"Ellena get those bottles up right now." I hear my boss yell at me from upstairs.

"I got it already" I yell back. It's so freaking crowded I can barely hear my own voice. It's about 11 P.M and they still keep coming. This is where I work. A bar if you couldn't tell. It's not really the best place to work for a girl my age. But the pay is good and it helps a lot with my expenses.

In about an hour of restless working, my shift is over. I go over to the staff room and change into my normal clothes. A white shirt and a jacket on top of it. I'm about to leave when I hear someone call my name.

“Hold it there you little shit.” James starts shouting and since I see no one in the room, I assume he’s talking to me.

“Excuse me?” I turn around raising an eyebrow at the way he calls me.

“ I thought I was good to you. Given your age no one would have risked letting you work at a place like this but you said you needed money so I let you work here, and now what?? You stealing money from me? You shameless *****...”

"Are you fucking kidding me right now?? I didn’t take no money from you, where’s your freaking evidence? How dare you accuse me of something like that?”

“Yea yea, stop faking it. Gill and the others said they saw you taking the cash.”

What?? What is going on here??

“So that’s it then?? You just gonna believe that I took money from you?” I ask, anger boiling inside me.

He sighed.

“You worked here for a year so I’m not calling the cops. Just get your *** outta here and don’t show up again.”

“Maybe you should call someone to check on your brain, cause you’d be crazy to think I’ll stay here a second longer.”

"Whatever.Just... Just get out of here Park."

"Go to hell James." I shout before slamming the back door to his face and leaving the bar,probably forever. What the hell was wrong with him? I never liked James or the bar. But I needed that job. It was well paid and since I live alone it was the best thing to help manage my expenses.

I head over to station, trying to figure out what to do next, and where to find a new job as soon as possible.

If I can't find a job soon, I won't be able to pay this months rent. The old hag will kick me out right after she finds out about me being fired. Maybe I should have tried to prove my innocence and asked him to let me stay until the end of this month. I left with my pride in my hand but pride won’t become a shelter for me when she kicks me out.

Sigh, I’m getting nowhere, might as well rest up for the night. I’ll think of something tomorrow.

About half an hour passes and I'm finally here. Home sweet home. I open the door and start heading upstairs. My place, or to better put it my room is on the second floor. It's a small room built under a gable. There's really not much about it, but still... it's where I lived with my mom.

Speaking of mom, she died of cancer six month ago and since then I live alone, Here with her memories. Every corner of this room reminds me of her. She was all I had.

Growing up I never knew who my father was. My mom had removed every trace of his existance from our life and she refused to tell me anything about him no matter how much I insisted. I feel a heavy sigh trapped in my throat but before I can let it out I hear the door creak. I turn over to see my old but not so lovely landlord opening the door with her spare keys.

"You could actually knock, you know? It doesn’t hurt at all.” I say looking at her in annoyance as she enters the room.

"I don't knock in my own house."

"What do you want? It's not time for my pay yet" I rub a hand to my forehead, feeling extremely tired and sleepy.

"So tell me, how's it going with your job? You do know it's 17th."

"Thanks for the reminder. Now get out. I'll pay you by the end of the next week."

"Will you now?" She ask suspiciously and I look at her in confusion. But she continues before I can ask anything.

"You seem to have forgotten about the fact that I was the one who introduced you to James. So the news of you getting fired got here faster than your arrival."

I open my eyes wide in shock. I can't believe the bastard just called her and told her everything.

"And you even committed robbery. Have you no shame?" Her hursh words stab me like a knife. I don't know what I did to deserve all this. At this point it's clear she wants to get rid of me and I know trying to explain things to her would be of no use.

"I know I can't get you to believe me. So just give me a week and I'll leave this place."

"A week? Are you kidding me? you're leaving. Tonight!"

"Are you crazy?It's past midnight. where am I supposed to go? You can't just kick me out like this."

"Yes I can. This is my house and my contract with your mother is void, now that she is dead. I took pity on you and let you stay for a while, but it's over. Now either you get out or I'll have my boy kick you right out of the window."

