Chapter Two

Lanaya got out of bed and went straight to the bathroom to shower.

Anyone could tell immediately that she wasn't in a hospital but rather in an enormous mansion. Probably a mansion. Dropping her towel and standing in front of her closet's floor-to-ceiling mirror, Lanaya did something she'd sworn herself she'd never do again.

She had a few stitches right below her hairline, but other than that, her face was perfectly unharmed. She had not washed her hair or face. What I saw of her was a whole other tale. Staring at the purple bruise covering her clavicle and hipbone was uncomfortable.

Every breath she took hurt her ribs, but she was protected from the elements by a thick layer of waterproof gauze.

Lanaya had her suspicions that she had a few cracked or broken ribs, but she couldn't tell for sure because of the gauze. Scabs had formed on her right elbow and left forearm. They itched like crazy. In addition to the purple welts on her feet, her knee and calves appeared exactly like her ms.

When Lanaya inspected her back, she was overcome with emotion, and they wanted to get back into bed and sleep. They wouldn't be able to blame her if she decided to die.

From her shoulder blades to the top of her thighs, she was covered with purple, blue, red, and green bruises. Being alive hurt, whether you were moving or breathing.

When the doorbell rang, she was shocked enough that she didn't scream or leap; instead, she simply turned to face it. A male voice threatened to invade the room as it appeared once more. Now she had enough of a jolt to grab the pooling towel at her feet.

When the massive redwood door was yanked open, Lanaya was just about to finish wrapping it around her. He was followed into the bedroom by a tall, trim man with brown hair well combed back. He only came to a halt once he was completely in the room, but he was not obstructing her from leaving.

"Ma'am." With a firm nod, he agreed. However, his thicker Italian accent made his speech sound more sophisticated and silky. The reason I'm here is to make sure you're still breathing. He said that as though it was the end of the matter.

What does he mean when he talks of being "alive"?

"Alive?" She inquired, her voice low and inquisitive.

"If the room is silent for an extended period, we must conduct a thorough search. You may have fallen or tripped somehow if you're all still." He gave a succinct response.

This information seemed to Lanaya to be the result of a command from his superiors. Regardless of who "they" were.

"Thank you, I'm fine." She smiled, but his expression remained unchanged. "Do you have any c-clothes for me?"

The man nodded and pointed to the closet, which he did.

There are a couple of jackets and skirts in there, as well as a few shoes." He explained and then pointed to a dresser on the other side of the room.

Clothing that includes pants, sweatpants, and sweaters.

How he pronounced "sweaters" like it was the most disrespectful thing in the world made Lanaya almost smile. After spending fifteen years in that environment, she almost lost her ability to grin. Only fear and terror were all she could think of.

"T-thank you," says the recipient. She said and then had a hunch,

"I'm curious to know your name."

A phrase out of her mouth had been all she needed to feel like punching the air.

It was only a sentence, but it was a sentence nonetheless, and she was afraid of both the man and the place. For a fleeting second, the man appeared surprised before refocusing his features.

Then, "Travis, ma'am." I nodded, fixed his tie, and exited the room via the massive redwood door. Lanaya listened patiently, but no sound of a lock being clicked could be heard. In the end, she wasn't a prisoner at all. It's possible she wasn't.

She walked to the dresser, which was light brown with black handles and a few items perched there. Jewelry hung from hooks on a little wired frame next to the trinkets. For some reason, Lanaya couldn't figure out who would have taken the time to hang all these delicate jewels in his rough hands.

As Lanaya shook her head, the Devil and the feel of his hands were no longer in her thoughts. She shouldn't even be thinking about him at all. As her rescuer, he was also holding her prisoner.

She opened the top drawer with trembling hands and quickly shut it again, her cheeks burning. When she opened the first drawer, she was certain that the man who had just moved in wasn't responsible for putting it together.

She sucked in a few deep breaths to return from the brink. After all, it's not like he'll know which pair of shoes she was wearing if he just packed the drawer. Right? With her cheeks flaming red, she slammed the drawer shut, retrieved the nearest pair of pants, and hurriedly tossed them onto the bed behind her.

