I see land in front of us as the captain steers the ship to a small dock. There is a small gathering at the dock, they're waiting for us just like she had said days ago. I notice that the crowd is mostly made up of men, only a few women are there.
As the captain pulls up to the dock, she throws a rope around an anchor point, keeping the boat next to the dock. I look at the crowd and see wide smiles on the men's faces as they look us all over. If I had anything in my stomach, surely I'd get sick.
"That one looks real nice." One of the men says to another and points to one of the children. What do they mean by that? Surely it isn't what I think, right?
Against my will, I hear the men discuss what they wish to do to some of these children. I can't believe what I'm hearing and I fear for the lives of each and every child on the boat. If I could help it, I'd return them all to their families. I can't imagine what their futures look like here.
"Oh look at that one." One of them points to Anastasia. She turns to me with wide eyes and I can see tears forming in her eyes. I reach out and touch her arm,
"It's going to be okay." I say, trying to hide the fear in my voice. She holds my hand and looks back to the crowd. The captain steps onto the dock and begins helping the children off the boat. I watch as the people reach into their pockets and pull out large amounts of American money.
The captain lines us up on the dock in a single file line and begins to auction us off to the highest bidder. I stand in the middle of the line, behind Anastasia, who still has a firm grip on my hand. The children begin crying again, screaming as they get carried off one by one. I can't stand to watch what's happening and keep my eyes trained on the weathered wood of the dock.
Anastasia is up next, and her grip on my hand tightens immensely. I listen as the bids go higher and higher for her, much more than the other children were sold for.
"Sold." The captain says once the bid reaches the highest amount. Her hand is ripped from mine and I watch as she gets dragged off by a man and woman. She's placed in the backseat of a car and as they drive off, she plasters herself against the window and I can tell she's sobbing. I step up next.
The bidding starts for me, and like Anastasia, I am sold for a large amount. I watch as my buyer hands the captain money and he grabs my arm roughly. None of this feels real.
The man leads me to a nice looking car and places me in the backseat. He quickly climbs into the driver's seat and speeds off. I don't know where I'm at or where we're going, all I know is that I'm at the will of this man. He looks at me in the rearview mirror and smiles,
"Do not worry sweetheart, we are not staying here in Alaska, we are going to my home where you will live with me." He says and I nod my head slightly. I look out the window at the snowy terrain as the man somewhat recklessly drives.
He takes us to what looks like a small airport and he pulls his car up next to a hangar. He steps out of the car and opens my door for me. I step out and follow the man, not having much else of a choice. I look to my left and see a small jet sitting on the runway. That must be for us.
Another man approaches us in a pilot's uniform and he smiles at my buyer. He licks his lips and looks me over, sending chills down my spine.
"Where to boss?" The man asks my captor.
"Let's go home, I want to get her there as quickly as possible. By the time we get there it should be dark." He says and grabs my shoulder, walking me towards the jet. I walk up the carpeted stairs and am sat in one of the leather seats inside.
The interior of the plane is very nice, everything looks state of the art to me. I wish I could be more attentive to my surroundings, but the exhaustion and starvation of the last few days is taking a toll. I feel tired, worn out, and not able to focus on much. The man who bought me sits in the seat across from me and tilts his head to the side,
"Hey can we get something for her to eat, she's not looking too good." He says and a lady seemingly appears out of nowhere to do the man's bidding.
Moments after I feel the plane take off, the lady places a glass of water and a plate of food in front of me. I look at her with sad, pleading eyes. She just smiles quaintly at me and returns to her designated seat.
"Please, eat. You need it." The man says. Regularly, I would refuse to do as this man says, but, the starvation is overpowering my stubbornness. I quickly devour the food, barely tasting it. The man watches my every move intensely.
Once I'm done, he leans forward in his seat.
"My name is Tom, you can call me Tom. What's your name?" He asks. It's very strange to me that the man who bought me is trying to make small talk. Not wanting to make him upset I answer him shortly.
"Adalyn." He smiles,
"That's a very pretty name." He says and I just stare back at him.
"Adalyn, let me set some ground rules before we get home. You are not to leave the house under any circumstances. You are not to speak to anyone, or even answer a phone without my permission. Do you understand?" He asks, his voice becoming very serious.
"I do." I speak to him in English. He nods his head curtly. I look away from him in disgust, suddenly missing the power and authority I had back at Hydra. A man there, apart from my father and Dane, would never dream of speaking to me like this. I know once we reach Tom's house I'm going to have to find a way out. I refuse to be held hostage by another man.
