His Bride,Their Prey

The cheerful chime above the café door rang for what felt like the hundredth time that day. I forced another smile onto my face as I handed a middle-aged customer his coffee. "Have a wonderful evening." "You too, sweetheart." The man smiled before disappearing into the sea of people outside. The second the door closed, my shoulders sagged. "Tough day?" I turned to find Mia, one of my coworkers, leaning against the counter with a sympathetic smile. I let out a tired laugh. "You have no idea." She glanced at the wall clock. "You're finally off." I nodded, already reaching for my apron strings. "I've been dreaming about my bed since noon." Mia giggled. "You've earned it." I untied my apron and folded it neatly before placing it inside my locker. My phone vibrated. Dad. A smile tugged at my lips. "Hey, Dad." His voice sounded strangely rushed. "You're done?" "Yeah." "Come home quickly." "Is everything okay?" A pause. "...Yeah." Something about his voice felt... Off. "You sure?" "I'm fine." Another pause. "I'll see you at home." The call ended before I could ask another question. I stared at my phone for a moment. Weird. Dad usually talked my ears off. Especially after work. Maybe he was just tired. I shrugged the feeling away. After everything we'd been through these past few years... He deserved a little peace. Ever since Mom passed away... It had just been the two of us. Life hadn't been easy. Bills. Rent. Hospital debt. There were nights we survived on instant noodles because it was all we could afford. But somehow... We always managed. Or at least... I thought we did. I slipped my bag over my shoulder. "See you tomorrow!" Mia called. "If I survive today's traffic," I joked. She laughed. "Text me when you get home!" "I will." Stepping outside, the cool evening breeze brushed against my face. The city buzzed with life. Cars honked. Street vendors shouted over one another. Couples walked hand in hand beneath the glowing streetlights. For a brief moment... Everything felt normal. I opened the ride-hailing app on my phone. Uber arriving in 2 minutes. Perfect. My stomach growled. "I should've taken home one of those croissants..." I muttered to myself. A sleek black SUV pulled up in front of me. The license plate matched the app. The driver rolled down his window. "Elena Rossi?" "That's me." He smiled politely. "Long day?" "The longest." He chuckled as I climbed into the back seat. The warm leather seats felt like heaven against my aching muscles. I leaned back with a relieved sigh. "Home?" the driver asked. "Please." The vehicle pulled away from the curb. I rested my head against the window, watching the city lights blur together. Maybe Dad and I could order pizza tonight. It had been months since we treated ourselves. Maybe... Just maybe... Things were finally going to get better. I never noticed the driver glance at me through the rearview mirror. I never noticed him press something beneath the steering wheel. And I definitely never noticed the black van that quietly began following us. The ride had been unusually quiet. I glanced out the window as familiar streets slowly disappeared behind us. Something felt... Off. I frowned. "Um..." I leaned forward slightly. "I think you missed the turn." The driver didn't answer. I frowned harder. "Sir?" Still nothing. My heartbeat quickened. "I said you missed the turn." His eyes met mine through the rearview mirror. He wasn't smiling. A chill ran down my spine. I instinctively reached for my phone. No signal. "What the..." The SUV suddenly swerved into a narrow road. My breathing hitched. "This isn't the way to my house." Silence. "Stop the car." Nothing. "I said stop the damn car!" The locks clicked. Every door locked at once. Panic exploded inside me. "What are you doing?!" I threw myself against the door handle. It wouldn't budge. "LET ME OUT!" The driver calmly reached beneath his seat. My heart nearly stopped. He wasn't pulling out a gun... He pulled out a black cloth bag. "No..." I whispered. "No, no, no..." The SUV came to an abrupt stop. Before I could react... The back door flew open. Two masked men rushed inside. "LET GO OF ME!" I kicked wildly. One grabbed my legs. The other pinned my arms. I bit one of them as hard as I could. "ARGH!" He cursed. "You little—" "HELP!" I screamed at the top of my lungs. "SOMEBODY HELP ME!" A rough hand clamped over my mouth. The black hood was shoved over