I never imagined myself to be tied up to the bed with the shackles above my head. I pressed my legs tightly as nervousness started to take a toll on me. The dress I wore was nothing but a piece of cloth to only cover my nipples and pussy, while my other parts were clearly exposed.

And there he was. Standing in front of the bed, gawking at me like a predator ready to hunt down his prey. His chest muscles and perfectly toned abs made me look at him, wide-eyed, but only when he started to touch my thigh, did I realise what was coming next.

“P-please… no…” I looked at him, almost begging him with my eyes.

A small smirk appeared on his lips as his gaze fell on my nipples that were only becoming hard.

He walked towards me, and leaned in to whisper, “But you signed the contract, didn’t you?”

I gulped at his serious tone. His face was only a few inches away from me, and I felt his breath all over my face.

“Now, stop begging and start enjoying the thing that’s coming next.”

That was it. I was doomed.

My eyes filled with tears while the shock and confusion hit me like a wave in an instant. Out of everything, I didn’t expect to hear that I was fired.

“Am I fired? But why?”

The sounds of music hit my ears while I looked at the new bartender who replaced me. I didn’t even know the reason I got fired. I had always been diligent in my work and even worked overtime, not caring how late it was getting.

“We are doing cost-cutting here. Moreover, customers here preferred Lily, so we had no choice but to take the decision.” The manager replied.

“But…” I bit my inner cheeks, swallowing the lump formed in my throat.

“Elira, I am sorry, but you have to leave. If we again have any requirements, we’d definitely reach out to you.”

I didn’t understand what to say or how to even convince him. I needed the job. Any job. I was really desperate for money, so I clutched my hands, and with my teary eyes, I begged him, “Please. Please do something. I cannot afford losing a job now.”

He let out a frustrated sigh as I didn’t leave, so he had the security throw me out of the bar. I couldn’t help but start crying at my situation.

In the mirror of one of the vehicles, I noticed the puffiness around my brown eyes, the redness on my cheeks, and how pale I started to look.

As I began leaving, two guys stood in my way, stopping me from taking another step. Quickly, I recognized them. They were the regulars at our bar. Ex-bar.

“Poor puppy got thrown out.” One of them mocked, without taking his eyes off me. His muscularly built frame towered over my petite one, which started to scare me.

They always hit on me. Whenever I served them, they tried to touch me or make me agree to their needs, so I used to escape them. I started to serve all others except the two. In my place, I used to send some others.

“What will you do now, baby?” The other person joined.

Ignoring them, I started to leave. As soon as I crossed the street, he held my hand while the other guy covered my mouth with his big hand.

My screams were muffled, and I looked around hoping to find anyone who could help me. As it was a dark alley beside the bar, there was hardly anyone. It was the only way that led to the street of my rented house, so I had no choice but to take it.

“How dare you ignore us when you were working there?” The guy who covered my mouth hissed in my ear. “Now, we will show you what happens to people who ignore us.”

Mustering up the strength, I bit the hand that covered my mouth and kicked the other in between his legs.

Without wasting a minute, I started to run, but they were adamant. They started to chase me.

“Help!” I screamed my lungs out, still running away from them.

“Stop running.” They shouted in unison.

Sweat formed on my face, and I was nearly out of breath when they almost caught me, but a black BMW stopped between us, almost knocking them both.

I froze for a moment, switching my gaze between the car and the guys who were chasing me.

They also stood frozen, not understanding what just happened. Their faces were in awe as their gazes fell on the latest model of the car.

When they were distracted, I took the chance and started to run again, but one of them held my hair, dragging me back.

“Bitch, where do you think you are going?”

I struggled to free myself from his grip, and that was when I heard, “Let her go.”

Not exaggerating, but the six-foot man in his three-piece suit who got out of the car was nothing but a handsome hunk. With his deep black eyes, sharp nose, and perfectly structured jaw, he was a feast to anyone who looked at him.

His intimidating gaze fell on me for a moment before glaring at them. In his deep voice, he said, “If you want to save your lives, you’ll do what I say.”

They both looked at each other and then lunged at him. Before they even touched him, his bodyguards twisted their hands, earning screams from him. Without giving a break, they broke both their arms.

Their screams and the visual were so horrifying that I started to fear not them but the man who was supposedly helping me.

“No, stop it.” I shouted, scared.

There was no sympathy or mercy on the man’s face. It seemed he was enjoying it.

“Stop it.” I shouted again.

He gestured to his bodyguards to leave them, and they immediately left them. The guys ran away scared in a minute.

The first thought that entered my head was to run away from whoever he was, but my polite side urged me to thank him.

“Thank you for the help.” I said, hiding my fear and nervousness.

I didn’t wait for his response and started to walk away, but I was dragged back by the same person, who saved me.

My eyes widened as he grabbed my waist and pulled me closer to him. A small smirk appeared on his face as he leaned closer to my ear, and the next thing he spoke sent a shiver down my spine.

“You can’t just escape from the devil who saved you, so babygirl, be careful from whom you take help the next time.”

A kind of creepy feeling erupted inside me as I heard him. His look was so intimidating that I was beyond scared, but I pretended bravery.

