Luna Kiara

Stranger

Kiara

"Momma, I'm sorry. I wasn't able to protect myself," I whispered as I lay in silence on the hard cement floor.

I didn't know how much time had passed since I was violated. Ever since I woke up, my tears hadn't dried up. I kept thinking about my life.

My mom was a single mother who worked her butt off to raise me. She was the one who told me to be wary of men. I didn't understand her hate for men during my childhood, but after her death, I found her journal in which she had recorded every important event of her life.

She fell in love with my father, however, when she got pregnant with me, he left. Regardless of being left with no choice, but to raise a child on her own, she did it. She never gave up on me, and I would say that she succeeded in providing me with a life better than hers.

She ensured that I had a good education. When I joined the police force, she was ecstatic, thinking that I would learn how to defend myself from perpetrators.

I held back a sniffle. I had failed. I wasn't able to protect myself. I had foolishly fallen into Danny and Joy's trap in addition to being assaulted by a group of thugs. If my mother was still alive, she would be heartbroken after hearing what had happened to me.

I felt ruined. It was true that being ràped was the worst thing that could happen to anyone. It was like having to live, yet was dead inside.

The door opened and I knew it was time for them to bring food for me. They brought food for me twice daily. Yet, I didn't have any appetite. I forced the food down my throat, because I hoped to escape this hell one day. I knew I would need my energy. I wouldn't hesitate to kill them all if it meant I could escape. They had gone too far.

One of the scoundrels walked in with the plate of food as usual. I didn't give him any attention. If they would leave me alone as soon as possible, that would be great.

"Eat! Some important people are coming to see you today," he ordered as he pushed the food at me.

Important people, huh? Well, if those people were important to them, it didn't sound right to me. Those 'important people' would most probably be as twisted as these scoundrels.

Either way, I needed to save my energy. So as soon as I was left alone, I started to force the bland food down my throat. I had a bad feeling about the people who were about to arrive.

Anyway, I was determined to succeed in fleeing.

When they arrived, I was forced to stand up. I hated being in the same room as the five perverts who assaulted me the first day they captured me, but I remained silent. I didn't make any sudden movements.

The so-called 'important people' soon arrived. Two middle aged men marched in and started to inspect me. I cringed. Ever since the thugs tore my clothes off, I was wearing nothing but an oversized white shirt, which I thought was better than nothing.

Still, it wasn't how I wished to be presented to others.

"Yeah, she looks good, but isn't she a bit dirty?"

the stated.

"That could be fixed," the stout man exclaimed and walked outside. When he returned with a bottle of water, my eyebrows knitted together. What was he going to do?

To my dismay, he poured the water bottle on my head, soaking the thin fabric of the shirt I was wearing. Aghast, I threw a glance at the newcomers.

His eyes darkened with lust he gaped at me. I wanted to crumple into a ball feeling exposed under his lecherous gaze. I looked at my shirt, which was clinging onto my curves like second skin. Much to my horror, my entire body was on display. I wanted to hide. It was as good as not wearing any clothes on.

"She looks good," he snorted. "So you say $50 a night? I'll take her for two nights. But unlock her. I won't be able to enjoy properly with her chained up."

The perpetrator licked his lips as the stout man gestured to his followers to release me. While they unlocked the chains, a thought occurred to me. Perhaps this was my chance to save myself. I would go back and tell my colleagues everything. Being in jail would be better than being confined by these thugs.

I didn't react while he unlocked the chains. Instead, I was silently calculating my next move. I rejoiced mentally when I saw that they were leaving me alone with their 'special guest'. Nonetheless, I was being careful not to show any emotion.

As soon as the door closed, the man snickered and started to inch closer to me. I blankly stared at him. He had started to unbutton his shirt while sauntering towards me.

"You are so pretty," he mumbled with a sly grin curling on his lips. He started to walk around me, checking every inch of me out. I waited for the right moment.

"Guess what? I'll have you here tonight and take you to my condo. Perhaps, I'll take you away from this filthy place and live with me. Don't worry, I'll pay them a handsome amount and you won't have to worry about the payment. All you have to do it be my sugar," he told me.

I felt like rolling my eyes. Like I would want to be anyone's sugar. Mom was right about men. They were nothing but trouble.

He removed his clothes and stepped forward. I knew he was going to touch me, but before he could, I slammed my fist on his nose, breaking it in an instance.

