Chapter 2: His return.

Elena's POV

After two years of being taken away, enduring tortures and eating leftovers, today is my eighteenth birthday.

But this birthday is different. Because today, after two years, he is coming back.

I walk out from the cage room where I've stayed for two years now.

"Ohhhh," I yawned and went out into the hallway, trying to stretch the pain from my back.

"Good morning everyone," I greeted the maids, but the atmosphere feels strange. Everyone is working so carefully, too carefully. The whole mansion is silent.

"Good morning Elena," one of them whispered.

"Good Morning dear," another said quickly without looking at me.

"How was your night?" someone else asked.

They greeted me back. "Thank you, thank you and my night was fine," I said to them, but they went back to their work immediately.

But more carefully than usual. They were polishing the same glass again and again. Their hands were shaking.

I walked down the stairs and headed to the kitchen, but I found Mrs. Brown setting up the dining table, she was arranging the plates with extra care.

"Good morning Mrs. Brown," I greeted her.

She moved her eyes from the food rack to look at me, but with eyes filled with pity. Pure pity.

"Good morning dear, how was your night?" she asked.

"My night was splendid, how was yours?" I asked expecting an answer, but she just sighed and went into the kitchen with the rack.

"Mrs. Brown, are you okay? You look so serious this morning," I said, following her, but she just kept quiet as we entered the kitchen and she kept the rack on the kitchen island.

I have been wondering, why is this kitchen so big? It's even bigger than the cage room I've been staying in for the past two years.

Back to her.

She takes an onion to slice.

"Let me help you," I said, trying to take the knife from her, but she just sighed and finally looked at me.

"Don't worry Elena, let me do it," she said.

No, the Mrs. Brown I know will gladly let me help her. What's up now?

"Tell me, what's going on? Everyone has been behaving strangely since today and today is my birthday, please tell me," I inquired.

"No, there's nothing wrong, happy birthday Elena," she said and went back to slicing the onion.

"Mrs. Brown," I called softly, and finally she turns to me.

"He's coming back today," she said in a low voice.

Confusion laced my mind.

"Who's he?" I asked, though my heart already started pounding. I knew who she meant.

She signed deeply, "The young Master, Damien Blackwood."

"Huh!" I gasped, covering my mouth with my hand. I could feel blood rush to my head, my vision turned blurry and everything began to spin. I put a hand on my head.

No, no, this can't be true. Not today.

"Elena!" I finally jolted out of my trance.

"I've been speaking to you and you're not listening," Mrs. Brown said.

"Oh, I'm sorry, why is he returning today? Why?" I asked, my voice shaking.

"I don't know too, but you have to brace up," she said and turned back to what she was doing.

I started walking back to my room. My legs felt like jelly.

I walked like a ghost as everyone kept throwing glances at me. Pitying glances.

I pushed open the door and walked in, I closed it and let my back slide down and I sat on the floor, hugging my knees.

Damien has been gone for two years. For two years, I have not seen his face. For two years, I have lived in this cage room without his footsteps outside my door. But even though he travelled to London two years ago, he has been the worst nightmare I could never forget.

I keep thinking of the things he used to do to me while he was still around, before he travelled.

When I was sixteen, when he first brought me here, he tortured and tormented me every single day. At night, I would be locked up in the basement, no lights, everything too dark even to see your own hands. He would order the guards to lock me there if I made the smallest mistake.

Some days, I would go without food if I made a mistake. He would say, "You don't deserve to eat in my house." Sometimes, the group of bullies here, Stella and her friends, would break a glass on purpose, make a mess in the places I already cleaned, and then run to report to Damien that I'm being careless and lazy. And Damien would believe them. He would either flog me himself or give me punishment to scrub the floors till daybreak.

Sometimes, they framed me for taking his money from his office and he would always punish me severely, without even asking me if I did it or not.

I remember a day I forgot to iron his shirt properly. He called me to his room and made me kneel for three hours holding that same shirt up.

I remember how he would look at me with so much hatred, always saying my family is the cause of his father's death. He would say, "Your father killed mine, so you will pay with your life, Elena."

That was his life before he travelled.

The day he got an appointment to travel to London to get the award of the most successful young businessman for the umpteenth time, I was a bit relieved. When his car left that gate two years ago, I cried, but this time it was tears of relief. For two years, I have been able to sleep without fearing his door would burst open.

Now today, on my eighteenth birthday, he would be back. And everyone in this mansion is behaving strangely because they know what he is capable of.

"Lord please don't let him torture me again," I whispered to myself. "Please."

He has always done that before he left, saying my family is the cause of his father's death.

I don't know why he blames us, but maybe I would soon understand.

I gradually stood up and went into the bathroom to get dressed for the day. Today is my birthday, I should at least look clean.

I removed my clothes and looked at my body in the mirror. I looked at the little scars Damien inflicted on me two years ago, before he travelled, scars from his punishments, and it felt like they would open again today just by thinking of him. The memories were still fresh.

I prepared my bath and took it quickly, my heart still beating fast.

I wrapped a towel around myself and went out to my room to get dressed.

As I walked out of the bathroom, holding my towel tight, I got face to face with my greatest fear.

Damien.

He sits on my bed with a cigarette in his hand like he owns the world, like he never left. He was wearing a black shirt and black trousers. He looked taller, more built, more dangerous than I remembered from two years ago.

I was about to take a step back into the bathroom. My whole body froze.

"Come the way you are," he said in that same deep, cold voice I remember from two years ago, and finally looked in my direction.

I only have a towel wrapped around me. I felt completely exposed.

"No," I said without thinking. But I knew that is already a mistake I shouldn't make. I used to know never to say no to him.

He stands up slowly to look at me with his excruciating gaze. The same gaze that used to make me tremble when I was sixteen.

I feel so naked under his gaze.

I quickly adjusted my towel properly, holding it tighter.

His gaze followed my whole move, from my face to my hands and down to my legs.

'God, who knows what this devil is thinking after two years.'

"So, today is your birthday," he said, stepping closer to me. His voice was calm, but there was danger underneath it.

Fear curled in my belly again, just like it used to two years ago. I moved further back into the bathroom and tried to close the door.

He holds it with his hand, easily stopping me.

"Don't touch me," I said as I keep stepping backwards.

His gaze never left me, he keeps coming into the bathroom, step by step, just like he used to do before he travelled.

My back finally hit the wall, fear rose in my stomach because I don't know where to hide anymore. I am trapped again.

"Please stay back," I said, but he keeps coming.

He leans on the wall, placing his arms on either side of me, trapping me between his arms. His face was so close I could see his grey eyes clearly.

I could feel his breath all over my face.

"So pretty little thing, I'm back now, maybe I should remind you of some things you've already forgotten in the past two years," he said, his voice low and cold.

I watched his hand go to his belt, slowly.

"Please, don't hurt me please"