Chapter 2 Revelation

I sat still, frozen in a mixture of fear, confusion, and a flicker of hope for brighter days ahead. My thoughts spiraled in every direction, an uncontrollable flood of questions racing through my mind.

Am I in the right place?

Thelma, is this really happening?

Are you supposed to be here?

What will happen now?

Why am I so scared? If they came to save me, then why the silly fuss in my brain.

The questions kept coming, relentless, like a blaze consuming every coherent thought. My chest tightened, and I felt trapped, not just in the moment but in a life that seemed to offer no way out.

I didn't know what to do. Should I scream? Should I try to run, knowing I'd likely end up back in prison, where I had always been treated like nothing-a shadow of my former self? Should I yell for help, hoping someone, anyone, would hear me and care enough to intervene? I was lost, unsure of what the next step should be now.

The silence in the room was suffocating, broken only by the occasional muffled voices coming from the hallway. It wasn't long before the man and the woman returned, this time with a girl probably in her early 20s trailing behind them. She looked upset, her tear-streaked face betraying a deep sadness. She barely glanced at me as she sat down, her posture stiff and uncomfortable.

Who is she?

I wondered. Was she another victim, dragged into this nightmare just as I had been? Or was she part of the strange plan unfolding before me?

I fought the urge to stand up and demand answers, choosing instead to stay seated and observe. My instincts screamed at me to run, but something told me to wait, to listen, to hear them out.

The man cleared his throat, his once calm eyes which has now become cold locked onto mine. "You're here because we need you to do something important for us," he said, his voice measured and deliberate.

I stared at him, my confusion evident. "What could you possibly need from me?" I asked, my voice trembling.

He exchanged a glance with the woman before continuing. "My daughter is supposed to get married to a tycoon's son," he began, nodding toward the younger girl, "because we wanted to seal a very important business deal. But there's.... Huh... a complication."

I raised an eyebrow, unsure where this was going.

"The man in question is a lunatic," the woman interjected, her tone matter-of-factly. "He rarely steps outside his house, and when he does, his behavior is unpredictable at best."

"What if they are just rumors". I interjected.

"It's not.... We're serious. It's no rumour".

"It might....", I paused, noticing how red the man's face had turned.

The man sighed, rubbing his temples in frustration. "We've tried everything to get him to cooperate, but it's impossible. So we-sorry, 'I'-came up with a plan. We need your help."

"Help?" I repeated, still lost.

How could someone like me possibly help these people?

The very fact that they had found me, plucked me out of a prison cell, suggested someone close to me had betrayed me. I felt a surge of anger rising in my chest.

This is unfair, Unruly.

"You'll marry him," the man said bluntly, his words like a slap across my face.

My head jerked up in shock. "Excuse me?" I said, my voice rising. "I don't understand."

"You'll marry him," he repeated. "He's also a notorious womanizer, and I won't stand him cheating on my daughter. Since you were... well, let's call it 'a slut' before going to prison, this arrangement should be easy for you."

His words cut deep, but before I could respond, the girl-their daughter-burst into tears. "But, Dad, I want to marry him!" she wailed, her voice high-pitched and grating. "He's my dream man!"

Dream man? What a chicken.

I turned back to the man, my anger bubbling just beneath the surface. "First of all," I said, my voice trembling with barely contained fury, "how did you even find me? How do you know anything about me or where I've been?"

He smirked, stroking his neatly trimmed mustache with a self-satisfied air. "Someone told us about you," he said casually. "Let's say...... A mutual acquaintance. He told us who you were and where to find you."

My mind raced.

A he... a he... a he... Who?

The betrayal stung even before I could identify its source. Someone I had trusted, or at least someone who knew my darkest secrets, had sold me out without thinking twice.

"The wedding is next week," the man continued, ignoring my obvious distress. "My wife will prepare you for it. All you have to do is accept the arrangement, marry him, stay with him for two week, and then you're free. You'll be paid handsomely for your trouble."

I shook my head, disbelief washing over me. "It's not that easy," I said, my voice cracking under the strain.

"I know," he replied with a faint smile, as if he truly believed he understood.

"No, you don't understand," I said, my voice growing stronger. "You don't know anything. You think you can just pick up a random woman on the word of some 'moron' and marry her off to a stranger? You're out of your mind. Mr... whatever your name is."

The room fell silent, my defiance hanging in the air like a challenge.

The man's smile faded, replaced by an angry, calculating expression. "Wow," he said slowly. "You can be stubborn. But not for long."

He gestured toward the men standing by the door, dressed in dark clothing that made them look more like hired muscle than anything else. "Lock her up," he said flatly, "and don't feed her until she accepts my demands."

Panic surged through me as the men moved toward me. "You can't do this!" I screamed, struggling as they grabbed my arms and hauled me to my feet. "This is illegal! You can't just-" I choked on my saliva, preventing me from speaking any further.

But my protests fell on deaf ears. The men's grip was like iron, unyielding as they dragged me towards the stairs. I kicked and thrashed, desperate to break free, but it was no use. My heart raced, fear coursing through my veins like fire.

As we reached the hallway, one of the men pulled a handkerchief from his pocket. The moment it touched my nostrils, a sickly sweet smell filled my senses, and everything around me began to blur. My limbs grew heavy, my vision dimming as a wave of dizziness overtook me.

No, This can't be happening.

Darkness swallowed me whole.

_______________________

When I woke, the room was dimly lit, the cold air pricking at my skin. I tried standing up but i was restricted, I saw the reason I couldn't move, my wrists was bound tightly with rope that cut into my flesh. I blinked against the light, my head pounding as I tried to make sense of my surroundings.

It was a small room, bare and unwelcoming, with nothing but a wooden chair and a dusty window that barely let in any light. The sound of muffled voices reached my ears, but I couldn't make out the words.

I pulled at the ropes, my panic growing with each passing second. My mind raced back to the man's chilling words. '"Don't feed her until she accepts my demands."'

I clenched my teeth, anger mixing with fear. This wasn't just a nightmare. It was my reality now, a twisted game where I was the pawn.

But I wasn't going to let them break me. Never.

I took a deep breath, my resolve hardening as I planned my next move. 'Will I survive it here?".

For now, though, all I could do was wait-for strength, for an opening, for a chance to reclaim my life.