AFTER KADE LEFT, Gemma hovered, never letting me out of sight. She came across as sweet and obedient, but I saw the truth. She was Kade's: a head housekeeper who will help keeping me in line.

I went back to my seat and finished my food despite the worry and anxiety pooling in my stomach. Once I was done, she look at me and ask nonchalantly, "Do you want a tour of the house?"

I stare at her dumbfounded. Do I want a fucking tour of my own cage? Ignoring the strong urge to lash out at her, I let her guide me to other parts of the house. Surprisingly, with Kade gone, my curiosity and admiration came back. We walk down a hall and turns out, the room we passed going to the kitchen was the least grandeur part of the house. My mouth drops open when we enter a set of double doors and Gemma showed me the drawing room.

The room look spectacular and it makes a dramatic impact with dark organic colors, a palette of rich earth tones tempered with mild gray that fits the setting perfectly. Two identical long creme couches are set opposite from one another across a marble coffee table that is fit for a king. An enormous freestanding fireplace crackles with life and practically begs you to sit down and enjoy the ambiance. And I don't think I've ever seen a bigger Persian rug; it practically takes up the large room.

There were decorative accents near the windows, and a bold collection of canvases against the opposite wall with exotic wood paneling as the backdrop. I walk towards the floor-to-ceiling french windows and I was stunned. The dark and eerie greenfield last night look impeccably gorgeous in daylight.

"Mr. Sinclair owns over one hundred acres of land. There are three different homes on the estate but this is the main residence." Gemma says.

"How many rooms does it have?" I asks.

"Twenty."

Damn. The wealth is mind-blowing. To think that this is someone's home is unreal. We passed the home bar that was the size of a neighborhood pub and when I was shown into the media room, I marvel at the wide LED curved screen. She took me up another level to an open area with an indoor pool. The ceiling was glass, revealing the blue sky.

"There's also another pool outside. This one has heater that can be use during winter." she said.

"This place is like a fortress. What are those walls for?" I pointed out.

"To keep the wild animals away," Gemma answered simply and my body went still. She caught my expression and chuckle. "There's a lot out there. We're in upstate New York after all."

I look out the window and I caught a glimpse of a glass house pavilion in the distance sitting in the middle of a grassy meadow.

"What's that?" I asked.

"That is the only area that is off-limits to you," she said, gesturing for me to follow her. My ears pricked at her vagueness but I decided not to press for now.

The next stop was the sauna, a wine cellar and a home gym. But what astound me more is the magical library with a spiral staircase in the middle and tall shelves that encompasses a massive collection of books. There were three levels to the library, accessible by hidden spiral staircases, each level having nooks with deep plush chairs and reading lamps and little round tables.

For a moment, I forgot all my problems. And then I heard Emma's words and I remember that I am a prisoner. "You can talk to your friend with this phone. This is tapped so please don't do anything that will anger Mr. Sinclair." she said firmly as she hands me a phone.

"I won't." I gritted out before grabbing the phone from her.

"There are cameras around the house and security are always on stand by." She paused before giving me a smile. "If you need anything I'm on dial 2. Have a great day, Miss Ayla. If you'll excuse me," she said before walking back to the dining room.

She may have left with a sweet smile, and my cell might've upgraded to include expensive things and breathtaking views, but it was still a cage.

Kade's threat before leaving was careened in my skull. I wouldn't wait patiently for whatever he planned to do. I needed to stay active. Plot my escape. Find freedom. I walk over the nearest window and peek outside. It appears deserted at first glance but there, on the wall surrounding lush greens, several men in black suits stood a few meters apart. And there were a lot of them.

Like a balloon that has been pricked, my hope deflated in one dramatic pop. How the hell will I get pass them? As the anxiety starts closing in, I clutch the phone in my hand. Owen. I need to talk to my best friend to distract myself as my thoughts start to go down a path I can't afford to take right now.

I walk back to the library and my heart calms down a little as I close the door behind me. I savor the silence for a moment before looking around the room. The library had dark cedar shutters blocking the sun, protecting delicate books within. The air shimmered with slivers of light turned the room into a calming grotto. I curled on the deep couch by the window and open the phone. I opened the browser and tried to see if I can access the internet but no such luck.

I sighed. I open the phone directory to see Kade, Owen, Emma and Silas were the only numbers saved. I dialed Owen's and waited.

