Chapter 1

Chapter One.

Carina Rodriguez had just finished a nice day at work. It had been her first week and it had gone pretty well. Her boss was kind. Ann McLaren. She liked that she believed in her. She didn’t know how, but she had gotten this job purely out of luck because she didn’t even know what she was doing.

Carina said her goodbyes to everyone and promised she would go out for a drink next Friday. She entered her new car and made her way to her new apartment. Perks she got for being the assistant to the financial officer. She turned down the radio when her phone blared to life. Paris Connor, her best friend's name, was flashing on the screen. She picked up and set it to speaker.

"Cari we need to celebrate this weekend," Paris's voice was loud, she was full-on screaming. Carina always wondered what made her so enthusiastic. Maybe it was her new found lover. She loved how her friend always came to life when she was in a new relationship. She wished she could live life like Paris, but her family never took it kindly whenever she mentioned a boy she liked at home. Marco, her brother, especially had always scared all the boys away from her and in this town men stopped approaching. She was probably going to move out of town to find a boyfriend.

With Marco being a good seven years older than her, he was over protective and when she would tell her father, he would be on Marco’s side. They needed to understand she wasn't a kid anymore. For heaven's sake she was a twenty-three year old woman capable of making her own certain decisions.

"Why would we need to celebrate?" Carina asked completely clueless, she wondered what was going on in Paris's mind this time.

"You just finished the first week of your new job and I just got promoted. I'm now the current head of HR!" Paris shouted the last sentence into the phone.

"Oh my gosh!!! Paris! That's wonderful. I'm so happy for you. This really calls for a celebration," Carina replied with excitement, sincerely happy for her friend.

"Yes! That's why you're going to make your way to my house and we'll have Chinese take out and maybe go out to that bar in town, later tonight,” Paris said. Only Paris would celebrate with Chinese take out, Carina thought shaking her head, knowing that Paris couldn't see her.

"Sure babe. I'll be there in thirty. I'll grab some clothes, take a shower, and be right over," Carina said pulling into the parking lot of her apartment.

"It's a date. Why don't you do me a treat and bring your hunk of a brother over?" Paris slurred into the phone, trying to be seductive. Carina could only shudder, she couldn't ever think of Paris and Marco going out. That'd be the nightmare of the year.

"Please Paris, you both disgust me. I'll be there in thirty," She said hanging up, cutting off Paris's laughter.

Carina shook her head ,smiling as she made her way to her apartment. It was spacious and she already loved it. It had two rooms with two separate bathrooms, a kitchen and a living room. She made her way to her room when her phone began to ring. She wondered what Paris wanted again, but she was mistaken when she saw Marco's name flashing on the screen.

"Hello, Marco," She said cheerfully as she began to pack clothes for the sleep over in Paris's house.

"Carina where are you?" He asked anxiously and she could tell he was very nervous. What was wrong with him this time around?, she thought to herself.

"Marco. Thank you. I'm fine," She said sarcastically.

Marco replied to her with a curse under his breath which she heard very clearly.


"Carina. This is not the time for jokes. Where are you?"

Okay. She could tell he was serious now.

"I'm home, Marco. What's wrong?" She asked, stopping what she was doing.

"Carina. Listen very carefully to me. Do. Not. Leave. Your. House. And don't open the door for anyone. I'm on my way," Marco said so slowly like he was talking to a five year old, which annoyed Carina. She hated the way he talked to her. She knew he loved her very much though, that she didn't doubt, but he always saw her as a child. When would things change?

"I am not staying at home Marco. I'm going over to Paris's," She snapped at him. He cursed, then all but shouted her name, "Carina! Do not make this any harder, stay home."

Carina rolled her eyes, knowing very well that he couldn't see her. She put the phone on speaker and made to take off her dress.

"Marco, you can't tell me what to do. I am an adult like you," Carina said feeling slightly irritated.

Carina made to zip down her dress when she felt a cold hard metal at the back of her neck.

Her breath got caught in her throat. She didn't dare move an inch. What had Marco gotten himself into this time? She hoped this was just one of their threats. She didn’t want to die now, she still had a lot of experiences to make in life.

When Marco couldn't hear his sister's breathing anymore, he began to panic. Couldn't Ricardo at least wait for some time?, he thought to himself. He knew for a fact that Ricardo was a very dangerous man, and could not be predicted at any certain time. The fact was Marco knew he had a very attractive sister and he was sure once Ricardo laid eyes on her he would want to get involved with her in a way he didn't like and he would end up fixing the broken pieces of Carina's heart. That's why he protected his sister from men, he didn’t ever want her to be heart broken. Now he regretted letting her live alone, but he couldn't just say no to her. Anytime he thought of saying no he would then remember her when she was a little girl asking him for something. There was this special bond he had with his sister and he couldn't stand to see her hurt even if most of the time he treated her like a child, he was just protecting her from people like Ricardo. The worst part was if Ricardo had already gotten her there was nothing he could do about it because he owed him big time.

"Carina! Carina!" He began to shout after the silence stretched too long.

He panicked thinking they had come for his sister.

Marco lost his mind. He knew the son of a bitch tricked him into going all the way to another state to collect a package he already had.

"Marco. Calm down. You didn't tell us you had such a pretty sister," said the man holding a gun to Carina's neck, while touching her long raven black hair.

Marco recognized that as the voice of Jose, one of Ricardo’s men. The bastard, Marco thought. He better keep his hands to himself because he knew Jose didn't have any problem sleeping with anything in a skirt.

"Jose. If you so much as lay a finger on her, I swear I will kill you," Marco all but shouted. He didn't care at this moment if he got a ticket from how fast he was going.

