THE WATCHMAN

Held Captive

Antonio's woke up to meet himself in a very cozy room in room.

It had a wooden floor and a fireplace to keep him warm.

He looked down at the wound on his stomach, it had been properly dressed and taken care of.

He pinched himself to be sure he wasn't in another dream.

He wanted to be sure he wasn't in for another rude awakening.

He was very thirsty and he saw a bottle of water on the shelf beside him.

Immediately he tried to stretch to get the water, he felt a sharp pain from his wound. He also realized that he had been handcuffed to the bed.

This made him even more skeptical.

"Who would knock him out, rescue him and take care of him and then imprison him all at the same time?" He thought to himself.

He struggled to get himself free from the handcuffs, but the pain I'm his lower abdomen wouldn't allow me to exert too much energy.

He surveyed the room, looking for anything he could use to defend himself or pick the handcuff. But he could not find anything useful around the too.

Antonio managed to get into a sitting position on the bed.

While he was still thinking about how to get himself free from the handcuffs he heard footsteps coming towards the door.

He struggled even more frantically to no avail so he decided to lay down on the bed and pretend to still be unconscious.

The room door opened and he heard the footsteps of someone walk in and drop something on the floor, he peaked to see who it was and realized that it was a lady who walked into the room.

This didn't change his mind as he was not sure who she was, so he continued his "sleeping act".

The lady went about her business in the room arranging and setting things in order, then she walked up to his bedside to check.

Antonio already knew that she was unarmed j from the moment he took a peek at her.

As she bent over to take a closer look at him, he's suddenly open his eyes and swept her close to him, and held her in a chokehold.

The lady began to struggle and kick but her strength was no match for Antonios' strength.

" Let me go you bastard!" She struggled to say through the chokehold.

On hearing the manner in which she screamed, Antonio felt guilty of his actions realized that he was harming an innocent woman, so he took the chance of letting her go even if it was a huge risk.

The lady began to cough as she recovered from the chokehold.

"What kind of animal are you?" She screamed even as she was still gasping for breath. It took her a while to regain her breath.

She gave Antonio a killer stare and said... " I find you at the brink of death and stranded in the woods, I save your life, tend to your wounds, and give you a bed in my home and this is how you repay me?"

Antonio was lost for words to defend his actions, she angrily picked up her things to leave.

" I was right after all to put you in those handcuffs, the only mistake I made was not coughing your two hands because I gave you the benefit of the doubt!" She said as she walked out of the room.

"I'm sorry..." Were all the words Antonio could think of to say but she had stormed out of the room.

" What have I done?" Antonio thought to himself. "She could have left me for dead in the woods but she chose to save me and she obviously was not one of Sergio Angels' agents be she had kept me safe and hidden all this while".

"It was really stupid of me to attack her". He thought to himself.

"But I had to protect myself, as I wasn't sure who she was". Antonio tried defending his actions to himself.

"I will try and apologize, whenever she returns". He said to himself.

Later that day the lady returned to the room, this time she brought his meal. She set it on the table across the room and pushed the table toward his bed.

She made sure not to look directly at Antonio so as not to establish eye contact with him, and also keep a fair distance from him, in case he wanted to attack her again.

Antonio watched silently, as she set the table for him.

Finally, Antonio took in a deep breath and said... "I'm really sorry for my actions earlier today. I was just scared and didn't think before I acted. Please forgive me and may I know your name?"

The lady gave him no reply, she just went about her business and when she was done she walked out of the room and slammed the door shut behind her.

This pattern of behavior continued for a few days, much to Antonio's frustration.

The lady made sure she tended to Antonio's wounds, gave him food and everything he needed but she did not say a word to him all the while.

Seeing that she wasn't ready to cooperate with him, despite all his efforts, one day Antonio said...

"Hey, Lady! You need to let me go! I want to take my bath as I am smelling all over, I haven't had my bath for days. Also, you cannot keep me here forever since you hate me so much and will not talk to me the least you can do is let me find my way out of here!"

Still, the lady will not reply a word to Antonio, and when she was done she walked out of the room.

Some minutes later Antonio heard her start her car engine and zoom off to somewhere.

After a few hours, she returned to the house with a bag full of groceries, she was shocked to see Antonio seated on her couch, all cleaned up with a plate of food in his hands, waiting patiently for her to return.

"You're welcome back". He said. Not bothering to look at her, He focused on the food he was eating.

She quickly ran to get the baseball bat leaning at the corner of the room. She held it frighteningly and asked.

"How did you get yourself free and why are you sitting in my living room? And whose food are you eating?"

"Oh, now she can speak! And so many words too! Isn't that wonderful?" And Tony replied sarcastically.

"Answer me!" She screamed.

Antonio dropped the plate in his hand, leaned back on the chair, and looked her in the face said...

"I have actually been free for a few days, I just always returned to my handcuffed position to make you have a feeling of safety.

"I had hoped you would release me by yourself but since you refused to speak to me or hear my pleas, I decided to take matters into my own hands".

I freed myself from the handcuffs, went into the bathroom and took a good bath, had a change of clothes and I found some leftover food in the fridge and I warmed it for myself.

She was still so frightened and holding tightly to the baseball button.

"You're not going to wack me in the head with that, are you? Antonio asked playfully.

"Oh, yes I would!" She retorted "That is if you give me a reason to".

"Well, we wouldn't want to spill my brains on this your lovely person rug" Antonio mocked.

"Come to think of it, if I wanted to harm you, don't you think I would have done so by now?" Antonio asked

She appeared deep in thought then after a while she calmed down a little and put down the baton.

She slowly picked up her groceries, and took them to the kitchen, dropped them returned back to the sitting room where Antonio was.

"Care to take a seat with me?" Antonio asked her

"Do I have a choice?" She retorted at him. "Since you have taken over my house from me". She said.

"Oh, no I have not taken over your house, I am still a guest here and whenever you want me to leave, just say the word and I'll be out of your hairs in no time! Antonio replied.

"That won't be necessary!" She said, you're already here and there's nothing I can do about it. But for you to stay here you will need to answer some questions and clarify a lot of things..." She sternly said

Antonio gave her a wide smile and replied...

" I was wondering when we would get to that point, now that we have, don't worry I am ready to tell you everything, but you will also answer my questions and clarify some things". Antonio replied casually.

"And what might those things be?" She asked.

" Firstly, I would love to know the name of the beautiful lady who saved my life". Antonio said looking straight into her eyes.

Antonio's constant stare made her uneasy so she got up and stylishly pretended to be cleaning up an already sparkling clean sitting room.

"My name is Gwen Schuler. She said sharply.

"And where are we?" Antonio asked.

"We are in my cottage in the south of Berlin. I inherited it from my father". She replied.

"Berlin?" Antonio asked in shock. "What am I doing in Berlin?" He asked.

"That's what I was about to ask you", Gwen replied. "But seeing that you don't even know why you're here, then we have ourselves a problem!".

"You say this place was left to you by your father right?" Antonio asked.

"This and others, Yes!" Gwen replied proudly.

" I don't have any recollection of who my father is, or what he looks like". Antonio said with a sad look on his face.

"I can't remember my family loved ones nothing! All I know is that my name is Antonio De Castillo because that is what they kept calling me".

That moment Gwen felt so much pity for him in her heart.

"It must be so hard for you". She said

"But that doesn't explain why men were chasing you with guns and hunting dogs does it?" She asked.

Suddenly canons of tear gas broke through the windows of the house and began to fill the room with gas.

Antonio and Gwen began to choke and scramble for safety.