Chapter 5
Chapter Five
Lily
“Stay, you fucking bitch,” one of the men snarls as he shoves me into the dark confines of a cabin on the boat where a bed takes up most of the space. He’s shaking the hand I just bit him on. “You try to leave this room, I’ll hold you over the side of the boat and drown you. Understood?”
I swallow hard, the taste of fear thick in my throat as I bite back more threats and curses.
A large hand brutally grips my chin, fingers pressing into my skin so hard I know it’s going to leave a nasty bruise. “Do you understand, you stupid bitch?” The malice swirls in his eyes as the weight of his threat hangs like a noose tightening around my neck.
“Let her go,” the other man hisses, venom in his voice. “You’re going to fuck up our payday if you put any marks on her. She’s not going to sell well if she’s bruised up.”
The one with his hand on me stares at me for a moment, pure hatred radiating from him before he drops my face and takes a step back, shaking his head, with a look in his eyes that sends a chill crawling up my spine and has my stomach twisting.
Did he just say sell? I’m going to be sold off? The feeling of bile in my stomach rises into my throat. I’d rather die.
“Do. You. Understand?” the other man asks slowly, hovering near the door with one hand on the gun at his hip and a stiff posture as if he’s prepared for me to launch some attack.
But I’m in shock, still processing what’s about to happen to me.
“I understand,” I manage to whisper, retreating instinctively as he advances toward me, forcing me back step after step until the bed hits the back of my knees.
His hand slams down on my shoulder, shoving me down against the mattress. All I can see is what happens next in situations like these as panic surges within me. I scream a raw, primal sound that bounces off the walls of the small space, thrashing and trying to get him away from me.
“For fuck’s sake, he’s just trying to tie you up.” The darkest colored eyes find mine. They flicker with a hint of kindness that feels like a cruel joke.
Surrendering, I remain still, my throat raw, tears gathering around my eyes, ready to burst. The harsh reality crushes me.
I’m going to be dead before anyone even knows I’m gone.
Who knows what lies ahead of me, but I know I’m not strong enough to endure it.
As the daughter of Tommaso Andretti, I’m not going down without a fight.
I wait until he’s hovering over me to bind my hands above my head before I bring my knee up hard between his legs.
He howls, collapsing to the side, hitting the ground with a hard thud.
Before I can scramble to my feet, the other man is on top of me, pinning me down to the bed with his entire weight, wrenching my hands above my head before I have the chance to kick him in the balls too.
“Let me go!” I yell, thrashing against him, my heart pounding in my chest like a caged animal trying to break free.
But it’s no use. He’s heavier than the first man, more prepared. Ropes bite into my wrists before cold metal snaps around them, digging in painfully. I wince, twisting my wrists, in a final attempt to escape.
“Behave,” the man pants, stepping back to help his partner to his feet. “I don’t want to have to hurt you,” he says, pointing to his partner. “But he won’t hesitate to lay hands on you if you don’t calm down.”
“Calm down?” I laugh manically. “You want me to calm down?”
“Just fucking leave her,” the first man groans, gripping his balls and hobbling to the door. “She’s not fucking worth it, and someone else can sort out her attitude problem.”
They both leave, the door slamming shut behind them with a finality that leaves me in suffocating silence.
Alone and bound to the bed, my head hits the mattress in frustration.
Looking up at my hands, I do the only thing I can at this point.
Stasia, the doctor and crime-show-obsessed psycho, always says to claw whoever is attacking you.
Their skin cells will remain under your nails, and as long as your fingers aren’t chopped off, DNA will be able to identify your attacker.
I roll over onto my stomach, my arms protesting, still above my head. “Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit.”
There is no escaping this nightmare, and an evil thought crosses my mind.
Maybe I could suffocate myself, but I quickly dismiss it.
You’ll never find an Andretti taken out by their own hand.
Plus, I don’t have it in me to see it through.
Closing my eyes, rolling onto my back, tears spill down my cheeks.
The boat’s engine hums to life and the acknowledgment of my fate sinks in.
The boat rocks violently as it cuts through the harbor, the dock becoming a blur through the small window.
No one will come looking for me anytime soon, not when I am known to take a full day getting my hair and nails done.
The tears flow faster now, fear flooding my body as my chest tightens. The pain in my heart feels unbearable.
Suddenly I can’t breathe. Suffering through watching episodes of unsolved crimes with Stasia taught me that after twenty-four hours, you’re a lost cause.
Sniffling and desperately trying to steady my breath, closing my eyes, I picture Selene sitting next to me singing Rock-a-bye baby just like she would when I was little and couldn’t fall asleep.
She’d lie next to me singing and brushing her fingers through my hair until I was knocked out cold.
But the more the boat rocks, the more it becomes a reminder I am far away from home.
I’m going to be sold—trafficked into doing who knows what.
Fuck. My. Life.