She opened her eyes again, raking up and down to see where she was. Her head was spinning and it felt like it was being cracked open. She squeezed her eyes shut only to open them again when she overheard voices from afar.
The whole place was dark and the only source of light was coming from the half opened sliding door that she could see fifteen meters away. She reckoned that she was being held captive in an abandoned edifice. Just the thought of it not only made her break out in a cold sweat, but she also felt like losing consciousness.
The building was old. Most of the paint had been scraped off, exposing nothing but piles of bricks. The windows were smashed to smithereens and shards of glass were scattered everywhere.
When she looked up, there was a standing mirror in front of her and she saw herself tied up around a chair. Her whole body shook in fear when she also realized that her mouth was covered with a piece of cloth.
From the mirror, she observed that she was wearing a dress decorated in very light shades of pearl. Her hair was braided like a thick black rope, and her bangs obscured her eyes. Her gaze moved down and a pair of sophisticated and undeniably high-end stilettos caught her sight.
She shook her head and closed her eyes tightly, hoping that she would wake up from a horrible nightmare.
Her heart bolted out of her chest when she heard footsteps coming her way. That moment, she knew that she was caught in a big trouble.
"What a gorgeous payment!" chirped someone.
She looked up and she caught a glimpse of a man wearing a tuxedo. His face was covered with a mask made out of... gold. She had never seen one in her entire life until that instant.
As much as she wanted to scream, she couldn't. The cloth around her mouth was hindering her intention. Plus, she was tightly tied around the chair to the point that she couldn't even struggle to break free.
She panicked when the man started walking towards her. Along with him was a tall, blond girl dressed like a... doctor. It wouldn't take Anastasha a lifetime to see that under the thin white coat was a naked woman's body.
Her sharp glare returned to the masked man who was already circling around her. She froze when he traced a finger down her neck. Her breathing rate increased and she felt her hands sweat. For the second time, she made forceful, violent efforts to flee.
She only stopped when she heard his chilly laugh. It terrified her to the utmost level that she felt goosebumps all over her skin.
He drew his head closer to hers, licking her ear. She groaned in anger and struggled violently. She loathed the man for his malevolence.
"Don't worry, sweetheart. I won't do anything yet. We still have to wait for our special guest," he effused while wearing a perverted grin. Even though she couldn't see his face, she knew that he had an infuriating simper on his lips. She could feel the impending danger that awaited her as she heard the tone of his voice.
She thought that if these people abducted her, they surely wanted to obtain something. She sought to discover what the real motive was, but instead, she saw the worried face of her mother when she closed her eyes.
Suddenly, she recalled what happened that night she came back from the field. The wounded man, his friend, her parents and... nothing. She didn't have a memory of the happenings that took place later on.
The train of thoughts was interrupted when the man pat her head. He walked and came to a halt in front of her.
"You poor little girl. I bet you're exerting the greatest amount of effort just to remember what happened two days ago." What he spilled was followed by a hostile, grating and malefic laugh.
Her face contorted in rage as she heard the man's displeasing laugh. She wanted to ask. She had a thousand of questions running in her head yet she couldn't even voice out one of them.
Though one question was embedded in her mind: How was it even possible that she remained unconscious for two days?
"Okay, okay. I'll tell you," he paused and it made her look at him with a softened expression.
He cackled. She thought that he was making her his laughing stock but she was proven wrong afterwards. The man took a chair, positioned it in front of her and sat down comfortably with his legs crossed.
How she despised him. If ever she was given the chance, she wouldn't waste a second and strangle him to death.
"As you may already know, I presume, your loving father offered you, his very own daughter, as a payment for his countless arrears," he paused when he saw her questioning face.
"Oh well, I'll try to make this easy for you. The term arrears means money that is owed and should have been paid earlier. I guess that explains why you're here. So, in short, you're going to become my concubine to pay for your father's debts," he said calmly, as if he was delivering her some good news.
A suffocating fury boiled up her chest. She had difficulty breathing after what the man declared. That was the last thing she wanted him to say. Never in her whole life she dreamt of becoming a kept woman.
Her chin trembled and she looked down as a flood of tears raced down her ashen cheeks. A great tremor stuck her. Uncontrollable sobs tore her chest, her body shivering in fright.
She would trade her soul to the devil just to escape from that wicked place. From the very moment her father started his vicious lifestyle, she never stopped considering that he would sell her one day in order to continue gambling.
"Beautiful! Look, wifey. She's crying!" he exclaimed. He appeared very excited and joyous. Her jaws clenched with fury and she started to let out an incessant wail.
"Yes, honey. I can see that," the woman replied with a smile, showing no concern for the miserable noises she was making.
She wanted to hit her head against something hard when she realized that the two deranged people were actually a couple.
The man ceased laughing and she was silenced by the sound of an engine of a car being switched off.
To her surprise, he briskly stood up and fixed his tie properly, wearing a serious expression.
Anastasha was so drained. Her brain, her body and her heart were all damaged. She just wished for a miracle to happen. Her strong desire to flee dwelled in her inner being. However, she didn't know how to execute her plan.
"Buongiornissimo, amico!" the masked man exaggeratedly greeted in an intolerable and unpleasant Italian accent.
His enthusiasm, though, was smashed by the newly arrived person by telling him something offensive, "Shut up. Your accent is dreadful."
When Anastasha heard that voice, her heart lit up with relief and delight. She immediately tilted her head upward to meet his gaze.
She was right. How could she forget that rough voice who haunted her even in her dreams?
Surprise, then disbelief, crossed his eyes. He remained in his position in a stiffening poatire. His mouth gaped open and as he read the situation, his eyes bulged in anger. An anger that quickly disappeared before she could
completely notice it.
On the other hand, Anastasha believed that the heavens heard her prayers and decided to grant it in the embodiment of the man she managed to save two days ago.
Wilder.