Chapter 1
8 years old:
My eyes fluttered open in shock, the walls spun as I tried to clutch my head but an invisible force held my hands back. The throbbing in my head and dizziness in my sight, brought tears to my eyes as I lowered my head and whimpered in pain.
Where was I?
Why couldnât I move?
Where was dad?
I was at the park with papa, because mama had forced us out since we had destroyed our home. It was the best food fight that we had ever had, sadly it only lasted the 45 minutes that mama was in the shower for. After that, she gave both of us an earful and then kicked us out.
I smiled as the expression she wore flashed through my mind. She was so irritated that she even ignored the fact that she had just bathed and immediately got to cleaning. We saw all this from the window of course, snickering to ourselves.
We had glanced back in through the window, only to mistakenly make eye contact with her and have her march her way towards us. Neither me nor papa had ran that fast or fearfully in our lives.
That all had led to us sitting in the park and eating yummy Ice cream, because Ice cream makes everything better. We were giggling to ourselves about all that mama was gonna do to us once we returned. Honestly, she looked mad enough to make dad sleep on the couch... again.
âHoney, is that your classmate?â
He pointed towards Stace, a blonde new girl from my class.
âCan I go meet her?â
I questioned with a pout.
âWhat about your ice cream?â
He questioned while mimicking my pout.
âPapa! please, you can hold it for a while right Iâll be back in a moment.â
I gave him the puppy dog eyes making him sigh in defeat. They always worked.
âAlright, just 10 minutes though otherwise, Iâll eat it myself.â
I crossed my arms with a frown.
âYou wouldnât.â
He gave me a mischievous grin.
âYou wanna try me kiddo?â
I gulped and shook my head, afraid of the tickling match that would begin if I didnât run.
âYour friend's getting away.â
He pointed her out as I turned around, indeed her Papa was pulling her away.
âAre you coming?â
I questioned.
âYou know her father and I donât get along.â
I sighed and quickly gave him a peck on the cheek.
âSee you in ten minutes, Papa.â
He rolled his eyes and glared at my ice cream.
âThis is going to be a test of my patience.â
I giggled before jogging off to catch up to Stace.
âStace!!â
I called out and she turned around looking sleepy.
âwhere are you going?â
She pointed to her held hand.
âPapaâs taking me home.â
âHello Mr. Sa-.â
My words got stuck in my throat as I realized that this man wasnât her Papa.
âWell arenât you a pretty one.â
My eyes went wide as I stumbled back.
âStace, get away from him he isnât your Papa!â
She frowned at me before turning towards the man, he leaned in close to her face and spoke.
âNow now honey, your friend's just playing a prank on you.â
She turned back towards me and frowned.
âThatâs mean Adira.â
I shook my head violently making the man give me a scary smile before snapping his finger. I looked around us in shock and terror, not seeing anyone helpful nearby. Before a man in a hoodie stepped out of the bushes.
I immediately dashed towards him, throwing my hands in the air for extra effect.
âHey that man is trying to take my friend away, please help her!!!â
The man in the hoodie tilted his head towards me and the only thing I could see were his glinting teeth.
âAinât this a pretty one? The bossâll love her.â
I took a step back in fear, realizing that he wasnât here to help us.
âExactly, you get her while I get this one in the car.â
He stated pointing towards Stace, who was about to fall from how unsteady her body seemed to be. I was petrified as I watched him tuck Stace into the car and settle in the driving seat. But I was even more frightened when hands caught my body and picked me off the ground.
I thrashed and tried to scream, but it was blocked as a hand came to stop the sounds. I kicked and punched, trying to get away. My leg connected with something that made the man howl in pain and drop me to the ground.
My head made contact with the cement and my vision begun to grow dark, the only thing my nearly fading eyes could see was my leaking blood and the only thing my weakening brain could think was:
...Papa help...
My eyes finally opened as the pain disappeared, I glanced at the invisible bounds that turned out to be chains. My legs felt like jelly as I stood up, barely able to hold onto anything but the bars beside me.
I looked around and found myself in a cage, on one side of the cage was a wall and on the other side there was another cage. Holding another sleeping girl in it. My hands were cuffed to the wall behind me, making all my efforts to get away go in vain.
I stopped struggling when my eyes landed on even more cages, the light above me flickered on and off. Giving me a very vague idea of the girls there, but they surely were more than just us. None of them were moving though, all of them stayed still.
I could tell they were breathing but nothing else... they seemed to be asleep. I continued to struggle, while trying to not make too much noise which was very hard.
Every thriller movie- which me and Papa had watched sneakily- usually involved someone dying because they got caught trying to escape.
I twisted my wrists trying to ease them out but the chains were the perfect size and even made a few cuts on my skin. Clenching my teeth together, I tried again but I couldnât even move my hands a few centimeters away from the wall with how tightly they were tied.
I raised my head to look around and froze in shock when I spotted a boy standing there, he looked messier and older than me but I didnât know for sure due to the light. Our eyes met and I knew for sure that he was real.
âH-Hey.â
He continued to stare at me and leaned back with a raised eyebrow.
âHow did you get out?... Never mind that, but you need to get out of here.â
With every word that left my mouth, he seemed to be more intrigued by me.
âAre you listening?â
He nodded his head as a response, making me sigh.
âYou need to hurry out of here before you get caught.â
He stood still as if my words went over his head.
I shifted a little, trying to wave my hands but realizing that they were still bound, I settled with a frown.
âIf they catch you, theyâll hurt yo~â
The sound of a metal door slamming open cut me off and I looked at the shockingly relaxed boy in absolute panic. My lips refused to move as I tried to warn him to run and I watched as several men in black emerged through the stairs.
âAh Son, I see youâre already here. Have you found one to your liking?â
I watched on with a slacked jaw as the boy pointed at me and his father- a very scary looking evil man- turned to me.
âShe was going to be a part of my special edition... oh well, it canât be helped now.â
...Special edition?
He sighed before snapping his fingers and two of the men in black opened the cage and stepped in. I didnât fight them as they removed the chains and examined my cut wrists, but all along I kept glancing at the messy boy.
A younger version of him came down the stairs and smiled scarily when he saw me.
âI thought she was going to be your special edition papa?â
He questioned the evil looking man.
âI thought so too, but sheâs your brother's pick.â
The younger boy pouted before turning to me.
âShe wouldâve looked even more beautiful in dadâs collection, donât you agree brother?â
The older boy gave him a side glance and then shook his head. The father sighed and patted his shoulder before turning to leave.
âYou know what to do with her.â
He stated before disappearing back up the stairway. The brothers looked at each other, their exterior changing completely before they nodded to each other and the younger one followed after his father.
The other boy however, stayed a while longer. Watching as I hissed when they cleaned my cuts and then bandaged them.