I was paralyzed to the spot, terror washing over me and sucking the very breath from my mouth. I have never felt this intense feeling of dread and fear in my entire life. My whole existence was hanging by a thread in this precarious situation. Just by the easy flip of a coin, my fate will be decided. The hold on my arms tightened when I took a tentative step back.
The man crosses his leg over the other and takes another drag of the cigarette. Once he nestles the cancerous stick at the side of his mouth after blowing out a cloud of smoke, he flips the coin.
I watch the coin in the air with bated breath, tracking the flips with hawk-like eyes. I bite my cheek so hard until I taste the metallic tang of blood on my tongue.
Then the coin lands on the floor directly at his feet. I hold my breath as the man picks up the coin and stares at it long and hard. The words that tumble out of his lips makes my heart to plummet to my stomach.
"Tails." The look he flashes my way turns into icy hostility, his face darkening with contempt promising nothing but destruction. The drastic change in his expression went through me like a blast of ice, my muscles stiffening in panic of what's going to happen next.
"Wait...you can't kill me. I promise I won't say anything to the police." I begin to plead for him to spare my life when Kang-dae and Haider forcefully drag me towards the exit.
No matter the amount of cries and pleas that leaves my lips, I couldn't find mercy in his eyes. The people in the room went on with whatever they were doing without so much as glancing my way like what these men were about to do to me was a daily occurrence for them.
"Please let me go." I struggle to get free of their death grip but then Haider twists my arm to the back and locks it in place so I would stop resisting. I clench my teeth at the sharp pain and walked further down the hallway when they nudged me harshly to keep going.
We stop right in front of the room I was locked in before they brought me to their boss. Kang-dae kicks the door open with his foot and it slams against the wall from the forceful hit. Before I could blink, I felt myself being pushed into the room. My balance was unsteady and the shock of it all had me falling face first to the cold hard floor. I suppress a whimper at the dull ache of pain in my head. I feel something slithering down my temple and swiped my thumb across it to see that it's blood.
Their footsteps approaching me makes me to sit upright. A deep sense of uneasiness holds me rigid at the sinister look in their eyes. They shared knowing looks and towered over my form with matching smirks.
"You don't have to be scared, baby. Before we kill you, we're going to have fun first so you can die a happy woman." Haider says in mock reassurance, gazing at me superciliously through half-lidded eyes, his pupils dilating with lust.
A chill creeps through me at the thought of going through something that brought me nothing but anxiety. I scoot backwards away from them, my heart clenching tightly in my chest when I feel the cold hard surface of the wall against my back. There's no way to escape from them. I'm doomed.
Calm down, Rayne.
Please don't panic.
Kang-dae pulls out a gun from the waistband of his pants and twirls it around in his hands to spike my fear. Haider begins to unbuckle his belt and an image of the past flashes right before my eyes. My eyes shot up at the sound of belt unbuckling. I looked down to see him undoing his zipper and felt my heart leap to my throat. I was about to be raped. That registered in my drunk mind and caused me to panic. This can't happen.
He undid his zippers giving me a clear view of his boxers and his bulge. He grins at me and trails his fingers up my bare legs, stroking the tattoo on my inner thighs. My skirt had ridden up from the slight hassle of this situation. I attempt to tug it down but Haider captures my hands in a tight grip.
"You don't have to hide from me. I love seeing the tiger tattoo. It just shows how hot you are." He breathes, licking his lips slightly. Then he gropes my breast through my shirt and clamps his mouth down on my neck, sucking the skin harshly that I'm sure it would leave bruises.
"No, no! Please don't do this! If it's money you want, there's some in my purse!" I tried to negotiate in exchange for my virginity he was gonna take. All pleas fell on deaf ears. I let out the loudest scream when he thrust all the way into me. He slapped a hand over my mouth to muffle my cries and widened my legs to slam back into me without any restrictions.
I can't get raped again.
Last time I was drunk so I couldn't quite defend myself but this time, I'm sober and aware of everything going on around me. I can at least fight to get free even if it's the last thing I do before they kill me.
