Chapter Four: First lesson

Rose’s POV:

I took a step back with my lips paused in a mean line and my heart pounding hard against my chest but his darkened gaze remained on mine, the phone still pressed to his ear. For a fleeting moment, I calculated the distance between us and how difficult it’d be for me to dash past him into the streets but I knew it wasn’t possible, not with the security guard behind me. My chances were non-existent and that only made my heart hammer more. Maybe I should have planned better.

Still glaring at me, he pocketed his phone and his eyes darted to the security man. He nodded curtly at him and my gaze instantly followed, for fear of what they were silently planning but in the next instant, I felt his strong arms around me as he tossed me over the shoulder and tossed his car keys to the guard who stepped out of the way.

“Let me go!” I screamed at the top of my voice, pounding my fists against his back but he ignored me, gingerly walking towards the house. “Let me go, you pervert!” I tried again, struggling hard and wiggling my body, all in an attempt to get down from his iron grip on my thighs but it only tightened and as if that wasn’t enough, he delivered a hard slap to my ass cheeks that had a squeak of surprise flying out of my lips. His audacity to hit me after kidnapping me infuriated me the more as I screamed profanities at him. Knowing he wasn’t who I’d thought him to be only edged me on as I was no longer scared of him.

“I’ll expose you to the world. I’ll tell them of your dirty secret and how you encourage human trafficking, you idiot,” I ranted on, still pounding his back with my fists but he made no move to drop me as he got into the house and climbed up the stairs, his steps well-coordinated as though I was as light as a feather. “I’ll get you arrested and make sure you rot in jail and pay for your sins, you bloody pervert. You should be prosecuted for sexual harassment and molestation. Let me…”

“If you were a good girl yourself, you wouldn’t have ended up here,” he finally spoke, cutting me off. But I preferred when he was quiet because his words only aggravated me the more.

“You have no right to judge me. You know nothing about me,” I fired back.

“Yeah? Maybe I know nothing about you but that’s all irrelevant now. What’s relevant is that I bought and paid for you and my money will work for me, and soon you’ll be on your back, with your legs spread widely, doing what you know how to do best, pet,” 

Red-hot anger seared through me and I wanted nothing more than to fire a bullet through his skull and watch life slip out of him but my thoughts were interrupted when he suddenly stopped at the door of the room he’d led me from earlier that morning. Quickly, he unlocked it and got in before placing me on my feet.

“Take off your clothes,” he ordered in that clipped voice that I once feared but now, it irked me so much. “Now,” he added when I remained still, glaring daggers at him. I gathered all of the anger and annoyance I was feeling and slapped him hard across the face for all of the degrading words he’d said to me, implying that I was merely his sex object.

If he felt the pain of the slap, he didn't show it as his expression remained stoic but in the next breath, he shoved me against the wall, with his arm to my throat and his thick thigh wedged between my legs to keep them wide apart in an uncomfortable way. His dark eyes narrowed to slits, his jaw clenching hard.

“This will be your only warning. Lay your filthy hands on me again and I’ll punish you so hard you’d wish you were never this bratty,”

I didn’t need a prophet to know I’d crossed my lane by slapping him and I knew he meant every word he said but I wasn’t sorry for my actions. He deserved it for degrading me, and I’d do it again until he learned some manners on how to treat a lady. But instead of saying all these, I chose to remain quiet to save myself. For all I knew, he could have other personality disorders that wouldn’t work in my favor if I chose to annoy him otherwise.

He stared at me for a long while before pulling away and taking a step back.

“Now, strip,” this time, his voice was cold and calm, and it scared me more than the anger he just showed yet, I wasn’t ready to bend to his will. He’d seen me naked when I was vulnerable and scared to die but not anymore. I wasn’t scared of him. He couldn’t possibly be more dangerous than Don Torelli.

I stood there, staring at him with so much hate, unyielding to his command. Only I wasn’t ready for his next move as he covered the space between us, grabbed my arm and dragged me towards the king-sized bed in a corner of the room, and forcefully pushed me down onto it with my face to the bed. I gasped in shock and struggled to get up but he successfully held me down, caging me in place with his body, while one of his palms held my wrists firmly behind me.