Everything goes too fast for me to comprehend.  What can I do? Does arguing even help with anything at this point? I always knew she was a money grinding bitch but taking it this far is even lower than her bar. Something feels really fishy.

Before I know it I'm wondering in the streets, thinking why is this happening to me? where should I go? I have no relavites or friends to ask for their help. My mother was an immigrant. She came to England as a scholar to study in software Engineering, so I know nothing of my mother's family. My last option is to rent a room to stay for the night. But I can't afford that for long.

I keep walking around in search of a place to spend the night. If I remember correctly there’s a small inn downtown that offers rooms for a cheap price. It's not that far from here so I start heading towards it. It's then that I realize the streets are eerily quiet. It's about 2 A.M, only a few cars pass by every now and then. I'd better hurry, it's not good to stay out alone at this time of night.

I’m almost there Just past this alley and I can finally get some sleep. The alley is extremely dark. As if the lights of the streets were deprived from it. As I enter the valley I suddenly feel someone's eye on me. I turn around and see no one.

My heart beat picks up and I start walking faster. Why does the bloody alley has to be so long? Before I can reach the end of this long narrow walkway, I feel someone's presence again, much stronger this time.

I decide to start running but before I do I feel a hand grab me from behind, while another hand covers my mouth. I start to panic and thrash around to free myself from whoever that has me in their grasp. But he is too strong, I try to scream but the hand on my mouth muffles any sound that escapes my mouth.

“Help! Help!” I keep trying to get that simple word out of my mouth but I can’t. His grip on me is too tight, I can’t fight him off and I can’t shout for help but I still struggle with all my might.

What feels like an eternity of struggling is actually not more than a few seconds. Before I can make any progress I feel a sharp pain on the back of my head. Soon I feel his grip loosening up and I start falling down to the ground I try to scream but my voice wouldn't come out and my vision starts going blurry before I give in to the darkness around me and pass out.

Ellena’s POV

I woke up with a sharp pain in the back of my head.

Where was I? My vision was blurry I couldn’t see well. What happened to me?

I tried to move around but... my hands...

I was cuffed to a bed with my hands above my

head and there was a piece of cloth in my mouth.

“Mmph?...” I was gagged too.

Oh no.

Memories of what happened came rushing in and I instantly started to panic. I was KIDNAPPED. I felt a chill run down my spine as I tried to figure out where I was. I struggled against the cuffs but it was no use... I couldn’t move, nor could I shout or scream... plus I could barely see since it was dark wherever I was.

To add to it, I heard footsteps closing in and soon the door opened, with a figure of a tall man, appearing at the door.

Fear took over my body. what should I do? who was this guy? Again I struggled against the restraints to no avail. What else could I do as the deadly person started walking towards the bed?

I was scared. I was so scared... My whole body was shaking.

Suddenly He turned on the lights and I was blinded by the sudden illumination of the room.

“Mmph...mmph...” No no no please don’t come any closer... was what I was trying to say but it only came out as a muffle.

To my dismay, he stood besides the bed and me being too scared of what he might do to me, I turned my head away and averted my eyes. Well my miserable plan ro avoid him failed since the next thing he did was grabbing my chin and forcing me to look his way.

He was tall a man with dark brown hair and grey colored eyes. He was wearing a long black coat with a pair of black leather gloves and a pair of grey colored jeans.

He stared into my eyes with an amused expression in his eyes... I on the other hand was almost paralyzed by the fear of what he might do to me.

The next thing he did, was letting go of my chin as his hands went around my neck to relieve my of the gag around my mouth.

I was planning to scream or at least beg him for mercy the second he takes the gag off but somehow my brain seemed to tell me that wasn’t a good idea.

The last thing I wanted was having that gag back around my mouth.

“You’re awfully quiet... I’m beginning to think you didn’t need the gag to begin with.” He said smiling down on me. It was creepy as hell.

“Wh...what do you w-want from me?” I finally manage to squeeze out a few word while trying to increase the distance between us as much as I could.

“Oh, she talks.” He said almost laughing at my petrified state. I mean, excuse me, I don’t get kidnapped everyday.

