Chapter 1: Tell him... You snake!

SOPHIE'S POV

"Sophie....Sophie! Have you watered the rest of the  hibiscus?" It was my stepmom's voice calling from the garden just behind my room. I slapped my head in frustration.

"Not again,"  I muttered before I responded.

"Not yet." 

 "Not yet?" Her voice came back with its irritating tremor.

"Who are you waiting to do it? Me? Or Olivia?"

"Ah..erm.. no.. please just. Just give me a minute ma." I stammered.

"You don't have a minute; come down here right now!" She shouted.

I heaved a sigh and got up. She was always like that—nagging, bossy, and controlling.  I was used to it, only that everything had intensified since my convocation last two weeks. And most times, the errands were mundane and repetitive. But who was I to complain to? Dad?

All he would do would be to give a boring recitation of Ephesians 6:10 and maybe a long religious epilogue on why elders must be respected, whether biological or not. Reporting to Dad was more trouble.

 "Phew," I exclaimed, wiping the sweat from my forehead as I took up the stainless jar and proceeded toward the garden.

When I got back, I let out a tired yawn as I sat on one of the straight-backed chairs in my room, typing up the remaining parts of my portfolio. I was determined to do this, no matter the distraction. My mind wandered to two weeks ago, when I graduated from Louisiana State University with a Bachelor of Science in Finance—"Magnicum laude," if I must add.

Memories of events at my convocation were still vivid in my head. It was supposed to be one of the happiest days in the life of a student, but for me, it was the saddest. It only reminded me of how lonely I really was. None of my family members had made it, not even Dad or Adam, my boyfriend. 

My smartphone's vibration on the table drew me back to reality, and when my eyes caught the ID of the caller flashing on the screen, I immediately smiled; it was Olivia.

"Troublehead,"  I muttered, checking out the wall clock and seeing that it was already past eight. Victoria would create a scene if I were the one out of the house by a time a little less than this, but here was her daughter doing much worse, and heaven was not falling.

 Olivia was my stepsister; we weren't that close, but certainly not enemies. Despite her mom's hostility, she still confided in me for some time. 

Olivia does the most random things; she might be calling only to ask or give a silly update about a porn site; it wasn't beneath her. I giggled in spite of myself.

"Hey, what's up, cowgirl? Did you do well to check what time it is over there?" I asked, still laughing and glaring at my laptop.

 "Hey Sop-hie?" She had said after a short silence, which was unlike her. And the unfamiliar shiver in her voice instantly cut my laughter short.

 "What's wrong?" I blurted, my heart already pounding.

"Come get me. I… I got in trouble. Some sick janitor got me cornered."

My hands were now shaking, hearing how scared she sounded.

"Got you cornered? What do you mean, Olivia?"

She had started to cry, following it up with gentle sniffs that were weak and intermittent.

"Please don't tell Mom and Dad. Just come right away." She continued to say, "Please come. I am at Baton's nightclub, room 027."

"Olivia, stay calm. I am coming right away. Do you hear me? I said, I am coming right away!"

"Hurry, please, before he hurts me." She said and cut the call.

I jumped to my feet, visibly shaken. And for a moment, I stood rooted in the same spot, motionless. Every bone in my body went helplessly numb. 

"What do I do now?" Baton's Nightclub? That place has always looked so off. Adam once took me there, and I felt so uncomfortable. Olivia could be in real danger. Should I tell Dad? No, that would be petty of me. Maybe it was best to respect her wishes.

I grabbed my car keys from the table and hurriedly made for the door. Forgetting to shut down my laptop, forgetting to change my clothes.

On the balcony, my father was standing near the vacuum cleaner wearing a silvery gown that made him look like he was at mass. He was about to turn when he saw me frantically wobbling past him in my nightgown. He cleared his throat dramatically before he asked, "To where young lady?"

  "D..Dad," I said, stalling for time, thinking of what was a more appropriate excuse.

"Good evening, Dad. I need to collect my songbook from Stacy, my friend in the choir. I need it for tomorrow's practice so I don't fall off." I lied, letting my voice fade off with the last statement.

He continued staring at me; it felt like his eyes were boring through me.

"Is this Stacy a boy?" 

"Come on Dad, no. Stacy is a girl." I replied, forcing a smile.

"Would you be sleeping over? Why go in that?" He was now gesturing at my nightgown with his eyes.

"It's not that far; I'll be right back... love you," I added and hastened my footsteps too quickly to hear any more questions, if any, and when I was halfway past, I could still hear him faintly.