"Don't worry, boss ordered to bring her unharmed. You know how you're his favorite boy, he wouldn't dare do a thing to hurt you, but you deceived us and you know how much he hates being lied to,” Jose said into the phone. He was getting a lot of money doing this and he sure as hell couldn't reject it like the other fools did.

"Can you just leave her? She's just a kid. I don't want her involved in all this," Marco all but pleaded. He had never begged for anything in his life, but for this he would.

Carina didn't know whether to burst with anger or tears. She didn't know what mattered to her the most. The fact that a gun was being pointed to her or Marco bluntly calling her a kid.

She whimpered when the man named Jose used the gun to nudge her out the door.

"Sorry. Have to follow boss's orders. I'm getting a lot of dough for this one," Jose said. He hoped Marco saw this from his point of view because no wanted to be on Marco's bad side.

Marco sparked when he heard Carina whimper. He knew Jose was just doing his job, like he had done to other families, but it still annoyed him.

"Jose. Do you know what this fucking feels like? She's my kid sister for fucks sake, she should never get involved in all this," Marco raged into the phone.

Jose became red as he recalled how his own sister was beaten to a pulp and raped right in front of him and there was nothing he could do. When they were done they untied him and left him with his dead sister. The only woman he ever loved apart from his mother who died in a gunfire. Marco knew this about Jose before he began to start working under Ricardo.

He shoved Carina into the car.

"Don't you fucking tell me that bullshit Marco. You know better than anyone I experienced it. So don’t piss me off right now," With that Jose hung up.

Marco then remembered what happened when Jose first came. He was a broken man. And he had been the one sent to kill those fuckers by Ricardo, which he did with no regret. He hated men who had no respect for women, at least that's what his mother had taught him.

He sped to Carina's house and when he saw the door wide open, he knew they had left. If he went to the estate and he wasn't let in, he would bring the hell down.

Carina sat stiff in her seat. It seemed like what Marco said about the sister thing really touched Jose and she felt sorry for him. Was she a fool feeling sorry for her kidnapper?, she thought to herself as she sat anxiously waiting.

She just hoped Marco came quickly to take her home because she didn't like spending time with all his drug dealer friends. They were all a nasty excuse of men. She didn't just know why he decided to involve himself with these people. She knew her brother didn't do drugs, so why did he get caught up in this crowd.

They pulled up to a gate and Jose typed up a code for the gate to open. They drove a long way before they finally reached the house and her eyes almost popped out of their sockets.

She noticed there were guards everywhere. Holding guns. This isn't a house, Carina thought. It's a bloody estate. The walls were painted white and the windows rimmed with gold. Did they really make that much money from drugs? Well that's the money that was used to pay her tuition fees, Marco had always told her.


He never hid anything from her. He told her bluntly what he did, at first she was freaked out but he promised her she would never get involved. What was happening now? This was the reason why he was so protective of her. She learnt to accept it. She loved him. He was her brother.

How in the hell did they get the money to build this? I mean the size of this house is probably illegal, she thought, as José guided her into the house. It was like she was in a trance, words couldn't describe how beautiful the house looked. The house smelled of money literally, she thought.

The artwork looked antique and it made the house look classic and expensive.

She didn't know when José left, but a woman came to lead her to a room. This woman looked to be around the same age as her mother, but Carina didn’t want to let her guard down too quickly.

Carina learnt her name was Paola.

"Have a shower and change into this. The boss would like to have dinner with you in thirty minutes," Paola said and left the room.

The boss, Carina thought. Who was this boss they always talked about with respect? She looked at her watch and checked the time. It was already thirty minutes past six. Paris!! She would definitely be worried that Carina wouldn't make it. Carina decided not to sulk and do as she was told. Marco would be here soon to take her home. He always told her that if this ever happened she should be compliant and not stubborn. It would only make matters worst. Especially if it looked like they weren't hurting her. She opened a door and was met with a traditional luxurious bathroom. She quickly locked the door behind her.

Carina decided to soak herself in the hot water so much that it stung her skin, she loved how it loosened her tense muscles. She was in the white tub at the end of the bathroom. The view she got was excellent. She marveled at the way the grass was cut and how large the expanse of the house was.

Carina left the shower when she was satisfied. She exited the bathroom and applied the lotion Paola provided for her. She put on the dress and noticed that it had a low neckline which meant it showed a good amount of her petit breasts. She didn't like the fact that whoever the boss was would be looking at her breasts. She would not serve as a commodity to some stranger.

She immediately decided to wear her own dress. She didn't care if it pissed anyone off.

Exactly at seven, Paola came to collect her. When saw her wearing the same dress, her eyes glinted with amusement and her lips twitched.

Carina wondered what made the woman laugh now. She was lead to another room and Paola left her saying the boss would meet her shortly.

******

Carina sat in the dimly lit room with her stomach in knots. She was told she would be having her dinner here. Why did her brother always manage to get involved in shady business ?

She had her guard up since she had been taken none too kindly from her new apartment, might she add. She wondered just what her brother had gotten himself into this time. It was always one thing or another. This time, she hoped her father could help sort it out because she did not want to stay in this house another minute. Marco, her brother, had said he was coming over to collect her but he was taking time.

She heard a noise come from the other end of the room and she turned. That's when she saw him. The tall brooding male entered the room and it was like he dominated the whole area. She could feel his presence before he even covered the distance between them. She supposed this was ‘The Boss’ they kept mentioning.

Soon as he came to her side, she voiced out what had been going through her mind.

"What am I doing here? When can I go home?"

He replied something she wouldn't want to hear.

"You will not be returning home and you are here to pay your brother’s debt,” His voice was thick with seriousness and she didn't doubt it one bit.

It looked like she was here to stay and she feared what he had planned with the glint in his eye.