"Hello?" He picked up on the second ring.

Despite my best effort, tears rolled down my cheeks as soon as I heard my best friend's voice.

"It's me," I finally managed between sobs.

"Ayla?! Oh my god," Owen literally shrieks in the phone. "Are you ok? I'm really worried about you since that phone call yesterday. Where are you?"

I clear out my throat. "I'm fine. Just a little overwhelmed. Sorry I wasn't able to call you when I landed yesterday. I'm in New York."

"New York? Is Kade with you now?" he asked.

"Yeah." I muttered. Then I remember how inquisitive Owen can be so I asked, "How's my parents?"

"They were still detained. Sorry babe, but it's just so fuck up what they did. Especially your father."

"I know." God I know. And someone is on the hunt to make them pay.

"So Kade brought you to New York. Does that mean he already cut ties with your sister and you can attend Columbia?"

"I don't know Owen. We still hadn't talk about it." I said, and it's the truth. I had no idea what my future will be. Or whether I will still be alive the next day.

As much as I want to tell him about my situation, I can't drag him in this mess. I just know Kade wouldn't spare him.

"You have to talk to him, Ayla. And no matter what, don't come back here. Knowing your father, he'll probably marry you off as soon as he got out." he continued. I can't. Even if I want to. I want to say.

"You're probably right."

We talked for a few more minutes, then I heard voices in the background and he told me the event is about to start. We said our goodbyes but not before making me promise to call him as often as possible. And then he hangs up and the silence envelopes me once again.

My thoughts drifted back to Kade. Where did he disappear to? What is he planning?

Then I pushed all the thoughts out of my head and picked up a random book from the shelves and tried to distract myself with it. But my mind was plagued all while—especially what happened this morning—by one all-consuming fact.

My desire. The need I have for him is staggering. When he command me and how I didn't fight. I should have. But when it comes to strength, he'll win hands down. I know it made no sense for me to fight. So how am I going to stay away from him? How am I going to control myself?

Hours ticked past on a grandfather clock in the corner, and Gemma came by a few times to bring me food without making a fuss. Soon, the summer sun set on a rolling hills and I saw some tiny sparrows darting to the window and I couldn't help but thought, they were free—I was not.

**

WHEN MY PHONE buzzed, I wasn't sleeping, only holding Ayla as she did. She'd curled into me, bundled in a blanket I wrapped around her when I carried her from the library earlier. I looked over at my phone. I was tempted to ignore it. I knew who was on the other end.

It was Lorenzo. He probably heard about the meeting. He'd been a pain in the ass lately, trying to involve himself in my plans but I gave him no chance. He was calling now, and I didn't want to hear whatever he had to say. But I knew it would keep going. He wouldn't stop calling.

I let out a curse before I disentangled myself from Ayla and slipped from the bed. It was passed eleven and the house was in death silence. Grabbing my phone, I pulled on some sweats and headed down to the home bar. Once I was there, I held the phone to my ear and went straight for the liquor cabinet.

Pouring myself some whiskey, I answered. "You have two minutes,"

He grunted from the other end. "The hell you are planning Kade? Why did you ask for a meeting?"

I gripped the phone tighter for a slight second. "So you heard?"

"Yeah, I heard. Everyone in the family has heard. I thought you didn't want to be involved in it?"

"I don't. But I needed his help."

"What makes you think he will help you?"

"He owes me."

He scoffed. "That man doesn't owe anyone anything!"

"Lorenzo," I started.

"Don't argue with me. Our family might have a long standing relationship with him in regards to arms distribution but that's it. You can never trust these people, Kade."

"You should've known the moment I saw her state that night with those mark on her neck there's no turning back." I gripped my glass so tightly that the side cracked.

"I know son." His voice quieted. When he found me a week after the incident, he did not waste time to introduce himself as a grandfather I never heard of. My mother was the estranged daughter who had chosen to be separated from her family due to their involvement in illegal activities. She got ahold of a network that hides people and she had been missing for more than nine years until the incident happened.

At seven, I remember his expression when I vowed to find all the people behind it and make them pay. He's the one who organized the fight clubs, the training and he'd been there and watched as I was bloodied and beaten. I let them trained me to be brutal and to fight without mercy, and to have any empathy and humanity stripped from me.

"I'm going to do what I have to do. What I swore to do. If you can't handle it, stay out of my way." I hang up.