Gathering my strength, I tried to push him away, but his grip didn’t even falter a bit. Only when he felt pity for my struggle did he let me go.

Without wasting another second, I ran as fast as I could. When I felt safe, I turned back to look at him, who was still standing in his position, with his hands in his pockets and a smirk on his face.

As soon as I reached my house, I took a deep breath. It was the worst day of my life. Not one or two, I had to run away from three scary men. I drank the water in one gulp while spilling a little on myself.

“What a fucking bad day!” I sat on the bed and put my palms above my head. Suddenly, my entire body started to shiver. Not because of those scary men, but because I lost my job. Even with a job, I barely met my expenses, and I didn’t understand how I was going to survive until I got a new one.

I fell on the bed while looking at the moon through the window. Even the bright moon rays felt lonely. It could be because I saw them with my eyes that were filled with loneliness and desperation.

Swallowing down my emotions, I tried to sleep, but with a jolt I sat awake. His eyes, his damn eyes, kept revolving in my head. I kept feeling his dangerous aura around me as if he kept watching me from afar. It was haunting me even though I knew it was not real but only happening inside my head, so I closed the windows and slept even though the feeling still lingered.

The next morning, as I stepped outside my house with the fruit basket in my hand, I noticed the houseowner was already waiting for me near the stairs. I gulped and quickly tried to go back to my room and lock it from inside, but I was too late. She already saw me.

“The audacity of this young girl!” She scoffed. “How many times do I have to come here? Don’t you have enough sense to pay the rent for the house you are staying in?”

“I am so sorry… I’ll definitely…”

She cut me off. “You always skipped the rent, but it’s becoming too much recently. It’s been six months since you paid the rent. Whenever I come here, you hide. What a shameless woman you are!”

I bent my head down, letting her scold whatever she wanted, as she was right on that.

She then gave me a last warning before she walked away. “I have been kind enough because knew your mother, but now I can’t give you more time. I am giving you a week. If you don’t pay me the rent, I am going to kick you out.”

I knew I was wrong for not paying the rent, but I seriously had no money even though I wanted to pay her. And the reason? The loansharks from whom my dead parents took money. As if it was not enough, my younger sister, who was five years younger than me, was attacked with leukemia in addition to her weak immune system when she was thirteen. She turned eighteen last month, but there was no change in her body.

When my parents were alive, they used to take care of her, but they died in an accident when I was in my last year of high school, and all the responsibilities burdened my shoulders, leading me to stop my education.

In a few minutes, I reached the hospital and entered my sister’s room.

“Mira!” I sat beside her while she slept on her hospital bed.

Her disease kept relapsing, leaving her no strength to even have any normal conversation. I barely got any chance to speak to her.

“You’ll be fine. I’ll make sure nothing happens to you.” I kissed her hand and then looked at her caretaker, saying, “Thank you for taking care of her.”

She simply smiled and nodded her head. I kept talking to Mira even though she was asleep. Finally, after an hour, she slowly opened her eyes, making me smile.

“Elira?”

“Yes, I am here.” I smiled.

She managed to sit straight. Sadness consumed me as I looked at her pale face, and her struggle to speak.

“I am sorry. I have always been a burden to you.”

“No, you are not.” I shook my head. “Don’t let those stupid thoughts enter your head. Rest well.”

Then I stayed with her for a while pretending everything was fine, as I didn’t want her to notice my struggle. Later, I left in search of jobs.

As I didn’t even finish high school, it was hard for me to get any job. I took many part-time jobs until I got a full-time job at the bar and restaurant I worked at. I was not only a bartender but also worked at their restaurant from morning to evening until that woman replaced me. She took everything I was involved in.

On my way, I saw a poster of a job vacancy. Immediately, I entered and spoke, “Hi! I saw the job posting for a waitress…”

Before I finished my sentence, the manager said, “It got filled.”

“Oh, okay.” I nodded and walked away.

I kept searching, but it seemed the bad luck had taken a special interest in me. I wasn’t able to find any.

Finally, after a week I found a job as the server at the biggest nightclub, “Hydes.” I somehow felt good about losing my previous job, as the Hydes were paying me double the salary I was earning before. However, the environment was not quite amiable. It was only for adults. Apart from regular and VIP sections, there were even floors for strippers. To my luck, I was assigned to the regular section.

A week had passed, and I got accustomed to my work. The work only started in the evenings, so I kept searching for other jobs I could do in the morning and afternoon, but all my searches were in vain.

It was already late in the night, and when I was about to get off work, my manager stopped me.

“Elira, one of the staff who usually serves VIP sections, is off today, and we have a lot of them now. Can you please support us for a few more hours?”

I didn’t dare to say no. I didn’t want him to have any negative impression of me that could cost me my job.

“Sure!”

I took the tray of glasses and alcohol and entered the VIP section. The entire floor was attached with red lights, and the personal rooms were arranged. I entered the room I was assigned to and bent a little to put the tray on the table without glancing at any of the people present.

Only when I stood straight did I look at three men in suits in front of me, and when I looked to my left, a gasp escaped my mouth.

There he was. Again! The handsome devil with an intimidating gaze.