Chapter 41

Z A R A

"Elijah? What are you doing here?" The shock in my voice is apparent. No one is allowed up to our apartment without permission from Alejandro, except for Alejandro himself and Charlotte.

"Why?" He asks.

"Didn't you leave for Italy a couple of days ago?" I furrow my brows. That's what Yasmeen told me the other day. She told me that Elijah had left a couple of days ago to visit family.

"No, I leave tonight," he clarifies.

"And?" There's a hint of attitude in my tone because I'm still holding a grudge for how he almost had me killed by Alejandro by being reckless "What are you doing here? If Alejandro finds out—"

"You're not going to invite me in?" He interrupts my sentence. I'm silent, slowly pushing the door forward to not allow him to enter any further.

"Come with me," he says.

"W-What?" I blink, trying to wonder why he would try this again when it didn't work the first time.

"Come with me to Italy. Let's run away," he pauses before saying, "Together."

"Are you insane?" I'm slowly putting up my defenses. "Elijah, I need you to leave."

"Zara, I can take you away." He steps in closer.

"I don't want to go, not like this, not while I fear for my life," I try to make him understand. If I run like this, I'll never find peace.

"You'll always fucking fear for your life!" He yells making me flinch back.

"Exactly!" I raise my voice to match his. "I'd rather it be beside the man who causes the fear rather than always being afraid that he'll catch up to me."

He sighs, rubbing his temple out of frustration. "You really leave me no choice..."

"Elijah... what are you..."

He pushes open the door and steps inside, making me stumble back. I think fast and try to knee him where the sun doesn't shine but he grabs my leg with one hand and takes out his gun with the other.

My eyes widen. "What are you going to do with that?" He flips the gun on its end. "Forgive me for this, Zara. You leave me with no choice."

He hits my head hard with the rear end of the gun. The room starts to spin as I lose my balance, pain spreading throughout my head disorientating every one of my senses. My eyes roll back, and I'm met with darkness as I lose consciousness.

• • •

I squint my eyes, trying o open them against the bright sunlight. As my eyes settle around my surroundings, my heart drops. I'm on an airplane. What the hell am I doing on—

"Oh, good. You're awake," Elijah's voice snaps me out of a full-blown hysteria.

Once I try to move my arms, they don't move. I look down and realize that my hands are strapped to the chair.

"No point in trying to move. The straps will only get tighter the more you struggle against it," he says as he sips a drink from a champagne glass.

"Elijah, what kind of a sick joke is this?" I ask, trying to not struggle.

"You know, this would've been so much easier if you just voluntarily agreed to come with me," he sighs. "I wouldn't have to go through all this trouble to take you with me."

"I said, no, Elijah. I turned down the offer because I didn't feel comfortable leaving," I explain. "Do you think you're doing me a favor? I know you're thinking you're better than Alejandro and yet, here you are doing exactly what Alejandro did to me."

"Don't compare me to that monster," he warns. I scoff. "How can I not? I said no, I fucking said no yet I'm here strapped to an airplane seat being flown to wherever against my will. Again."

Elijah only chuckles, making my blood boil. "Oh, my princess. You know absolutely nothing." I finally found some peace, I finally settled for my situation and someone had to come by again and snatch everything away from me. "What do you want from me?"

He takes another sip of his drink, looking out the small window of the plane. "What do I want? I want many things. I want some peace and quiet, I want Alejandro's head served to me on a silver platter, I want him to watch as I destroy you." My eyes widen as he continues, "In short, I want vengeance and bloodshed. Lots of bloodsheds."

I feel a burst of laughter spilling out from my throat. I throw my head back, laughing maniacally, making Elijah raise a brow.

"You're finding this amusing?" He asks.

"Of course, I am. Why wouldn't I? Here, I thought you were the most humane out of all and the thought is now kicking me in the face," I shake my head, smiling hysterically. "Vengeance and bloodshed, huh? Alright, what do you need me to do?"

