Chapter 14

I fell silent for a full five minutes in my slightly darkened room since I didn't have time to turn on the lights before entering. The only light came from my laptop screen. My head was filled with dozens of questions, but Nicholas's final sentence echoed the loudest in my mind.

"I hope you have questions."

He wanted me to contact him! Slowly, my initial shock turned into anger. He did this so I would reach out to him. Was he trying to make me indebted to him so he could make me do whatever he wanted?

Arrogant bastard.

I clenched my hands in anger, then opened the flight ticket website. I knew I would regret what I was about to do, but I couldn't let him manipulate me like this again.

In the same vein as trying to buy me, well, my dignity more precisely, I grabbed my phone angrily and looked for his number. After that, I sent him a brief message before finally tossing my phone onto my bed.

I turned off my laptop after finishing the ticket booking, then headed to the bathroom. I stripped off all my clothes, tossing them into the laundry basket. The warm water flowing from the shower gradually washed away some of my anger.

Since I didn't bring clean clothes to the bathroom, I just tied my towel around myself before leaving. My room was still dark because I hadn't turned on the lights since earlier.

My phone blinked from the top of my bed. When I picked it up, I saw seven missed calls, all from the same number. Half a minute later, my phone blinked again, and this time I answered.

"Eleanor." His voice still had the same effect on me, even though I hadn't heard it in the past two weeks. My stomach felt like it was churning, and I unconsciously bit my lip.

"Hey."

"Do you have questions?" His voice sounded deeper over the phone. I took a deep breath to clear my mind.

"Yeah," I replied.

"Are you just getting home?" he asked.

"No, I just finished showering..." I answered honestly before I had a chance to think.

He fell silent for a few moments before clearing his throat. "So, what's your question?" His voice changed slightly, becoming huskier, and my face reddened.

I tightened my grip on the edge of my towel with one hand. I walked toward the bedroom door to turn on the light. "Today, my bank sent a notice."

"Oh, really?" His tone remained unchanged.

My hand moved to flip the light switch. "You don't have to pretend, Mr.—" a hand, covered in black gloves, suddenly appeared from behind me and roughly covered my mouth.

My phone slipped from my hand as I tried to resist. I bit one of his fingers until he released his grip with a growl. I seized the opportunity to scream before he slapped me hard, and I tumbled onto my bed.

Adrenaline and pain made me stand up quickly, but with my room still dark, I couldn't see him clearly. Suddenly, he was behind me, pulling my wet hair harshly before pushing me onto the bed. The sound of my sobbing was clear in my room; I hadn't even realized I'd been crying since earlier.

He pinned me down with his heavy body, and my face buried in my pillow made it hard to breathe.

"Shut up, you bastard!" he whispered harshly in my ear. "I'll kill you if you scream again, understand?"

I tried to nod, faintly hearing my phone's sound from the floor. He tied my hands with a cable and then flipped me over. I tried not to move too much so my towel wouldn't open further.

Suddenly, he walked away, and a second later, bright light flooded my room. I stared at him in panic; he wore a black mask covering his entire face. His entire outfit was black.

The man took my phone and turned it off. The last thing I heard was Mr. Shaw's voice calling my name.

"W—wh—what do you want?" My heart pounded so fast that my head throbbed a bit.

He walked towards the end of my bed and pulled out a knife from behind his back. I tried to free my tied hands, but the cable circling my wrists only loosened a little.

Panic and fear made my tears stop; he directed the knife toward my leg and stabbed it into my bed, a few inches from my leg.

"Once again, if you scream, I won't hesitate to hurt you, got it?" He was a bit breathless when he spoke. I nodded while biting my lip to stifle my sobbing. From the corner of my eye, I saw my phone blinking on the floor.

"W—what do you want? M—money?"

He didn't answer. His eyes repeatedly scanned my body, covered only by a towel, making me more anxious. "I have cash in my drawer."

"I don't have much time." He growled, his voice heavy and rough.

"What are you doing?!" My voice turned a bit hysterical as he circled my ankles with his hands. Slowly, he moved up my legs, stopping at my knees. My stomach felt queasy as his thumb made a circular motion behind my knee.

"Please stop. I have more money in the bank if you want it." I looked into his dull brown eyes.

He only responded by squeezing my knees harshly, making me cry out a little. Suddenly, he stood up and walked to the corner of my room, where the music player was. He turned it on and raised the volume so high that the loud music would drown out any sounds.

I hadn't stopped trying to free myself since earlier, even though my efforts only slightly loosened the cable. My panic turned into terror when he stood at the end of my bed and removed his belt. My stomach felt even sicker.

"This will be a bit painful." He mumbled before turning on the music player again and snapping his leather belt onto my legs several times.

The intense pain, burning, and stinging made me scream as loudly as I could. But he didn't care about my screams; the more my legs moved, the harder he whipped me.

The unbearable pain made the ceiling of my room spin slightly, and then I saw something move behind him. The end of a wine bottle lifted behind his head, slightly gleaming in the light.

A quarter of a second later, I heard the sound of impact followed by the sound of broken glass and cursing.

Wine spilled on my towel and bed, the man staggered backward until he was a meter away from me. Lana stood a few meters behind him, still wearing her work clothes.

One of her hands held the remaining wine bottle. Her large, terrified eyes glanced at me briefly before focusing on the man. I used this opportunity to pull my hands forcefully from the cable. I didn't care about the pain in my entire body and the pain in my wrist as the cable cut slightly into my skin.

The man shifted all his attention to Lana, even though he squinted a few times due to pain.

"Bastard!" He walked somewhat unsteadily toward Lana, who was still frozen in her place.

"Lana, run!" I shouted while pulling my hands even harder, feeling the cable loosen further. But Lana seemed too shocked to run; the man hit her until she fell. Then, he raised his hand again, I heard Lana scream just as I managed to free my hands. Without thinking about the pain in my legs, I leaped behind the man, grabbing his mask and hair forcefully. He groaned in pain, releasing Lana.

He turned around with a brutal expression, and then started slapping me hard until I fell. Before I could stand, he kicked my stomach. I tried to scream, but the pain from his boot hitting my stomach held my voice in my throat. The pain was doubly excruciating compared to when he whipped me.

He only stopped when Lana hit him with a chair, making him tumble to the floor and remain motionless a meter away from me. Lana struck him again with the chair to make sure.

"Oh... Oh God, Ella, are you okay?" Lana knelt beside me, her two blue eyes widened in shock. I didn't change my huddled position, as any movement caused unbearable pain in my stomach.

We heard the sound of police car sirens a few moments later. "I haven't called the police yet." Lana muttered while gasping for breath. She glanced at me several times while holding her phone with trembling hands.

Because the pain became unbearable, I finally surrendered. I closed my eyes, welcoming the darkness that would relieve my pain.