Zia made it just in time for her turn on stage. The curtains opened and she fell into her own world. It was the only world that allowed her to be free. She couldn't see the audience. She could only see where she wanted to be, far away from here.
The energy within her was different for some reason tonight. As she flowed through the radiant stage lights, her ring was lit as she elegantly danced in and out of it, then it raised up as she charmingly leaned backward, resting her lower back on the rim of the ring.
Pointing her legs downward she formed her body into a beautiful arch as the ring spun in a circle.
The curtain opened and there was Emrie, ready for his part. He looked so sad. Zia gently placed her toe on his foot after he raised it and bowed to him as she pointed her other leg into the sky to form a full split standing on one leg. She twirled and slipped as she usually did, while the predictable crowd gasped.
Finishing off her dance didn't feel right. She felt what Emrie was feeling. He was in pain. What did they do to him?
The curtains closed at the end of Zia's dancing. She tried talking to Emrie. "Hey boy. Are you ok?" She asked. He wouldn't respond. He simply hung his head low.
"Alright, you hunk of meat, time to go back to your cell." The same dirty man came back for Emrie with his friend. He was louder than before. Zia didn't argue this time. She needed to speak to Damien. He needed to explain what was going on.
Zia left the circus stage in the middle of Horace's performance. Horace was a large man who had the appearance of a lumberjack. He would tie up a pig on the wall and throw A knife at it.
Horace would hit the pig with one shot, right between the eyes from 20 feet away. He never missed. Then, he cut its head off and gave it to the highest bidder.
The crowd was barbaric. They loved the gruesome display. She always felt sorry for the poor pigs.
Zia did not want to see the murder of another pig, so she decided to go back to her dressing area and change her clothes before she saw Damien. That would give enough time for the event to be over.
She hurried back to her dressing area, which was a corner with two black sheets pinned up, blocking people from seeing her. It wasn't the most glamorous setting, but she made the most of it.
As soon as Zia opened the curtain, there was Damien waiting for her. He sat on the dressing table in his long sleeve white button-down dress shirt, black vest and dress pants. He beamed a devilish grin at the sight of her.
Damien was very attractive and he knew it. Even though his looks were somewhat diminished by his behavior and personality, the cocktail girls loved him regardless. They craved for his attention. He was the good-looking boss with the money and he had no problem having a different girl every night. He had a couple of favorites and was always well taken care of.
His dark brown hair was slicked back, displaying his sharp features. His steel-blue eyes instilled fear into you, yet drew you in with just one look.
Damien had the most intimidating glare Zia had ever seen. She never showed her fear of him no matter what she was feeling.
Towering over her petite frame, he knew Zia was no match for him. His physique was strong and powerful. He had no problem using that to his advantage.
Zia gave him an angry look. "What is wrong princess? You seem upset. You are so cute when you make up your face like that" He teased. He seemed to be in a good mood tonight.
"Hello Damien." She replied coldly. "What is going on with Emrie? Why was he chained and walked like he was a dog to the performance ring today?"
"Today's performance was good." He replied, completely dismissing the questions. "I am not kidding." She spat, totally annoyed at his dismissive behavior.
Damien shifted, closing the gap between them. With only enough space left for them to breathe, he gently rubbed the side of Zia's face with the back of his hand. Trailing his fingers towards her lips, he softly rubbed his thumb across her bottom lip.
"You get prettier every year." He said gently, without breaking is gaze.
There was something strange in his stare. Zia could normally read Damien very well, but not this time. Something was unusual about his behavior.
Zia's stomach tightened at the sudden change in his behavior. He had never done that to her before. He had never been gentle with her. She had never been this close to a man in this way either. She felt strange.
Looking into her eyes with his steel-blue eyes, he grabbed her face tightly, pulling it even closer to his, squeezing it until it hurt. "Don't!" She spat out at the sudden pain.
"You seem to have forgotten your place, Princess." He said, as his lips nearly touched hers. He slowly trailed his lips to her ear. "I have no problem reminding you." He whispered, as his eyes darkened into a blood-red color.
Instantly, she began to see flashbacks of what Damien had done to her in the past. Now, this is the real Damien, she thought.
"I am sorry. I just don't want Emrie to be hurt. I won't bother you again." She said softly, looking away from his eyes, as she tried to control her breathing.
"Good." He replied, turning her face back to his, easing his grip slightly.
"Tonight, you will get away with your little disrespect." He said, as he combed his fingers through her soft locs.
"This is only because I have other business to see to this evening. Your performance has caused a bit of a stir tonight.
Many of the gents are intrigued by you, more than usual. They want to have time to meet you privately. They will pay a lot of money for your time. Be ready." He said, dismissing her as he walked away before she could respond.
Chills rain over Zia's body after being so close to Damien. What did he mean by the men wanting her time privately? She walked quickly out of her dressing area and head towards the cabin quickly to escape her thoughts.
The dirt path to the cabin was lined with stones and flowers. There was a lake along the way where she would often stop and think. She didn't stop there tonight. The uneasy feeling consumed her.
Zia needed to make it home as fast as possible. Her feelings were never wrong. She wasn't sure if Damien meant what he said about letting her get away tonight. She wasn't going to provoke or underestimate him to find out.
The old cabin looked darker than usual. The moon wasn't as bright tonight. She carefully walked up to the dark, worn stairs as they creaked with every step. Slowly reaching for the doorknob, she turned it, opening the door as quietly as she could.
Zia reached for the light switch towards the left side of the entrance on the wall and flicked it on. The light didn't turn on. She flicked it up and down again but it didn't work.
"Perfect. As if I needed things to get worse. Where did I put my candles?" She asked herself. She slowly walked into the cabin after allowing her eyes to adjust to the darkness.