Chapter 2

   Towards the end of my "sweet dream," which most likely will be the source through which I will end up in a brothel or even worse, in organ trafficking, I could hear and feel everything, only I couldn't move. I felt as though I had been administered an anesthetic or drugs.

   I hear the front and rear doors of the car open and close, then the one on my side opens. I feel myself being pulled into someone's arms. I try to open my eyes, which, due to the substances injected into my body, seem like a huge effort, and just before I manage to, I fall asleep again.

   I grope with my hand the space I am placed on and realize it's a bed. I try to open my eyes again, and this time I succeed, but they feel very dry as if they were filled with sand. I blink a little and notice that my mouth is dry too. I feel as though all my senses are parched.

-I think you have a very dry mouth; a glass of water would help you,I startle at the sound of the voice, which, if we were in a different situation, I would feel as a source of excitement.

   I turn my head to the right side of the bed and see the investor from the company.

-Or maybe you want me to help you, he says, transitioning from a serious look to one akin to that of a predator eyeing its prey. I look at him with a frightened look, not knowing what he's referring to, and then I realize from the way he licks his lips what he meant, and I calm down. I take the glass of water from his hand and drink it all.

-Why am I here? I ask, following this path even though I know that no normal person would kidnap another person for work-related issues.

-We both know that's not why, he says, smiling at me. God, I might end up as a product or worse because of this man, and I feel like wiping that smile off his face with my lips, which at this moment would give anything to touch his.

-Then why am I here? I ask, losing my patience.

-You're here because I want you, he tells me as if he said something totally normal.

-Why? I ask, my voice trembling for some reason.

     He leans over me, getting his lips at an unnoticeable distance from mine. I lean a bit lower, and he leans over me. With one hand, he lifts my chin, and I make eye contact with his electrifying green eyes. I try to break eye contact, but I can't. He takes the glass from my hand, which I had forgotten I was holding, and puts it on the nightstand beside the bed without breaking the eye contact between us. I clear my throat to break the silence that settled in the room.

-I want to leave! I see him snap out of it and stand up, then sit in the armchair next to the bed.

-You are mine, and you will leave only if I come with you, he tells me in a gentle voice.

-Where are we? I ask, scared.

-In my house in New York.

-In... New York?

-Yes.

-How? How did you manage to cross the border with me?

-False documents, and the fact that I have a private jet. A private jet!? So, he's rich. Who knows what dirty things he does for that money.

-Tell the truth! Did you kidnap me to sell me or my organs? I ask, raising my voice at him.

-Do you really think I would do that to you? he asks.

-How should I know? I don't know you; I don't know what kind of person you are, I say, turning my whole body towards him, full of nerves, so much so that I think my cheeks turned red. He stands up nervously, puts my hands above my head, and clasps my chin with his other hand to make eye contact.

-Listen me! I don't have time for this nonsense; I need to protect you, understood? he yells at me angrily.

-Someone is after you, and they want to kill you, he tells me the last sentence slowly and in a calmer tone for me to process everything that's happening to me.

-And if I believe you, what's your business with it? Why do you care? I ask.

-Because… it's because of me that all this is happening to you, he says coldly.

I look at him bewildered, not understanding what he means.

-I think you've got the wrong person.

-I've been following you for months; I'm sure I haven't, he insists.

-I think you're insane. Why would... I stop abruptly, as I realize. You're him!

-I'm the one you saved, yes, I am. I've been following you for months to see if everything's alright. I didn't want to disturb your life for nothing. The night I brought you here, you were about to be caught and tortured until you told them what connection you have with me, and in the best case scenario, you would have been killed in the end.

-I have nothing to do with you. I don't know you!

-I know, but I can't risk them taking you from me.

-You're crazy, I yell at him.

-I helped you because that's what I would have done for anyone. I'm not yours.

-You are mine, and you will stay here. Because that's what I want,he yells at me angrily.