*Lucia*
I’ve always known that Bruno is a merciless, cold, and heartless man. But I had never thought I’d witness his brutality. How could he have killed that man so ruthlessly? And now his filthy bloody hands were all over me. I knew the man deserved it for all he had done to me, but a part of me still wished he had not died just like that.
“Bruno, let me go!” I demanded as we got to the room I had been in earlier. My voice echoed through the dimly lit room as I yelled at him in anger and frustration.
He was an enigma, a cold-hearted man dressed in a black tailored shirt with a few buttons undone and his sleeves rolled up. He dropped me onto the bed, and I gazed into his dark, cold eyes, which were slightly masked by the shadows. “Silly girl,” he replied, a smirk pulling at the corners of his mouth. “You tried running away once, and look where that got you.”
My cheeks burned, and I could feel my heart pounding in my chest. It was true. My escape attempt had landed me in the clutches of a Sarah who wanted me dead, and it was Bruno who had come to my rescue. Yet, I couldn’t be happy. I had no better idea; being in the custody of the unknown kidnappers or this known one, I had seen him kill one of the kidnappers, a sight that left me terrified. I still feared blood, though I had seen it a lot.
I thought of how emotionless he looked when he had cut off the hand of that man, and it made me shiver in fright and apprehension. “What did you see, Lucia? How much of it,” he asked, his voice cold yet melodious like the one that could kill and then heal all at the same time.
“I… I saw what you did to that…. to that man.” I stuttered. I was on the verge of breaking down into tears as I was starting to feel so emotional thinking about it. I then looked up at his face once more; there were blood stains.
The smirk on his face faded as he saw the look of disgust in my eyes. “You saw what I had to do, Lucia,” he said, his voice stern yet not unkind. “I protected you.”
“But it was so…” I trailed off, unable to find the right words. “So scary.”
He sighed, leaning against the wooden table behind him. “That’s the world we live in, Lucia. It’s ugly, it’s cruel, but it’s the only one we’ve got, so we have to get accustomed to it. That’s the only way to survive.” He said, “Well, I don’t want to be part of this fucked up world!” I retorted, crossing my arms over my chest. His eyes flickered with an emotion I couldn’t quite read. “That’s not your choice to make, Lucia. You’re here with me. So you will have to get accustomed to it. The sooner, the better it will be for you.”
“But why, Bruno? Why me?”
He paused, seeming to consider his words. “You’re a smart little girl, Lucia. And you… you intrigue me,” he finally said. “You’ve got spirit. That’s rare in this world.” I rolled my eyes at his words. “So you’re punishing me for being smart? For having spirit? To intrigue you.”
“No,” he replied, shaking his head. “I’m punishing you for being reckless and not being smart enough to stay put. You should know by now how dangerous it is for you to be out there. So you shouldn’t. Just stay right here.”
He was right in a way. My escape attempt had been reckless and thoughtless; I hadn’t considered being spotted by Sarah. But I was desperate to get out, to be free from his deadly hands.
“So what? Are you going to punish me now?” What followed was a playful head nodding. “Really? Okay then. What’s my punishment? Are you going to spank me like a child? If you’re going to whip me?” I asked, trying to keep my voice steady.
A grin spread across his face, making my heart skip a beat. “Oh, Lucia, so naive and yet adorable. How do you do it? He said, his voice full of mischief. “Your punishment is neither of those things you mentioned. ” he finally said.
“Isn’t it? Then what is it? I asked in anger. “Oh, You’ll see.”
And with that, he left the room and went into the bathroom. I rested back on the bed, thinking about how my life had come to this, where I had to be under the mercy of this possessive, dangerous man. How did I become a prisoner at a young age?
After a while, he came back out of the bathroom. His hair was slightly wet, and so was his face and hands. He must have sensed my disgust at the blood stains on him, so he washed it out.
But then, as I stared at his face, I found that there was still a speck of blood at the side. He must’ve missed that spot. I turned away and told myself not to bother with it. But then I found that there was a small towel in his hand, and he began to clean his face with it. I waited patiently as I watched him clean every spot except the one with the blood stain.
After a while of resisting, I couldn’t anymore and got off the bed. I walked towards him with a mix of determination and apprehension as I took notice of the smirk forming on his lips. He must think I’m attracted to him now and trying to make a move on him. Pfft… what a joke. Like I’d ever see him differently. I finally got to him and immediately grabbed the face towel away. With a sigh, I cleaned off the speck of congealed blood from his forehead. “You’re just like a kid.” I teased and then scoffed. I turned away from him and said. I felt strong arms grab me back, and my back hit something hard. I realized that he had pulled me back into him.
“Why do you seem to rile me up every time, huh Lucia..?” He drawled, his voice husky and hoarse as though lulling me into doing his bidding.
“Why are you always so seductive?” His cold breath fanned at my exposed shoulder, and I shuddered in response as I felt his hand trail a line down from my shoulder to my hands.
