Chapter 1

Emily's POV:

"1, 2, 3," I whispered, watching the clock.

Three more minutes until he wakes up; my hands shake as I try to calm my breathing.

Glancing back at the table, I placed the food on it and took two steps back, stealing another glance at the clock.

Heading towards my bedroom, I walked slowly, my body still burning from the beating I received the other night, all because I forgot to clean Sir's shoes before he left for work.

Shaking my head, I opened my room door slowly, ensuring it was locked twice before heading to the bathroom. "All done, just stay in your room until he leaves," I whispered before looking at myself in the mirror.

My long black hair looked dishevelled, my full lips stained with a little blood, both eyes red from crying the day before, and my body bearing the scars of past beatings.

I despised my body because my dad said I was fat and ugly, even though I'm just 13 and know I'm not fat.

Taking a deep breath, I turned on the shower, bracing for the pain.

"Ouch," I whispered, holding back screams as the cold water hit my scars. Tears flowed slowly as I endured the pain, questioning why I deserved all this.

Exiting the shower, I took deep breaths, cleaning my body before dressing in a black hoodie and shorts.

"Only beautiful children get good things; Emily is nothing but a bad and useless little girl," were my father's constant words.

Shaking off his words, I approached my door, turning the handle slowly and listening for any sounds before cautiously walking towards the living room. Relief washed over me when I realized he was gone, but confusion set in as I found the untouched food on the table.

Sitting down, I opened the food, surprised he hadn't touched it. With that, I ate slowly, not wanting it to go to waste. Afterwards, I washed the plates and headed back to my room, deciding to get some sleep before his return. Who knows how angry he'll be this time?

...............

The next day, Dad repeated the same routine, leaving the house eerily quiet, as if I were the only one in it.

Taking a breath, I walked downstairs for some water. It was 8:29 pm, and sleep eluded me; not that I minded-I had a sleeping disorder, but sleep wasn't a friend anyway.

In the kitchen, I approached the refrigerator, filling a glass with water and bringing it to my lips.

My eyes scanned the dark, silent room before glancing out the window.

My breath caught when I saw a figure outside, head tilted as if directly looking at me. Slowly dropping the cup, I locked eyes with the mysterious figure, who followed when I took a step.

Heart racing, I sprinted to my room, wanting to cry out as the kitchen door slammed open, footsteps approaching.

"God, please, I don't want to die," I prayed silently, locking my door and stepping back, my gaze fixed on it. I knew no one; Father never allowed me outside, so I had no idea if we lived close to anyone.

"Please, God," I continued praying as tears flowed. I didn't want to die like this; I dreamed of escaping, going to school, and having real friends.

Why was this happening to me? My thoughts were interrupted by more voices.

"Did you see the girl?" the first voice asked, getting a response from another.

"Yeah, she's in the room. I think I scared her a little," the second voice explained.

"You can't get anything right, you deep shit," another voice criticized.

Surprised, I wondered if they were talking to each other.

Walking toward the bathroom, I tried not to make noise, but my door flew open with a bang the moment I entered, prompting me to close and lock it.

"Please leave me alone," I whispered as their footsteps neared.

"I'll be good, I promise. Just please leave me alone," I begged softly.

"We're not going to hurt you, Princess," one reassured.

"We just want to help you. We promise; we're the good guys here. We ain't bad," another insisted.

"I have a father. He's going to come soon and get angry, so please leave before he hurts you guys," I pleaded.

Laughter followed before another voice said, "Princess, that man is not your father, and he's dead."

My heart sank. "Dead," I whispered as tears rolled down my eyes.

"Did you fucking have to say that part, Kelsey? Wait till we get home. I'm telling Xender," another voice scolded.

"Look, baby girl-"

"My name is Emily, not baby girl," I softly corrected.

"Oh, sorry. Look, Emily, we promised we would be nice and wouldn't hurt you at all. You just need to come out, and we will explain all this to you, okay?" the person said gently.

"Okay," I said slowly, stepping closer to the door. "You promise you won't hurt me?"

Three affirmatives followed. With that, I cautiously opened my door, revealing three green pairs of eyes that were oddly beautiful. I examined the three men, who seemed on the verge of tears.

"Hello, I'm Emily," I whispered before looking down and then back at them.

The three handsome men continued to stare at me as if they couldn't believe I was human.

Playing with my fingers, I let out a breath, "Can I know your names, please?" I asked them softly.

Breaking out of their shock, one of them stepped forward, smiling at me, which eased my fear. "I'm Chris, and this is Eren and Kelsey. We are your family."

"I know it's hard to understand, and we are going to explain all that to you, baby girl, but we have to leave this place now," he said softly, taking two steps toward me.

Confused, I looked at him and then the other two. Suddenly, it hit me; I could finally see the resemblance between us. Our eyes were the same, and then our hair. My heart broke at the thoughts flooding my mind.

"So, who is the man I have lived with?" I asked, tears rolling down slowly.

"Please, Emily, don't cry," another man said, his voice a low whisper. "We will explain everything to you. Just come with us, please; the others miss you a lot," he continued.

"Others? You mean there are more of you?" I asked.

He laughed, shaking his head as his hair fell. "We are six in number, and we all stay in Italy. The others sent us here to get you, so please, baby, come with us. We won't hurt you," he said with a reassuring smile.

I nodded slowly, looking around my room. "Do I need to take anything?" I asked.

"Nah, we will buy you new ones, baby. Now, let's go," the third person finally said.

With a nod and a breath, I looked at them and said, "Alright, let's go, then."

The boys exchanged glances before smiling at me. One of them took my arms gently, and we headed towards the door.

"Xender! We got her, and yes, she's coming with us. Our Princess is finally coming home," Chris said into a device.

Guess I'm their princess, I thought before letting out a yawn.

"Are you sleepy, baby?" Chris asked softly, and I nodded.

"Alright, get some sleep, you sleepyhead. We've got a long way to go," he said, giving me a smile.

With that, I closed my eyes, not before hearing him say, "I'm so glad we finally found you, Princess."