A Tale Beyond Destiny

Chapter 27: His Uncle (Caliana)

The next time I woke up, I realized that I was already tied to a chair, with a dull pain in my head as if I had a headache, though I knew better than believing that it was just merely a headache, given that those men made me smell something and I think that they even hit my head with a blunt object afterwards.

I tried to be as silent as I could, afraid that I might alert someone whom I knew was checking on me. I tried my best to look around, unnoticed by the watchful gaze of the people who were just around the place and were guarding me.

Being abducted was never new to me, given that when I was still in the palace, there were many people who tried to kidnap me for a huge amount of money, but then again, they always failed to make their plan work because of my Father’s most trusted men. To be a prank, this would be the very first time that someone had succeeded in really getting me, though I knew that they just did it because I never wanted them to know my secret. Above it all, they never really gave me a chance to fight back at them.

It was as if I was caught off guard when I heard that old man say that it was indeed me whom they wanted to get. I knew that they did not make any mistake when they said that. I knew that they indeed had come so that they could abduct me, but then again, I did not know why they had to do that. I did not know why they had to go out of their way and kidnap a woman whom they clearly did not really know.

I was a hundred percent sure that it was the first time that I had met him, though I should say that it was the second one because I had already seen him before when Caleb and I went out of his condo to cure my boredom. I was as sure as I could be that they really did not know me, but still, it did not stop them from abducting me and locking me up in this place, wherever this place is, because I could not see anything from where I was sitting; and I could not possibly stood up from my seat given that I was tightly tied up from this chair.

Though, instead of just sitting there and doing nothing, I still tried to look around the place, but then again, it seemed like it was a bad move because it alerted the people who were inside of the place, and that caused them to go near me. They were led by that very same old man who went inside of Caleb’s home with that sick smirk of his.

“You are finally awake,” he said, wearing that very same smirk that I hated so much because it was as if he already had something evil on his mind.

“What do you want from me?” I asked him in a calm voice so that he would never be able to tell the true emotions that I was feeling as of that moment. I did not want him to have the satisfaction that they managed to draw fear out of me. “Why did you have to take me to a filthy place like this?” I asked him again, but then, he just let out a loud laugh as he shook his head.

He did not answer. He did not even give any single glance at me, and instead, he fished his phone out of his pocket as if he wanted to call someone, and it was confirmed when I saw that he was dialing a number as he brought up his phone on his ear to check if the person on the other line had finally picked up the phone.

Somehow, while he was in the process of doing that, my heart started to beat so fast as if it already knew what would happen. Somehow, I already knew whom he was calling, and I did not like the idea of what was about to happen. I did not like to think that I would be bargaining over something, and even though I did not know what that something was, I already knew that it had to do with Caleb.

It had to be, right? After all, I really did not have any idea of who these people were, and I could tell that they did not know that I was a crowned princess from another world. I can also assure that they did not even know any single thing about me, and I doubt that they wanted to know anything about me, because I guess that they just wanted to get whatever they wanted from Caleb, whom I think did not even have any idea that I was already abducted.

All of my suspicions were confirmed when I heard him greet Caleb on the other side with that sick smile of his, and that fake sweetness in his voice. I wanted to punch him in the face when I saw how much he tried to irritate, or maybe, anger Caleb. Even though I could not see nor hear him, I could already tell that he was already worried and angry at the same time.

I wanted to tell Caleb that I was just alright, but then again, I was stopped when someone grabbed me by my hair, so tight, that it made me shout out because of pain. I did not have any time to conceal the ache that I felt in the back of my head, and I instantly knew that Caleb would be worried sick for me because of that sudden shout.

I gritted my teeth as I glared at the man in front of me, as I could not tilt my head to do the same thing for the man behind me, who was, I note, still gripping my hair so tight as if he wanted to hear my shout of pain one more time.

After that call, and after he threatened Caleb to go all alone in this place, he finally shoved his phone at one of his men and then came near me as that smirk that I hated so much finally returned to his face.

That made me glare at him even more. I did not stop myself from showing him how much I hated what he had just done, but it was as though he was not shaken by how I looked at him. Instead, he still wore that very same smirk, and I must tell that it got even worse than before, which made me want to spit at him; even though that was clearly out of character for me.

Who could blame me though? It was already bad enough that I had been abducted by these kinds of men, and he downright showed me what they really wanted to get, which was why they did something like that. And it even got so bad when I saw that he was so sure to himself that Caleb would follow whatever he had said to him, on the other side earlier.

“Do you realize it now, young Miss?” he asked me, that very same cold tone in his voice returned, and that made me want to shiver, but I stopped myself from doing so. “You were nothing but a bargaining chip to me. You were nothing but a bait for him to come to this place. You were nothing but a damsel whom he wanted to save, but he cannot do it because I will never let him.” A cold look on his face was evident, but I did waver as I met his gaze. “Never.”

“Were you that person?” I remembered that time when Caleb said to me that someone took everything that he had, that someone who took away everything from him, including the people he cherished the most.

As I sat there in front of him, I realized that it might be him. It might be him who made Caleb suffer all these years. It might be him whom Caleb trusted the most, but then again, he just downright betrayed him as if Caleb was nothing but a puppet to him. It might be him who made Caleb fear everyone he met in his life, that person who made him feel that it was never easy to trust someone.

“Were you the one who betrayed him in the past?” I could not hide the trembling in my voice, not because of fear, but because of the rage that I suddenly felt for him. The anger that I suddenly felt for this man in front of me. “Were you the one who took everything away from him?”

