[Erin]
My chest tightened as my heart dropped. Figuratively speaking. I believe my lungs are not functioning properly at this time as well, as it is refusing to pump enough air through my system that I will collapse any time at this moment.
Akim gently pushes me forward. But I can’t move, my feet feel as if they are glued to the ground. My mouth feels as parched as the Sahara, and I'm literally shaking my wits off with fear.
“Come on, sweet cake, move forward,” Akim whispered right above my ear.
My gaze scanned the wide space confines of his study. It was even bigger than the house that my father and I stayed in. However, being in this situation, it couldn’t feel more claustrophobic for me. The brown wooden pattern floor was immaculately polished, with no specks of dust on it, and it reflected the ceiling and the low chandelier suspended above it. The soft glow from the light bulbs embossed above lends a subtle touch of yellowish hues to the room.
The man Akim referred to as his boss walked straight to his mahogany red desk and leaned against it, his arms crossed, while his gaze fixed on me like a laser beam.
Even from a few feet away, I could feel the intensity of his gaze on me, which caused the tiny hairs on the back of my neck to stand up.
“I can’t. I’m scared.” My voice came out almost inaudible. Akim sighed behind me before he stepped inside with a strode. He captured my wrists and pulled me.
My injured knee instantly protested, eliciting a painful yelp tearing from my throat. My left foot tripped over my right foot, and I almost hit my face on the floor. Akim yanks me so suddenly that I thought my arms would be dislocated from my shoulders. I know it was all because of his reflexes, but it was already too late for me to hit my injured knee on the floor.
Pain blasted through my body, and my head pounded excruciatingly as I held back the urge to scream out loud. In the middle of my silent cry, my mouth hung open and the corners of my eyes watered.
“I never use the good, but it had been damaged already. Would you like to explain Akim why the item is wounded?” The man across the room spoke with a low and threatening voice.
I stilled. As I look down at my knees, the blood coursing through my veins becomes ice cold. The blood that was dripping from my knee had accumulated on the floor. I forced myself to stand, grasping Akim’s sleeves, and stood straight, cowering from the imposing presence that pervaded the entire room. I could feel my face contorted with fraught. I couldn’t even look forward. Afraid that if I do so, a single bullet might meet the space between my eyes.
This is what Akim had been telling me a while ago.
If the boss doesn't want me, then this is where my life will come to an end. I won’t be seeing the sun rises again.
My heart pounded against my chest as I listened to the heavy footfalls coming straight in my direction, until I saw a pair of brown leather shoes halted in front of me.
“This isn’t what I expected when I saw her on the live stream, Akim.” He said, plunging both his hands on the pocket of his pants. I could hear the losing restrain of his tone and would snap any minute.
I swallowed hard. I was trying to calm my nerves and keep my body from trembling as I stood so close to the man who holds my life in his hands.
His words sunk into my head. Akim was filming the auction. He saw everything while we were being showcased. He picked me out of a hat. It was not Akim who made the decision. He was simply doing what this man asked him to do, and nothing more.
“Sorry, boss. During the showcase, I didn't notice that she was injured. Her knee had been tampered with an adhesive in order to conceal the wound. I only found out about it when we were on our way here.” Akim lowered his head. Through the corner of my eyes, I saw him pursing his lips.
He was a huge man, and seeing him conceding to someone is quite unbelievable to look at. I was dwarfed by both of them, to be honest. I felt like an elf who had gotten lost in a land of giants.
Not just giants, more like a kingdom of giant lions waiting to feast on my cadaverous carcass.
The man in front of me takes a sharp, deep breath, as if he were trying to keep his temper under control.
“Call the master auctioneer.” I could hear the perilous undertone in his voice as he spoke, despite the fact that he said it in a cold and calm manner.
Without having a second to pass, Akim took out his phone and dialed. I thought he would stay while he makes his call, but to my dismay, he did not. He then walked out of the room, leaving me alone with the king of the lions.
I keep my head low, my chin touching with my chest. The silence was deafening enough that I could hear the rapid beat of my heart reverberating around the four corners of his study.
I could also feel the intense gaze burning on my head, but I didn't dare move or even breathe in the wrong direction. I'm not even sure what I'm going to do. I am terrified.
Not a moment longer, I heard the door open once more and Akim walk through. I couldn’t be even more thankful for the heavens above that he was back. To put it mildly, I feel more at ease with him than I do with this dreadful man who never fails to make my blood run cold.
However, what he said next almost made me snapped the silver linings left in me.
“They said you can kill her and get a refund if you aren’t satisfied with the purchase.”
My eyes went wide, whipping my head to where Akim stood. Unconsciously, my tears started to flow without even noticing it as I bewilderedly stared at his stoic face.
He wasn’t looking at me. He was only looking at the man in front of me without any kind of emotion. As if he wasn’t the Akim that tended to my wounds earlier, the one who scooped me up when I couldn’t walk and put this coat around me to keep me warm.
I know I wasn’t supposed to expect things that would turn out nicely. In fact, I had anticipated this predicament. It’s either I would die today or live another day. Akim told me that. But it hurts. It feels like he betrayed me unknowingly.
My attention was drawn to the drawing footsteps that came too close to my comfort zone, followed by a large hand clasping a clump of my hair in its grip. Yanking my head forcedly backwards, so hard that I thought my neck would break, tearing a loud gasp coming from my throat as I stared at the menacing mossy green eyes.
