Serpentine Desires

The prey

I gulped.

Didn't Kyle say he'd pick me up? What was this psycho doing here? He shouldn't be here.

I swallowed again, but my mouth was dry, so it didn't soothe the itchiness lodged in my throat. I did not reply. I just couldn't. Eyes were staring at me. People around me were gasping, some even pulled out their phones and I heard the haunting sounds of cameras clicking.

"What is she doing with him?"

"Why is she with him?"

Of course, people would question when their beloved bachelor would be found hugging a girl in front of the university. Some unknown, good-for-nothing girl. A desperate girl who sold her soul to the devil just for money. They would gossip. Make me the guilty one. No one would believe me.

Breath caught in my lungs. No escape. Trapped in his arms. It was a vortex of despair.

The cold hands were strangely warm as the hold tightened and I flinched as his fingers dug into my waist and I was abruptly turned around. Eyes bore into my soul, stripping away the facade. Judging. Condemning. His eyes though shielded by the shades, I could feel him piercing through my soul. Another reality check. He was not blind. And that scared me more than anything should.

"I don't like repeating myself, ptichka. Either you open your mouth or I'll do it for you." Whispers like serpents slithered around me. Venomous. And it took all my self-restraint to not shudder. People were watching, words would soon spread. I'd become the topic of their conversations. Murderer. That's what I'd be known as.

My pulse raced, pounding in my ears like a war drum. A noose tightened around my neck. I swallowed hard, my mouth dry, thoughts spiralling.

His eyes pierced me, stripping away my defences. I felt their burn, their mark. And I knew, at this moment, there was no escape.

"I-I..." Speak, I urged myself. But my lips stayed sealed. Fear held them shut.

His hair gelled back, a suggestive strand curled and fell on his left brow, over the shades. High cheekbones and chiselled face. Cold. Lips set in a straight line, brows furrowed and the muscle under his jaw twitched the same moment his fingers dug into me.

"Very well, if that's how you want it to roll," He pulled away. Shadows flickered behind him, that's when I noticed Kyle standing behind him wearing a cold expression. He didn't look amused at all. "Kyle."

Kyle nodded, his eyes locking onto mine. Disoriented, I swayed as he grabbed me by the upper arm. I stammered, "What are you doing?"

"Orders, Ms. Rosewood." He muttered in a heavily accented voice.

I wanted to run but one look at Judas, and I realised if I ran, he'd truly ruin me for good. While Kyle dragged me towards the car, Judas followed closely behind, tapping the cane on the ground, pretending to be blind.

Though he looked anything but amused—he looked murderous. I swallowed hard as I was pushed into the back seat. My knee struck with the metal but I just swallowed the pain as I scrambled to the window clutching my bag tightly.

My heart pounded in my chest, a wild drumbeat of fear. The car door slammed shut, sealing my fate. Judas slid in beside me, and I forgot how to breathe. I had been forgetting a lot of things lately.

What I felt at that moment couldn't explain the slightest of sensations I was feeling. A puppet on strings. Dangled for his amusement between his fingers. A spectacle of dust under his shoes. A toy.

Trapped. Helpless. I sank into the seat feeling his heavy gaze on me. "Why... are you here?" I muttered with the courage I gathered in the past two days and still, it wasn't enough to keep my voice firm. It wavered and so did my body as he let out a humourless chuckle.