"Do you really have to go to work today?" Sierra asked Reya who pulled down her coat from the rack to wear them as she trailed behind her. She wasn't having a good feeling about being in the house all alone while Dean and Reya went about their daily business. She felt like a prisoner and it's all thanks to that bad man who's out to get her.
"Can't you take today off? Please Reya?" She pleaded desperately. Her voice filled with dread that ran through her entire being. She didn't want to act selfish and she knows that requesting something like this from Reya is selfish but she couldn't help it.
It's been three days since she was brought here and although she was happy that he hasn't been able to find her, she still couldn't shake off the feeling that he was still looking and will one day show up here unannounced. Deep down she was hoping that he wouldn't and that he would get tired and give up eventually but even she knows that it wasn't possible. He won't accept defeat so easily.
Sometimes she felt like he was lurking around the corner, waiting for the perfect time to show himself to her. She was in a safe place but still, she didn't feel safe at all.
"I haven't been to work for three days now Sierra." Reya reminded her with a little grunt. "And that's because you asked me not to. If i miss another day without any reasonable explanation to give to my boss then i could get fired and that's the last thing i want to happen to me right now."
Sierra was suddenly hit by a wave of guilt. She wasn't being reasonable as a friend and it showed. But can they blame her? She was hiding from a sick psychopath who was on the loose to claim her as his property.
"You're safe here Sierra." Reya said to her. "He hasn't found you in three days which means that he wouldn't. I doubt that he would anyways. He's probably given up already."
Probably. The one word in history that never solved any problem completely. Which is to say that he probably hasn't given up too.
"I'll only be gone for a short while but i promise to get back as soon as i can." Reya said with intent. "Plus, i have to stop by the hospital to check on Nora since you can't do it yourself so we don't have that much of a choice here."
Reya was right. In as much as things weren't going their way, she'd never ask Dean and Reya to give up their lives because of her. They've done so much for her already. She had also handed in her resignation letter to her boss so there's nothing more she could do than embrace her prison life.
Plus, she had left her phone at home when she escaped so she wasn't able to reach out to the doctor anymore. Thankfully, he had Dean and Reya's number so he had been communicating to her through their cellphone and that's how she has been informed on Nora's condition.
"Alright then." She hugged Reya tightly. "Come back quickly okay and don't forget to tell me everything that the doctor says when you get back okay?"
"I won't and make sure you rest too. Read a book or watch television. Time flies quickly and you'd not even realize it." Reya gave her a quick peck on her cheeks before waving her goodbye. As soon as she left, Sierra bolted the door shut and plopped down on the nearest sofa.
The house was too quiet and she was slowly loosing her mind. She did as Reya had said and decided to watch television but even that didn't help her. If this keeps on, then it'll only be a matter of time before she gets admitted into a mental asylum.
Hours into her distressed episode, she heard a sound knock on the door. At first she was terrified but then she was able to brush off the feeling of fear when she realized that it could be Reya. She had promised to come back a little earlier than usual. Besides, no one knew of this place except for the three of them.
Sliding her feet into her flip flops, she approached the door and swung it open. "I'm so glad you're finally—" The rest of her words are caught up in her throat as her eyes widened in horror.
The hairs at the back of her neck stood in alert as her entire body broke out in a sweat. She swallowed, her eyes not believing the person standing in front of her.
"Did you have fun hiding away from me?"
That voice. That question. It was him. He found her, again. She had always known that it was only a matter of time before he caught her but was it bad that she had wished that he didn't?
She hurried inside and tried to slam the door but his men were too quick. They pushed it open almost immediately. Picking a sharp object from the nearest table, shr pointed it at him.
"Don't take a single step closer." She warned beneath her breath. Her hands trembling but she willed them to remain still. He ignored her remarks and made himself comfortable on the couch. One leg crossed on top the other.
"Get up and leave!" She threatened but Diavolo only chuckled. A deadly one that terrified her.
"Or what Piccola?" He asked with furrowed brows, his eyes narrowing down to the object in my hands. "Let me guess. Are you going to kill me with that object in your hands? Are you going to slay me to death? I have endured gun shots and stab wounds all my life to be scared of a measly object such at that. Go ahead and do it if you can."
She gaped in disbelief. "H-How did you find me?"
He looked away from her face. "Is there anywhere in the world that you would disappear to that i wouldn't find you? I told you already. It'll be foolish of you to run away or plot an escape because i will definitely find you so why did you do it?"
"You'll get punished for that later but for now, it's time to go."
"No." She said adamantly. "I'm not going anywhere with you and you can't make me."
"You're going against your word." He muttered coldly. "You struck a deal with me that as long as i helped your sister, you will come home with me or did you forget?"
"I don't care but I'm definitely not going anywhere with you."
He stood up from the sofa and straightened his suit. "Well then, i guess your friends will pay the for your stubbornness and disobedience. Your punishment begins now."
Sierra furrowed her eyes at him. Her friends would pay? What exactly does he mean by that?
"Call the casino and have them fire Dean. I no longer need his services in my establishment." He ordered and one of them pulled out his cellphone. "It'll be a shame to have the man you were once in love with loose his job wouldn't it?"
"Y-You..." She stuttered, completely appalled by the revelation. "It can't be."
"Exactly. The hotel and the casino is one of my many establishments alongside other businesses across the country. They're all working for me." He finished off with a deadly smirk. "So at the end of the day Piccola, you'd loose and not me."
When Reya had told her that the owner of the hotel was a business tycoon, she definitely never expected it to be this man? Why him of all people? If she doesn't go with him then Dean will loose his job and who knows what he would do to Reya and her sister? Running away didn't help. It only made things worse for her. If they lost lost their jobs or something happens to them then she wouldn't be able to forgive herself.
"Hello." The voice of the guard who was ordered to call the casino broke her out of her thoughts. "My boss—" He started but his words are cut short when she rushed towards him and snatched the phone away from his hands. She disconnected the call and threw the phone on the ground in anger.
Diavolo watched her with intent. Calculating what her next move would be.
"Fine." She said at last. "You win okay? I will go with you so stay away from my friends and don't do anything to hurt them. It's me you want so don't take your anger out on them."
"I've always won." He answered. "Did you think i was only able to find out where you live today? I have always known where you are just like i will always know where you will be."
Walking to where she stood, he stood a few inches away and leaned in close. "And just like i had predicted, you agreed to follow me on your own, willingly. Which is to tell you that you have always been mine right from the very beginning." He deadpanned.