Kiera’s POV
Clang!
The shrill shattering sound of the plate hitting the floor jolted me awake, my eyes flying open in alarm.
“What’s going on there?” Dahlia descended the stairs, her eyes blazing profusely.
Without hesitation I stooped to the floor, collecting the shattered pieces.
“You stupid clumsy girl! Do you know how much that plate cost?”
Before I could speak, her hand struck my face leaving her devilish mark on my cheeks. Streams of tears gathered in my eyes as my mouth shook in pain.
“Oh.. you will pay dearly for this,” her teeth gritted in barely contained rage.
“I’m sorry Dahlia, I’m so tired after staying up all night doing the laundry you asked me to do. I could use Elise’s assistance in doing some of the chores around the house but she’s never around. God Knows what she’s been up to these days.”
Her eyes instantly grow larger, “How dare you speak about your sister in such a manner? Wherever Elise goes and whatever she does is none of your business. The only business you have in this house is to cater for the bills, do the chores religiously, and look after that dimwit you call a father. Take my daughter's name out of your wretched mouth.”
Trying so hard to hold my tongue from lashing out the venomous anger brewing within me, I lowered my eyes and swallowed hard.
“I’m going out now, make sure the house is sparkling when I return,” she hissed, heading towards the door, “Oh.. and check my bedside drawer for the grocery list,” her expression twisting into a cruel smirk as she walked through the door.
Judging by her floor-length white chiffon gown, pearl necklace, and diamond stud earrings, I surmised that she was headed to a special occasion, probably one with lots of rich folks.
Dahlia was my mom’s best friend, once so sweet and kind, according to my papa. But after my mom died in a terrible car accident when I was only 2 years old, she wormed her way into my father’s life, and a year after, she had Elise, my stepsister. For 24 years, I’ve lived under her terrible regime, and she has been my nightmare ever since.
It was 9 am when I finished all my chores, and I went to my Papa’s room only to find him standing right in front of the calendar and mumbling some words.
“Ah Mija, you’re here…” he paused, his gaze contemplating. “But aren’t you supposed to be in school or you missed the bus again?”
My heart sank as I stared at him. No matter how much time passed, I could never get used to seeing him this way. 4 years ago he was diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia, and his memory and behavior have been deteriorating ever since. That’s just one of the many terrible things that my dad has endured over the years. 6 years ago, Dahlia introduced him to some businessmen, and things went south, drowning my dad in a bottomless pit of debt, and what’s worse? Now, I have to work 3 jobs to keep up with paying all the bills and clearing the debts.
Elise is the real definition of like mother, like daughter, because aside from joining forces with her mom to make my life miserable, she never contributes a penny towards the house expenses instead she jumps from one man’s house to the next, so I've heard.
“No papa. I graduated 4 years ago. Which means I wouldn’t have to go to school again,” I smiled, placing a kiss on his cheek.
“Oh… I wasn’t a… aware.. when di—”
“4 years ago. Come now papa, your breakfast is getting cold,” I cut him off, holding back the tears that formed in my eyes.
After feeding him breakfast, I cleaned up and rushed to the grocery store to grab the items on the list Dahlia had left me.
The moment I entered the grocery store, I felt a sudden tug on my wrist and as I pivoted, I found myself face-to-face with a tattered-looking man, and instinctively, I pulled my wrist from his grasp.
“Please Ma’am, can you assist me with some money? I’m homeless and I’ve been starving for a week, and no one wants to assist me,” he muttered, his voice raspy.
There was something about him that felt strange. Although he had a horrible stench attached to him in addition to his disheveled hair and unshaven beard, he was still one of the most handsome men I've ever seen. How did someone like him end up being homeless?
My eyes were still big on him, as I stared incredulously, my mouth gaped both in shock and speechlessness.
“Ma’am are you okay?” He asked, catapulting me back to the present moment.
“Yeah.. Yeah, I'm fine. I… um… I don’t have so much on me, but I could spare a $20 note. I hope it will get you a few things, even though it isn’t much,” I said.
“You're far too gracious ma’am. Thank you so much. This would save me from starving another week,” he said, his excitement towering above the clouds.
After handing him the money, I turned around to continue shopping and his voice came through,
“My name is Gabriel.”
Before I could tilt my head, he was already at the threshold of the grocery store.
“Weird guy,” I muttered and continued picking items from the rack.
As I stood in front of the cashier, Mae, whose crush on me had persisted since I was 17, despite my repeated rejections, my eyes were drawn to the television.