She tentatively yanked open the second drawer, her heart racing as she hoped it didn't contain any more embarrassing mementos. Fortunately, it was able to hold multiple pairs of slacks. Lanaya exhaled a sigh of relief. Green sweatpants, a brown long-sleeve shirt, and a brown jersey were available in her dresser. Lanaya threw on some clothes and set to work making the bed she'd been sleeping in for the last few hours. All of the cushions in the room were either white or grey.

She strolled over to the door when she was through with her duty. Lanaya paused for a moment. As a foster child, she was required to have a private room to keep her foster parents' constant company from becoming suspicious. Until the maid got a day off, Lanaya would go days without anything to eat in her belly.

Lanaya twisted the doorknob with her heart in her throat as she waited for the door to open. Despite this, her moist hands made her stumble and lose her footing. As she immediately regained her footing and re-tried the knob, a swarm of black dots appeared in her view. Sobbing, her hands once again fumbled, but she couldn't bring herself to let go of him.

Her mouth swelled shut. Her lungs were shutting down completely.

"P-please..." Her voice was hardly audible. "H-help."

Her breaths came in short, shallow gasps, and her vision began to condense into a series of small dots. It came rushing back when she felt the impulse to scratch her flesh. "Our guests will be pleased if she is clean."

Clean.

Clean.

Clean.

Lanaya's foster parents didn't care how often she cleaned her skin to the bone. As her throat slammed shut, a solitary tear ran down her cheek.

She will be left alone.

Shuffling comes from the other side. Before the door opened, a shadow shifted, showing Travis's face. Lanaya's legs gave out a second before Travis snatched her up. She was relieved. A glance at her face was all it took for him to lift her into a chair near a window facing the garden and carry her into the corridor.

She was trembling, her teeth clattering, but it wasn't due to the weather.

"Lanaya." It was as if Travis was speaking from the other end of a tunnel than right next to her when he spoke. "The garden is beautiful. That time of year is finally here. In the middle of the walkway are these rose bushes.

When Salvetti's mother tried to revive the bushes, she almost tore the flesh from her hands."

Lanaya's eyes widened as the rose bushes he was referring to came into sharp focus in her mind. She could observe the garden's vibrant foliage and a wide variety of flowers via the glass. The roses were a sight to behold in the deeper parts of the garden; some were pink, others red, but the boldest was a delicate blue and dark purple.

Lanaya noticed something tugging at her memory as she looked out the window, but it quickly faded away. However, she could smell the hallway's scents after her breathing and shaking had calmed down. Aside from the items above, I also had coffee, literature, and aftershave with a distinct pine scent.

Lanaya stood up and fixed her clothes after waiting a few more minutes. As she gulped down a frightened sigh, she raised her head to gaze at Travis.

Thanks a lot. In response, he nodded his head.

Lanaya looked around and recognized where she was. No one else was in the corridors but Travis and an uninterested-looking man leaning against the wall a little distance away. She guessed that he was Travis's helper based on his demeanor. What's the purpose of this?

She left the room and was at a loss as to what to do next. In fact, Lanaya didn't plan thus far in advance. When her stomach began to rumble, she was forced to make a decision.

She flushed and looked down at her bare feet as she reflected on the conversation.

She was rushing to get ready and forgot about her shoes.

She was about to be killed by the Devil.

"Okay, princess," she replied. It was as though he was speaking directly to the camera. Lanaya's attention was immediately drawn to his dazzling smile and emerald eyes. Let us feed you before Salvetti murders us, will we?"

Travis gave him a sly grin and then pointed his finger to the other side of the hall.

In other words, she's not restricted to a set mealtime.

Lanaya paused, unsure due to her lack of footwear. She didn't want to add to that man's already sour mood by not wearing shoes, so she wore them. Travis and the other man were wearing dress shoes with their suits, as she had expected.

Dress shoes with a high sheen finish.

"Oh, my God," he screams. The other man mumbled something. A split second after she had left the room, he reappeared with a pair of blue striped socks and a pair of black sneakers in his hands and walked out. Before you get a brain aneurysm, put them on.

Lanaya swiftly put them on after nodding her thanks and stood up after tying them thrice.

Travis gave her a knowing nod as he walked down the corridor toward some stairwells she could just make out in the distance.

Not moving an inch, the other man grinned at her wide-eyed.

