Chapter 4

"Where have you been?" his voice, sending fear rushing through my body. 

"I had to stay back at school to get some stuff done," I said, my voice shaky. 

He stood up, walking towards me. I cowered as he did. "I have another job for you," he grabbed a piece of my hair, playing with it between his fingers. There's a dress in the bathroom. Get ready." His words made me feel sick as a million thoughts raced through my head. What was I getting ready for.

I knew that whatever he was going to make me do would not be something I wanted to do, but I also knew that I had no choice in the matter. As I walked into the bathroom, my heart pounding in my chest, I saw the dress he had laid out for me. It was tight-fitting but with a high neck and long sleeves, so it covered the marks he had made on me; the idea of wearing something that clung to my body made me feel uncomfortable. I hated having men look at me with desire in their eyes.

I quickly changed into the dress, feeling exposed and vulnerable. I fixed my hair and put on make-up to cover any bruises the dress didn't have and to hide the tired bags under my eyes. When I emerged from the bathroom, he smirked at me, his eyes full of malicious intent. "Good girl," he said, patting my cheek condescendingly. "Now come with me."

He grabbed my hand, pulling me behind him out into the driveway, where there was a car waiting. The driver opened the door to reveal another man sitting in the car. He looked important and well-dressed in his fancy suit. As I stood there, taking it all in, it hit me that Steve was using me for tonight. My heart started to race, and tears welled in my eyes, but I forced them to stay hidden, knowing that crying would only get me beaten. "get in", he whispered in my ear, his voice making it clear he wasn't going to let me out of this or waste his time. 

I did as he asked, getting in the car and sitting next to the other man who placed his hand on my leg. I stared down at it, thankful for the stockings that I had on so I didn't have to feel his hand touch my bare skin, but I was still feeling sick because I knew what was coming tonight. I sat in silence the whole way to where we were going. The man kept his hand on my leg as he joked and laughed with Steve.

As we arrived at our destination, I looked up and saw we were at one of the clubs in town. There were people everywhere, my stepdad whispered menacingly. "You'll do as I ask tonight, and no, not go giving away what is mine. Do you understand?"

I nodded my head as fear dug its claws deeper into me. Steve was the first one to get out of the car, followed by the other man, who held out his hand for me to take. I sat there for a second, not wanting to take it, but I knew I had to, so I did. The way he looked at me made me sick to my cure. I stepped out of the car, trying to hold back tears as I realized the depth of trouble I was in. My stepdad's grip on my life was tightening by the minute, and there seemed to be no escape from his clutches. People moved out of Steve's way as he led us into the club. I kept my head down, trying to hold myself together. As we walked through the crowded club, my heart raced with fear and anxiety. Steve led us to a private VIP section where there were other men in suits waiting for us. I could feel their eyes on me, and it made my skin crawl. Steve whispered something to one of the men, who then gestured for me to sit next to him.

I sat down, feeling like a trapped animal surrounded by predators. The man started making small talk there was something about him that told me he was not a good man. He put his arm around me. I wanted to move away from him, but I sat there frozen with fear as I thought about all the horrible things that would most likely happen to me tonight.

Steve watched from across the room, his gaze cold, telling me that if I slipped up, he would make me pay. Just by the way he stared at me, I knew that I had to do whatever he asked of me tonight. So I decided to play along with it, plastering on a fake smile, trying to block out the disgust and shame that consumed me.

Looking around the club, I felt like someone was watching me. As I turned my head to see if someone was, my eyes met Braxs, who was sitting at another table with his two friends, a man I'm guessing is his father, and a few others. 

Brax's eyes widened in shock as he locked gazes with me, and I saw a mixture of concern and anger flash across his face. I quickly looked away, not wanting to draw any more attention to myself than necessary. But I could still feel his eyes on me.

"may I please be excused?" I asked, looking at Steve, praying he would let me go for just a second to the toilet.

His eyes narrowed at me before nodding as I stood up to walk past him. He grabbed me, pulled me down to him, and whispered. "if you are not back in ten minutes, you will regret it" The sound of his voice sent chills down my spine. I nodded and hurried away from him. I rushed into the girls' toilet, just needing a minute alone, and was thankful that no one was in there. I leaned against the wall, trying to calm my nerves, but as I did, the door opened, making me stand up straight again. My heart started to race in my chest as Brax walked into the bathroom. He looked at me with concern and anger in his eyes. "why are you here?" he asked softly, stepping closer to me.