He shrugs his shoulders. "Nothing. You're going to sit there and look pretty for me."

"Awe, is that all?"

"No, not at all," he smirks darkly. "After your role is over and I've used you like a ragdoll, I'll have you killed. I'll send your body parts to Alejandro, one by one until it drives him to his own death."

"Your plan has one tiny flaw," I comment.

"Oh? What's that?" He asks.

"Alejandro doesn't have anything he cares for enough in this world to be affected by, that includes me." The thought stings a little but it is the truth. "I was just a toy, a means of ownership of a product. He wants nothing more than to wrap his own arms around my throat and suffocate to me to death."

"Hm, is that so? Maybe I should've brought Yasmeen along as well, raising the stakes," he thinks out loud. "But that poor bitch is so hung up on Marcus I couldn't convince her, even when I made sure I looked like the better option compared to him."

"Don't you fucking dare to bring Yasmeen into this, you bastard!" I shout. He only grins menacingly. "Or what, my princess? You'll yell at me some more? You'll have your husband kill me? Maybe you'll even kill me yourself?" My fists are so tight that it feels like I'm drawing blood against my palms. "Don't worry, though. Yasmeen is out of the question... for now. She has the tendency to be suspicious of everything and catches onto things a bit too quickly. That would be a hassle to have around." He grabs me by my shirt and pulls me closer to him in an aggressive manner, "I'll have fun ruining you."

The corner of my lip turns up slightly. "What is there to ruin when the toy you stole is already used and abused?"

• • •

A single tear hasn't pooled in my eyes. It's almost as if my mind has become numb to everything that has happened. There's a part of me that wants Alejandro to save me but I don't know if I'm important enough for him to risk anything to get me. I hope Yasmeen is holding up, I hope Marcus isn't giving her a hard time, I hope Charlotte isn't too distraught about me, and I hope Frank gives her a chance. I hope Alejandro is having his meals on time, I hope he's thinking about me, I hope he misses me, I hope... I...

This does it, this is what brings tears to my eyes. I hate this, I hate him. This is all his fault! I hope the thought of me being gone makes him lose sleep for nights after nights, I hope he never finds peace in someone else's touch, I hope rage burns within him knowing I'm with another man, I hope the thought of me being touched by anyone but him drives him to the utter depths of insanity. I wish him nothing but the worst!

"Lost in your thoughts, my princess?" Elijah interrupts my thinking. "Thinking of ways to escape?"

"No," I answer bluntly. "And stop calling me 'my princess'. I'm not yours."

"Oh? Would you rather I call you 'my love'?" He smirks. "Would that make you more comfortable?"

I grit my teeth, accidentally pulling on the straps around my wrists. I wince back as they tighten. I'm going to end up committing murder if I get out of here alive.

The pilot announces that we will be landing soon, and I look out the window to see that it's dark outside. I didn't notice how many hours it's been; I don't know how long I've been sitting on the seat. It could've been five hours, eight hours, even 12 hours but I wouldn't know. It feels like I disassociated through the whole flight.

"Have her blindfolded," Elijah instructs one of the flight attendants. My eyes widen. "Blindfolded? For what reason?"

"Having you memorize your surroundings would be a foolish move. I would recommend staying quiet and letting her put the blindfold on you without creating a ruckus," he says.

I grunt and do as he says. I don't want to create problems. My job is to pretend to abide by his rules until I gain enough trust to be able to contact someone from home. I catch a glimpse of the flight attendant's watch, it's around 3:00 AM. Her watch is analog, and I couldn't process the hands on the watch fast enough to know the exact time.

Time, that is what I won't lose track of this time around. When Alejandro took me, what mostly drove me to the edge of insanity was losing track of time. Not knowing what day it was, whether it was morning or night, made my brain malfunction faster than anything else could have. I will catch a glimpse of any clock or calendar my eyes can capture after this blindfold is off.

