Aurora's Point Of View

My body's trembling doubled in intensity as I realized these men probably had weapons on them.

Arlan completely deceived me. He was a criminal.

Why didn't I listen to Kacelynn?

He kidnapped me!

I slowly uncurled myself and revealed myself, face beat red and flushed with tear marks. With all the strength I could bear, I lifted myself and faced my kidnapper.

"O-okay," I whisper. "S-sorry," I hiccup and can't help but start to cry quietly once I see both of them peering down at me and the reality of my situation sinks in. They're strong, burly men well over 6'2, black ink tattoos snaked around their skin. And here I am, trapped like a little rabbit with two coyotes.

Arlan sighed slowly, looking down and rubbing his bottom lip with his ring-covered thumb. He looked back up and came forward.

"Look, I know it may be hard to adjust to. But it's for the best. Can't you see how much I care about you?"

I work hard to refrain from screaming or giving him a look like he's crazy or running away. I try to keep my features even keeled as my chest is yo-yoing up and down.

"I see it," I whisper just under a breath.

He breaks into a relieved smile, laughing softly.

"Actually, I don't see it!" I screech, "You're crazy! I hate you, let me go!" I sprint to the door and anxiously reach for the doorknob, only to be swiftly lifted by his friend and raised in the air, making me scream and thrash, kicking with all my force.

"Stop!" I screech defeaningly. "You've gotta help me, he's crazy!" I plead to his friend, gripping his shirt tightly, kicking at him. I use all my energy to point my feet towards the ground, trying to get down but to no avail. These are mafia men, they had no mercy. I was fucked.

I gasp as I feel myself thrown back onto a chair, my hands try to claw at the man but I whimper and stop when I feel my back bending in a way it's not supposed to. My wrists are thrown up painfully and Ii groan, and just as quickly they are pinned against my head on the wall, my hair falling into my tear-soaked face. I pant for air with his friend hovering over me.

"Arlan, I'm scared," I whimper, my head falling down as I sobbed.

"Aurora, Nate is only being aggressive because you can't leave. Once you accept you can't leave and relax, he'll leave you alone."

"O-okay, I-I'm n-not l-leaving," I struggle to stammer out, my heart clenching with sadness as I say the sentence out loud. My whole body is vibrating with fear.

Nate's hands leave mine and my arms fall, my wrists sore, and I quickly get up and scream. Only to be thrown back down with a cloth shoved into my mouth and tied around the back of my head. I'm feeling dizzy from the back and forth fighting. I gasp at the cold feeling metal on my wrist and hear a cranking noise. Handcuffs. I look down. My left wrist was handcuffed to the chair, and I'm gagged. I look up with glossy eyes and a dizzy head to see Nate glaring at me with hard, emotionless brown eyes, before looking away out of uneasiness and sobbing at the wall.

"I thought you'd be a little more...grateful, little one." Arlan said stiffly. "I'm not generous to many people, Aurora. I'm quite the opposite: cold, impulsive, unforgiving," He lists, pacing. "But for you, I want to be different. However," he cleared his throat, stopping and rubbing his tattooed, ring-covered hands together. "If you need to be disciplined into accepting your new life, by no means, do I have a problem doing that. I don't tolerate disrespect."

"T-the money," i stammered through the cloth, unaware if he could even understand me. "This is where all the money comes from..."

"Let's save the questions for tomorrow. I was going to have a lovely vegetarian dinner with you downstairs that I had my maid prepared for you , as your welcoming present. But seeing as though you're quite shaken up, I'll give you your space. We can eat dinner separately until you adjust."

"Am I here s-so you can just have sex with me?" I whimper, hoping my fears aren't true.

"Not entirely," he says, making my stomach drop and sobs become louder as I squeeze my eyes shut. "Nate will bring up your dinner soon. I'm gonna go have a drink...and a smoke. Lord knows I need it," Arlan grumbled, making his way out.

Through blurry, hazy eyes I look up and see Nate looking almost, apologetic? But only for a flash second before he quickly leaves and slams the door, locking it. I yank my handcuffed hand away from the chain frantically, despite knowing it won't break. Whimpering loudly in fear, I try even more vigorously to break it, and the handcuff isn't budging at all.I lean my head back in total physical and mental exhaustion, crying quietly. My jaw and teeth muscles are sore from stretching around the cloth.

The one time I make a friend, the one time I feel truly cared about for the first time in my life, it was a scam. A cruel, disgusting scam.

About an hour later, the door opens and I stiffen, praying but not exactly sure for what. It's his friend, Nate, with sphagetti, thick mozzarella and vegetarian meat balls. I feel embarrassed to be seen in this state-chained up, gagged, tear-soaked, messy hair.