my head. Everything disappeared into darkness. I felt cold plastic tighten around my wrists. Then my ankles. "No..." Tears streamed down my cheeks. "Please..." "I'm begging you..." "I don't have any money..." "I haven't done anything..." No one answered. The SUV started moving again. My entire body shook. Every bump in the road made me feel even sicker. Minutes... Or maybe hours... I had no idea how long we'd been driving. Time no longer existed. All I could hear was my own breathing. Then... The vehicle slowed. Gravel crunched beneath the tires. It stopped. The door opened. Cold air rushed over me. Someone grabbed my arm. "Move." It was the first word anyone had spoken. I stumbled out of the SUV. My legs felt weak. I could barely stand. The ground beneath my feet changed from gravel... ...to smooth stone. Massive doors creaked open. The sound echoed around me. Then... They pushed me forward. The doors slammed shut behind us. My heart pounded so hard it hurt. Hands grabbed the hood. And ripped it away. Light blinded me. I squeezed my eyes shut before slowly opening them. The sight before me stole every remaining breath from my lungs... Black marble stretched endlessly beneath my feet. Crystal chandeliers hung from the impossibly high ceiling, bathing the room in a golden glow that did nothing to warm the icy fear crawling beneath my skin. Armed men stood silently along the walls. None of them moved. None of them even blinked. At the center of the room sat an older man in a black suit, calmly swirling a glass of whiskey as though this was an ordinary evening. Then... I saw him. "D... Dad?" Relief flooded through me so suddenly my knees almost gave way. "Dad!" Ignoring the pain in my bound wrists, I stumbled toward him. "Oh my God..." My voice cracked. "Thank God you're here." I laughed through my tears. "I knew something was wrong." I desperately looked between him and the strangers. "Dad... tell them." "They've made a mistake." "They kidnapped the wrong person." He didn't move. My smile faltered. "Dad...?" His head remained lowered. "Dad?" I took another hesitant step. "Why aren't you saying anything?" "Why are you also here too?" Nothing. The room felt suffocatingly silent. My heart began to race again. "Dad..." Fear slowly replaced relief. "Please..." "Look at me." The older man gently placed his whiskey glass on the table. His calm voice echoed through the hall. "Daniel." He never looked away from me. "Tell your daughter why she's here." My father's shoulders trembled. He swallowed hard before finally lifting his head. Our eyes met. There were tears in his. "I'm sorry, Elena." I frowned. "...What?" "I'm sorry." A nervous laugh escaped my lips. "Dad... stop joking." "This isn't funny." "I couldn't repay the debt." "What debt?" "My gambling debt." Everything inside me froze. "No..." "I lost." "No." "I lost everything." "No!" I shook my head violently. "You promised me you stopped gambling!" "I tried." "You promised!" My voice echoed across the mansion. "You promised Mom before she died!" He closed his eyes. "I know." "You lied to me..." Tears blurred my vision. "You lied every single time you said you were changing." Silence. Then... He whispered the words that shattered my world. "I sold you." The air left my lungs. I stared at him. Unable to breathe. Unable to think. Unable to understand. My lips trembled. "Y... y-you..." I took a shaky step backward. "...sold me?" Daniel lowered his head. "I had no choice." A broken laugh escaped me. "No choice?" My tears finally spilled over. "Dad..." "Why...?" "How could you...?" "I've worked every single day..." "I paid our rent." "I skipped meals so you could eat." "I gave you every paycheck I earned." My voice cracked into a sob. "...and this is how you repay me?" He covered his face with one trembling hand. "I'm sorry." "No!" I screamed. "So that's it?" "You just sell your own daughter?" "W-We could've figured something out together!" "I would've worked another job!" "I would've done anything!" "I would've sold everything we owned!" "You didn't even ask me!" "You didn't even give me the chance!" My knees buckled. I collapsed onto the freezing marble floor. My entire body shook with uncontrollable sobs. "You were supposed to protect me..." I whispered. "You're my father..." I looked up at him through tear-filled eyes. "So..." "Why won't you even look at me?" His shoulders shook. But he still couldn't meet my eyes.