There, to my horror, I saw Miguel and Elise getting married at Royal City Hall – the live broadcast was playing on the screen.
I rubbed my eyes vigorously, unable to process what I was seeing.
“Miguel!” I screamed, my eyes twitching with tears.
The pain I felt overwhelmed me drawing the attention of everyone around.
Miguel and I had been dating for a year, but 3 whole months had passed without a single glimpse of him, under the excuse of traveling out of the city for business. Miguel kept our relationship private because he didn’t want unnecessary attention on us. Only a few of his bodyguards knew about us.
Of all the men in the world, Elise chose the only man who ever made me feel special other than Papa. It’s common knowledge that Dahlia was also heading there this morning.
“Kiera, are you okay?” Mae asked.
“Yeah… I’m … I—”
Suddenly streams of tears came running down my cheeks, as my body wracked with sobs.
“Oh my God Kiera, what’s wrong?” Mae asked, her voice filled with concern.
At that precise moment, a man from the back of the line chimed in,
“Yoo.. If you wanna cry you can step out of the line and do that, and stop wasting our time.”
“F*ck off you insensitive mudaf*cker. If you can’t wait patiently till it gets to your turn, get the hell out of here,” Mae snapped.
Grasping my emotions, I brushed my face with my palm, cleaning my tears, “I’m okay Mae, you didn’t have to do that for me. How much do the items cost,” I demanded.
“I know you're never gonna open up to me, but I’m always here for you. And for the groceries, it’s on the store,” Mae smiled, handing me the plastic bag containing the groceries.
“Thank you,” I mouthed, fighting every urge to surrender to the overwhelming despair that threatened to consume me.
As I stepped out of the grocery store, my mind instantly went blank, and before I knew it, I found myself standing in front of Royal City Hall.
“What are you doing here?” A familiar voice echoed in my ears“Kiera!”My eyelids fluttered as I found myself back in reality. I glanced around trying to comprehend how I got here. I must have been so pain-struck that my legs instinctively led me here. “You shouldn’t be here Kiera,” Joe, one of Miguel’s bodyguards said sternly.Besides him, three other guards stood at the entrance. “I… umm… I … need to speak with Miguel,” I stuttered, still reeling from the devastating revelation.“You can't see Miguel now. Besides you can't go in without an invitation,” Joe responded, his tone unyielding.“Please, let me just speak to him once. I don’t know what Elise has given him, but I'm sure he isn’t thinking straight,” I pleaded, but Joe maintained his stand.Impulsively, I dived toward the guards trying to force my way through,“Stop creating a scene Kiera, there are paparazzi around, and I wouldn’t wanna do anything to hurt you, so please just go home,” Joe insisted.I fumed, as the pain that
Kiera’s POVThe room was suddenly flooded with light, causing my eyes to struggle to adjust to the brightness.As I looked around, I noticed several young girls, some younger than me, and others around my age. The walls of the room were old and I could see some cracks on them. There was a fireplace, bed, and a bucket filled with things I couldn’t clearly see. Then my eyes settled on him–The man who has absolute power over my fate, surrounded by six able-bodied men and 4 middle-aged women.“Strip!” He shouted, his voice echoing in the room.Suddenly, some of the girls began taking off their clothes, revealing their bare bodies.“What are the rest of you buffoons waiting for?” He shouted.Trembling, my hands began peeling my clothes off my body. My clothes were no longer moist, as they dried on me over the passing hours.I watched as my clothes fell to the floor and my hands quivered as I pulled off my pants. No man had ever seen my bare body, not even Miguel.“Now, turn around,” he inst
Kiera’s POVWe were assembled behind a stage, and shortly after, the four Madams came in with a box. Each of us was handed a set of lingerie and a pair of heels, as we stood in a straight line.“Put them on quickly,” Madam Naomi instructed.My hands quaked as I nervously removed the pajamas, and donned the lingerie. It was a bra and pant set. The lace-like material made it very transparent and anyone could clearly see our intimate areas.The Madams nodded in satisfaction as they observed us.“Tonight, some of you will get new masters, but that’s not the end. You have a 2-month probation period. Your masters can do whatever they choose to do with you. If after 2 months, they're pleased with you, then you become their permanent property. If not, you will be returned here, and your lives will be 10 times worse.”Madam Naomi's words sent a chill down my spine.“For the sake of the new girls, I’m gonna say this again. You have a maximum of one month to get a new master, if not, El Diablo’s