"Please, Brax, just leave me alone. If I get caught talking to you, he will be mad." 

"Tell me why you're here, Willow." He stood over me, his eyes burning into me.

"you need to leave me alone" I tried to make my voice sound as strong as I could, but his presence made me crumble inside. 

His arm wrapped around my waist, pulling me into him. "You can't be here. It's not safe."

My heart was racing in my chest. I could feel my palms becoming sweaty. I swallowed deeply, trying to hold myself together and not melt into his arms and have him save me, taking me away from all of this. "I don't have a choice" My eyes fell to the ground with my words as the pain set in that I was trapped in this life forever. There was nothing anyone could do to save me. 

Brax pulled something out of his pocket before slipping it into my hand. "you always have a choice". and with those words, he let me go turning and walking out, leaving me standing there feeling a miser of feelings that I couldn't put my finger on. I brought my hand up, looking at what he had slipped into it: a piece of paper. Carefully unfolding it, there was an address written on it. I stared at it for a second before shoving it into my bra and taking one last look at myself in the mirror. I hurried back out into the club, praying that I hadn't been gone longer than ten minutes. 

As I made my way back to Steve's table, my mind was racing with thoughts of what Brax had said. Could there really be a way out for me? Was there a chance for me to escape this life of abuse and violence? But as I sat back down next to Steve, the reality of my situation hit me like a ton of bricks. I was trapped in this world with no way out.

Steve gave me a knowing look before leaning in close to whisper in my ear, "Remember our deal, Willow. You do as I say, or there will be consequences." I felt a shiver run down my spine as his words echoed in my head. I knew that I had no choice but to comply with his demands, no matter how much it pained me.

He pointed to the man I had sat next to before. "Take him out the back and distract him," he said.

I nodded, my heart pounding in my chest as I stood up and grabbed the man by his arm, leading him towards the back exit. As we stepped outside, I grabbed him, pulling him to pretend like I was going to kiss him. His breath smelt of alcohol and cigarettes, bringing back memories of the nights Steve had forced himself on me. I pushed those thoughts to the side, trying my hardest to hold myself together. As we moved further away from the entrance, I could hear the sounds of Steve and his men approaching. The man's demeanour changed as he realized what was happening, fear evident in his eyes. Before he could react, Steve and his crew emerged from the shadows, and Steve's men started pummeling him mercilessly. Steve stood there watching the whole thing, a cruel, cold look plastered on his face. 

I stood there frozen, unable to tear my eyes away from the brutal scene unfolding before me. I tried to look away, but as I did, Steve screamed at me. "watch!" I turned my eyes back to it, scared that I might be next if I didn't do as I was told. The sight of his bloodied face and broken body made me sick.

As the beating continued, a sense of dread washed over me. This was my reality now - trapped in a world of violence and manipulation with no way out. I knew that I had no hope now at all. He would control me for the rest of my sad, pathetic life. it felt like they beat the man for hours when really it was only a few minutes. When they were done, I stood there in horror, staring down at the blood-soaked man, unsure if he was still alive or not. Steve came over, grabbed my hand, and dragged me away and back into the club, where he and his men went on drinking and talking like nothing had ever happened. My eyes fell on Brax again, but I looked away as fast as I could, knowing that looking at him would make me break down, and if Steve knew that I had even spoken to him, he would do the same to him as that man in Alley. 

I avoided looking at Brax as much as I could, but every now and again, my eyes would catch him staring at me, and I would force myself to look away and hold it together.  As the night went on, I was forced to serve drinks and entertain the men in the VIP section. Their hands roamed over my body, their words lewd and degrading. I felt sick. My sickness crawled from their touch, but I knew I had no choice; I just had to smile through it. Steve watched, a cruel smirk on his face as he revelled in my discomfort. I felt like a puppet on strings, dancing to Steve's tune with no way out. The night seemed to stretch on forever, each moment feeling like an eternity of torment and degradation.

I was grateful when the night ended, and Steve led me from the club, pushing me into the car; this time, it was only him and me in there. The way he looked at me told me that my night of being touched wasn't over yet. I knew that my only choice here was to tune out and pretend I wasn't here because no matter what I did, he was going to have his way with me. As I readied myself for what was about to come, I felt him press himself onto me. I closed my eyes tight and just prayed for it to be over fast.