Chapter 3: Captured & Tainted

Mariana Adams' Point of View 

I woke up without seeing anything. My eyes were blindfolded while my hands and feet were tied.

"She’s awake, boss," one familiar man spat out.

The last thing I remembered before falling into a deep, dark slumber was bumping into a man and, afterwards, being flanked by these loan sharks.

My lips were also taped shut. I tried to move, hoping to untangle the rope that was tied over my hands, but I couldn't. Things from before I passed out began to return slowly, and my heart began to pound violently.

The blindfold has taken off, as has the tape over my mouth. I spotted big men with big tummies, and they all had tattoos on their bodies. Their body size makes me tremble, not to mention they can snap my neck with a single grasp.

"Where’s the money you borrowed, young lady?" The old man, who was wearing a cap and puffing a cigarette, asked.

Because I was too nervous to speak, I didn't say much. Furthermore, the money I was about to pay was stolen from us. I'm afraid it will enrage them even more. I chewed my lower lip as I peered down. If only Liam knew about this, he'd come to my aid. But now that he's revealed his true intentions, any optimism I had disappeared.

"I was about to hand it over to you." I said, a bit anxious.

"I don’t want to prolong this conversation anymore," he said before pulling an item from his pants and then pointing it directly at my head.

As I looked at the small circle in its center, I began to tremble. I nearly wanted to pee because I was anxious.

"Give me the money back. The playtime is over, Mariana."

I closed my eyes and then spoke. "I told you, it was stolen! The m-money was stolen!"

Their big boss appeared to be disappointed. I've seen a number of movies like this where they kill the individual when they can't repay what they owe them. Still, I told myself to calm down and still have faith that someone might save me, but over the past few hours I was here, no one did.

Liam, my only savior, won’t come.

"You broke your promise, Mariana. I believe you know the consequences of these actions, am I right?"

I nodded deliberately.

Their boss chewed hard. The moment I lost the money, I knew what would happen next. After all the things that happened... I guess I was the next one in line to end my life here, then? 

As far as I can remember, I’ve never done anything. I remained good, a sweet child, and kind to everyone. But the Almighty God forbids me to become happy and that shit hurts me the most. I lifted my chin up, and the rage in their boss’ eyes was incomparable. You can clearly see that he was weighing unseen luggage.

Their boss was about to pull the trigger when a man stopped him.

"What if we put her up in an auction, boss? As you can see, that woman is pretty. I know an ongoing auction where we can sell her and even get ten times the money she borrowed," a man exclaimed, making me bite my lower lip.

Their big boss seemed interested. "What auction is that?"

I imagined that from the moment he lifted his gun-wielding hands, I was already praying to God, confessing everything to him and pleading for his forgiveness. 

Unfortunately, I was wrong. Instead of getting killed, I just found myself in a transaction with another group of men while my hands were tied, my mouth was taped, and my eyes were blindfolded. I wanted to flee, but I was vulnerable. I want to oppose them, yet I have no power.

"How much would you like to take that girl?"

"See for yourself."

**** 

Dark walls, white ceilings, and an unfamiliar room greeted me. I just realized I was in a room with four other girls. They are crying, sniffing, and begging someone outside to let them come out.

The cold room began to touch my bare skin, yet I was wearing a shirt. When my eyes drifted to my skinny body,, my clothes were no longer the same as what I had worn yesterday.

"Where are we?" I asked a girl who was crying on the corner.

She sniffed, "I don’t know what’s happening either."

When an outsider opened the door, the woman standing across the door took a step back. Five armed men walked in and stared at us before grabbing our wrists one by one. I tried to take my hand away, but the guy holding my hand was too strong. 

"Don’t touch me!" I squirmed.

"Fucking behave or else!" he stated.

My eyes were damp, and the corner of my eyes began to wet. A tuxedo-clad gentleman arrived and raised his eyebrows. Until his attention was diverted to the papers he was holding, and he subsequently instructed us to form a line.

"Anyone who dared to make a wrong move would be punished severely. If you try to run away, then I tell you this: you won't be able to take a few steps away from the stage."

I'm not stupid enough to not fathom what he was saying, but the lady in front of us was shivering and sobbing in horror. She was appealing with the guards, despite the fact that she had just been reprimanded. When it came her turn, she was terrified and refused to come out when the guards, as usual, dragged her outside.

I started hearing hundreds of voices outside from backstage, while a man spoke into a microphone. And I just realized that the girls I'm with are being taken outside one by one.

I can see them from where I am, and the large crowd made me jittery as I tried to find a route out without getting killed.

The girl who had earlier pleaded with the guards tried to flee as we stood quietly in the rear until we witnessed how the guys took her out of the arena while she was screaming and refusing to be sold.

The scene I had just witnessed terrified me; until a few minutes had gone and a gunshot had been heard which made the whole arena quiet. 

The horror I had tripled. The man who informed us what we should do returned, gazing at us violently.

"Try to imitate what the girl just did, and you will get killed. Believe me… I do what I say, and I won't let any of you refuse what we want!"

In the end, the remaining girls at the backstage have no choice but to follow her until I no longer notice that I am the only one inside after the girl before me has been sold.

"Sold for 1.5 million dollars!" I heard the emcee's 

Before the guards hauled me out, I was praying and wishing to God in the backstage area. People say he hears you; he hears what you ask, and I know he won't disappoint me.

When my name is called and I am taken outside the stage, I am urged to stand upright in the center. Seeing so many different men, each wearing a corporate suit and holding different cards, made my skin writhe. They looked at me as if I were prey, especially since the crowd was full of men who were both old enough and too mature for my age.

I wanted to flee at the prospect of a man with a massive belly and a perverse presence buying me. Nonetheless, the guard beyond me exhibited an object in his pocket, which was one of the reasons I remained in the center.