His hand flew to his nose, covering it as his blood oozed from his nostrils. I smirked. I never thought the sight of blood would satisfy me so much.

"What the f**k!" he screamed and charged at me, but I was faster.

I ducked just in time, letting him stagger onto the ground. When he fell down, I delivered a series of kicks to his stomach, each kick fueled by my rage. I kicked on his abdomen, chest and groin, making him holler in pain.

When he started to scream, I knelt down and grabbed his throat.

"You are being too loud," I hissed in between my gritted teeth and landed a sharp blow on his temple using my elbow. With that, he went numb.

"Weak," I scoffed. I wasn't satisfied yet. I glanced at a wooden plank that lay idle on the ground. It was one of the things the thugs used to torture me with. They called it s******g and I called it torture.

Without giving it a second thought, I marched over to it and took it. I clenched my jaws as I prepared to slam it on his head, but the door opened before I could. Perhaps the commotion attracted their attention.

"Hey! Stop her!"

"Boss!"

I heard shouts, but I was blinded by fury to realise what was going on. The next thing I knew was that I was restrained by two men while the others rushed the oblivious man out of the room. I thrashed against them, but they were strong.

"Let me go! Let me go!"

I screamed, but what I received in response was a tight slap.

"Do you know what you have done? We have lost a huge sum of money because of you!" The stout man yelled in anger. He was clearly enraged. His eyes were wide and was shaking in fury. Beads of sweat glistened on his face as he glared at me.

I spat into his face, expecting him to react aggressively to that, but to my surprise, he didn't. He wiped his face using the sleeve and glanced at his minions.

"Chain her outside. She won't be fed tonight and don't take her in. Leave her in the cold," he told them.

I sneered. Like I cared about being tied up out in the open. I no longer give a damn about anything.

While the four men chained my arms and legs to a tree trunk, they made sure that they slapped my face a couple of times. I suppose they were trying to get me to react, but I wasn't going to give it to them.

"Aren't you scared about encountering a wild animal that might eat you up during the night?" One of them asked.

I snickered. I didn't have to reply to them, but this time I wanted to.

"No wild animal could be worse than you," I said.

They exchanged glances but didn't say anything else before leaving me alone.

Night fell and the environment grew cold. Being dressed in a thin shirt that was still damp didn't help. I shivered and my teeth clattered as the night grew deeper. The cool night breeze added to my discomfort.

I was freezing.

I wanted to rub my hands together or to huddle myself so that I could use my body heat to keep myself as warm as possible. However, since they had shackled my hands to the tree, it wasn't possible.

"This too shall pass," I repeatedly whispered to myself, trying my best to withstand the freezing cold.

The night had deepened. The forest was silent except for the sound of the leaves rustling in the wind. The moonlit and the star studded night sky was a wonderful sight, but it brought no joy to me. I would have admired the beauty of nature if it hadn't been for the situation I was in.

A wolf howled in the distance. I shuddered. Although I was rebellious against the perpetrators, the thought of encountering a wild animal was unnerving.

The sound of a twig breaking and dried leaves crushing made me snap my head to my right. I shuddered. Could it be that an animal found its way to me? I would be an easy prey for them.

My heart raced as I tried to clarify what was going on in the darkness of the woods. Screaming and shouting wouldn't be of use, but I found myself calling out.

"Who is there?"

I secretly hoped that it was a human and not an animal. The sound of dried leaves crushing intensified and I realised that someone or something was approaching me.

Gasping for breath, I stared into the pitch dark until I could see what it was. What shocked me was when the outline of a tall, shirtless man came into view. Even in the dim light of the moon I could see that he was well toned. The moonlight reflected his well toned abs and chest muscles. I gulped as he walked right up to me and halted mere inches away and all I could do was stare in shock.

He was undoubtedly handsome. With wavy hair that reached his shoulders and a muscular frame, he was like those men who females drooled over.

My mouth watered. Even the atmosphere seemed to have calmed a bit as soon as he arrived. As though he was what I needed. It felt as though he was my safe place. Being close to him felt like being home…

He raised his hand making me flinch but all he did was gently caress my cheeks. Strange sparks that erupted when he touched made me gasp.

"Mate," he whispered, adding to my confusion.

Mate?

He cupped my cheeks and placed a gentle kiss on my forehead. What amazed me the most was that I felt so relaxed in the presence of this stranger. My erratic heart seemed to calm down. In fact, my entire body seemed to relax.

Who was this strange man?