BOUND BY DEBT

Derzhatel Obschaka

~Caitlyn struggled and kicked in the dark, screaming as she tugged at the heavy manacles draped all over her, holding her in place for the umpteenth time. She doesn't know where she is, or why she was here. She doesn't know how long she had been lying on the cold cemented floor with shackles entangled along her body. But she had gotten used to a schedule, where a beautiful chirpy lady about her age comes into the room, serves her a meal and then leaves. She was always so chatty but never answers any of Caitlyn's questions.

Caitlyn heard the rusty metal door creaking open with a loud moan, she noted that the woman, who calls herself Freya didn't close the door as she walked into the room, instead left it open ajar-she knew this because the door didn't make the slamming noise it always did if it was closed. Caitlyn looked away from the blinding lights as the woman switched it on. She heard the soft patter of the woman's shoes, this time she had a cart with her. "I prepared a feast for you today." The woman joked and Caitlyn felt dread wash through her as she remembered the popular figurative expression of "feeding a livestock well before it meets its end.' The woman seemed to have read apprehension on Caitlyn's face because her own face too fell in sorrow. 'Please let me go." Caitlyn whimpered.

"I am sorry, there is nothing I can do but just don't be scared. I think Damien feeds on fear." She muttered in a heavy voice laden with grief a far cry from her usual chirpiness. The door doesn't close again and after a while Caitlyn dug into the food hungrily like a starved animal because she was truly starved.

Caitlyn's hand stopped midair and her head spun to the side when she heard heavy footfalls abruptly walking into the room.

"You must be Caitlyn." A deep accented Italian voice drawled and it echoed through her, sending shudders through her.

"What gave me away?" she asked in a voice dripping with sarcasm. The man chuckled darkly and tugged on the chains. Caitlyn felt his obtrusive gaze on her body. "Want do you want from me?" she asked again.

The man suddenly stood in front of her and Caitlyn's breath stuck in her throat. The man in front of her is built like a brute. He is standing over seven feet, looks like a rock with tattoos, his red lips cinched in a tight smile. Although he had the body of a freaking beast, he had the face of a god. He had a long nose although crooked-she guessed he got into many fights. His long black hair fell over his brows while the tip was held at the nape of his neck. The only flaw evident on his face was a nasty scar that ran down his throat to the open V neck of his collar.

Her physical admiration of him was cut short as he extracted a blade form the trolley and glides it over Caitlyn's leg.

"Please don't hurt me." she begged in a whimper.

"Now, What gave that away?' he asked with a sadistic smile that had tears threatening to spill from her eyes. "Scared?" he taunted.

"Please why am I here? What do you want from me?" Caitlyn asked again. Her courage had suddenly disappeared.

"You are scared." The man laughed and grabbed onto Caitlyn's throat. "Your father was scared too when I took you with me." "Women disgust me, you know that." he squeezed her neck. Caitlyn struggled to breathe, she kicked around, and trying to escape the death grip he had on her neck. "The more you fight it, the harder it becomes. But don't worry; I won't be killing you anytime soon. I want you to suffer." Her face turns purple and he let go of her neck chuckling darkly. "Oh how your father begged and groveled when I took you. He was so powerless to do anything and your junkie of a brother would sell his own arm for a fix."

Caitlyn started a violent bout of coughs, trying to suck in as much oxygen as possible, and her deprived lungs working overtime to get air. The man ripped the underwear from Caitlyn's shuddering body.

"No...No...No,' Caitlyn said with tears running down her face, "Please... stop." He slit her bra with the blade and walked over to the farthest corner of the room where the fireplace was. He set it alight and turned around after placing the sharp edge of the knife into the blazing fire. "No, I beg you. No, Please."Is all she could get out before the man yells out a curse at her in a torrent of foreign language.

"Have you ever been marked before, Caitlyn?" He asked with an evil smile before answering his own question. "Nah, I don't think so, there isn't even as much as a scar marring your beautiful skin."

Caitlyn continued to shake her head while the man bends down to take the hot blade, smirking, he forced the searing metal onto Caitlyn's skin. Caitlyn screams and cries when she felt the severe pain of the blistering blade against the skin of her shoulder.

"Now you are bound not only to me by debt but also by name."~

Caitlyn jolted awake with a cry, panting heavily. She panicked and reached for the light switch, pulling down her nightshirt to look at her shoulder, expecting to see a glaring red wound marring the milky white flesh of her shoulder. It was bare.

'Thank God it was just a dream' she said to herself. But it had felt so real.

Her heart still thundered, slamming against her ribcage, who was that guy she dreamt of? And why should she even have been interested in his physical appearance? She couldn't get rid of the niggling feeling that had seen him before. Maybe she walked past him on the streets or whatever, he just seemed really familiar.

She shrugged on a robe and lifted off the bed with a heavy sigh-she wanted to go get herself a glass of water. She had been working her behind off at try and settle some of the debt her father told her he owed but she knew it was a waste of time. Not even the biggest tips from customers could help her out this time, the past few days had been hell as she wakes up from nightmares just like this one she just had. And her father won't let her take the matter to court, maybe to beg for more time to gather the money they owed.

She hastened her steps when she heard her father's thudding footsteps in the hall. Caitlyn opened her door and quickly made a beeline towards his huge figure in the kitchen. He is groping through the cupboards as if in search of something, most likely liquor but Caitlyn made sure he wouldn't find any in cases like this. She had just thrown away the last bottles of vodka and beer when she got back from her shift that evening. He looks windswept and was blinking profusely, "where is it? Where is it?" Patrick's brows furrowed and he looked confused. She knew he was looking for his hidden bottle.

"Dad, why are you not sleeping?" Caitlyn asked and Patrick turned around wielding a knife and her breath caught in her lungs. He is pointing the knife directly at Caitlyn. "Put the knife away dad." Caitlyn said calmly and held her hand out to him. "Please, dad." She said just as she lunges at him and grabbed the knife from him.

The man fell to his knees with a whimper, "They-they are dangerous people Caitlyn."

She fetched a glass from the cupboard after tossing the knife where he wouldn't easily reach it and turned on the tap, filling the cup with water. "Here dad. Take this and then talk to me."

He collected the glass of water with shaky hands and downed it in one gulp. She plopped down beside him.

"Who are the dangerous people, dad?" she took his hand on her lap and gently patted it.

"The-the..." he trailed off as fear gripped him ..."run away Cait, before they come for you! Run!"

"Hey-hey-hey dad, take a deep breath. There is no one coming for me. I just have to work really hard to pay the loan you owe. Nothing bad is going to happen. I promise."

He let out a ragged breath and nodded. "yes cait. Yes. Oh, I am so sorry I am putting you through this."

She hugged him and they both fell into silence for a few minutes before he spoke up again, "Where is it?"

"You mean your hidden bottle of vodka?" she tensed as she asked him.

"Yes, that."

"I found your stash and threw them away." She replied calmly waiting for him to start yelling but instead he only nodded and relaxed into her arms.

"I love you and your siblings so much cait."