Chapter 2

I hid in the tall grass, planning to wait until dawn to find a way to signal for help.

Suddenly, footsteps approached. I held my breath, unable to believe they had found me so quickly.

"I see you. Come out quietly," a grating voice echoed.

I clamped my hand over my mouth, my scalp tingling with terror.

"Guess she's not here. Let's search over there."

The footsteps faded. I collapsed onto the wet dirt, gasping for air, and looked around.

"Hey there, little mouse. Having fun?" Marcus sneered from above me, looking down into the grass.

I slowly looked up, trembling like a leaf.

Marcus tied my wrists to the back of his motorcycle.

He dragged me. Gravel tore into my wounds, branches shredded my arms, and my clothes turned entirely crimson.

I retched from the pain, blacking out and waking up repeatedly. Finally, a sudden screech of brakes ended the torture.

Marcus barked, "Hang her up. Let's see her try to run under my nose again."

They stripped me of my bloodied clothes and hung me up by my wrists at the entrance. The sheer humiliation and helplessness suffocated me. Tears spilled freely.

The guards gathered around, mocking me. "She's got some fight in her. Almost made it off the island."

"A tough nut to crack. But everyone breaks in our hands eventually. Look at that soft skin..."

Another guard quickly covered his mouth. "Shh! You're taking this role too seriously. She's off-limits."

But my mind was too foggy to register those words.

By the time they finally cut me down, I was barely breathing.

To make sure I could never pick a lock again, Marcus used wooden blocks to crush my fingers one by one.

The agony was so intense I foamed at the mouth and blacked out.

When I woke up, I was on a gurney, my face covered except for my eyes.

I darted my eyes around, trying to calculate my chances of escape.

Fiona noticed I was awake and patted my back reassuringly. "Don't worry. I'm getting you out of here."

My heart was in my throat the entire time, terrified this was just another sick trap.

After twisting through several corridors, we entered a windowless, soundproof room.

I grabbed her hand in fear. "Where are we? You said you were helping me escape!"

"Calm down. There's a signal booster in here. Quick, call your brother."

The call connected. I cried out frantically, "Christian! Help me! Please, come save me!"

There was static on the other end, but the voice that came through made my heart stop.

"Hazel, I don't have time for your childish jealousy. Haven't you thrown enough tantrums?"

I froze. He didn't believe me. But he had seen me get knocked out in the crash!

Fiona let out a soft chuckle and snatched the phone away. She tapped a monitor on the wall. "Well? Entertaining, isn't it? Breaking someone's hope is always the most fun."

I stared at her in utter disbelief. She had set me up.

I lunged to grab the phone, but an electric shock surged from my skull to my toes.

Marcus held a taser against my back, leaving me convulsing on the floor, my limbs completely numb.

"Some people just don't know when to quit," Marcus spat. "Where do you think you can run? Everyone here works for me. Just submit, and you'll suffer less."

The shock left me twitching, my eyes bulging in a grotesque, forced spasm.

Marcus looked at Fiona's phone with a hint of worry. "She looks like she's on the verge of going crazy. If Christian finds out..."

The voice on the other end of the line changed from Christian to a sweet, feminine voice. "It's just a little lesson. The scar on my stomach still hasn't faded, you know."

"But Mr. Sterling..."

"Fine, I'll let Christian tell you himself," Chloe whined.

Christian took the phone. "Is she throwing another fit? Let her suffer a bit. If she can't wash off those street habits, she'll never be fit to represent the Sterling family. If she keeps acting up, use whatever means necessary to quiet her down. Understood?"

Marcus grinned. "Understood, sir."

Chloe took the phone back, her voice dripping with mock innocence. "You know, the thing a girl cares about most is her face and her virginity, right?"

Marcus's eyes lit up. "Got it."