2 | When Sisters Cross Limits

[A Few Hours Ago]

Dhara’s brows furrowed deeply into her head as she read the text message from her sister again.

“How can Nina be so stupid?” she muttered to herself, her gaze fixed on the bright screen of her phone.

For years, Dhara had done everything in her power to shield her younger sister from the dangers of the world, but today, as she turned 18 and completely legal, Nina seemed determined to push all her boundaries at once.

Despite being legally an adult, Dhara still felt an overwhelming responsibility to keep her sister safe, especially when Nina announced she wished to celebrate her birthday at a sky-high nightclub—a den for rich bastards and pervert generation.

Dhara knew all too well what went on at those types of places—the scantily-clad women, the excessive drinking, and the lecherous men looking for a quick hookup. There was no way she was going to let her sister get caught up in that kind of environment.

No way in hell!

Although Dhara had never experienced anything like that firsthand, she had seen it in movies and TV shows and knew right away it was the last place her sweet little sister should be wandering around. And so, she tried to convince Nina to change her mind and celebrate her birthday in a safer, more respectable environment.

Not that her efforts had been appreciated.

With a huff, she shoved her phone in her pocket, hailed a cab, and headed straight to the nightclub where her sister had gone despite their earlier argument. Nina was angry with Dhara for trying to destroy her special day, accusing her of not minding her own business. But Dhara believed that Nina’s business was also her own. They were sisters, after all. They had to stick together for life. How could they do that if Nina’s recklessness got them into more trouble than they could handle?

“Unacceptable!” Dhara grumbled to herself as she paid for the cab and jumped out in a matter of seconds. The chilled night air nipped at her nape and cheeks, turning them even redder with annoyance. There was a small crowd outside the club’s entrance, looking rather sophisticated from the outside.

However, Dhara knew better than to judge a book by its cover. She couldn’t let this picture-perfect view fool her. She was smarter than that. She knew what was lurking behind the dazzling facade: monsters ready to pounce and waste young lives.

Dhara’s irritation continued to simmer as she made her way to the entrance. Her brown eyes gleamed with even more annoyance as she thought about her sister getting into the club to have a blast with her college friends.

“Blast her ass!” She muttered under her breath, barely able to contain her frustration.

However, before she could storm into the nightclub, two gigantic men in black uniforms standing outside the door blocked her passage. Dhara tried to push past them, but their muscular arms held her back with ease.

“I’m here to pick up my sister. Get out of my way!” The fact that she practically barked out those words said a lot about how furious she was. And confident. Let’s not forget about that. It wasn’t normal for her to be this mad, believe it or not. She was infamous for her ridiculously calm persona. But Nina had crossed all boundaries. She went against Dhara’s words, fully aware of how much the older one hated being betrayed like that.

The two bald and bold men only grimaced, wondering how much this little woman could harm them if she tried. They likely found the imagination amusing because one of them chuckled, his chest heaving because of it.

The chuckling man dismissed Dhara with a wave of his hand, looking down at her as if she were a child. “Go back from where you came, little birdie,” he said. “You’re not even dressed appropriately.” He shook his head in disapproval, eyeing her from head to toe.

Meanwhile, the other man glared at her, as if she had stolen his money and spent it on feeding the stray dog that might have bitten him when he was a child.

Dhara scowled, puffing out her cheeks in frustration. “If I lose the top, I’m pretty sure you’ll find nothing wrong with my attire,” she retorted, remembering the movie trope that less clothing meant more class. But she didn’t have time to waste arguing. She needed to get inside before Nina did something foolish.

The man’s shameless grin only made Dhara more uncomfortable. She shifted her gaze from him to the other man, who had a scowl stuck to his face. She could handle a scowl, no problem, but the vulgar grin made her sick to her stomach.

“I don’t want any trouble,” She said to the duo, hoping to diffuse the situation.

“Uh-huh?” the chuckling man raised his eyebrows in amusement.

“Yes, so if you let me in just once, I promise you’ll never see this face again.”

“Promise?” both men snorted and bumped their eyebrows up into their foreheads simultaneously.

“Cross my heart and hope to die,” Dhara said, drawing a cross over her heart to show how serious she was.