After we land, the straps around my wrists are untied, and I can finally feel the blood flow within them. I feel an arm wrap around mine, pulling me up to my feet. I was hesitant at first to take any steps forward, but I did what I had to do. Elijah hasn't said a word and it's slowly making me panic. I'm slowly led down a flight of stairs and helped inside a vehicle, I assume.

"You've been unimaginably quiet. What's on your mind? You can tell me,' his tone of his voice I calm, yet chilling.

What's with these Genovese brothers and their intimidating ways of asking me to tell them what's on my mind knowing damn well it's nothing good. "Nothing," I say calmly.

"What time is it?"

"3:23 in the morning," he answers.

"How many more minutes until we reach your designated location?"

"About 45 minutes," he says. "Why?"

"I have to use the restroom," I answer truthfully. Time, don't lose track of time.

The drive was dark and quiet, obviously. I was blindfolded through the whole ride and not one person said a word. Every 15 minutes or so, I would ask for the time because if my brain can just focus on that, I'll retain at least half of my sanity.

World, what else do you have in store for me?

• • •

Y A S M E E N

"Hello?"

"Why the hell isn't Zara picking up her phone or answering her texts? What did you do to her?" I scold Alejandro on the phone.

"Well, good afternoon to you too, Yasmeen." I can hear the annoyance in his tone.

"Shut up, Alejandro. Where's Zara?" I ask.

"At home. Where else would she be?" He sounds confused but mostly irritated.

"Then, why hasn't she contacted me back?"

"She has lessons with Charlotte today. She's probably busy."

"Alejandro!" I yell as my patience runs thin. "Listen to me and listen to me carefully. I have this sinking feeling in my stomach, and I need you to check the cameras to see if she's there."

He grunts and asks me to wait after complaining about how he's a busy man and doesn't have time for things like this.

I can hear the clicks of his computer keyboard and mouse. The silence has been running for too long. "So? Where is she?"

He doesn't answer.

"Alejandro?" I call out his name as my fear settles in further.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck!" He curses loudly.1

"What?!"

"Elijah, that fucking bastard!" He roars in anger.

"What the hell are you talking about?"

Alejandro hangs up before answering any of my questions. My body turns cold, and I sit down on the floor. Something bad happened to Zara. Elijah? Does this have something to do with Elijah?

"Interested in Zara? No, not like that. I just wanted to get her out of the shitty situation she's in. She reminds me of someone I used to know."

What if he... No, he couldn't have. He wouldn't raise a finger against Alejandro. He couldn't possibly have the guts to kidnap Zara...

I dial Alejandro again and again but at some point, his phone stops ringing altogether.

Marcus! I think to myself as I run towards the elevator. Marcus would kn—

"I fucking hate you, Yasmeen, and I never want to see you again. Don't you fucking dare to show up in front of me."

I halt right in front of the elevator. As I walk back to my door, I say to myself, "It's okay, I'll just wait for Alejandro to call me back or something."

• • •

Minutes turn into hours, hours turn into days and Alejandro still hasn't called me back and neither has he sent anyone to me with any kind of information. My patience is past zero. I've been crying myself to sleep for the last three nights because of the uneasiness of being in the dark about where Zara is. I pick up the phone one more time to give Alejandro a call but that's when my doorbell rings. I open the door to find the person I was least expecting...

"Marcus?" The ache in my heart for Zara has mixed in with the pain of seeing Marcus again.

"Boss asked me to take you to his office," he states coldly. I don't let him continue and start putting on my shoes in an instant. "Any news on Zara?"

"I'm in no position to answer this. Boss will give the information," he answers robotically. I nod and follow him out. I don't have time to worry about Marcus, I need to know how Zara is.