“I resisted punishing you immediately, you know? But then you just had to seduce me. Didn’t you.” I could feel his breath making more contact with my skin, indicating that he was getting closer and closer. I suddenly felt the need to have his lips on my neck. My body involuntarily made way for him and just when he was close enough. He backed out.
I felt myself being turned towards him, and then I made the biggest mistake of the evening: looking into his eyes. Those orbs had something in them to make me feel this way. Hot, longing, and pinning for something only he could give me at the moment. He suddenly dragged his hand back to my neck, and my breath hitched In response.
He got down on me and finally kissed my neck. The feeling felt so arousing and yet terrifying as I reminded myself to snap out of this. It’s Bruno, this cold, selfish, and manipulative man who had bought me and locked me up. The same man I was trying to escape from. And I just witnessed him kill… wait, that’s right. He just killed someone, and I witnessed it with my own two eyes. So why am I letting him do this to me? I suddenly felt filthy.
“Bruno, stop it!” I finally shouted, my patience wearing thin. He raised an eyebrow, a smirk playing on his lips. “Can’t handle it, Lucia?” My cheeks burned, and I could feel my heart pounding in my chest.
“Get away from me now! It’s not fair!” I protested. “You’re just bullying me!” I choked out in a flurry. “Bullying?” He looked genuinely surprised. “I prefer to call it… character building.”
I sighed in exasperation. “Well, I don’t need any more of your character-building, thank you very much,” I replied, feeling suffocated by his closeness. He chuckled, shaking his head. “Oh, Lucia,” he said, his laughter echoing in the room. “That’s where you’re wrong.”
“I decide everything for you. What you wear, what you eat, if you…. breath. It’s all mine to decide, Lucia. All mine.” He completed with a smirk. “Oh, what’s that expression now? Do you want me to prove it? That your every breath belongs to me, and I can do as I please with it?”
I was confused about what he meant when suddenly he grabbed the back of my head and pulled me in for a kiss. “Mmm mmm.” I struggled as hard as I possibly could and hit him hard on the chest numerous times, but he refused to let go of me. He held onto the back of my head even tighter as our bodies were pressed tightly. His lips dominated mine as he kept kissing me wildly, all the while digging his hands into my silky blonde hair.
And after a while, I finally caved in and kissed him clumsily. He was so fast and so domineering that I couldn’t even match up to his intense speed.
His kiss was nothing close to gentle or sensual. His kiss was filled with longing and lingering hunger. His tongue pried my mouth open as he tasted every inch of the insides of my mouth, and I let him for as long as he wanted.
He wasn’t giving me any breathing space, and soon I was out of breath. His kiss was punishing and yet enticing all at the same time. I couldn’t breathe, and I needed him to give me breathing space, but then, at the same time, a part of me didn’t want this to end.
I felt his hand trailing upwards, trailing a line upwards on my clothed skin. I felt so hot, shivered at the contact, and like an oil added into a fire, he pulled me in more like I wasn’t even close enough. My legs had turned to jelly, and just when I was about to support myself by holding onto him, he pulled away from me and stepped back. He was finally letting me breathe.
I immediately began taking in as much air as I possibly could. I hadn’t realized how much I needed air until now. I looked back up at him and saw a string of saliva on his lips, and then he seductively licked it off, riling me up more than I thought was possible. “See.. didn’t I tell you.? I could easily take your breath away.” He said with a playful chuckle.
I suddenly remembered what he had said, and the anger I felt before returned and overshadowed the lust that had taken over me. “Why are you doing this, Bruno?” I finally asked, my patience running thin.
He paused, his smirk fading momentarily. “Can’t you see, Lucia?” he replied, his voice softer than I had ever heard it before. “It’s all a game-a game to keep us both sane in this insane world. You can also say it’s a punishment. It’s me punishing you for trying to run away,”
“But I don’t want to play your game, Bruno.” I protested, being as sincere as I possibly could while gazing into his eyes pleadingly. I saw a flicker of hurt pass through his eyes, but it was only for a split second. What returned was his cold, domineering aura.
“But you’re already playing, Lucia,” he said, a mischievous glint in his eyes. “And you would just have to finish what you have started. I don’t care how long it takes, but you will get accustomed to this game and grow to love and accept it,” he said in an order.
I shook my head. I didn’t think that was possible. I didn’t want that to be possible. I needed to hate him. That was the only way to get revenge and the only way to live in this hell. “Punish me all you want, but I’m surely going to get back at all of you,” I said underneath. Determination flashed through my eyes.
“Your punishment is decided,” he said after being quiet for some time. I raised my head to meet his eyes, getting myself ready for whatever verdict he was to declare. “It will make you stay,” I almost scoffed. I had already decided to stay a while ago. “You will be my cook,” he declared with a small smile adorning his lips.
I choked on my saliva, and my eyes bulged out, “what?”
My surprise turned into a smile, which I tried to mask.
Why did it seem like he just placed his life on my palm?