didn’t even know why I was sleeping in her lap. I coughed because my throat felt itchy and dry.

She immediately handed me a bottle of water, which I drank slowly until I felt more conscious. When I looked around, my eyes widened. We weren’t the only ones there. I saw four women sitting far from us. They were quiet, but there was sadness and fear in their eyes.

I felt cold, so I looked down at the thin clothes I was wearing. Why am I wearing this? What kind of place is this? I murmured to myself as I tried to figure out what kind of vehicle we were in. I concluded that we were inside a truck.

I felt a soft touch on my shoulder and slowly looked at the woman behind me. She still looked worried, and it seemed like she knew me. She moved slightly closer.

"Susana, don’t you remember anything? You ran away last night, and the boss searched the whole village for you. They found you unconscious in your apartment."

I frowned at what she said. Unconscious in my apartment?

A flashback suddenly appeared in my mind. Suzanne made me smell an intoxicating perfume, and after that, I couldn’t remember anything. My senses tingled as I tried to recall what had happened that night.

All I remembered was my twin forcing me to wear that dress and asking me to go to a party I didn’t even know about. She told me to be quick and careful. She apologized several times, but I ignored her. I never expected her to do this to me.

What the hell were you thinking, Suzanne? You fucking traitor! I’m your twin, and you did this to me?

"Suzanne? Where is she?" I asked the woman who clearly knew me, even though I didn’t know her.

She looked surprised. "Who is Suzanne, Susana? Is she your sister? Maybe she already escaped," she answered.

My chest started pounding because of the chaos in my mind and everything happening around me. The four women near us looked young. Was this human trafficking?

What kind of place is this?

I was wearing a very thin dress. Only my private parts were covered, while the rest of my body was exposed. I tried to stand up, even though I kept losing my balance. I searched for a small opening to see where we were going, but the truck was completely sealed. Only the cold air from the air conditioner allowed us to breathe properly.

"Susana, sit down. There’s nothing we can do," the woman said. "We have to follow them, or we’ll die."

Who is this woman? Why does she know me? I didn’t want to jump to conclusions, but did Suzanne use my identity to live this kind of life? Seriously?

I sat beside her again and faced her. She seemed confused by my behavior but ignored it.

"What’s your name?" I asked.

She frowned at my sudden question.

"We’ve been together for a year, Susana. Why do you seem like you’ve forgotten me?" she asked.

I shook my head and moved closer to her. She looked kind, and we seemed to be the same age. But there was sadness and fear in her eyes. She looked surprised when I took her hands and held them tightly.

"Look at me," I said softly.

"Why? Did you hit your head last night so you don’t remember me?" she asked, avoiding my gaze. I gently forced her to look at me.

"Tell me what you see on my face," I insisted.

She examined my face carefully.

"You have fair skin, and it’s smooth. I also love your heart-shaped lips."

"What else?"

"Your eyes are blue."

She suddenly looked shocked and stepped back. I smiled slightly while she stared at me in confusion.

"Your eyes aren’t blue, Susana! Who are you? Where is my friend?" she shouted, attracting attention.

"My name is Susana, but the woman you spent a year with living this life was Suzanne, my twin. Honestly, I don’t even know how she ended up living such a hellish life. I don’t know why she did this to me!" I screamed, overwhelmed with emotion.

Suzanne, why did you betray me? I shouldn’t have trusted you.

"N-No! You’re lying! Susana is my friend! Where did you hide her?" she shouted again.

"My name is Susana, but I’m not the woman you came here with! I have no idea how I ended up here. My twin betrayed me!" I cried.

My tears suddenly stopped when the truck came to a halt. Everyone panicked when the door opened. It was dark outside, probably nighttime, and the armed men were carrying guns.

"L-Let me go... please..." the woman begged, crawling toward one of the men and clinging to his arm.

We didn’t expect him to shoot her in the head. She died instantly. I froze in shock as blood splashed onto my body.

"Don’t fight or try to run away. This isn’t the worst thing you’ll face. I killed that woman because she was pregnant. Don’t try to get pregnant, or I’ll kill you too," he threatened.

I lowered my head, trembling, and held the hand of the woman beside me. She whispered for me to calm down and avoid eye contact.

"Get down!" the man shouted, pulling us out of the truck one by one.

None of us resisted.

We were surrounded by high walls. My hope of escaping disappeared.

"Go straight to the red door where the Lord is. Do you understand? Don’t make any noise," the man ordered.

Under the light, I noticed he was handsome and looked foreign, with green eyes. Behind him were five other men around the same age, staring at us with desire. I hugged myself tightly.

"What are you waiting for? Get inside!" He fired a shot, making us flinch.

We cried as we walked toward the red door.

Inside, a muscular man with long hair and dark skin stared at us. He wore a black suit and white gloves.

"Only five women, Luke? Five women for ten million? Are you serious?" he asked angrily.

Luke replied, "They’re the only women Lopez had."

"I need a virgin, Luke. Are they virgins? They don’t look like virgins—especially that stinking one!"

"All of them are virgins except the one I killed earlier. She was pregnant," Luke said without regret.

The man looked at each of us.

"How old are you?"

"Twenty."

"Nineteen."

"Twenty-five," Ria answered.

"Twenty-one."

Then it was my turn.

"How about you, doll? How old are you?"

"T-Twenty-five..." I whispered.

"She’s lying. She’s twenty," Luke corrected.

The man looked at me coldly.

"Fuck you," he muttered.

"Come here."

I hesitated.

"Doll!" he shouted.

When I still didn’t move, he removed his gloves and pointed a gun at me.

"Luke, take them to their room. Leave this doll with me."

They left. I was alone with him.

"You’re not a virgin, Susana. Did you think I wouldn’t recognize you just because your eyes turned blue and your skin became fair?"

Does he know me?

"I know every part of your body. Fuck you for leaving our son!" he growled, pulling me toward him.

"I don’t understand! Maybe Suzanne is the one you’re talking about!" I shouted.

He forced me onto the bed.

"Let go of me!" I screamed.

"Stop resisting. We’ve done this many times!" he growled.

"I’m not Suzanne! I’m her twin! Please!" I begged.

He didn’t believe me.

When he forced himself into me, I felt unbearable pain.

"Fuck!" he muttered in shock.

"I told you... I’m not her," I whispered before everything went dark.

The last thing I heard was:

"Call the doctor now!"