The plane lands a few hours later and I follow my captor off of the plane and into another fancy looking car. The bag I have has stayed practically glued to my back and I'm thankful nobody has tried to take it yet. I'll be damned if I let anyone get their hands on that book.
We arrive at Tom's house hours later. The sun has already set, so no neighbors can see what's going on. Tom walks me into his large house and I hear a lock click behind him.
"Do keep in mind there are cameras and alarms everywhere in here. Don't get any ideas." He threatens me. I decide to play dumb. This man has lost his mind if he think I'm going to stay here.
Tom gives me a tour of his house and explains where I can and can't go. I nod my head, soaking in every detail that I possibly can. I take particular note of his bedroom as he shows me around, seeing a large pile of money on his bedside table. He ends the tour by showing me to my room, where there are two other girls around my age, sitting on small beds.
"This is Maria and Sarah. Girls, this is Adalyn." He introduces me to the girls. They don't look like they're related to him. Maria has darker skin and Sarah has different colored hair and eyes. I nod to them, unsure of what to do. Tom shuts the door behind me and I hear a lock click. I'm stuck in here with these other girls.
I make my way over to the free bed, and sit my bag down on it. Maria and Sarah stare at me and look to each other, none of us knowing what to say. I look between the two of them and break the silence,
"How long have you been here?" I ask, my English probably not the best. Maria speaks up first,
"I have been here for a long time, years." Her voice is velvety smooth and I can tell she's probably not American either. Sarah nods her head,
"I've been here for maybe a year." She says. I can tell by her accent that she's definitely American.
"Did he buy you too?" I ask, wanting to know if they're also victims. They both nod their head. I feel anger flow through my veins. These girls deserve better.
"Do not worry, I will get us out of here." I say and make myself a little more comfortable on the bed, but the wound on my leg feels hot and irritated. I don't know why I'm being upfront with them with my plan, but for some reason I feel like I can trust them. Sarah looks as if she's about to laugh.
"We've tried leaving before, it's impossible." She says, Maria agrees with her. I couldn't save those on the boat with me, but I can save them and I fully intend to. I decide to be honest with them,
"Before I came here, I poisoned my father and killed him. I will get us out of here." I say. Maria and Sarah look between each other. After a moment, Maria smiles.
The two of them tell me about what life is like here, and what their routines are. Tom basically uses them to do the house chores. They said there used to be another girl, but she tried to escape one day and they never saw her again. My heart breaks for the brave girl and I admire her strength.
"Before this I ran away from home, a man found me on the street and offered me a job. I didn't know better, so I took his offer. Tom ended up buying me from the man, I was only fourteen." Sarah says, looking at the floor as she tells us.
"My family is from Colombia. My mother was told I could work in America and she would be sent the money. She was in debt, bad. She let a man take me, but when I got here they took all of my information, my passport, my birth certificate, everything." Maria says, playing with her fingers as she speaks.
Neither of them deserve this, they all deserve a chance at a happy life. I promise them once more that I will get us all out of here, but it might take some time. Tom will probably expect me to try and escape, I have to build some false trust first, and then make my move. I need to have this planned out in detail, much like I did back at Hydra. He has no idea who he just brought into his home.
Some time passes by before Tom comes to get us for dinner. He said since it's a special occasion he ordered food for us, instead of making the girls prepare it like he normally does. I look at the food on the table, seeing several types of pasta, some chicken, and vegetables all with steam coming off of it. I follow the lead of the other girls.
Tom sits at the head of the table, quickly eating the food he piled high on his plate. He wipes his mouth with a napkin and sets his fork down,
"Adalyn, how was your life in Russia?" He asks. It's very bizarre to me that he is trying to make this situation feel normal when it's the farthest thing from it. However, in order to make him feel like he can trust me, I have to go along with it. Obviously I can't tell him the truth, so I come up with a cover story,
"My family was very poor, my mother died when I was young. We lived in a little shack, my father couldn't take care of me anymore. Thank you for letting me work for you, so my father can pay off our debts" I say, keeping the story short and simple so that I don't have to remember any intricate details in case he asks later. My plan for now is to act dumb, so that he underestimates my intelligence.
"Well rest assured that you're safe here with us." He smiles and I return it. Luckily my time at Hydra allowed me to perfect the art of faking emotion. As I eat, I begin to formulate a plan out of here. I don't intend to stay for very long.