Psycho Billionaire

Chapter Eight

Kiara

My mind was completely blank as I lay with my back against the wall. My legs were still tied in chains. I"d tried to pull the chains from its hinges, but it wouldn"t budge. This guy was worse than Jigsaw from the Saw movies. Eventually, I gave up and decided to live through this torture he liked to call punishment.

I didn"t know what time it was because I spent most of my time sleeping on the cold ground. A small patch of sunlight from the little window at the top indicated if it was morning, noon or night. I knew it was a few days since I"d been in this basement, a few days since I"d felt the sun. A few days since breathing freedom. I hated to admit it, but I missed my bedroom upstairs. Maybe that"s what Jasper wanted, as sly and manipulative as he was, he wanted me to realize that I"d paid a price for taking freedom for granted.

Margret came in everyday during morning, took me to a shabby adjacent bathroom in the basement and let me bathe for a few minutes, then she would dress me up like Jasper"s doll, do my hair and put me back in the chains. She would then appear ever few hours later to check up on me and served food twice a day.

The food that was served wasn"t the type that I usually ate with Jasper. This tray of food was like a bland mix of mashed potatoes with gravy and boiled vegetables. I was deprived off all the luxurious rights.

As days passed by with me sitting in the dark, I would cry for hours feeling so totally helpless. I hadn"t seen Jasper during that time at all. I wondered how long he planned to keep me here.

One night after dinner when I saw about to doze off to sleep, I heard the sound of the footsteps closing in. It was unusual for Margret to stop by after she had cleared up the plates. I glanced up towards Margret, only to see it wasn"t Margret.

"Light"s on." Jasper sauntered into the room as the LED lights came on.

He was dressed in a white half sleeved t-shirt over sky blue jeans. His dark hair was curled around his forehead. His piercing blue eyes inspected me with what I assumed was pity.

"How are you, Kiara?" He asked, pulling a chair to sit in front of me like a police officer here to interrogate me.

No tears, Kiara. He feeds on your fears. Your tears make the psycho happy.

"Alive." Is all I could manage. I was surprised I even had vocal cords.

Jasper nodded in agreement as if me being alive was really a miracle.

"Do you know what day it is? How long you have been here?"

I shook my head.

"It"s been three weeks." Jasper said. His eyes were looking everywhere but me, like he was guilty. "I missed you, Kiara. I miss having breakfast with you, I miss having lunch with you. It"s not the same without you there."

Would be the most romantic confession in the history of all confessions. That"s sarcasm right there. I continued to stare into space.

"Why did you do it?" He asked, his expressions were that of a wounded man.

"I saw the basement door was open and I didn"t think it would be such a big deal if I walked in. That"s it."

It was a lie. I"d walked into the basement hoping to find something. Some clue to his madness. Any trace of clue to make me understand what the hell was going on with Jasper.

"Have you learned your lesson?" he asked me politely.

"Yes." I said.

He left his chair and kneeled down on the ground beside me. "What have you learned?"

"That I need to obey your rules and follow your instructions, or there will be consequences."

"Kiara, you"re talking like a robot." He said, taking my hand in his. His blue eyes peered at me from beneath the locks of hair on his forehead. "I don"t have to remind you this every time. Do you think I enjoy punishing you? Of course not. This is your home now, and I want you to feel comfortable here. Do you understand what I"m saying?"

"Jasper, I have a mother who is still waiting for me." I regretted saying it as soon as the words left my mouth.

Jasper gave me his best serial killer look, and said. "Your life before you met me is history. The sooner you come to terms with this fact the better. Now, do you want to continue with this conversation and stay here for another three weeks?"

"Please Jasper, don"t do this to me. I"ll go insane." The words caught up in my throat.

Jasper nodded like he understood exactly how I was feeling, I"m sure he didn"t. He was a person devoid of any emotion. Pity, sympathy, empathy and love. Living with him since the last few months, I"d come to realize that even with all the wealth and all the luxurious, Jasper was a lonely person. He didn"t seem to have friends, no one other than Margret cared about him (which I knew was because he pushed down a ton of money down her throat), no one visited his house. No one cared.

Was I feeling sorry for him after everything he had put me through?

Guess I was, because I was only human. I didn"t love him, but it still made me wonder what he had been through to become who he was now.

Is that why he was forcing me here? Because if it wasn"t me, no one would want to live with him.

Jasper leaned forward and I shielded myself expecting him to hit me for someone unknown reason. His outstretched arm reached for the shackles on my ankles. He turned a small key and my right foot was free, then he unlocked my left foot. He helped me up without a word and wrapped me in his arms. I had been so desperate for human contact that I melted in his arms feeling the happy tears in the corner of my eyes.

I was so f****d up. He had f****d me up.

At one point of time I"d thought I was going to die in this basement.

His hands ran the length of my small back as he whispered, "You feel so right in my arms. I don"t ever want to let you go. You have been such a good girl for the past three weeks, and you"ve also learned your lesson, right?"

"Yes." I said.

"I have a surprise for you in your bedroom." He said smiling at me.

Instead of feeling glad, it just made me more nervous.

"Oh...Okay."

"I"ll carry you upstairs." He offered, putting my arm around his shoulder.

"I"m fine. I can walk, Jasper."

He scooped me up in his arms with my arm around him and carried me to my room. The bed was neat and already made. He placed me on top of the mattress and pointed towards the dresser. "Open that."

With shaky hands, I reached for a golden envelope.

A beautiful golden card was inside it that read:

Congratulations Kiara Reeves! You have successfully unlocked the Gold Benefits which means Two months of excellent behavior.

These Benefits include:

· Expensive gifts from Jasper.

· Dinner at luxurious restaurants with Jasper.

· Trips to foreign countries with Jasper.

· Permission to ask for anything expensive from Jasper.

· Access to Jasper"s bedroom.

Well Done Kiara!

Hope you will continue to show the same loyalty and respect for me as you have for the past two months. I wish you all the happiness in the world.

Keep up your good work!

Jasper Lockhart.

I had already kind of guessed it when I saw the golden envelope but I couldn"t believe Jasper would give it to me so soon. The rules mentioned I couldn"t get it unless I had completed two full months of excellent behavior, but I was a week early and I"d spent the last three weeks being confined.

"Thank you, Jasper."

"I actually planned to give it to you the day I locked you in that basement because I really thought you had adapted to this environment. I was bending the rules just for you, Kiara."

"I"m really sorry." I said, trying my best to appear ashamed.

"It"s in the past now. We should move on." He said and summoned an identical golden bracelet similar to the silver one I was wearing.

He took off my old bracelet and slipped on the new golden one. Jasper smiled at me like he was proud of me. "I can"t wait for you to get the platinum envelope, Kiara."

I smiled back, trying to mimic his happiness. With this new bracelet, I"d acquired some more freedom but that also made me nervous. What was in the platinum envelope?

It was another month later that I realized what I"d gotten myself into.

My life was about to become a f*****g nightmare.