I swallow down the dizzying sense of anxiety and ram my elbow into the side of his face so hard that he let out a loud grunt of pain. While he is occupied with nursing the assaulted area, I bring my knee up and knead him in the dick.
"Fuck." He hiss in pain and tumbles to the ground with his hand gripping his manhood. I don't bother to be amazed at what I just did because I've never indulged in violence before but I guess watching boxing on ESPN twice with Megan against my will actually paid off.
I press both hands on the floor to lift myself off the floor. Before I could run towards the door, I feel a hand grab my hair and slam my body against the wall. I wince at the pain that radiates through me and try to blink away the haziness from my vision.
"You fucking bitch!" I catch a glimpse of Kang-dae seething with anger through all the haziness while Haider struggles to stand on his feet. I feel his hand wrap around my throat squeezing tightly, cutting all the air from my lungs. I feel my eyes popping out of their sockets and claw my fingers at his hand for him to release the pressure before I pass out.
"She wants it rough, don't you think Haider?" He throws a glance over his shoulder at his companion who starts to make his way over to us. A bullet of panic rises in my throat at the lust mixed with anger glazing in his eyes.
"Funny enough though, I love it rough too. I'll deal with her first." Haider grunts out, his lips curling upwards in a wicked smirk as Kang-dae releases his hold on my throat. Before I could take in air to soothe my constricted lungs, Haider tears open my shirt to reveal the black bra I had on. All the buttons fly out and clatter to the ground.
I suddenly felt self conscious of my exposed body even though I wasn't completely naked. He grips my jaw hard and brings me closer to his face so I'm forced to make eye contact with him.
"You're going to pay for that little stunt you pulled." Just as he said those words, his fist come in contact with my face making my head to snap to the side from the hard impact. Then his fist connect to my stomach and before I can draw in another breath, he kicks me to the floor, his feet hitting the underside of my jaw.
All my muscles go stiff from the pain. A whine slips out of my lips as I clutch every parts of my body because they all hurt but my jaw was much worse. I don't think it's broken anyway which is a little bit of relief on my part.
"Please don't hurt me. Just let me go." I cry, not bothering to wipe the tears that slides down the side of my face and over to the shell of my ear.
"Don't beg, baby. Your feistiness is much more hotter." He whispers in my ear making me shiver in disgust. Kang-dae laughs out loud from where he is standing with a gun clutched in his hand and watching the show with a smirk.
I feel him hunch my skirts up to my waist and tears off my panties with his bare teeth. I continue to cry like the weak woman I am. I couldn't find it in me to fight anymore. All my body ached from pain and my anxiety was starting to gnaw away at me. I watch in numb horror as he slips a finger into me. It hurts but I swallow back my pain. I hadn't had sex in a while so I'm pretty sure I was tight. After I was raped, it took me years before I had sex again with my second boyfriend who kept insisting on it and since then, I haven't done anything sexual in a while but this was nothing sexual in a good way. It was rape and sexual harassment.
In my peripheral vision, I see Kang-dae tuck his gun away before making his way over to where I laid on the floor, helpless, while his companion assaulted me. He joined in on the fun. He trailed his finger down the tiger tattoo on my thigh and wrapped his hand around my throat to keep me nailed to the ground.
My panicked thoughts grow wild. I feel myself being catapulted to the time I lost my virginity to a stranger. He had forcefully taken away something that was priceless and valuable to me. I feel the perspiration beading in my brow as blood pounded in my ears.
My eyes flew open when I felt something thick and big rub against my clit. I look down to see Haider gripping his dick and swirling the tip around my wetness. I struggle hard again to escape their hold, the grip around my throat tightens but it still doesn't stop me from thrashing around. My heart thundered hard at the reality of what I went through repeating itself again.
"Oh, you want this right?" Haider grins, stroking his disgusting dick with a look of pure lust and wickedness in his eyes.
Right after he lines himself up at my entrance, the door bursts open. I couldn't see who it was. My vision was slightly distorted from the anxiety that consumed me. I take a deep breath to calm myself and blink my eyelids repeatedly to get a good look at who exactly just walked into the room.
