4: AMAYA’S POV

I didn’t know how long I had been there.

Hours? Days maybe?

It was really had to tell sometimes.

Time didn’t exist in that cell. Only the cold and the silence between the mocking voices of the guards who made sure I could not escape.

Only the sound of my own breathing, uneven and weak.

I sat with my back against the wall, knees pulled to my chest, my fingers numb from the cold. My head throbbed. My body ached. Every part of me felt… used up.

Like there was nothing left to take.

And yet, I knew there was more coming.

There was always more to take from me.

The laughter outside had faded, replaced by quieter voices. Boots against concrete and hurried movement.

Something was happening outside.

Something urgent.

I lifted my head slowly, my heart picking up speed.

“GET UP!”

The voice came from outside the cell, it was sharp and commanding.

I didn’t move fast enough.

The door slammed open and light flooded in, blinding me for a second. I flinched, raising a hand to shield my eyes.

“I SAID GET UP, GIRL!”

I forced myself to stand, legs trembling beneath me. My balance wavered, but I caught myself against the wall.

I wasn’t going to fall again. Not in front of them.

Two men stood at the door. Armed and watching me carefully.

One of them stepped aside.

And that was when everything changed….. The moment that He walked in.

I didn’t know who he was at first. But I felt it immediately.

There was an unmistakably shift in the air, the silence that followed him, the way the men straightened without being told.

This man, whoever he was, radiated power.

He walked slowly and inspected the cell, he didn’t even look at me right away.

My breath caught when his eyes finally lifted to mine… I forgot how to breathe completely.

There was something utterly dark about his eyes. I can’t explain it but I knew that it made my chest tighten.

He wasn’t loud like the others. He looked controlled and in control of everyone and everything.

He looked at me like but said nothing. At least, not yet.

I swallowed hard, my throat was dry. My fingers curled into my dress.

I didn’t speak. I didn’t dare.

He took a step closer. Then another. I wanted to back away, but my body refused to move.

“Is this her?” he asked one of the armed men quietly.

His voice wasn’t raised. It didn’t need to be. It cut through the room anyway.

“Yes, boss,” one of the men answered immediately.

Boss?

My stomach dropped. So this was him.

The one they were talking about. The one who would decide if I lived… or died.

His gaze didn’t leave me. Not once. It moved over my face, my torn dress, the bruises already forming on my skin. Taking everything in.

I had never felt so exposed in my entire life.

I wondered how my father would feel if he could see me now. If he could see the mess that he had thrown me into without a second thought.

I lowered my eyes instinctively.

“Look at me.”

The command was quiet but my head snapped up immediately.

My heart slammed against my ribs.

His eyes held mine again. And this time… something shifted in them. It wasn’t softness.

It was something that I had seen in Raul’s eyes as well.

Interest.

And that terrified me more than anything else.

He stepped even closer now, close enough that I could feel his presence fully.

Close enough that I could see the sharp line of his jaw, the calm in his expression, the complete lack of hesitation.

“What is your name?” he asked.

My lips parted. My voice came out small.

“A-Amaya.”

“My name is Bane. Do you have a last name, Amaya?”

“Vancouver, S….sir”

I was never going to bring myself to answer Raul’s last name.

Not like my father’s last name was any better. He had sold me off after all.

He studied me again for a long second.

Then he leaned slightly to the side, motioning for one of the guards. He spoke to the guard low enough that only the man beside him could hear.

I couldn’t make out the words.

But I saw the reaction.

The man beside him straightened instantly. “Yes, boss.”

The man, Bane, I realized stepped back. His eyes stayed on me for one final second, then he turned and walked out of the cell.

Just like that, the heavy air of authority left with him even if it lingered a bit.

I staggered slightly, catching myself against the wall again. My legs felt weaker than before.

My heart raced in a way I couldn’t control.

What… what just happened?

Why did he look at me like that?

Why didn’t he say anything else?

“MOVE, GIRL.”

The sharp voice snapped me out of my thoughts.

The man he had spoken to stepped forward, unlocking the chains on my wrists.

He was not gentle but he was not as rough on me as before either.

“GET HER UP,” he ordered to the others. “NOW.”

I flinched as hands grabbed my arms, pulling me upright.

“W-where are you taking me?” I asked, my voice trembling despite myself.

No answer.

“Please… just tell me please”

“SHUT YOUR MOUTH,” one of them snapped.

I bit my lip immediately, swallowing the rest of my words as they dragged me out of the cell.

The corridor felt longer this time.

I stumbled as we walked, my legs still weak, my body still shaking.

“Stand properly,” the man beside me said coldly. “You’re going to get cleaned up”

My heart stopped. Somehow a clean up in the hands of these people did not sound like a good thing.

“Why?” I whispered.

This time, he answered.

A smirk tugged at his lips.

“Because the boss wants to see you.”