"Have you ever taken a lemonade packed with ice, and it ends up giving you brain freeze?" Raya thought. "That's how I felt when Aunt Maggie told me she wanted us to move. My brain went numb for a second—not just because of the words *'let's move'*—but because of the fear written all over her face."
Aunt Maggie had always been a master of hiding her emotions, but this time, her trembling hands and darting eyes betrayed her. It was a face that told Raya one thing: trouble. Serious trouble.
Raya's heart raced as she stared into her aunt's eyes. "What did you say?" she whispered, her voice barely audible.
Aunt Maggie took a shaky breath and repeated herself, though this time her voice faltered, cracking under the weight of the truth. "We need to move, Raya. This... This place isn't conducive anymore for us"
"Why? What's happening?" Raya pressed, already knowing in her gut that no excuse would hold up. Her aunt rambled, throwing out flimsy reasons—"the rent's too high," "we need a change"—but Raya could see through the thin veil. Maggie was scared. Her hands were trembling, and the fear in her eyes was enough to shatter any sense of calm Raya tried to hold onto.
Raya locked eyes with her aunt, silently demanding the truth. Eventually, the tension in the room broke Maggie's defenses. She exhaled deeply, her voice shaking as she spoke.
"Your father," she began, her eyes brimming with tears. "He knows where you are. He's been watching. He… he raided Cassey's house. Brought some men, roughed her up to find out where you've been hiding. Raya, we need to leave before he strikes ."
A numbness washed over Raya, like the icy sting of that brain freeze. Her father—her abusive, violent father, the man who had made her and her mother's lives a living nightmare—was close. The mere thought of him sent her spiraling into the memories of pain, fear, and helplessness. She'd been trying to outrun him ever since her mother died, but it seemed like no matter how far she went, he would always find a way to catch up.
Her thoughts swirled into chaos, and the first words that left her mouth were, "No wonder I've been feeling like I was being followed."
Maggie's eyes widened. "What do you mean? Why didn't you tell me? Are you okay? Please tell me he hasn't already—"
Raya's mind raced as she recalled the eerie sensation of being watched over the past few days. The strange figures lingering too long in shadows, the cars that seemed to follow her route just a little too closely. "I didn't know what to make of it, Aunt Maggie," she said, her voice trembling. "But now… oh God, Cassey. That's why she was covered in bruises. She told me it was from a boxing match, but…"
Her aunt's face twisted in shock. "Boxing match? Raya, this is serious. We need to act fast."
And act fast they did. Maggie showed her the escape plan she had been meticulously crafting, every detail thought through to get them out of town unnoticed by her father's goons. But even with the plan in front of her, Raya couldn't shake the feeling that something was off. Her mind kept drifting back to her father, the man who had destroyed her family. She had promised herself she'd be strong, but now, faced with this threat again, the weight of her past came crashing down on her like a tidal wave. She felt powerless, overwhelmed.
The night they finally decided to leave, everything seemed to go according to plan. With the help of Cassey they made their way out of town without raising suspicion, driving through the night until they reached a rest area about 3 kilometers from New York. Exhausted but relieved, they ordered a glass of juice to calm their nerves before continuing the long journey ahead.
Raya lifted her glass to her aunt. "To freedom," she muttered, though the unsettling feeling in her gut hadn't gone away. They clinked glasses, downed the juice quickly, and prepared to leave.
As they walked toward their car, something felt wrong. Raya's vision blurred, and her legs grew heavy, as if the ground beneath her was slipping away. She turned to look at Maggie, only to see her aunt struggling to keep her balance as well.
"I'm not allergic to orange juice," Raya thought in a panic, her heart racing. "What's happening?"
Her eyes darted around, and through the growing haze in her vision, she spotted a black car parked nearby. Two men stood beside it, their figures bulky and intimidating. But the world was fading fast, and before Raya could comprehend what was happening, her body gave out. She crumpled to the ground, her muscles refusing to respond.
Her aunt slumped beside her. In her last moments of consciousness, Raya saw the two men approaching, their faces cold and expressionless.
Then everything went dark.
The rest area was desolate, too quiet for anyone to notice what had just happened.
Raya's eyes slowly fluttered open, her mind clouded with confusion and pain. Darkness surrounded her, pressing in from all sides. She blinked, trying to adjust her vision, but it was useless. The room she was in was pitch black, unfamiliar, and eerily silent. Her muscles ached, her body felt like it had been crushed under a heavy weight. Instinctively, she tried to move, but her hands and legs were tightly bound to a chair. The rough ropes dug into her skin, and with every attempt to wriggle free, the bindings only seemed to tighten.
"Aunt Maggie?" Raya croaked, her voice barely above a whisper. Her throat was dry, the words scratching painfully as they left her mouth. She cleared her throat and called out again, louder this time. "Aunt Maggie!"