“W-who are you?” Desperate to get some sort of answer from him, I asked another question, hoping he wouldn’t ignore this one as well.

Again he didn’t answer me... how surprising.

Instead he sat on the bed and leaned closer, to the point that I could feel his breath on the nip of my neck. His eyes looked utterly amused. Just looking at my scared distorted face had given him enjoyment to this extent. This dude was crazy. Thinking of the things he can do to me as I lied there helplessly made me feel shivers all over my body. 

"What do you think?" He asked, his face buried around my neck. I involuntarily closed my eyes and turn my head trying to avoid him.

“Please don’t do this...” I begged. I already knew where this was going and I hated it but again what was there that I could do?

To my surprise he stopped there and pulled off me. Now he was sitting right next to me, on the bed, giving me a sigh.

“You’re here because my client wants you to be here. And you will remain here until he says otherwise. Now I wouldn’t say I’m here to protect you but at the very least, so long as you stay put I promise not to hurt you.” He said, moving his hands up to mine and undoing the handcuffs.

Client? What the hell was that supposed to mean? He was going to keep me here for god knows how long. Did he expect me to just accept that?

“Oh ok I understand... you can’t refuse a client after all.” Was what I was about to say but again decided not to. I realized it’d be pointless to ask him who that “Client” is. Actually there was no real reason that he was telling the truth in the first place.

I sit up, looking down on my hands and rubbing the pain off them... I couldn’t get away right now. He already had me trapped around his hands, and speaking of experience, I stood no chance against him when it came to our raw strength.

As if on cue... he grabbed my wrist tightly, which made me look up at him reflectively.

“Fair warning: if you try to escape, I’ll hunt you down...” he said smiling like a devil.

He then brought his face closer to mine, whispering in my ear...

“And I’ll punish you for it...” He said before getting up the bed and leaving the room. I heard the door click so I knew he locked it.

Tears started welling up in my eyes as I rubbed my hands.

Why? Why me? Who was the client he mentioned?

I had no idea. But I’d rather not stay too long to find out. I needed to escape.

“If you eacape, I’ll hunt you down...” Yeah I heard that. That sentence felt like it came from the heart if nothing else. Then again I still had to get out. They were bound to hurt me one way or the other so I had no choice.

So I started looking around and searching the room hoping to find something useful. The room had no windows so the only way out was through the door. I wasn’t not sure what time it is but it wasn’t morning yet...I could tell that much when he opened the door and the lights were on outside.

I kept looking around but found nothing useful. If there was nothing in this god damn room, how was I supposed to escape?

I leaned back on the bed, sighing at my own bad luck.

So I spent the whole night thinking about all sorts of things as I dreaded the fact that he’llshow up again. I wasn’t sure how much time had passed but I couldn't sleep a wink. Time passed by slowly and after what felt like an eternity I heard the door creak and there he was again. 

I quickly got up the bed and almost ran to the corner of the room but he just laughed and closed the door as he came inside.

There was a plate of food and a glass of water in his hands. Food... when was my last meal anyway... I didn’t have anything for dinner that night and god knows how much had passed. No wonder I felt so light headed.

"I figured you deserve a reward since you've been so quiet." He said putting the plate down on the small drawer near the bed. I ignored his comment and just stepped away as he walked closer to the bed. This actually seemed to annoy him and he started drawing closer to me while I kept drawing back not thinking that a room is surrounded by walls and I’ll eventually run into one...

But well before even that happens he grabbed my wrist and I flinched trying to pull my hand back which only made him use more force.

“Well?...” He said peering into my face.

Well? Well what?

“Let go of me!” I protested but he didn’t budge. I put my other hand on his chest trying to push him away but soon he took hold of that too and I was out of options... My tears were already threatening to fall off any moment.

“Resist again and I’ll tie you back to that bed for the rest of the day.” He threatened in a low voice and I was paralyzed. I stopped struggling and looked down as I watched my tears fell down to the floor.

I stood there and standing was the best I could do, since my knees were threatening to give in any minute.