He closes the door and brings me the tray. I shake my head and shut my eyes.

"I'm sorry."

I look up in confusion

"I am," He continues, his words clipped and short. Like that means anything. Anyone truly sorry would get me out of this situation, and he knew that, which is why he didn't say anything else.

He glanced to the handcuffs, then at my body in the chair, then me.

"How old are you?" He whispered.

I wasn't giving this man any information about me. Besides, he quickly looked to the gag in my mouth and realized I couldn't respond any way. He licked his lips and exhaled shortly.

"Please don't scream, I'm going to lower the cloth from your mouth so you can eat. Please?" He pleaded.

The thing was hurting my mouth atrociously, so I tiredly nodded once. He came forward and lowered it from my mouth and a pained, puppy-like whimper came from me. I was relieved to have it out.

"Ow," I cried, rubbing my jaw with my free hand. "Can I please get some air? I have a headache."

He sighed. "I can't do that."

"W-well, I left one of my bags outside. I'm just gonna go get it, I-I'm not even gonna,"-

"Aurora, I said,"-

"You didn't let me finish! I-I'm just gonna get my bag and come back in two seconds, two seconds I swear, I swear on everything just please let me go get my bag," I desperately sputter out.

Nate's firm and agitated face showed he clearly wasn't buying it.

"Please, you said you feel sorry for me, if you really feel sorry, let me just get some air! I-I promise I'll come back, I'm not gonna escape or-or tell anyone, I just,"-

"Listen," Nate came closer to me, tone gruff and quiet. "It's not going to work. None of it. You have to accept that you live here now. Whether you like it, or I like it, or any of the other people here like it."

I felt my eyes well up.

"How many people are here?"

Nate sighed and glanced up to the ceiling in annoyance then to the floor. "It's a big house."

"B-but..I've been here before, and everytime, it was just us."

"We hid," Nate explained curtly, sliding his back against the wall and sitting next to me. He, for some reason, seemed frustrated when saying so, almost like he was secretly against this whole operation.

My stomach felt sick and I scoffed and shook my head in disgust.

"Get that food away from me. I can't eat," I spat in anger. "And your tattoos are ugly. You think you're so intimidating? You're all low lifes," I bite, looking away.

"Blabber on all you want, Aurora, it doesn't change the fact that you're still here. You might as well eat your weird fake meat."

"You're a coward," I snapped my head in his direction and said. "And you know it."

He swallowed and looked a bit stunned, before looking to the floor, ashamed.

"I've been around bad people enough in my life to know those who truly are evil, and those who are performative. You're fake."

"I don't know anything about you, Aurora. I'm sorry if you've been in bad other situations. Me, I met Arlan when I was young...got roped into this thinking it was innocent teenage rebellion shit. Now I'm too far in to leave. Take it from me," He leaned against his knees and spoke, "Acceptance is the only thing that carries you through. You have to accept your situation, or everyday you'll drive yourself mad."

I felt my eyes starting to water again. Was it true? Was this my new reality?

He stabbed a fork into a soy ball and lifted up in my direction.

"Fake meat ball?"

"I already told you, I'm not eating," I barely get the words out.

"I'll tell you one thing," He drops the fork, it clambering softly to the plate. "I've never seen Arlan do so much as to get fake meat for a woman before. You must really be something special."

"W-what if I sleep with him? W-will he get bored of me and let me go home?" I ask pathetically, trying to think of any last desperate options to get out.

Nate looked severely uncomfortable and rubbed his neck.

"I-I don't know..." His voice shyly trailed off.

"I'm sorry, I'm just trying to think here."

"Well, it's my job to keep you from thinking of how to escape."

I laughed, shaking my head. "How did he do it? How did he fool me?"

Nate paused, licked his lips, and looked to his shoes while playing with his lace.

"He's got a way a' makin' things seem not as bad as they are," he murmured into his chest. He let out a low sigh.

"Nate, if I'm stuck here, can we at least be friends?" I whisper to him, looking in his direction. "I could use someone nice if I'm stuck here."

"I...I don't know, Aurora. I'm here to do work, to do a job. I can't let personal get in the way of business."

"But I'm not business," I counter.

He softly laughed in amusement, even though I wasn't trying to be funny.

"Ok, Aurora. But when Arlan's around, I have to be tough. But I guess...I guess we can be friends."

A ferocious, fast knock broke both of us out of our thoughts as our heads snapped to the door. I gripped the chair arm with my free hand and whimpered, all previous feelings of relief leaving as anxiety flooded back in. He's back.