Silence.
The fear in her chest grew, tightening its grip around her heart. Her mind raced with terrible thoughts—had they taken her aunt? Was she okay? Hot tears spilled from Raya's eyes as panic set in. She couldn't lose her, not after everything they had been through. She tugged at the ropes again, but whoever tied her had done it with precision—there was no escape.
Suddenly, the door creaked open, flooding the room with a narrow beam of light. A tall figure stood in the doorway, his silhouette instantly recognizable. The voice that followed sent a shiver down her spine.
"Oh, I can see you've finally decided to wake up, you backstabbing bitchy daughter of mine."
Her father.
Raya's breath caught in her throat, and for a moment, the world seemed to tilt. She hadn't seen him in months , but his voice still held that same venomous sting. The room felt colder as he stepped inside, and the project began the first day of the person that will fit black the door behind him. She tried to hold herself together, but the sight of him, after all these years, filled her with an indescribable dread.
"Did you miss me?" he sneered, a wicked grin stretching across his face.
"I'd rather eat rotten food than miss you, Mr. White," Raya spat, her voice hoarse but filled with defiance.
His grin faltered for a moment, but he quickly recovered. "Oh, feisty. Just like your slut of a mother," he said, dismissing her insult as if it were nothing.
"Where is Aunt Maggie, you pimp?" Raya demanded, the words spilling out before she could stop them. She didn't know where she found the courage, but the thought of her aunt in danger pushed her fear aside, if only for a moment.
Her father chuckled, a deep, sinister sound that sent chills down her spine. "Don't worry. She's in safe hands. But be careful, darling. You may end up sending your cute little Aunty to an early grave if you keep running that mouth of yours."
Raya swallowed hard, her throat dry. "How did you find us?" Not being able to push down her curiosity
"Oh, you mean at the rest area? That was a piece of cake," he replied nonchalantly. "I had cameras installed in your house, tapped your phones. It was thrilling watching you underestimate me. I felt insulted, honestly. That little rat, Cassey, running off to your aunt? after the little deal we had so touch ."
At the mention of Cassey's name, Raya's heart clenched with fear. Her father seemed to read her mind.
"Oh, don't worry," he said with a smirk, "she's fine. Safe and sound."
Fresh tears welled in Raya's eyes, hot and uncontrollable. "You—" she started, but the words stuck in her throat. Rage and despair mixed within her, boiling over. "You fucked up, assholic man! What have I ever done to deserve a father like you? I curse the day I was born to you!"
Her voice trembled with fury, and her father's reaction took her by surprise. He laughed. A cruel, mocking laugh that echoed around the room.
"You think you're so tough, huh?" he said, stepping closer to her. His hand swung without warning, striking Raya hard across the face. Her vision blurred, the sting of the slap radiating through her skull. The world tilted, and she felt her body hit the floor, the chair crashing with her.
"How dare you raise your voice at me, you little whore?" he snarled. His boot connected with her side, sending sharp waves of pain through her body. "Do you think this is a joke? I brought you into this world, and I can take you out just as easily."
Raya winced as another kick landed on her ribs. She could barely breathe, each gasp bringing more pain. She lay there, helpless, as he rained down insults and blows, every word and strike another reminder of the hell she had escaped from.
Suddenly, the door creaked open again. One of her father's men stepped inside, whispering something in his ear. He stopped, listening intently, before smiling—an eerie, calculated smile that sent a new wave of fear through Raya.
"You applied for a job at Heistens Empire, right?" her father asked.
Raya, her breath shallow and painful, nodded weakly. She didn't have the strength to lie or defy him anymore.
"A message just came in. They want to hire you." He chuckled. "Looks like you're not completely useless after all."
Raya's heart sank further. What was he planning?
"I have a deal for you," he said, kneeling down to look her in the eye. "When you start working there, every cent of your salary comes to me. Just like old times. If you miss even one payment, you'll never see Aunt Maggie again. Got it?"
Raya's stomach turned. She couldn't even respond. The pain, the fear, the helplessness—it was all too much. Her father smirked, satisfied with her silence.
Before she knew it, her head was covered with a black cloth, and everything went dark once more. She felt herself being lifted and dragged away. The last thing she remembered was the cold air hitting her face as they dumped her somewhere unknown.
When she awoke again, she was outside her own house, her body still bruised and battered. She stumbled inside, collapsing against the door, her mind racing for what to do next.
Her phone buzzed, and she shakily pulled it from her pocket. It was a text from a private number, a message she knew all too well who it was from. "Don't involve the police unless you want your aunt's neck snapped." Attached was a picture of Aunt Maggie, bruised, battered, and bound.
Raya felt her body freeze. Tears she thought had dried up poured down her face again. She was alone. Trapped