There before my eyes was none other than their boss. His face was contorted with rage, eyes narrowing at the scene before him. His nostrils flared hotly and his muscles grew tense as the seconds passed by. His white hat was no were in sight giving me a clear view of his dirty blonde hair tied back in a low man bun.
I have never seen anyone this angry before. He looked like a ferocious beast ready to pounce on its prey and destroy them in a matter of seconds.
The men pull back away from me with sheer terror written all over their face. Haider quickly zips up his pants and stands to his feet with a slight wobble. His face was drained of colour and his hands started to shake. Kang-dae was paralyzed in fear. His whole body grew dramatically stricken like someone that had seen a ghost.
I sit up and wrap my torn shirt around my upper body to shield myself of his penetrating gaze while tugging my skirt down to cover my exposed thighs. Those black eyes blazes with fury as he scanned my disheveled form. At this point, tears had stopped streaming down my cheeks.
He looks away from me and snaps his fingers twice. The sound resounds through the silence of the room startling me a bit. I'm suddenly confused at that slight action. Judging by the horror that fills their face, I know it can't good.
A guard strolls into the room with something behind his back. When he goes to hand it over to his boss while avoiding eye contact in fright, I see it's a machete. Scenarios of how he could use it to on them flashes in my mind and I draw in a sharp breath.
Right after the guard leaves, their boss grips the machete so hard and slices Haider's head off his body in the blink of an eye. I stay rooted to the spot, blinking repeatedly to clear away the horrid images of what I just witnessed hoping that somehow I only imagined it. But then his head rolls over to the side of my feet with blood gushing out like a fountain. When his cold lifeless eyes meet mine, I let out a loud piercing scream and grab a handful of my hair in a tight grip.
The boss doesn't even flinch at my screams. His furious eyes stay glued to Kang-dae who pleads for his dear life. The headless body goes on its kneels first and falls to the ground. Blood pools around it making a huge mess.
Oh my God! I think I'm going to throw up or loose consciousness. I just watched someone's head get cut off from his body. It won't be that horrible for me if he stabbed him. This is just....inhumane.
I can't even muster up the confidence to kick the head away from me. I was still frozen in shock and dread. I scoot further away from it and divert my attention back to the two men in the room only to see that the boss has his hand wrapped around Kang-dae's throat, lifting his body up the ground like he weighs nothing.
"Leave." I hear him grind out. His voice is as cold as ice, chilling all the bones in my body. It's just a simple word but when he uttered it, it holds so much authority and resentment. I don't comprehend his words quickly because I'm still in a state of shock.
"I said leave." He doesn't shout at me or make eye contact. He says it calmly. It isn't hard to detect the untold destruction and horrors behind his words. His hold tightens around Kang-dae's throat possibly breaking his windpipe.
I snap out of the daze I was in and scamper around to stand on my feet. Abandoning my discarded shoes while I avoid looking at the head and body on the floor, I run over to the door and yank it open. I don't even bother to spare them a glance because at this pont, I couldn't bring myself to care.
After I stepped out of the room leaving the door wide open, someone holds out my bag for me to grab. I don't hesitate to do so. Without making eye contact with the guard, I run down the hallway in fear that the boss might change his mind about letting me go.
How am I suppose to get out of here?
I have no clue where I am except knowing the slight fact that I'm somewhere underground. I hurry round the multiple maze of hallways while ignoring the looks some of the armed men flash at me. I tighten my hand around my body, hoping my shirt cover up some specific parts of my upper body.
I sigh in relief upon seeing a spiral wrought iron staircase that leads up to who knows where. I don't let myself indulge in the feeling of relief too long. I didn't even know where the staircase leads to. I won't know unless I make an attempt. Being here longer than I should has panic slithering up my spine of something bad happening to me down here.
I just evaded dead for crying out loud.
Oh sweet Jesus! I hope it leads to an exit.
While wrapping an arm around my body to keep the shirt in place, I grip the railing and carefully walk up the stairs, the coldness of the iron hitting the underside of my feet. I increase my pace when I hear the slight sound of footsteps making their way over to the stairs.