Well the only thing that did keep me standing was probably the fact that he was still holding my wrists tightly...

“What’s your name, little girl?” He suddenly asked and I found myself surprised. What was that supposed to mean? He kidnapped someone he didn’t know? Was he that stupid? Or was this just a trick question for him to find out whether I’ll tell him the truth or not...

His grip tightened a little, indicating that he was running out of patience.

“E-Ellena Park.” I decided to go with the truth. Hearing my voice, his grip loosened, giving me a satisfied face. As I thought he looked like he already knew that much.

“And how old are you, Ellena park?” He asked, using my full name to address me... It made me feel disgusted. I hated this man. He was playing with me, and he was having fun with it.

I hated him... I hated the fact that he was touching me and I hated the fact that he was controlling me like this. But I had no other choice... I had to play smart to aviod getting hurt.

"Nineteen...” I answered with a voice barely above a whisper and looked up to see his reaction. He was peering into my face, as if looking for traces of fear which he could obviously see everywhere... His gray colored pupils, drew me in like magic. He had a very distinctive face to be honest, which looked nothing like a thug that he was.

After a minute of awkward silence, he let go of my hand and drew back a little, putting his hands in his pockets.

For a second there I thought I saw doubt and regret in his eyes but I must have been wrong.

“Eat something... If you’re a good girl, I’ll let you take a bath soon.” He said before leaving the room, locking the door in the process.

Oh great... I was being rewarded? He lets me takes a bath?? What the **** was wrong with him? I couldn’t stand this anymore...

Ellena’s POV

Time passed by slowly and I had no idea how long I was trapped inside this room. It felt like forever.

I finally managed to find something to help me escape. A small wood scrap that is coming off the beds headboard. It looked sharp enough to deal damage I just needed to wait for the right moment.

So I waited for my captor to come back as I revised my plan. My chances were actually slim but I still hoped for it to work.

I heard footsteps so I took the scrap in my hand and got up the bed, waiting for him to show up.

He opened the door and stepped in. The first thing his eyes landed on was the plate of food that I hadn’t touched. I had hoped that it would get his attention and it did.

“You haven’t touched your food.” He said moving towards the plate so now his back was on me.

“What do you hope to achieve with your hunger strike!” He said and I almost flinched at his angry tone.

“I- Just...” as soon as he turned to face me I put all my might into hitting him with the stake like piece and bingo, I hit him right in his eye.

“Ugh...” He fell to the ground, covering his face and I dashed out the second I had the chance.

As soon as I left the room I started looking for an exit. It seemed like I was on the second floor so I took the stairs down and rushed out towards the door.

Man this place was huge. I had to run faster or he migt catch up.

I was soon disappointed when I saw what was waiting for me outside the large door.

This was a villa with a huge garden on the front. The garden looked unattended and was filled with tall withered trees. The exit door was nowhere to be seen.

What should I do? I had to hurry and find a way out. Regardless of the fact that I didn’t know how to get out, I kept running forward, hoping that a door of some kind would present itself and I could finally get out of this hell hole.

Suddenly I heard a noise.

HE IS HERE... I could hear his footsteps as I hid behind an old tree. My heart was about to drop as I heard him getting closer. I clenched the rock in my hand hoping to land another hit in case he got too close... but the odds were unlikely since he’d be on his guard this time.

Luckily the footsteps seemed to stop there and he turned around to search another area. This was my chance... when he gets far enough I’ll start running again... The exit shouldn’t be far now.

“Ah...” As soon as I left my hideout, he appeared right in front of me, as if waiting for me to make a move. My heart almost flew right out of my chest and I screamed.

The second I saw him, I tried to hit him with the rock but he grabbed my hand before I landed a hit, so I immediately used my other hand to slap him. Though I did hit him in his already wounded face, he didn’t budge at all.

His expression turned even darker as he tightened the hold on my hands. Then he took both my hands and pulled them behind me, forcing me to face the tree as he started tying my hands behind my back.

“Noooo...no...Someone... Help...”I started crying and screaming hoping for someone to hear me.

