Lesser Evil

5| The Villain

I have lost my mind. That's the only explanation for why I was having a fucking chat with— Ayat. The girl I kidnapped. The girl who is my captive.

I didn't even realize the absurdity of my actions until she pointed it out herself. She asked if I was drunk. That made me smile, but I stifled it before she would see. She thought I was crazy, too.

I made my way up the staircase to my house. It was a mess, but I couldn't be bothered. I just had to get through this day, which seemed to be stretching way too long. I ran out of drugs, and the money to buy them. Alcohol had to be the next best option to get away from reality.

But the fight after the bar? It snapped me right back to this rotten world. Those dudes did a number on me. My whole body ached, my head throbbed like someone was constantly bringing a hammer down on it and my face stung. The cut, it was another thing that she pointed out. She had been staring, I could feel her eyes on me, trying to penetrate into my head. In my dazed state, I had let her see all of me. Yet another mistake I made. If she was to ever get out and go to the police, my face wouldn't be hard to get a sketch of. And the way she had been staring, I'm sure it was already imprinted in her head.

My phone rang, the sound so loud and atrocious that I winced before I picked it up. "What?"

"Aren't you just so pleasant?"

I rolled my eyes— then regretted it when it felt like someone had poked my eyeballs with a dagger. If this person wanted pleasantries, they should've known I wasn't the right person to call for that. "Who am I talking to?"

"Forgotten me so quick? You have my girl, remember?" His girl. Not if I had anything to do with it.

I halfheartedly admitted that Ayat's attempt to get away was a brave move, yet equally stupid. She had underestimated me, and overestimated herself if she thought one kick from her would permanently put me down. Though, there was a bruise right in the center of my chest where her shoe had knocked. But it was probably one from the many I got today during the fight.

"Yeah, so?" I knew who I was talking to now. He might be boss, but he wasn't the boss of me. I would talk to him however I wanted, especially because I was royally pissed after he called Ayat his girl. Why the fuck was I even angry? She was just a captive, nothing else.

Right?

God, I hope he had called to tell me he wanted her soon. She was already messing with my head and it had been four days since I took her.

"Drop the attitude, boy. I might make you pay for it. Her father won't budge."

Her father. Hassan Hashmi. Top criminal lawyer in the country. Also happens to be the prosecuting lawyer for the brother of the very man to who I was talking.

"I don't see how that's my problem." It really wasn't. My role in all this ended after taking Ayat, and then giving them to him when he asked for her.

"You are so dense, Shaz. Anyway, I need you to take a picture of the girl and send it to me. Rough her up a little, do what you have to do so her father's resolve melts when he looks at her. I'll add in a few words myself to him, tell him you fucked her or something. Just get me a picture of her, and do it soon." Disgust and unease rolled off of me at his demand. Rough her up— I didn't hit women, unless they attacked first. Even then, I hadn't done anything to Ayat except get a hold on her wrists and face to scare her a tad bit, to lower her hopes. It had worked but it didn't mean that I had to like the shattered look in her eyes.

And I... fucking her? Never.

"Will do." I cut the call before he could buzz like a mosquito around my ear.

It had been an hour only since I was with her. I quietly made my way downstairs again, afraid that even a single sound would hurt my head. The metal door opened noiselessly.

There she was. Curled up on the cold, hard floor by the wall. I gulped, not liking the sight of her on the floor like that one bit. I would have to do something about it, if only for the sake of my conscience, but it would have to be later.

She looked like she trying to sleep before her head snapped up and she looked at me. I made sure that I had pulled the black hood low on my face.

"Shaz?" My name from her lips... It felt better than drugs. I was thoroughly fucked.

"Yes, princess, it's me." I confirmed and knelt down so I was at her eye level. I had no explanation for why I was calling her princess when I knew her name now.

"Why are you here?" She asked, blinking up at me with those wide innocent eyes. Her hair fell over one eye that I brushed aside before she could. I could see that the action startled her, but it made my heart beat, after a long, long time.

"I need you to do something for me. Don't make it hard for both of us, okay?" I had no idea why I was being gentle with her, but I did know that I didn't mind.

Her hesitation was clear on her face. "What do I have to do?" I, for a fact, knew that she wouldn't have been so easy if we hadn't had a little chat a while ago. She was probably still confused after that.

"I need to take a picture of you that shows how miserable you are over here and how poorly I treat you," I told her honestly, skipping out on telling her that it was to use as bait for her father. She didn't know that he was being held as a prisoner.

The indecision cleared. I assume she concluded that she could cooperate with me for one photo. "What do you need me to do for it?"

I thought hard about that. How would I show that she was miserable without having to mark her in any way? "Remove your jacket and lay down." It was wintertime, if she didn't have her jacket, she would feel cold. Torturous enough.

She silently obeyed and tossed her jacket aside before laying down. I asked her to shift on her side and curl up like she had been when I came in. When she did, I threw most of her hair on her face to cover it up before I took a picture of her.

"Perfect," I said with a small smile as I looked at her picture and sent it away. She quickly straightened up and pulled her jacket back on. The basement had always been unusually cold.

"Night, princess." I said as I backed away.

"Good night, Shaz." She repeated, confused but with a barely-there smile on her face.

She's adorable.