Tous les chapitres de : Chapitre 101 - Chapitre 110

ELARA’S POVI was in the kitchen helping Sofia prepare lunch when Ray appeared in the doorway.The girls immediately went quiet, their eyes dropping to their tasks. They’d learned quickly that drawing Ray’s attention was never good.“Elara,” he said. “A word.”My stomach tightened, but I kept my expression neutral. “Of course.”I followed him out into the hallway, leaving Sofia to watch over the others.Ray didn’t speak until we were well away from the kitchen, in the dim corridor near his office.“We’re having visitors tonight,” he said, turning to face me.I waited, keeping my face blank even as dread pooled in my gut.“Important visitors,” he continued. “They are business associates of my father’s. I need you to arrange five girls,” Ray said. “The finest we have. They need to be clean, presentable, and compliant. These men expect quality entertainment, and I intend to provide it.”Entertainment.The word made bile rise in my throat, but I swallowed it down.“How many men?” I asked,

Elera's POV Ray, I…”“Shut up.” He released my face only to grab my throat, slamming me back against the counter. Not hard enough to choke, but enough to trap me. “After everything I’ve done for you. After I saved you from being sold to Dmitri tonight…and believe me, what he would have done to you would make me look like a saint…would you react like I’m some kind of monster?”I couldn’t speak even if I wanted to. His hand on my throat made sure of that.“You think you’re better than me?” Ray’s face was twisted with fury now. “You think you’re too good for my affection? You’re a whore, Elara. A slave. The only reason you’re not being passed around to every buyer who walks through that door is because I CHOOSE to keep you for myself.”Tears started streaming down my face, but I couldn’t look away.“And you have the audacity to shudder when I touch you?” He laughed, but there was no humor in it. “When I call you ‘my love’? You should be grateful. You should be on your knees thanking

ELARA’S POVThe next morning, I was in the garden with Sofia, pulling weeds from around Carmen’s grave.It had become something of a ritual…keeping the small patch of disturbed earth clear, making sure it didn’t disappear completely into the overgrown chaos surrounding it.It was the only thing I could do for her now.My burned hand throbbed as I worked, the bandage already dirty from the soil, but I ignored it. Physical pain was easier to deal with than everything else.“Elara.”I looked up to see one of Ray’s guards standing at the edge of the garden.“Ray wants you. Inside. Now.”My stomach immediately knotted with anxiety.Was he still angry about yesterday? Had I made things worse?Was this about Dmitri?I stood slowly, brushing dirt from my knees. “Do you know what he wants?”The guard shrugged. “Just said to bring you in.”I exchanged a worried glance with Sofia, then followed the guard back toward the house.He led me to the main sitting room…the same room where we’d presented

ELARA’S POVMidnight came slowly. I spent the hours before it planning, checking, and double-checking every detail I could think of.The house layout. Guard rotations. Where Ray usually was at night. Possible escape routes.Everything I’d observed over six months of captivity, all the small details I’d tucked away without even realizing I was doing it, suddenly became crucial for my survival.At eleven-forty-five, I heard the first soft knock on my door.I opened it to find Sofia with Maria and Yesenia behind her.“Come in,” I whispered. “Quietly.”They slipped inside, and over the next few minutes, three more girls arrived. Lucia, Ana, and Isabella…the oldest ones who’d been here long enough to understand what we were up against.When all six were gathered in my small room, sitting on the floor or perched on the bed, I looked at each of their faces.They were scared. I could see it in their eyes, in the way they held themselves.But there was something else there too. Hope, maybe. O

ELARA’S POVThe day crawled by with agonizing slowness.Every minute felt like an hour. Every hour like a lifetime.I went through the motions of the daily routine…waking the girls, preparing breakfast, teaching the usual “lessons” that made my skin crawl. Acting normal when everything inside me was screaming.Tonight. It all happened tonight.Sofia and I spent the afternoon in the kitchen, preparing the evening meal with hands that trembled despite our best efforts to stay calm.The other girls watched us with wide, frightened eyes. Some looked hopeful. Others looked terrified.All of them looked desperate.“How many pills?” Sofia whispered as she chopped vegetables for the stew.I glanced toward the doorway, making sure no guards were nearby. “Eight in each serving for the guards. Ten for Ray.”“That’s a lot.”“It needs to be enough to knock them out completely.” I crushed more pills with a mortar and pestle, grinding them into fine powder. “We can’t risk anyone waking up halfway th