"You need to steady your hand and concentrate so I won't…."
"Don't think we'd help you if he comes here. We can't do anything for you," she muttered, her voice laced with bitterness and fear.
I bit my lip to keep from responding.
"I know you are scared, but I am just trying to help,"
"Do you see the way he watches us? It's like he's already decided our fate." One of them said,
The man I was watching out of the corner of my eye, the one with those cold, calculating eyes, was the source of that fear.
As I tried focusing on what I was doing, I couldn't stop gazing at him.
As I finished bandaging their wounds I looked back at him, those cold eyes locked onto mine, and I knew that escape wasn't an option—not yet.
"You? What audacity do you have?" His voice was sharp, slicing through the silence like a blade. "Who gave you the right to come in here and start doing what you weren't sent to do? You've heard of me, I'm sure, but now you'll experience who I am."
My throat tightened. "I just want to… to…"
He cut me off with a dismissive wave of his hand. "You," he barked, pointing to one of his men, "Lock them all up. She's now one of them.
"My heart sank. "Part? What? How? I was only helping…" The words tumbled out in a rush, but they fell on deaf ears. He didn't wait for me to finish.
With a final, chilling glance in my direction, he turned and walked away, leaving the room as if nothing had happened.
I watched helplessly as his men moved swiftly, binding the others and dragging them to their feet.
Before I could fully grasp what was happening, I was shoved into line with them, my protests swallowed by the fear clamping down on my chest.
****
Only one meal a day—it was hard, but I kept pushing forward.
Somehow, I ended up leading them, trying to keep everyone's spirits up.
"Giving up should not be your plan. This is just for a while; you will be out of here very soon. As long as you're breathing, you can still achieve anything you set your mind to."
A few people clapped, nodding along. But some weren't so convinced.
"You're just like us," one of them muttered, shaking his head. "No better, no different."
I sighed, but kept going.
"Maybe I am, but that doesn't mean we can't survive this. We just have to stay strong."
As I spoke, I noticed Liam watching me from afar.
His eyes were on me as if he was trying to figure me out.
I met his gaze, trying to hide the unease I felt.
What else could he do to me? He had already made me his pet.
I signed, "I thought being someone's pet is something good, I thought they would take care of you even more than parents, I hope my father whom I am doing this for won't forget me here"
A woman next to me heard and whispered back, "You thought that?"
I gave a small, sad smile. "I did. But I guess I was wrong."
Liam's stare didn't waver, and I wondered what he was thinking. He had done so much already—what more could he possibly want?
It was late, and we were all anxiously waiting for our only meal of the day. But to everyone's shock, the food never came.
I wanted to cry and let out my anger but I couldn't, not even Rachel, the one that had always encouraged them.
I felt bitterness rising in me, but I had to stay strong—for them. Inside, I wept bitterly, the tears I couldn't let anyone see threatening to spill over.
I had always been the one to encourage them, to lift their spirits, and I couldn't afford to break down now.
Without uttering a word, I lay down in a corner.
As I closed my eyes, exhaustion took over and I slipped into a restless sleep.
****
I met myself in a room, it was okay than the first room I was in.
As I opened my eyes, I saw food on the table.
"Food?" I said, with my eyes wide open.
I took the spoon and ate sharply.
While I was still eating, the door was opened, it was Liam who came in.
Liam's presence made the air in the room thick with tension. My hand, still clutching the spoon, froze mid-bite. His cold, calculating gaze roved over me, assessing every move, every breath I took.
"So you aren't even this hard? And you keep on putting your mouth on what doesn't concern
Rn you? Take a look at yourself. See the way you are eating like an animal." He said harshly and continued, "I decided to give you a chance, a chance, and an opportunity"