Kiera’s POVMy eyes grew wide like saucers,“You’re the homeless guy from the grocery store!”My mind instantly swallowed itself, struggling to understand how that could be possible. I rapidly blinked my eyes and shook my head, wondering if I was hallucinating due to the immense stress that I'd been through today.He took a few steps closer but I retreated.“I know it all seems impossible to you right now, I know you have lots of questions but I need you to calm down. I’ll explain everything to you once you’re settled and in a good frame of mind,” he said.“No, I need an explanation now,” I insisted.The ringing tone from his phone interrupted, and he excused himself to answer it.A couple of minutes went by and there was no sign of him. I tried opening the door only to realize that it was locked.“F*ck!”I cussed, kicking the bedside drawer, causing the lamp to fall and shatter. However, something caught my attention. There was a small booth picture lying on the drawer, it was beneat
KIERA’S POVThere’s no way I’m gonna just stay put and watch anyone take advantage of me again.Lifting myself from the bed, I walked to the door and opened it gently, glancing around and making sure there were no guards around.I tiptoed to the opposite side of the first floor, only to find a door moderately opened. My curiosity shamelessly dropped its pants, and I intentionally peeped into the room.What I saw, triggered a surge of goosebumps all over my skin, causing my heart to go offbeat.My eyes got stuck on a strange man’s shirtless body as he stood in front of the mirror, examining his features.Goodness me!My lips unconsciously folded in, as my fingers trailed around my chest.Who is he? I wondered.Like a runaway train, my heart hurtled forward, unstoppable and untamed as his hands tugged into his pants, in an attempt to take them off, and my eyes didn’t even twitch.At that moment, my body made contact with the door, causing it to emit a squeaking sound that sent a jolt of
KIERA’S POVThe rays of sunlight pierced through my eyelids, and I instinctively shielded my eyes with my hand. I let out a big yawn and rolled to the other side of the bed.“Do you always sleep so deeply?” A voice sounded behind me, instantly throwing me out of dreamland.“Jesus Christ!” I screamed, instantly grabbing the covers and wrapping them around me. I was fully clothed, so why was I being dramatic?Gabriel stood at the window, his body blocking the harsh rays from hitting me, and I propped myself up, squinting as I stared at his shadowy figure.“I’ll have one of the house staff get you a T-shirt and a pair of jeans. Get dressed and meet me outside in 15 minutes,” he said, taking his leave before I could even open my mouth.I was ready and out in 15 minutes.“Get into the car,” he commanded.“Where are we going?” I asked, but he remained silent, striding over to open the front door for me.“Please get in,” he said politely.As I sat in the car, my eyes traveled to Damien’s wi
KIERA’S POVLike a flurry of arrows, his words pierced my heart, hitting every nerve connected to it. If there’s anything I dreaded more than my life back home, it was the haunting memories of the horrors I endured in that hellhole. It was a nightmare.He released a heavy sigh before entering the car and waited as I walked cautiously to the car, my legs trembling.As I settled into the car, beads of tears formed in my eyes, however, the deep measured breath he took was enough to relay the magnitude of his simmering anger.After a few seconds of regaining his composure, he started the engine and drove off. The oppressive silence and tension in the car were almost unbearable, and I silently prayed we’d arrive at our destination quickly.At last, we pulled up at an estate, and he swiftly hopped out of the car and opened the door for me. He stretched out his hand and I placed mine in his, my gaze pinned on the floor.“Hey,” he said gently, lifting my chin with his finger.“I’m sorry I la
MIGUEL’S POVI sat in the dimly lit room, smoke curling around me as I took a long drag from my cigarette. I gulped down a glass of whiskey relishing the fiery sensation as it coursed down my throat. Just as I flicked the ash from my cigarette, the door swung open, and Joe walked in. The look on his face was evident enough for me to know that he had something to say.“Speak up, before I lose my patience,” I said.Clearing his throat, his voice came forth, “Kiera showed up at the wedding venue.”Her name pulled a string in my heart, and I simply nodded and poured myself another round of whiskey.If I’ve ever felt any form of affection towards any woman, it would be Kiera. Cold as my heart may be, she fascinated me. Her beauty, innocence, her perception of the world, and everything about her made her special. But the affection I had for her was no match compared to the hatred I have for Gabriel. Despite the fact that our families have been sworn rivals for ages, the bastard was also res