“You’re sure cute and all, but your request is denied,” the men said in unison, crossing their arms over their chests.

Dhara had to do a double-take for two reasons: one, it was weird to realize that the two men were probably twins, and two, this unison thing was getting creepy really fast.

However, before she could respond, someone tapped on her shoulder. She glared at the two men before turning around and stumbling into a familiar face.

“Poppy?” she asked, instantly relieved to see Nina’s best friend.

“Uh-hi,” The girl stammered, rubbing the back of her neck, appearing nervous and worried.

Dhara didn’t like the look on her face. “What’s wrong?”

She yelped slightly in surprise when Poppy tugged at her arm and led her to a quiet corner.

Dhara’s chest rose and fell with an awkward surge of uneasiness. Her sister was going to hear so much about this little escapade of hers. Dhara was so done with this stupid situation. She might as well refuse to talk to Nina for a week or ground her for a month. Or maybe both. She would see.

Poppy bit her lip, her nervous tick. “Uh—I don’t know how to say this,” she began, her voice trembling. “Everything happened so quickly. Please don’t be mad at me. I swear I tried to reason with her, but she already made up her mind and wasn’t ready to listen. At all.”

Poppy’s words came out in haste, and Dhara could see the fear and tears in her eyes, reflecting the bright headlights of the cars passing by.

But she wasn’t done yet. She continued, “I really tried,” she sniffled, hugging herself tighter.

Dhara took a deep breath, trying to stay calm, but her brain was already racing, imagining the worst possible scenario. “Alright,” she murmured, rubbing her aching temple. “What the hell did she do this time?”

---

If only Dhara had any clue what she just walked into.

After Poppy briefed her regarding the dire situation, Dhara knew her sister fucked up.

Never in the worst of her nightmares did she imagine her sister to be so foolishly naïve.

What the hell was she thinking? She muttered to herself. How could she leave with someone she just met? How could she ever trust a stranger?

Honestly, this was the reason Dhara always worried like a sick dog. Nina might have turned eighteen and always acted like she understood everything, but Dhara knew the ground reality. She knew how heartless people could be, how greedy. Sure, Dhara herself might not have been the best judge of people sometimes, but at least she never lost her head in the clouds. That had to count for something, right?

After hailing another cab to the nearest five-star hotel, Dhara and Poppy hopped out and went straight for the reception. The way she was dressed—not much, just shorts and a cheap T-shirt with rainbows and skies—of course, the receptionist refused to take her seriously.

“Apologies for the inconvenience, ma’am, but we cannot reveal the client’s information. It’s against the hotel’s policy,” the woman behind the reception desk turned them down in a charming tone.

Dhara shook her head and leaned over the desk. She knew exactly what to say to get the receptionist’s attention. “I don’t believe you’re getting the gravity of the situation here…” She flicked her gaze to the nameplate pinned on the receptionist’s blue blazer. “…Macy,” eyes back on Macy’s face. “My sister is only seventeen,” Dhara made sure that the age of her sister was loud enough for the rest of the customers lingering about to hear.

As she expected, Macy’s face grew a little pale.

“If you refused to help me out here. I’ll have no choice but to report it to the police. And that would be disastrous for the lovely reputation of this hotel and your livelihood. You’re getting what I’m saying, right?” she eyed the girl as if to say ’you know there’s no other way around it.’

Macy’s face fell the second they brought the police into the conversation. She pressed her lips and stared at the screen of her laptop, pondering.

But Dhara’s patience had snapped a long time ago.

“Look, I don’t have the time—”

“OK,” the receptionist cut her off, appearing somewhat nervous. She called for one of the other staff to take her spot for a few minutes before she left the desk and gestured for Dhara to follow her.

Once reaching the elevator, Macy turned on her heels, fixing the two girls with a firm gaze. “Only one of you can go up and deal with…whatever is going on up there,” she made a face as if saying “whatever” almost impaired her senses. “The people you described are on the seventh floor and because they checked into only one room an hour ago, I believe that’s the room where your sister might be. But just to be sure,” she inhaled a deep breath, pressing the button for the elevator to come down. “Don’t make me regret this,” that’s all the woman said before the elevator dinged open and, with a long, deep breath, Dhara stepped in.

But after that, the situation only went south.