Late in the evening, the large white SUV drives into the massive compound. One foot descends, closely followed by the next. She closes the door, a mixture of uncertainty and fear written in the lines of her face.
She swallows, walking to the large mansion. As she raises her hand to knock on the door, it opens in her face and she takes one step backwards, careful to not fall down the staircase.
"Miss Campbell?"
The frightened lady nods, thankful for just the significant first name.
"Please come with me. We have prepared your room quarters for the night. This is a tradition that has been held in our family for centuries. It is just to check and confirm that the fames coming into our families are pure and untainted by any other man."
She nods shakily.
"You don't need to be afraid; we have experienced staff who do it for us, and you do not have to be scared, not one bit. So, here, please go in, and don't come out till after the checking."
She nods thankfully, and enters into the dimly lit room. Inside the warm room, with the moonlight casting its glow inside, she turns on the light but its also a small, lone blue light. Straining her eyes to see inside the room, she sets her eyes on a piece of paper on the bed. She picks it up and peruses it.
"You might be uncomfortable so we have prepared a cover for you. To avoid embarrassment, you can have your eyes covered. So, please make use of the woolen clothing to cover your eyes, the staff will come in after that."
With shaky hands, she reaches for the cloth. Maybe not seeing will make the whole ordeal get over quickly. As she ties the cloth around her eyes, she sits on the edge of the bed, clasping her hands in her laps as though in deep meditation.
She sits and waits for the events of the night to begin.
In a minute and with a "click", the door leading in and out of the room opens.
The silence suddenly seems so loud as someone enters into the room bringing a soft fragrance in. She immediately regrets tying her own eyes but its too late anyway. She has to show this family that she has nothing to hide and that she is a virgin, fit to be a member of the family.
The visitor is silent, coupled with the almost muffled sound of footsteps on the thick, plush carpet.
Hearing the slight sound of the footsteps drawing nearer to her, she turns paler with nervousness and her hands tremble even harder.
Just then, someone reaches out and strokes her face, making her flinch unconsciously. The fingers are not smooth with a rough layer of calluses on the palm and fingers alike.
She comes to the realization that it is a man and panic sets in.
"Ah!" She mumbles with a teary voice sounding like she is crying or just about to. "Please, please... let me go." She whispers, hoping whoever it is in the room with her will listen to her pleas and release HER.
Shaking nervously like a caught little rabbit, begging with teary, covered eyes and even the room was a dark one so whoever it is can't see her tears or her face..
"Regret agreeing to this union already?" A low and enigmatic male voice says, very close to her ear.
She flinches at the closeness of the voice.
Although the voice asked a question, there is no joy, anger or any emotion at all in it, making it even worse for her to decipher the kind of situation she is.
Her body trembles more and more.
Tonight, she is here in place of her sister, or step sister. The Campbell and Walters families are about to marry, the deal is already in place, but tonight is to ensure that the daughter of the Campbell family is clean.
As a tradition of the Walters to check the women to be married into their homes, tonight was one of those nights, no different. Although in the past generations, the tradition had been dropped but it's been held tonight for certain reasons known only to the Walters.
Mina Campbell is not perfect, but she is clean enough that her family forced her to come.
As expected or as is always done, the person who examines the body is not the eldest or youngest son of the family, but just a bodyguard, gardener, cook or someone from the lower class of the family, and in luckier situations, a midwife.
Mina, though, does not seem to have the luck of a midwife.
The Walters did not agree with this marriage and they have reserves, so they deliberately made such an outrageous tradition known to them to know if they will back out or not just to humiliate the Campbell family. But in order to climb up the social ladder, so as for the Campbells to be allied to the wealthy Walters and even though they saw that there was a fire pit right in front of them, they had to jump into it.
Mina is the one sent into the Walters's flame by Andrea Campbell, her supposed father, and she is not prepared for this at all. It's supposed to be just a small, irregular check for her virginity but it is starting to go out of hand.
A man? She had never even dreamt of it, and now, she is no more willing to do this for her step sister.
"I… I'm afraid, can you...can you give me some time?" She requests timidly, hoping that he would back off or something, but so at least someone can hear her out.
After she finished speaking, her small chin was pinched, his hands feeling warm to the touch, and a man's extremely indifferent and emotionless voice came too close to her ear again, his hot breath fanning her neck, "No one can talk to me about some time. You came here of your own accord."
Although she can't see the appearance of the man in front of her, she can feel the powerful and charismatic aura of the man.
Feeling his breath getting closer again, Mina is so terrified that tears fall into the woolen cloth and her hands shake very fast like they are going to fall off.
"No..." Mina says unwillingly with a teary voice, struggling to escape from this place.
"Do you think you have the right to say no? Miss Sasha, recognize your identity and be classy. Good women keep their promises." The man's domineering and powerful words floats into her ears and waltzes to her brain.
That voice seemed to be cold to the depths of the bone marrow.
She can hear the contempt, disdain and disgust in it, and even down to the fact that he looks down on her.
"Feeling aggrieved?" The man increased his strength, and her chin is pinched to the point of a small ache.
Mina can feel the chill on the man's body through the cloth, and she doesn't know whether it is cold or if it is because of her trembling from sheer fright.
She grits her teeth and says forcefully, "If I had a choice, I would definitely not come!"
If the Campbell family hadn't been kind to her and adopted her and took her in since she was a child, she wouldn't have to come here today in place of her sister.
The petite woman's stubborn expression catches his eye, and he smiles mockingly, "Since the women of the Campbell family want to climb up to the Walters family so much, then don't put on such a wronged look, you are not worthy!"
Hearing the man's words about not deserving even the least level of respect, Mina clenches her fists.
The man, like the storm outside the window, showed no pity for her on the bed that night, Mina closed her eyes and tears fell.
She lost her flower to such a cruel, hot blooded man.
"Campbell family, I have paid off what I owe you!"
Mina whispers and closed her eyes to the world.