BONDED BY BLOOD ( FORCED COMMITMENT)

CHAPTER 2: NOWHERE TO RUN TO.

Octavia didn’t know what she was talking about and she didn’t dwell on it. When she left, she tried opening the door herself and strangely, it opened up. She peeked through the door and found a long hallway with no one there. Unsure of what to do, she went back in and turned to the bed. It might, after all, be a trap. Why leave the door open? It could be more dangerous out there than in there.

The bed was a fourposter bed with curtains hanging down on all sides. It looked like it was made for a princess from mediaeval times. The wood was polished and carved and by the right side of the bed was a dressing table made from mahogany with a massive mirror on it. The room didn’t have much colour except the window blinds, which were creamy white. There was a shelf and a desk on the other side of the room and what she presumed to be a wardrobe. Somehow, it didn’t look like a room owned by someone of her gender, and the aftershave on the table was proof.

She let out a shaky breath and turned to where she had pointed to earlier. If that was the bathroom and she wasn’t a hostage, as she said, then knowing where she was, how she got there and how to escape from there would be a better approach. She found that provisions were made for her. Like, a soap wash that smelt like rose and a toothbrush. Which was weird, because they didn’t know her. She later found new perfumes, hair brushes and clothes when she opened the wardrobe. The room was definitely a male’s room, with the male clothes that filled that wardrobe. She picked a simple jean, sneakers and a top. Something that wouldn’t hold her back, just in case she needed to run.

In time, someone knocked at the door and the same lady from earlier came walking in. She was dressed differently, but in a more casual attire. And she still had that smile on her face and a twinkle in her eyes.

“You are ready.” she jammed her hands together.

“Come on, I can’t wait to show you everything.” She took her hand and pulled her along before she could react. She followed her into the hallway and still found that it was silent. However, the hall was wide and draped in red and cream white. She followed her silently, not knowing what this all meant and what they wanted from her.

“It’s not usually this quiet. But today, master Alexander is in a good mood and for the first time in a while, he is giving everyone want they want. A time to have fun and be together and they took it with both hands.” Octavia having heard of him before needed to know who he was and what he wanted.

“Who is this master Alexander? And why did he bring me here?”

“Well, answering this question will mean stealing the spotlight. Moreover, he will be in a better position to answer all this. I just need you to understand that you are in safe hands and he will never hurt you.” She responded, her voice filled with conviction and resolve. It made her want to believe her, but maybe it was the feeling of hope and faith that she wanted to keep alive. So she hoped that they wouldn’t hurt her.

“I thought it would be good to have breakfast first. Hope you don’t mind?” she smiled and she could neither respond nor retort. She followed her nonetheless into a well furnished dining room. Flowers decorated the corners of the room, the upholstery chairs were pitch black with diamond crystal decorations on it. The large centre table was glass with a touch of silver and gold drawings. At the forefront, a fifty-five inch television was mounted. The walls had purple drapes over them. The floor was also made of marble, with an exquisite red rug rolled across the midfield from beginning to end. Servants stood at each corner of the room, with the same kind of uniform and apron, and they waited upon us to call if we needed anything. At first, Octavia had been very suspicious of the food, but Abigail could read her mind. She tasted all of them with the talk of ‘I don’t know which to choose from.’ But she only tasted one wine, and that was the exact bottle she drank from. She wasn’t too hungry, her mind was still uneasy, so food wasn’t her priority. Though it was delicious. When they were done, Abigail began her tour guiding and took her out of that place to a different part of the hall. Each corner looked like a castle from a story, and Octavia began to wonder how big the place actually was. As they walked, they came across a few people. Men and women especially, and they had a strange look in their eyes when they stared at her . At first, I thought it was anger, especially with how they froze, but she later found out that wasn’t the case. When anyone came across her, they stared at her like she just stepped out of a movie, with wide eyes and surprise, then they whispered and walked along.

They moved on to what Abigail termed the servants’ quarter. It had a total of eight rooms, kitchens and bathrooms.

“Servants are each assigned different tasks. That’s why it’s usually empty around this time of the day,here.” Abigail explained. When they were done touring the inside, Abigail finally got to the interesting part. The outside. Octavia finally found the entrance and was more than happy when they stepped out of that maze of a mansion. It was finally time to look for an escape route. But she was so mistaken. Her mouth fell ajar when she realized how big the mansion was and what lay ahead of her . It wasn’t a gate, nor an escape route, but more houses like that. Fields, gardens, what looked like an armoury and more houses at each corner. The scenery was, in fact, green and wealthy. She held the reins together and followed her as they walked from place to place. It looked more like a maze than the castle itself.

“Where the f**k am I?” I froze, realising that I might have been mistaken. It looked like a whole community lived there.

“Master Alexander would be able to answer that…” Again with that name.

“Great…” she snapped, feeling suffocated and confused suddenly. She had thought she would be able to have an easy way out, but she was wrong. How could she run when She didn’t even know where she was and where the gate was? Did she travel through time?

“Where is this master Alexander?” She turned to her. There was no need to plot or speak to her anymore. She needed answers, and she needed it soon before she completely lost her s**t.

“uhmm.” She smiled nervously, and she glared at her. It was probably not wise to be hostile, but what could she do? However, before she could figure out what to say to her she felt someone coming towards them from behind and immediately turned around. Her heart stopped at the sight of golden hair, fair skin, almost pale, shirtless, with muscles and abs tight and popping and sweat dripping down from his body. She unconsciously took a step back, realising that he had that look in his eyes too, the one everyone was giving to her. However, there was something different about him. Maybe it was the frown on his face or the coldness in his eyes. The tense of his shoulders and how intimidating he looked made her want to shrink into herself. His steps were strong and long, with a purpose, with some kind of authority, with power, and they didn’t stop till he was standing right in front of her. A lump immediately appeared in her throat and she swallowed, not even realising that she was holding her breath. He said nothing, but his eyes roamed her face, like it was some kind of puzzle that he was piecing together with utmost concentration. With his proximity, she realised that he had beautiful hazel eyes and his face was all smooth and no bones. Yet his eyes were more upturned and thin, making his entire look terrifying and hot all at the same time.

“She shouldn’t be out here.” His voice came. Her heart pumped loudly inside her chest that she heard it in her ears. His voice was nothing like his face. It was rough, cold in the ears and so hot, she wanted to scream.

“What are you doing?” Her thoughts yelled, pulling her away from that thought, and she immediately lowered my gaze. She shouldn’t be thinking about how hot and handsome he was. She should be thinking of who he was and why she was there.

“Are you Alexander?” She entered before she could stop herself and he froze. His eyes closed ever so slightly, making his aura even darker than it was. She took a step back, and he turned back to Abigail.

“Take her back,” his words came in one simple note. Authority and power oozing out of him. She opened her mouth to speak, but stopped halfway. Something passed between them, something that made her eyes widen and fright got into her eyes. He walked out immediately after and she grabbed her arms.

“Lets go…” Abigail’s words came urgently as she pulled Octavia along. Only then did she realise that there was no one around them. Not the people she had seen from afar or those that stared at me. The place was completely empty.