5

Another man takes one last attempt to touch me and the tall guy goes ballistic and punches him hard three times in the face. After a lot of pushing, shoving, and arguing, the men finally leave. He locks the door behind him and then turns back toward me.

I let myself breathe and then I see arousal flash across his face and my relief is short lived.

Now he’s going to have his fun.

I feel sick.

I can’t do this.

He walks over to the side of the bed and stares down at me. I look at him through blurred vision.

“Drug me,” I whisper as I turn my head away from him. “Knock me out.”

“You don’t want to enjoy me?” he asks flatly.

I swallow the lump in my throat as I stare at the wall, the tears running down my face. I can’t believe he just asked me that.

I turn back to look at him and my cold eyes hold his. “If you think being raped while tied to a bed is every woman’s fantasy, you’re as dumb as you fucking look.” I sneer.

His face remains emotionless. He bends and begins to untie one of my feet. He loosens it and I just want to kick him in the head.

Stop it. Wait until you are completely free, I remind myself. He moves to my other foot and unties it and I bring my legs together instantly. Ouch, I’m sore from being stretched out for so long. I wait patiently while he undoes one wrist and then he moves to the other and frees me completely.

I sit up and instantly grab the blanket to cover my body. “Where are my clothes?” I whisper with shame.

He shrugs, turns to face away from me, and takes his shirt off over his head. “I don’t know. I don’t care. Get out.”

He’s finished with me.

Hatred drips through my every pore. Unable to help myself, I push him hard in the back. “Who the fuck do you think you are?” I snap.

He turns on me like the devil himself and I instinctively flinch away from him.

“Be very careful, Miss…” He pauses for effect. “Roshelle.”

“Is this how you get your pathetic kicks? Kidnapping and raping girls?” I murmur.

His lip curls in disgust. “Don’t flatter yourself.”

I glare at him.

“You don’t have what I want.” He smirks sarcastically as his eyes drop down my naked body and I try to cover myself with my hands. “I like my women to be…” He pauses again. “Women.”

My heart drops.

Of all the things he could have said.

His words cut me like a knife and my thoughts go to Todd, my boyfriend… ex-boyfriend, now. I obviously wasn’t woman enough for him, either. I drop my head as sadness steals the air from my lungs. Just shut up and get out of here. He drops his pants and his large erection hangs heavily between his legs. He walks into the bathroom and turns on the shower.

I stand still as I try to regain some sort of composure. The tears are running down my face. I have never been so humiliated in all of my life.

A rapist doesn’t want me.

He hops into the shower and under the water, facing away from me, I see he’s huge and muscular and his whole back is covered in tattoos. If he wanted to kill me with his bare hands… he could.

I wouldn’t stand a chance against him.

I walk around the room in search for my clothes. I have got to get the hell out of here. Suddenly frantic, I open a drawer and quickly pull the t-shirt over my head as he walks out of the bathroom. Shit, that was the quickest shower in history.

“Where you going?” he asks as he dries his hair with the towel.

“Home,” I snap as I pull up the shorts.

He raises an eyebrow. “You a good swimmer?”

I frown. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“We are fifty miles from shore.”

Huh? I frown.

“You’re on a container ship.”

I start to look around in a panic. “W-what do you mean?” I stammer. Oh my God.

I run to the cabin door and jiggle the handle. “Let me out. Let me out,” I cry.

He opens the door. “Have fun with the crew.” He pushes me out and slams the door behind me.

My eyes dart from side to side as I try to focus on my surroundings that are all metal. It’s dark with only a row of small orange lights on the floor along the wall. To the left is a wide corridor that must be at least one hundred meters long and I can see a large lit up room at the end. Noise and laughter echoes down the corridor. I can hear men’s loud laughter. Oh God, those are the animals that were just in my room. I look to the right and see an exit sign. I have got to get out of here. I quickly dart across the hallway to the safeness of the dark and make my way up toward the exit sign.

He was lying.

He had to be lying. I’m not on a boat. I can’t be on a boat.

I tiptoe like a mouse up the three flights of stairs until I get to large double doors with small round windows in them. I peer through and my heart sinks.

It’s dark and raining, and for as far as I can see shipping containers are piled up miles high on top of each other.

Oh my God, what do I do?

I stand back as I think. I know one thing for certain: if I stay on this ship I will be dead before I see land again.

Fuck this. I burst through the doors and run outside into the pouring rain as I frantically look around at the surroundings. I run to the side of the ship and look over the side… water for as far as I can see.

With my heart hammering in my chest, I run to the other side of the boat… water for as far as I can see. I look to the back and see a tower with lights on in it and I know that the captain must be in there. He will have a radio.

Yes.

He will help me.

I run toward the watchtower and trip over a large rope thingy that is raised from the metal deck and I go flying across and fall onto the hard floor.

I lie for a moment in the rain as despair fills me. I can’t do this. I’m not strong enough to get through this.