After a few moments of staring, Lanaya realized that Travis expected her to follow him. The other man's laughing could be heard reverberating in the distance as Lanaya made a tiny sound and sped up to catch up to him.

Travis escorted her down a flight of steps and into a hallway. Lanaya, like a devoted daughter, followed him with her head bowed and no questions asked. As she walked, she was aware of the man following her. They finally arrived in what appeared to be a recreation area.

The walls were dark green, with white drapes covering the windows and what appeared to be glass double doors in the middle of the room. The floor was a gleaming ochre, devoid of anything beyond the logical placement of seating spaces.

Lanaya couldn't tell if the carpets in those regions were green or blue because they were shaped like rectangles and circles.

A full-length bar, complete with counter and stools, was installed on the wall closest to the entrance hall. A modest seating area with black and grey couches and a little glass table with an ashtray was located in the corner directly opposite. All around a large pool table were well-dressed guys in tailored suits, their jackets lying on the counter, the table edge, and the backs of their chairs.

A pool table dominated the rest of the room, with various-sized couches, and a little table was strewn about it.

Lanaya couldn't tell if the glasses were filled with scotch or brandy because they were littered with cigarette butts, pizza boxes, and takeaway containers. It's not as if she'd ever drunk anything.

The men gathered around the pool table were having a noisy argument over something. They all appeared to be chatting at the same time. Neither of the other men was paying attention to the dialogue; instead, they were staring intently at the billiards table and holding billiard cues in their hands.

Lanaya's deer in headlights look when she shot Travis was the first time Travis looked behind him. In answer, he lifted his brow and directed his gaze at the man standing behind her.

She took a step back. A silence came over the throng as he strolled around the room, rummaging through the empty boxes. She tensed up as though someone was staring at her.

Don't show any signs of flimsiness.

Lanaya returned her gaze to Travis in a measured manner.

All the men in the room were silent as she spoke. The silence sounded like a thunderous roar.

Several others raised their voices while another went in close to whisper something into the ears of his companions.

That is the whore of the underdogs, isn't she?

As her body began to quake, Lanaya's breath became trapped in her throat.

As soon as possible, she needed to leave the room. Now.

Toxic smells wafted up from the dockside warehouse.

At the mention of the man who was currently making excuses, Salvetto's jaw began to tighten with a familiar tightening sensation. Unbeknownst to anyone, a significant shipment of firearms had mysteriously vanished with no trace.

Salvetti hoped to make money. Or perhaps his weapons.

He'd feel a lot better if he had a gun.

To avoid a heart attack, Salvetti wanted to return home so that he could make sure she didn't realize where she was. The men who thought they were above him made him play the bully.

Cockroaches, to be precise.

But it's a lot easier to get rid of.

Salvetto's sign of anger caused the other man's forehead to be bead with sweat.

As a well-known character, everyone knew what would happen if Salvetti got bored or annoyed. There was nothing special about this individual. He was obese and red-faced, owing a large sum of money to his family. Salvetti figured that as a member of parliament, the chubby man could help run interference when the family needed to export or import items to repay the money he owed.

Salvetto's tolerance for mistakes has worn thin for Mr. Pudgy.

Salvetti turned and walked out of the warehouse after giving his enforcer a nod.

The first shots rang out as soon as he walked through the door.

Salvetti leaned against the hood of his automobile and pressed his nose against it. When he couldn't stand it any longer, he had to do something about it. He couldn't get blood on him to avoid making Lanaya even more afraid.

Before he killed them, she gave him the same look he gave his victims at the hospital a week ago and this morning. For some reason, Salvetti found Lanaya's gaze particularly unclean when she stared at him in that way.

As the screaming dwindled, his phone rang, and he picked it up. He had a scowl on his face.

No one save Salvetto's father had ever called him, and Salvetti was well aware of this. A frustrated "what?" rang out from his phone as he withdrew it from his pocket.

It's time for you to return. Travis, a childhood friend, was the culprit. His job was to make sure she didn't fall or be hurt or anything like that.

"She fled," I said.'

Salvetti snarled on the phone, his eyesight turning blood red as he screamed.

"Then you'd best hurry up and find her before she's eaten by the dogs!" He pressed the red button and was on the verge of breaking the phone when he realized what he had done.

After Salvetti shifted his weight, he pulled the door open. The instant he returns, heads will roll.