“Scream ALL you want. No one’s gonna hear you.” He said and I could feel the venom in his words. I had almost killed this guys it was obvious now that he was going to return the favor ten fold....

“P-p-please... don’t do this...Please....” I begged but he didn’t even seem to hear me. I struggled and tried to get out of his grip as he forcefully pushed me all the way back to the house but he was too strong for me.

I kept struggling with all my might. The last thing I wanted in this world was going back inside that house. God knows what he was planning to do to me when we got back in. If he wanted to kill me he might as well do it here.

My struggle against him, started to irritate him so he stopped there, clicking his tongue in annoyance, and suddenly lifted me up, throwing me over his shoulder now so I couldn’t struggle against him anymore.

As we got into the villa, he didn’t take me back to that room. Instead he walked down the stairs and took me to a basement before throwing me down on the cold floor. I landed with a thud and before I could even move, he tied my waist to a wooden poll and then leaned down, peering into my face.

Now I was scared to death... He did look like he was about to kill me so I averted my eyes and looked away, but he forcefully grabbed my neck, digging his nail into my skins making me gasp for air.

To my surprise his grip loosened pretty soon, so I glanced at him, and saw him flinch in pain. Only then did I realize he was still bleeding. A trail of blood was running down from the corner of his eye. His fresh wound was bleeding out but apparently I missed his eye. I should have aimed a bit lower, dammit. Pretty close though. His right eye was bloodshot and he was looking at me with so much rage.

I wasn’t sure if I should have felt happy about the fact that I didn’t manage to poke his eye out or not. He might go easier on me now that I didn’t.

“So the little kitten can bite too...” He said tying up my legs.

“And here I thought you were just a scared *****.” He continued to bind me with ropes all the way up to my thighs and I stood there silently crying and trying to figure out what I did to deserve all this.

Apparently the wound on his face started to hurt more so he got up and sat on a chair that was a few steps away from me. There was a first aid kit on the table right next to the chair so he started tending to his wound while I sat there silently stealing glances at him from time to time.

He placed a small mirror in front of him and started stitching the wound skillfully, while I tried my best to move a little so as to relieve the pain in my wrists. But he had tied me so tightly that it felt like my hands were about to rot off from my wrists any minute.

On top of all that I was starting to feel dizzy. My vision was going blurry and I felt exhausted but still, thanks to the immense rush of adrenaline caused by this man in front of me, I was wide awake.

He was done with his wound now. While I braced myself to have him come towards me and deliver his wrath, instead he went out of the basement and came back with a bottle of beer in his hands.

He sat back down, and started drinking without hesitation. I guess the wound on his face must actually hurt so he was trying to relieve it. All this while, he completely ignored me, as if I wasn’t even there, which was actually good.

I kept wishing he just ignores me like that. I could smell alcohol in the room. He crouched back in the chair, closing his eyes and inhaling deeply. He was drinking too much which wasn’t a good sign for me.

The bottle was almost empty when I took another glance at him, not daring to speak one word. I just wished I could disappear this second before he got up that chair but that was just a wish as the reality in front of me felt so heavy and completely intact.

My eyes met his. He was staring at me with those gray colored eyes. It was almost painful. Soon he got up and walked towards me which made me crawl back but I was quickly stopped by the poll behind me.

“Well now...” he spoke with a voice deeper than usual and it made me flinch.

“As per our promise...” His hand started moving towards my head, pulling my hair back so he could get a clear look at me.

“It’s time for your punishment.” He said smiling like a devil who was about to feast on someone’s soul.

Now seemed like a good time to start begging him for mercy I suppose.

“Please S-s-stop it... Please... I’m s-sorry... I w-won’t do it again, so...” I was stammering so much but I didn’t care. I tried going on but was quickly stopped by him.

“I’m sure you won’t ...” He said darkly, before getting up and going behind me. I tried wriggling around so I could see what he was doing but I couldn’t do it.

I felt his hands approaching me from behind.

“What are you...mmph...”

“Shhhh...” He whispered, stuffing my mouth with a gag. He also added another piece of cloth on top of that to make sure I couldn’t let a word out...

Someone please save me...