I did not expect him to answer, but then again, it was as if this man was too shameless and he was proud of whatever he had done to Caleb in the past. He laughed. He laughed so hard that it almost echoed to this place that we were currently in. He laughed as if he had heard something so absurd to me, even though that was not really the case.

“I cannot possibly tell that I betrayed him.” He shrugged his shoulders as though this was just nothing to him, but I doubt that was really the case. “Because in the first place, he was the one who chose to trust me. He was the one to be blamed for his own f*olishness.”

My mouth gaped as I could not believe that I was hearing these kinds of things from him. I could not believe that someone had a mindset like this, but then again, I should have known better than believing because, after all, I already saw a nastier attitude than this. I saw and witnessed someone who was too full of himself and did not even know that what he had been doing was wrong, terribly wrong.

I guess that he was somehow like that man too. He had been too full of himself. He did not even notice that he was wrong. All he had on his mind was to get everything that he wanted, everything that caught his eyes.

Somehow, somehow, I feel bad for Caleb. I felt that familiar twinge of pain, which I never thought I would feel in this world, because all I had felt whenever he was around was the love that I had for him. I felt a sudden sadness in my chest, because I knew that he did not deserve this. He did not deserve to witness all of this. He did not deserve to have someone treating him like a puppet. He did not deserve to feel the very same suffering that I felt because someone wanted to control him and take his freedom away from him.

“What now? Are you that shocked that you did not even know how to rest?” he asked me with that mocking tone of his, and somehow, I wanted to talk back at him, and so I did.

“No.” The calmness in my voice was so evident that it did not go unnoticed by him. I saw how his face twisted in confusion, though he tried to regain his composure and get back the same mocking expression on his face. “I was thinking that it was such a shame that someone like you is living in this world. It was such a shame that someone as sweet as him had to endure that nasty attitude of you.”

I almost laughed because of the satisfaction when I saw how his expression changed into anger. It was almost as if he wanted to do something to me, but he tried to stop himself from doing so because of the reason that I did not have any idea what it was about. He even raised his hands as if he was about to hit me on the face, but he stopped himself and just resorted to angrily pointing out at me.

“You!” His anger seeped out of his voice, but I did not waver and I just resorted to giving him a challenging look to show him that I was not afraid of him, and I would never be afraid of him. Never.

“What?” I challenged him as I felt the anger inside of my chest, not because it was for myself but because of the thought that Caleb had to live with someone like him in the past and had to endure the pain that he had inflicted on him. “Am I wrong? Isn’t it you who made him suffer? Isn’t it you who did all those horrible things to him?”

Even though I clearly did not know what truly happened in the past, I could already tell that it was as nasty as what had been happening as of that moment. Even more so, I think that it was nastier before, and I did not want to think of what really happened to him.

I knew that it would just pain me, and I knew that I would not be able to stop myself from getting revenge on him. After all, I wanted to do something to ease the pain that he felt. I wanted to have that satisfaction that he did not have to fear something like this to happen anymore. I wanted him to be free from his past, just like what he did for me before.

I looked at him in disgust as I said, “Aren’t you even ashamed of yourself?” I looked at him from head to toe, then I went back on looking at him straight into his eyes to show him that I would never get scared of him, or anyone else inside of this place. “But then again, I guess that someone like you will even parade everything that you have done as if it was the best thing that you ever done, even if it is not.”

I did not bother to hide the venom in my voice any longer, because really, all I felt as of that moment was anger, hatred, and disgust for the man in front of me. For the man who had inflicted too much pain on Caleb. For the man who was so proud of himself, which he almost reminds me of the man that I left behind in my world.

It was as though that was the least thing he wanted to hear from me, because he just went in front of me as fast as he could as he gripped my chin so hard that I almost winced in pain, but I stopped myself from giving him the satisfaction that he managed to get a reaction from me. Instead, I met his gaze as if I was never afraid of him. I did not waver as I glared at him even more, and it was as if it triggered something in him too.

“You are really sharp tongued, young Miss.” He gripped my chin even tighter, but then again, I found my voice to talk back at him and I almost clapped to myself because my voice did not tremble, not even once.

“You are not the very first person who said to me,” I said as I remembered my Father had told me that countless times. Then, I laughed to mock him even more. “Though I guess that the other person who managed to tell me that was as nasty as you.”

He shot me a deadly stare, before he finally let go of my chin, harshly, which made me feel the pain of how much he gripped me earlier. But then, I did not give him the satisfaction of showing any kind of pain. Instead, I just tilted my head as if I wanted to check if it was just alright or not.

He took a step backwards from me as he did not remove his gaze from where I sat. “Let us see if you can still talk back to me when it is time for you to say goodbye to him,” he said, which made my heart beat so fast because of worry, but I still tried to keep it all by myself. “Let us see it you can still have that sharp look on your face if you see that man fight for his own life!”

He laughed and laughed, before he finally turned his back at me to bark some orders to his men. Then, suddenly, he finally left that place, maybe to check on something that I never wanted to think about. I was left all alone inside of this place, though not really that alone, because the three of his men were still watching my every move, as if I would be able to get out of that chair.

My heart did not settle because of the worry that I suddenly felt for Caleb. I knew that the man that was inside of this place earlier would really do what he said to me. He would really not hesitate to kill Caleb, and I did not like the slightest idea of that.

Though, instead of drowning myself with worry, I just closed my eyes and prayed that Caleb and I would be able to escape from it. From this. From everything that suddenly had happened.

“Please, be safe, Caleb.”