My tears were streaming down my face nonstop. My eyes were wide with terror as the man took a gun from out of nowhere, pointing the cold metal against my temple, unlatching the safety pin.
“Please…,” I pleaded, closing my eyes.
The searing on my scalp became numb. My hammering heart escalated up to the millionth time to the point where I was convinced it would fracture my ribs. My breath became shallow, preparing for the bullet to pass through my brain.
This is it.
To say the least. I pray that in the afterlife—if there is. I would see my mother again.
“Lock her up in the guest room.”
[Erin]What?Everything stops. I’m not even sure if I hear it right.Does he mean that he’s not going to kill me?The cold gun was still pressed on the side of my head, and he was holding the trigger. If anything, he could be jesting me and would blow my head into bits. While Akim stood there motionless as if what this man said astounds him as well.I could feel the sweat trickling down at the column of my neck as the jugular hollow of my throat drummed with tension. My lungs constricted, my knees blaring with pain. Hence my body froze at the moment.Nobody spoke. A pair of mossy green eyes pierced into my brown ones. He removes the gun away from my head and steps
[Erin]The girl smiled at my reaction. My mouth literally dropped when she said that she was going to be my personal maid.I expected to be treated as a slave or something, but I never imagined that Nikolai would appoint someone to look after my personal needs.But on second thought, was this his initiative?My head turned towards the bathroom door where Akim emerged, he was hold
[Erin]A piercing, petrified shriek penetrates the depths of my eardrums, jolting me out of my brief slumber. In the background, the sound of running water slapping against the marbled floor resounded. The bleach white wall blurred in my vision as my lids fluttered open. My nose immediately stings as I try to take a deep breath, but instead of air, water rushes into my nasal passages, instantly wheezing as I gasp for air.“Oh, goodness, Erin! Are you alright? I thought you were dead!” A woman’s voice shouted on my side. I whipped my head, blowing the excess water off my nose as I fully came to my senses. Only to be greeted by Micah's concerned expression hovering above me.I look at her with a baffled expression, my brows furrowed deeply.
[Erin]I didn’t say anything after that and finished off the remaining food, which was only a few pieces of grapes. Both of them waited patiently as I emptied everything on my plate. I stood up, Micah went to usher me, assisting me towards Akim, who is now holding the wheelchair steady as I ease myself in it.I keep my silence. Though my stomach is now happy, my heart fell heavy upon thinking about how my fate twirls around a man’s palm. Playing with its strings and then cutting them whenever he gets sick of me or decides that I am no longer of use to himI felt Akim start pushing the wheelchair while Micah followed on our trail. We weaved through the labyrinth of corners. Navigating from there to here until I lost count of how many turns we took, my attention focused solely focused on the abstract portraits
[Erin]Tears flowed right through the corners of my eyes as I kept my mouth clamped shut, denying him access. Nikolai didn’t just stop there assaulting me with his punishing kiss. One of his hands moved down, rough palms trailing flatly on my stomach until it found the lacy strings of my underwear, and in one swift motion, he ripped it.The fabric bites on my skin. Surely that would leave an imprint. I writhed underneath him, my knees trying to push him, but it was to no avail. He’s too strong for me to even twist my wrist in attempt to twist my wrist and break free.I let out a whimper when he bit my lower lip so hard, gasping as he did so. He took it as an opportunity and plunged his assaulting tongue without permission. I could feel my lips seared and become swoll
[Erin]I hadn’t realized that I had fallen asleep on the bathroom floor, crying. I just woke up having Micah screaming like a banshee when she saw me lying on the cold tiles. I jolted up and stared at her, bewildered, and my brain was still fuzzy from standing up straight in a rush. It was like all the blood on my body left on the floor.“Goodness! Erin, what happened to you?” Her shocked expression greeted me at the bathroom door.I looked down on myself and saw my disheveled state. My torn nightdress, bruised, swollen lips, red bite marks on my collar down to my cleavage, and purple hand imprint on my wrists. I could also feel that my eyes looked like they were stung by a bee from being so puffed up.The memory
[Third Person’s Point of View] — NikolaiThe sound of rushing water slapping against the granite floor resounded on the corners of his bathroom floor. Nikolai stood under the intense pressure of his shower, letting the freezing water cascade on him, cooling down the hotness spreading on his veins like a contagious disease.He was drunk. He didn’t know how he managed to slip into her room. He just came to his senses when he heard her crying.He wanted to kill her. She wasn’t as flawless as he deemed when he saw her in person. He was watching the entire auction process through Akim’s live feed. The moment he set his eyes on her, he knew he wanted her so bad even only through the monitor.She was like a
[Erin]In the wide expanse of the estate, I got lost for a couple of turns. Fortunately, I saw a woman dressed just like Micah dragging a vacuum cleaner and one large box of empty garbage bins. She was cleaning the portrait with a feather duster, wiping them with a clean rag.I gingerly look around to see if there is anyone aside from here cleaning in this part of the hallway. Only to find out that she was alone. I kept my gaze fixed on the woman, hoping for a moment when she would leave the bin unattended, and I prayed to God that the bin was completely empty.She then took the vacuum cleaner, turning it on. Loud noise suddenly reverberated on the hallway walls. I patiently waited. She dragged the nozzle towards the nook in the wall, squeezing it to remove the almost nonexisten