“Let me go!” I screamed, even though the words came out in a muffled tone but he ignored me as his free hand pushed my dress out of the way to reveal the sheer lacy panties I was wearing. In one pull, he ripped the material, exposing my ass. “What are you doing?” I shrieked, kicking my legs to stop him but he wasn’t deterred by my movements as he was straddling my thighs. Before I could utter another word, his palm landed hard on my ass cheek, causing me to scream as pain ricocheted through me. “How dare…”

Again, I was cut short by another hard slap on the same spot, increasing my pain. And he didn’t stop. He continued, ignoring my cries of agony, as he kept spanking me on the same spot until it was so sore that I couldn’t hold back the tears that were sliding down my cheeks. I didn’t count how many times he hit me, but it was almost ten minutes later when he finally stopped. Just when I thought he couldn’t do anything more, he wrapped his tie around my wrists, tied them up, and left me there. The sound of the door slamming shut announced his exit.

After he left, a silent sob escaped my lips as I struggled to free myself from the bind, believing the tie would slide free from my hands if I twist them a little but little did I know that the more I struggled to get free, the tighter the bound. It took me a while to finally realize I couldn’t do it without help and I gave up a deep sigh, my shoulders slumping in defeat as I relaxed on the bed, the reality of my situation crashing into me.

I’d never been beaten in such a manner all my life. My parents never laid their hands on me, but here I was, locked in the home of a random stranger, who was beating me up. This reality only fueled my need to escape from this prison. I couldn’t remain here and let him lay his hands on me whenever he pleased. He lacked human decency and empathy. He doesn’t care about me, and my emotions. All he wanted was to have me under his control, warm his bed, and play out his dirty fantasies. 

I shuddered at the thoughts, sniffing as more tears rolled down my cheeks. I needed to escape and I’d do it at all costs.

I must have slept off in that position because the next time I saw him, I was in his arms and he was heading towards my designated bedroom but I closed my eyes back, and if he noticed I was awake, he didn’t show it in his expression. He got into the room and gently placed me on the bed before pulling the covers over me. For a moment, he hovered over me, petting my hair gently, then he released a deep breath and exited the room.

As soon as I was alone, I sat up and my eyes darted to the open window to see it was dark outside. I must have been asleep for a very long while and my body ached from how long I’d slept. My eyes sought after the fancy clock sitting on the dresser to see it was past 8 pm. I was surprised by how long I’d slept but at the same time, I was glad I didn’t have to deal with the man for all of that time.

I also noticed the tray of food the housekeeper had left in the morning still sitting there untouched. As if on cue, my stomach rumbled and I tried reaching for it, but I stopped myself. I couldn’t remember the last time I ate, and I was certainly not going to eat in this house. What if more sedatives have been added to the food to make me unconscious so he can have his way with me? The thought of being vulnerable to his assault scared me shitless and I quickly looked away from the food, although my mouth desperately watered for a taste.

I returned my attention to the night sky, wondering what has become of my life. It felt as though I was dangling in uncertainty, waiting for anyone to decide my fate. First, the Don, now this stranger who claims to have bought me at a BDSM auction. I was tired of being on the run, but I knew it was far from being over. I needed to take control of my life and the only way it’d happen is if I get away from this man.

Staring into the night, another plan began formulating in my head. I could quickly escape this night without raising any alarms to myself or drawing attention. From my morning escapade, I knew the perimeters of the compound and I could navigate them. With this plan, I laid down, staring at the clock and waiting for my moment to arrive.

It took almost forever but then my moment finally came. It was 12 am on the clock and I didn’t care that it was the dead of the night. I was hellbent on escaping this slavery and so I began my mission. As quietly as I could, I slinked out of my room and hurried down the stairs barefooted. The house was as silent as a graveyard and I could only hope that everyone was fast asleep. I had no idea if another guard was outside just like in the morning but I peeped from one of the windows and it was all clear. Slowly, I opened the front door and made a run for the gate, not bothering to lock the door. Getting away was my first and only priority but I should have known it was too easy. The moment I laid a hand on the gate, a loud alarm began blaring. My heart dropped to the pit of my stomach, and a cold shiver ran down my spine, filling me with dread.

As if my legs had a mind of their own, they turned around and there he was, out of his business suits and clad in gray sweats that hung low on his hips, his tousled bed hair with the stands falling to his forehead, coupled with his darkened sleep eyes, making him look like a Greek God dropped from hell to torment me.

A shaky breath slipped from my lips.

“I thought you were smarter,”