Chapter 5 Please... I'm Scared!

After Alexander left, Dante walked up to his room with steady steps.

The silence was thick around him-broken only by the ringing of his thoughts.

His eyes narrowed, focused... as if seeing the near future.

A future where that girl wouldn't be a passing whim-She'd belong to him.

No declaration. No ceremony.

Just a quiet decision carved into his will:

She would be his. His child. His toy.

He pushed the door open gently, like someone stepping onto sacred ground.

There she was... curled up on the couch in a fetal position.

Sadness wrapped around her like a second skin-clear, clinging, cruel. Her small face was swollen. Eyes exhausted from crying.

Her nose red, like someone who had fought a storm of pain.

This scene wasn't supposed to stir anything in him. But he felt it-A small prick.

Something between pain... and desire.

He couldn't tell.

But there was something in her that called to him. Something hidden.

Something that touched the darker parts of him.

She was beautiful in her weakness.

Desirable in her fear.

Delicious in her brokenness.

He walked toward her-slow, deliberate steps.

Then leaned down slightly, brushing his fingers through her scattered hair.

It was soft...Too soft.

Like it had been made to be touched by him.

But she flinched.

Her eyes shot open, trembling.

As if she'd woken from a nightmare worse than her reality.And she broke down again-

Crying with a burst so violent, it seemed her chest couldn't hold in the pain any longer.

Dante straightened up.

Looked at her with cold, motionless eyes.

A harsh stillness lived in them...

And just beneath it, a cruel sort of amusement.

A small smile tugged at his lips.

There was no warmth in it.

Just the quiet announcement of control.

Her eyes dropped.

She couldn't meet his gaze.

Her head bowed in shame.

Her voice came out in choking sobs:

"S-sir, I'm sorry... I must have fallen asleep without realizing..."

But her apology only stirred something darker in him. It didn't soften him.

It emboldened him.

As if her fear... gave him power.

He spoke in a quiet, flat tone-

Empty of compassion.

"I'm going to shower.

When I come out, I want you on the bed.

Understand?"

She lifted her head slowly.

Her eyes shimmered-full of fear, full of pleading.

Every part of her looked ready to run...

But there was nowhere to run.

She whispered, shaking:

"But... please, sir... I want to sleep here..."

His face froze. A switch flipped behind his eyes.

Then the command came, sharp and cold:

"I said I want you on the bed.

Don't repeat my words.

Or you'll be punished, little one."

The threat in his voice slithered like slow poison.

His smile deepened.

But it wasn't kind.

It was a shadow across her skin.

He didn't need to say more.

Her fear already obeyed him.

He turned and walked into the bathroom, leaving silence behind him-

And her,

curled up tighter,

trying to disappear.

Beneath her breath, barely louder than a prayer, she whispered:

"God... help me...

If I disobey him, he might kill me.

Or beat me.

He's not kind...

He doesn't seem human..."

Inside the shower, warm water slid over Dante's skin.

He leaned his forehead against the wall.

But his mind... wandered.

To her.

To the way she shook.

To the sound of her voice.

To the small, fragile body that trembled like a wounded bird.

There was something about her.

Something that pulled him in.

Something that gripped him more than anything else ever had.

"She's so small...

So weak...

So pure, it's almost laughable."

He smiled.

The game was starting to amuse him.

"Let's see how long she lasts."

He stepped out.

Tied a towel around his waist.

Threw another across his shoulders.

And walked back into the room.

His eyes searched immediately-

The bed was empty.

His jaw tensed.

A slow, bitter breath escaped his lips.

He turned quickly-

And there she was.

Huddled in the corner.

Shaking like the air itself was hurting her.

Arms wrapped around her knees,

Body folded in on itself,

As if trying to protect the last piece of her heart.

He moved toward her.

Each step slow...

but heavy.

Each one an echo of the punishment coming.

She saw him.

And began to cry harder.

She broke.

Collapsed in fear.

Tears spilled like glass shattering.

"Please... forgive me...

I'm scared!"

But her begging didn't stop him.

It only made him colder.

He raised his hand-

And slapped her hard.

Her head snapped to the side.

A single tear clung to her lashes, frozen before it fell.

Then he grabbed her hair, yanked her toward him.

Lowered his mouth to her ear.

His voice-sharp and whispering-like a snake's hiss:

"I don't repeat myself, little one.

I'm going to change.

And when I come out, you'd better be on that bed.

Or the punishment will be worse.

And we both know you don't want that... do you?"

He let her go before she could answer.

Turned to the closet.

Her eyes never left him.

She watched every move.

Every shift.

Her body trembled with dread.

It was clear-

She had no choice left.

Minutes later, he returned.

Black cotton pants.

Bare chest.

Still damp from the shower.

His eyes went straight to the bed.

She was sitting on the edge.

Silent.

Crying.

No sound.

Only tears.

Sliding down like rivers through the dark.

He liked what he saw.

A soft smile tugged at his lips.

But it wasn't gentle.

It was victory.

He lay down on the other side of the bed.

Gave his command.

"Lie down.

Don't just sit there."

She hesitated.

Then quietly obeyed.

Turned her back to him.

Tried to create space that didn't exist.

But Dante didn't close his eyes.

He watched her.

Watched her shoulders rise and fall.

Listened to her breath.

Counted the rhythm of her fear.

Slowly...She relaxed. Sleep took her. And moments later-She moved.

Without realizing it...

Her body shifted closer to his.

Her breath brushed against his arm. Warm. Soft.

He turned toward her.

Studied her face.

Was she doing this on purpose?

Was she trying to reach him?

But no-

Her face was calm.

Her breathing steady.

She was asleep.

Innocent.

Unaware.

He moved closer.

Lifted her head gently.

Ran his fingers through her hair.

She sighed. Then whispered in her sleep:

"Matthew... please don't go...

I'm scared to sleep alone..."

Dante froze.

That name...

slipped from her lips like a blade.

Matthew? Who was he? Who was this man she dreamed of?

It wasn't jealousy that surged in Dante's chest.

It was something older. Something darker.

Possession. A raw instinct that roared inside him.

He pulled her into him. Held her close.

His fingers brushed the mark he'd left on her cheek. Wiped away the tears that had already dried.

Then he whispered to himself-

A cold smile returning.

"Tomorrow, I'll find out who Matthew is.

And if he's someone she loves...

...I'll kill him."

Then he closed his eyes. But sleep didn't come easy.

His mind wandered, twisting through shadows-between doubt and desire, between hunger and blood.