Chapter 2

The Bank had turned out to be a failure even after mustering enough courage and assuring herself countless times before arriving there. Olivia had never expected the refusal of her request to be so abrupt. After the number of tears, she shed trying to plead with the bank staff even for consideration, it was to no avail because no one seemed to want to give her a listening ear.

Since her last hope had been crushed down so much it felt like a wheel on a tomato. She stood on the road like a lifeless human with no direction. She didn't know what to do, who to turn to or where else to go for help. She felt hopeless and miserable at the same time...

Why was life so cruel?

After the death of her father years ago, life had been a living hell for her and her mother. But that didn't stop Mrs. Florence from playing her role and trying to be the best mother to Olivia. She made sure to put Olivia in a good school and struggled to pay the fees and provide for her every need.

Since then, Olivia had been trying to make her mother proud and make things better for them. The modeling agency was the only way she had seen things get easier but her mother had collapsed and she had to run out of the agency, hoping to calm her mother's situation and return there. But they told her the position had been given to someone else.

Now, they're back to square one and her mother was still lying on the hospital bed waiting for death. She was the only family Olivia had, and losing her was not an option. She had lost her father, she didn't want to lose her mother too. She was ready to offer herself to the gods for her mother to be saved.

"Hey!" A man screamed at her and she snapped out of her thoughts and blinked hard.

She had unconsciously walked really close to the roadside. If the man hadn't screamed at her, she might have been hit. Her entire body and soul were stuck in her problems and the world was nonexistent.

She was zoning out again when a black BMW stopped less than a meter away from her and pressed hard on its horn. The door opened, and a pair of straight legs stepped out and walked toward her.

Olivia stood there like an exposed lone tree in the middle of the desert. She had nowhere to hide or run. She just waited for the man to come to reprimand her for trying to kill herself on the road.

“Hello Miss," the man with straight legs greeted her.

Olivia blinked hard for this was not what she was expecting the man to sound like. He didn't look angry, and neither did he look disgusted with her.

The man smiled at her and the moment their eyes met, she felt her heart squeeze in pain. Maybe because she had recognized the level of class of the man and she knew people like him were the ones who could help her but they wouldn't.

She wanted to send the man off but then something in his eyes told her to hold her anger for a bit. He was staring at her strangely. She felt like an object on the market table. She swallowed hard and observed him.

"Why will a pretty girl like you risk her life out here?" The man asked with raised brows.

"I am sorry..." Olivia managed to blurt out as her head tried to think of what the man could want from her.

What if he wanted to kidnap her and sell her away for slavery or something? She thought suddenly with fear. She shouldn't be talking to strangers.

"I'll be more careful next time," she said and made to leave but the man stepped right in front of her preventing her from leaving.

He cocked his head to the side and noticed her swollen eyes and tear-stained face. He looked far ahead and saw that she had been coming from the direction of the hospital. Good, he thought. She didn't look rich, so obviously she had someone in the hospital, whom he was hoping wasn't dead yet and she might be needing his help.

"Something is bugging you, what is it?" He asked her in a singsong manner.

Olivia was convinced at this point that this man wanted to kidnap her indeed. "None of your business!" She spat and tried to walk away but on second thoughts she stopped herself.

Her mother was dying. And she had sworn to do whatever it took to save her. If this strange man wanted to kidnap her and sell her off... She could make the job easier for him if he was ready to cooperate.

"My mother is dying and I need money. Can you help with that?" She said firmly. If he wanted her, he would have to bargain for it.

The man's smirk increased and he took a step back to have another look at her. From the moment he saw her across the street, he knew that she would make the right choice for his boss. His only worry was convincing her and now she had just given him the trump card.

“Are you a virgin?“ The man asked suddenly, out of the blue, without beating around the bush. Since she wanted money, he had to be sure that she was up to the task.

Olivia felt a chill over her body and her mind was immediately awakened by the words of this strange man. Clearly, she heard what he said and understood what that word meant but of what use was dignity if she lose the one person she loved with all her heart? What was life if the last hope that kept her living was dead? She thought to herself.

Courageously, Olivia bit her lower lip and looked straight into the eyes of the stranger, and said bravely…

“Yes, I am a virgin. Is that a new requirement for slavery?” she dared to ask.