• • •

Z A R A

Blood spills out of my nose down to my mouth as I taste the bitter metallic liquid. The bruises on my skin are hues of purples, blues, and greens. The cuts around my face are covered in dried blood, the stinging long gone. The last few days were a blur. I was brought somewhere, a house, I assume. The room is dark, damp, cold, and windowless. The only entrance and exit of the room is using an industrial-grade ironclad door with multiple heavy locks on it. Light peaks through the small, barred window on the door. However, the light isn't natural, it comes from the light bulbs in the hallway. My arms and legs are strapped down against a hard, metal chair with only a light bulb hanging above my head, which only turns on when someone's in the room. The good part of all of this? There's a clock in the room. It's been three days; I haven't lost count yet. No matter how many times I passed out from the burning pain in every part of my body, I didn't lose time.

The man's fist meets with the side of my face, knocking out every thought had I had for that millisecond. "You still won't talk, bitch?"

I only chuckle weakly as blood spills down my chin. "You all are fucking stupid. I've been saying the same thing for days and it somehow hasn't gone through your thick heads." The man feeling angered, kicks at my leg, making me scream out in utter, endless pain.

"You're a lying whore!" The man's fist meets with my jaw, knocking out more blood from my mouth. I hold in my breath, trying to handle the wincing pain. "Now, why would I be voluntarily withholding information on the man who kidnapped and tortured me first? If I had anything, I would've sold him out already. Besides, why would he choose to tell me anything? I'm just an object in his eyes, it's not like I mean anything to him."

"Boss, she won't budge," the man calls out.

"Zara, Zara, Zara." Philip steps up in front of me, lifting my chin. "I know Alejandro told you about what he did to my father and his inheritance."

"And I've said it before, I only know what Elijah told me," I grit my teeth. "I know nothing more; I know nothing less."

"I guess this won't do," he says as he leans down to wipe off the wet blood on my chin.

"You're a pretty one, you know that? Even in high school, you were a gem to look at it." He jabs his thumb against the cut on the corner of my lip, making me wince. "I wouldn't mind fucking your brains out, maybe that might open up that pretty little mouth of yours."

My jaw clenches at his words. I'll take the beatings any day but this... I'll break.

Elijah comes in, interrupting Philip. "Sir, you're being summoned for a call." And when Philip doesn't move, Elijah adds,

"Now, Sir."

Philip sighs in annoyance and drops my chin. After he leaves the room, I notice Elijah is still in the room. A small smile lingers on my lips. "You're always someone's bitch, huh? You never can be your own man because you're a fucking coward."

"I wouldn't be talking like that if I were in your position," he says calmly.

"Oh, really? Why? Because you'd choose to submit and become Philip's bitch?" I let out a pained chuckle, coughing up a little bit of blood. "I'm not you. I won't let someone step all over my dignity twice in a row."

"Fuck you, Zara," he spits out before turning away to leave.

"Same to you, Elijah," I reply.

The moment I hear the locks on the door click, I settle down in the chair. My arms and legs give out as I feel like throwing up. I'm dehydrated and hungry, I haven't seen the sunlight in days and my will to live is slowly diminishing. I want to cry; I want to scream and cry loud enough to burst my own eardrums. But I don't even have the energy to do that.

"How did I end up like this again?" I ask myself out loud. The rattling of the locks makes me sit up straight quickly. Philip enters with the biggest grin on his face.

Oh, this can't be good.

"I was just on the phone with your prince charming and it seems like your friend has somehow managed to pin down our location," he says.

Yasmeen? How—

He looks over his shoulder, where I can see Elijah's dark silhouette. "She's a threat. Take care of it." He's talking about Yasmeen.

"Don't! She has nothing to do with any of this!" I plead.

"Oh, but she does. At least now she does." He motions at Elijah to leave the room, which he abides. "Change of plans. I hope you did well in drama class because you're going to see your fiancé as someone you're not."

- - -

Zara just can't catch a break, huh? ಠ_ಠ

There's going to be a lot of back and forth between Zara and Yasmeen's perspectives and the timelines will also go back and forth. Hopefully, it won't be too confusing and y'all will be able to keep up. Let me know if the timeline throws any of you guys in a loop! I'll be happy to clarify!

Please vote and comment and let me know how y'all feel!!