A dark, cold room with no window and place to hide from the wicked—was something Mavis had imagined when they blindfolded her inside the black van, wondering where they were going to take her. Surprisingly, despite being kidnapped, she was treated rather invitingly. They didn't use violence to make her obey, and they didn't have to because their big, scary faces were enough for Mavis. In the beginning, she didn't pay attention to their faces as she was trying to figure out who their target was and their guns had been, in all respects, attractive. It was only the leader who looked more decent.
The leader had been watching Mavis the moment they got on the van. He narrowed his eyes slightly, pondering as he thought it was odd for a pampered, rich daughter to be so obedient and yet not fearful. How could she be so calm? It couldn't be that she thought her parents would rescue her, could it? He smirked at the ridiculous and naïve thought. Once they got the money, they would ensure to leave her alone—but whether she was in one piece or not afterwards, was another thing.
Mavis felt that the car had finally stopped completely and she knew that they had arrived when she heard the door open. Due to being blindfolded, she was handcuffed with some sort of cord that encircled the chain links and got led by one of the men.
'Talk about being extra. Am I that contagious that you don't want to hold my hand to lead me? No, perhaps… they are actually gentlemen…' Mavis inwardly shook her head, instantly throwing away her last thought. If they were gentlemen then she was a rich person. She was not.
Who knew how long she walked when she suddenly bumped into someone's back. She wanted to apologise when one of them began to speak, making her miss the chance.
"Call them here, she has arrived." The voice belonged to the leader.
Finally, someone took off the blindfold around her eyes. The sudden bright light blinded her eyes briefly before her vision returned to normal and an expensive-looking room entered in her sight.
There was an aquarium as a wall while the other walls were white and in the middle of the room was a large, black-coloured couch that was shaped like a half-circle and a glass table in front. There were a few paintings on the white walls, Mavis wouldn't be surprised if they were authentic.
A man uncuffed her and the leader who stood beside her said, "Don't make trouble, obediently sit on the couch and don't do anything."
Mavis was taken aback and she blurted out, "Only that?"
The leader looked at her with a smile. "What, could it be that you want us to inflict pain on you? Humiliate and violate you? We can do that if you want us to."
Mavis opened and closed her mouth, seemingly to be at loss of words. She eventually said, "No, thank you. I'm going to sit on the couch."
Without delay, she walked to the couch and sat down. Because the couch was large, she didn't want to sit in the middle and took a seat on one end of the couch. The moment she sat, she could feel how soft and comfortable the couch was and her whole body relaxed. She envied the men who abducted her, they had a rich room with a cushy couch. This was clearly illegal, she thought as she imagined herself biting a handkerchief cheerlessly.
Seeing that she didn't make a scene and sat on the couch, the leader was secretly relieved. They didn't want to use force, especially when there would be people coming to inspect.
"I better find you like this once I am back. It's no use to escape, there will be armed men watching you," he warned her before preparing to leave.
Mavis hastily stopped him and stood up abruptly from the action. "Ah, wait!"
The leader glanced at her and asked, "What?"
Placing a hand over her stomach, she looked pitifully at him and said, "I'm hungry. Can I please get something to eat?"
Suddenly, a burst of laughter was heard throughout the room. The leader was laughing as if he heard a funny joke. "Hey, do you know what kind of situation you are in? Who do you think you are, a princess? Do you think people like us, who kidnapped you, will just say 'yes, ma'am' and do as you are telling us to do? Aren't you afraid we will end your life?"
If it was the original Alvera, or any person with pride, and heard this, they would have exploded in anger and humiliation. But this was Mavis, someone who lacked common sense in some areas and desired death the most.
She blinked and said, "If giving me food to eat will end my life, I don't see a problem. I will say it again. I'm hungry, so can you please prepare food for me?"
The leader was dumbfounded by her action and for a moment, he didn't know how to respond. He ground his teeth at her flagrant behaviour. "Don't think that you're special. All right, you want food? Just tell the men what you want and they will prepare for you. Enjoy the luxury while you can."
Mavis didn't notice the meaning behind his words and was pleasantly surprised that they listened to her. Although, she was disappointed that they didn't end her life.
The leader left and she quietly requested the food she wanted from the men that were watching her. They stood in silence before one of them signalled to another who responded with a nod and left the room.
Observing that the men didn't utter a word and only stood straight like a pole, Mavis took a deep breath and took the opportunity to calm her nerves.
No matter how calm she acted outside, she was feeling awkward just sitting still on the couch and doing nothing while scary-looking men were watching her every move. Was it only her who felt awkward? It wasn't fair. She wanted to feel the same as the men in the room did, unmoved and unaffected.
Fortunately, she didn't have to suffer from the awkwardness when a food cart arrived, and soon enough, there were different desserts and snacks on the glass table, as well as different types of drinks. Mavis felt like the men were judging her with their eyes and she didn't budge. If she had enough courage in her, she would have told them: "What? This is the biggest opportunity to eat expensively for free. Are you calling me dumb?"
Getting herself taken away by those men turned out to be a profitable choice, Mavis was satisfied. It had been a long time since she treated herself well. The pastries, cakes and biscuits were things that her wallet could never afford, and now she could enjoy them for free. This was blissful. Who said being kidnapped was a horrible experience? Although, it was most likely due to the identity of a rich daughter she had taken.
When the leader came back, with the addition of people, the first thing he saw was Mavis acting like the place was her own; with a table full with food, she was happily eating and drinking. Then he heard a voice coming from behind him, leading him to have an ominous feeling.
"What's the meaning of this?"