Roses Are Not Red

HOLLOW EYES

Frozen in place, Natalie couldn’t help but stare at the man with wide eyes. She could recognise the tattoo pattern on his arm any day. It was the same man she had seen with sister Lily the night before.

Fear ran through her veins like a shockwave. The man who was staring at his phone, shifted his gaze to Natalie slowly. As their eyes met, Natalie felt her knees buckle underneath her, daring to give out on her.

His black eyes were hollow, cold and void of emotions. But there was a strange glint in his eyes, one she could not phantom. Natalie took instinctive steps back as her body shuddered.

Something about him ran alarms through her head. She didn’t want to be near him, or even associate with him. A smirk curled up his lips and the alarms going off in Natalie’s head increased. But strangely, Natalie could not take her eyes off him.

“Natalie?” Sister Lily called out to her.

It was only then that Natalie tore her eyes away from him and focused on sister Lily, who was giving her a worried look.

“Yes?” Natalie replied softly, unable to get her voice out of her throat.

“You seem out of it, are you okay?” Sister Lily asked with so much warmth and concern in her face.

It made Natalie sick to her stomach. The behaviour sister Lily had exhibited last night was so much more different from the behaviour she was showing now.

“I’m fine sister.” Natalie said a little coldly.

“Alright, but don’t just stand there, come over. I want to introduce you to someone.”

Natalie swallowed. She walked forward reluctantly, until she was standing in front of sister Lily.

“Now, Natalie, this is Mr Albert. He is the owner of the orphanage and the only reason it’s still running.”

Natalie’s breath caught up in her throat and her eyes slowly looked up at the man. This man was the owner of the orphanage? Natalie was in disbelief. All this time, she was under the impression that sister Lily had full ownership of the orphanage.

Nausea began to poke at Natalie. To think that she had been eating and living off his money made her stomach churn. Is that why he thought he owned the girls? Is that the reason he sold them off as prostitutes?

Natalie bit her inner lips and she grimaced inwardly.

“And you’re Natalie.” The man said.

His smooth, yet husky voice seemed to resonate through Natalie. Her name rolled down his tongue so smoothly, it infuriated her.

He extended his hand out to her for a shake and she placed her hand in his reluctantly.

“Ive heard about you from sister Lily. She said you’re the oldest here and you do a great job taking care of the younger girls.” He said, his eyes trailing her body.

Natalie shuddered once more and his gaze ignited goose bumps down her whole skin.

“I find that, admirable.” He said, almost silently as he began to rub her hands softly.

“T-Thank you.” Natalie uttered.

A grin appeared on his lips, his eyes still skimming her body. She could see a hint of interest in his eyes as he looked at her and suddenly it dawned on her.

He was here to check out his merchandise.

“You can call me Bradley.” He said once more and Natalie nodded, knowing fully well that she would rather swallow glass than utter his name.

Sister Lily cleared her throat and Bradley finally let go of her hand.

“Well, I’ll leave you to freshen up dear. You must be tired after a long day at school.”

Natalie nodded and bolted away from them and down the hallways. She didn’t stop until she was in her room. Natalie slammed the door shut and stood for a moment to catch her breath.

The reality dawning on her was heavy and terrifying.

“They’re coming to take me soon.” She muttered as she stared at the ground with wide eyes.

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°

Natalie stood in the garden, staring at the bright twinkling stars that spread out on the dark blue sky. Her face was blank and her mind was deep in thought.

This was what she needed. To think, to process everything she had found and heard. As she lay sprawled out on the soft grass, her mind wandered deep in her thoughts.

She sighed and pushed herself up into a sitting position. No matter how much she thought about the whole situation, there was only one solution that came to mind.

Running away. Running far away and taking all the younger girls with her. She couldn’t bear to leave them here and have them suffer the same fate. No, she couldn’t even think about it.

Although it was scary, Natalie had made up her mind to trust Garry and go ahead with the plan he had. Exhaling deeply, Natalie got up from the grass and headed into the building.

It was almost time for curfew, and if sister Lily were to catch her out her, she would get an earful. Trudging through the silent and dark hallways, Natalie caught a glimpse of a shimmer of light coming from her room.

Had she left her room open?

Curious, Natalie approached her room faster and once she was in front of it, she saw that the door was indeed left open. As she walked in, she paused and froze in one place.

“Sister Lily?” Natalie quizzed, a surprised look on her face as she gazed at sister Lily, who was crouched down beside the bedside table.

Sister Lily eyes went wide and she quickly shot up from the floor, patting the surface of her black gown.

“Oh, Natalie. Why are you coming in this late?” sister Lily asked, a stern look on her face.

Natalie c****d an eyebrow at her. It was obvious that she was trying to divert her attention from the current scene, but Natalie wasn’t having it.

“What are you doing in my room?”

Sister Lily went stiff and her face instantly went pale. She folded her arms and regained her composure however.

“I’m searching for something as you can see. Say, have you seen a green coloured flash drive anywhere?”

Natalie felt all the blood drain from her face.

“Flash drive? I don’t think I’ve seen it.” She replied, trying to keep her cool.

Sister Lily eyed her for a moment and then sighed.

“I see.” She walked to the door and turned back to gaze at Natalie.

“You have a goodnight now dear, your birthday is tomorrow after all.”

With that, she left the room, leaving Natalie with a feeling of urgency and dread.