Emerging into what seemed like a small storage room, I head for the door and slammed it shut behind me. I can hear the loud thumping sound of music as I continue to venture down a long dark hallway, occasionally looking over my shoulder to make sure I'm not being followed. I keep a tight grip around the shirt covering my body and try to calm down my racing heart.
My chest hurts already and my lungs feel so constricted I can barely get in oxygen. I've been through so much today and all I want to do is take some antidepressant and snuggle into my comfy bed. I run my fingers through my unruly hair and squeezed my eyelids shut at the sudden migraine.
I push open the double doors not expecting to walk into a crowded club with thick intoxicating smoke blinding me for a bit and stinging my eyes. I blink back the small tears and look around my surroundings, my vision finally adjusting to the view even though it is hard to see.
I'm quite familiar with the normal activities that takes place in a club from my last experience when I was 17. Men and women groped each other on the dance floor like horny teenagers, bartender working like robots to meet the heavy demands of their drunk customers and well, a lot of sexual activity that made me want to throw up.
Most especially, they were doing drugs; like the heavy ones. Nicotine, cocaine, fentanyl, morphine and so much more I can't mention. You might be surprised of how I know their names. That's because Megan's ex husband did drugs right before they got divorced. Yeah, it's messed up.
I keep my gaze glued to the floor and maneuver my way around the sweaty bodies on the dance floor towards the direction of the exit I was so anxious to get to. Thankfully, no one notices me. They were all focused on something else which I didn't care about.
My phone starts to ring immediately I stepped out of the club and onto the open street. I stand by a closed flower shop to take out my phone from my bag and see it is Audrey calling. Leaning back against the wall and taking a deep calming breath, I answer the call on the second ring.
"Hello," I grip the phone hard and look away from the couple kissing heatedly a few feet away from where I'm standing.
"Thank Goodness you answered, Rayne. I have been calling you for three hours now but you never picked up. What happened?" Audrey asks, sounding a bit concerned and worried. It might be weird for others because she's my boss but we don't have that kind of relationship. I consider us friends.
I thread my other hand through my hair, not caring if my upper body is exposed since no one is walking on the street except for the couple who aren't paying any attention to me.
"Nothing. I'm just exhausted. I wasn't with my phone at that time." I say instead of telling her the truth. She mustn't know about it anyway. I don't think the boss will appreciate it if I rant to anyone about what I witnessed. I can't take that risk of endangering myself or the people I love.
"Oh, I'm so sorry, Rayne. I'm pretty sure the police bothered you today about what happened. I called just to inform you that you should take tomorrow off fro. work. I can have someone else —"
I quickly cut her off, "No you don't have to, Audrey. I'm perfectly fine. I don't mind coming to work at all."
"Listen to me Rayne, you've worked so hard for the past few years I've known you and you barely take anytime off to relax except it's an emergency." She tells me.
"I know but —"
"I've made my decision, Rayne. You're staying home tomorrow. Understand?"
I sigh in defeat, "Yes ma'am."
"Good, and don't call me ma'am. We've been through this." She says with a slight chuckle and we exchange goodbyes. Right after she hangs up, I scroll through my contacts and dial Megan's number. I'm going to stay at her place tonight because there's no way that I'm going home looking so disheveled like I got hit by a truck. I don't want my grandma to worry about me or my daughter....if she did care.
"Rayne Emery Horton, I am so mad at you." Megan yells into the phone.
━━━━━━━━━━
AUTHOR'S NOTE
Hey beautiful people,
I am beyond sorry for delaying this chapter. I have explained to y'all in my conversation board that I'm trying to battle my anxieties and prioritize my mental health. I'm also trying to juggle my internship and writing. It's so fucking stressful and I'm so fucking exhausted, babes.
I know I can do this. I can.
Thanks for reading this book. Your support is deeply appreciated and inspiring even though my brain is quite fried, lol.
Make sure to vote, comment and share.
Love you❤❤
❤Jana❤