"Get back on time; ensure you don't miss the family Bible study."

"Yes, Dad," I replied, starting my car engine and driving hurriedly out of the house.

On entering Baton's nightclub, the dim lighting, narrow corridors, and too-loud music triggered a haunting sensation inside of me. I dialed Olivia's number several times, but the line seemed to have been switched off. The ache in my head was growing. I was on the brink of tears.

"Sweet and playful, Olivia. She was never a bother to anyone. Why would anyone want to hurt such a playful soul? Why?"

I felt like screaming her name but quickly mastered myself; perhaps that might ruin a lot. I was able to trace my way to the room number she had disclosed to me, Room 027. At the entrance, I knocked twice, but there was no response. Then forcefully, I pulled at the door handle, and it opened with a squeak. The door had not been locked. It revealed an even more dimly lit empty bed space.

"Could she have been rap**ed?"

"Oliva…"

"Olivia?"

I whispered, then in a flash, from behind me, a strong arm grabbed me by the throat, smearing my nostrils with a strong, sweet-scented substance from a hanky. Everything happened in a flash. So fast, I would have doubted it even occurred if not for the effect the substance was now having on me. The man had disappeared, and the once dim room had all of a sudden become very bright. I was still worried about Olivia, but I was too weak to even move. It felt like I was walking on water, floating in a valley of perdition.

Suddenly, I began to hear the slow and measured footsteps of someone else. I was alert but half-blind. The man walked in, and from where I was, I could tell he was extremely attractive. The details of his face are vague but sparkling, as are his hair and his brows. There was fire in his eyes, and the closer he got to me, the stronger the smell of the alcohol in his breath. I began to step backward, but not in a bid to resist but to tease him because, for some weird reason, I felt an equally strong desire for him now. I have never felt this way for any man, not even for Adam. I could still say that even in this state when I'm not sure whether I'm alive or dead. My back is now against the wall, and he is only a few breaths away from me. He grabbed me by the thigh and began to kiss me, and slowly I returned his kisses, and then it proceeded to burst into a burst of wild kisses. When we found ourselves on the bed, all I remember was a delicious piercing feeling when he got inside me. His fervent thrusts send loud cries out of my mouth, freeing shackles from my joints. And finally, when I closed my eyes, it felt like a mountain of ice crumbling.

 ***

Hours later, I woke up feeling like the contents of my brain were all out so much that even my thoughts echoed. I felt so bare; I was completely naked, and the taste of the stranger's wine was now on my tongue. A part of the bed had patches of blood from me. Apparently, my senses were not all I had lost last night, but my virginity was also gone forever to someone I did not know, have never seen, or may never see. Where was Olivia? What really happened yesterday? I knew for sure that it was not rape; it felt like a giant hand had dropped me at the central point of the maze.

A lone bundle of cash had also been lying beside me all the while; could it have been from the same guy? What was happening?

I picked up my clothes from the floor, put them on weakly, and walked out, still feeling the numbness in my head. When I got to the entrance of the club, I saw Olivia and Adam together.

"Olivia," I called out.

"Thank God you are safe. I was so worried for you."

But she had said nothing; her stare was completely dead, and while Adam beside her looked at the bundle of cash I was holding and back again at my face, the judgment in his eyes was hunting.

"Believe me now?" Olivia asked, smiling and turning to Adam.

Adam was shaking his head, still looking at me. The judgment in his eyes had turned to disgust.

"Is this what you do now, Sophie?" Adam shouted, his voice laced with anger.

 "Adam. Please, I can explain." I said, with my voice trembling, that Adam was looking at me with so much hatred.

"Don't call my name, bitch! So all you do is deny me sex during the day and sell to the highest bidder at night? So Olivia was right all along?"

"Olivia," I said, too weak to even rebuff my legs were failing me; my world was falling apart.

"S…setup, it was a setup." I was whispering to myself, looking at Olivia; her pinched smiling face made her look more like the devious fruit bat her mother was. I had been living with my enemy.

 "Tell him…" I continued. "Tell him how you lured me to this place; tell him how you set me up, you snake!"

I walked toward Adam with tears streaming down my face. I tried to hold on to Adam, but he pushed me off and shouted.

"Touch me one more. I swear to God I'll... You know what? I'm done with you, you slut."

He swallowed hard and hurried out with Olivia by his side.

I fell to the ground, my face drenched with tears and my head pounding. I was wondering how it went so badly and so fast.