Chapter 3

(Angela's POV)

After I was sold off for 50 million dollars, I fainted.

When I awoke, I was shocked to find my head resting on someone's thigh.

My eyes fluttered open. I recalled Isabella saying I would be sold as a sex slave. I was scared, thinking I was already being taken against my will. But then, my eyes landed on him—my elder sister's boyfriend.

*How could this be?*

Richard looked at me calmly, his black eyes not shifting away from mine, his thin lips pressed into a firm line, not bothering to explain anything to me.

I glanced down at my chest and, thankfully, I was still wearing my blue dress. But how did I end up in a car with him?

How did I get to be in the same car as Richard Henshaw? Was he the man who had purchased me?

"Please, stop the car. Let me go home, please," I begged him, but the driver didn't bother to stop. It was as if my words fell on deaf ears.

*Am I a ghost? Was I killed?*

I touched my legs and pinched myself, wincing at the pain. Richard quickly grasped my hands, stopping me from pinching my legs.

"What are you doing, trying to hurt yourself, huh?" His voice was hot, rough, and alluring.

"No," I whispered, trembling, as I didn't know how I had ended up in a car with him.

"Please, let me go home. How come you're the one taking me home? Where are we going?" I asked Richard, barely recognizing the road his driver was taking.

"You belong to me now, princess. And you shouldn't think you can leave my sight or return to your parents," Richard said, his voice stern, and my jaw dropped.

"Were you the one who purchased me?" I asked him in shock, trembling as I peered at his handsome, dark face.

"What does it look like to you? You were auctioned at the dark realm auction, and I purchased you. So, you should be the one answering my questions, not the other way around. How did you end up there? The auction house doesn't sell illegal stuff. That only explains to me that you willingly went there to be sold."

Richard clasped my hands together, which were still tied.

"No, I didn't want to be sold. I cannot agree to be sold to anyone, and you do not own me," I challenged him, looking at him with a piercing gaze.

"I see," Richard smirked and looked away as the car took another sharp turn.

"Do you know who I am?" Richard asked, not bothering to look at my face as he brought out a cigarette, lit the end, and started smoking.

"You're Richard Henshaw, my elder sister's boyfriend," I said, and he smiled.

"Good. Apart from that, do you know what I do for a living?" he asked, his cold voice making my heart quiver.

"Um, no, I don't know. But Isabella said that you are the son of a mafia lord, and your father is Wesley Henshaw," I replied, my voice trembling, and he nodded.

"Great. Since you know who my father is, then that explains that you already know me too. I bought you tonight, and I do not care to know how you ended up putting yourself up for sale. But I must warn you, little princess: Even your parents can't take you away from me. They know the rules of the mafias in this Top Hills City, and my family is the number one mafia boss in this city. So, you should be warned, little princess. You are not to leave my house or try to escape. I will have you branded on your chest so that you bear my name wherever you go," Richard said, his voice stern as he smoked his cigarette.

"No, I don't want to be sold. I never wanted to have anything to do with you. Isabella misunderstood everything. She thought I was trying to steal you from her. Please, let me go home. My sister loves you. Don't brand me as your property. I cannot become your sex slave," I cried, trying to plead with Richard.

I was a little relieved that Richard was the man who had bought me, so that meant I could return home, right?

"Don't touch me!" Richard smacked my hands away from touching his chest in a pleading manner, glaring at me.

"Do you want me to have you here in this car? Do you want to experience your first time in this car, huh?" He glared at me, and I shuddered away from him and gulped hard.

"No, I don't want it. I don't want you," I mumbled, and he laughed.

"You will. Definitely not now," he said, reaching to touch my hair, but I raised my hands and smacked his hands away from touching me.

The car pulled to a stop, and I gazed out the tinted window.

"We have arrived home. Welcome to my home, my princess," Richard said as he extinguished his cigarette.

"Don't call me that. My name is Angela Moraga, not a princess," I told him through clenched teeth, and he smiled.

"I know, and you don't have to correct me. Come out now," Richard said, getting out of the car first, and I felt dread run down my spine.

As I searched for my phone, I recalled that my phone was in my black handbag, but it was in Isabella's car. How could I reach out to my parents now?

I knew my father's phone number, and I planned to call him. Though my parents had traveled for a business trip, I didn't know how they would react to my absence from home.

Would they look for me? Would they come and get me away from Richard's grip?

How dare Richard Henshaw call me his property? I couldn't imagine sleeping with the same man that my sister had been intimate with.

I didn't want to have anything to do with Richard Henshaw.

So many young women wanted him, but I wanted to further my education at Top Hills University to study surgical procedures and become a surgeon.

Tears welled up in my eyes as the driver got out of the car and came to pull the door open.

Richard had already walked away, and I saw some men in black bow and welcome him as he walked up to the frontage of his mansion.

*Is Richard the owner of this magnificent house?* I wondered, as the driver told me, "Come out, Miss, and do not think that you can run away. Master Richard has been nice to bring you here instead of taking you straight to the harem."

My brows furrowed at the driver as I wondered what he meant. I recalled I wasn't the only one sold. Some other young women were sold at the Auction, and Richard had said the auction was legal, meaning all those girls had willingly agreed to sell themselves.

Was that the truth? What if they were kidnapped and sold off against their wishes like me?

Silently, I followed the driver who led me into the luxurious white mansion.