The Masked Gentleman

French White Flag

She turns the knob and enters. The silence is deafening and only heightens her anxiety. The darkness has engulfed everything. Even her. With her heart in her throat, she slowly moves through the corridors. She touches the walls to navigate through the labyrinth. She silently prays. Please be asleep, please be asleep. She stops in her tracks as she realizes that she has to pass by her father's study to get to her room. She takes a deep breath and gathers all of her courage. She slowly takes a step in the lion's den. Reaching right in front of his door, she holds her breath as if he can sense her presence. Right then, hell freezes. Or is it her? The door opens and her heart stops. Her breathing becomes irregular and she thinks of everything that can help her escape. Who is she kidding? No one will and no one can help her. Cold air coming from inside hits her face, making her tremble. Chills run down her spine as fear takes over. She can sense his dangerous presence even before she turns to face he own demise. There he is. Her father. His eyes glow in the dark, like a predator waiting for its prey. He takes a step towards her, her body automatically taking one back. As the moonlight from a nearby window hits his face, she sees his cold, unforgiving demeanor. Her big brown eyes stare into his ruthless ones, waiting for her own fall. The cold almost makes her knees give out. Rage radiates off of him, knocking the air out of her lungs. He tightly grabs her arm, squeezing it so much she half-expected it to turn blue. Frederick yanks it and pushes her in his study with so much force she falls to the ground with a thud. Terrified, she doesn't dare breathe, afraid he might kill her if irritated by it. He locks the door and bends down to her level. "On your knees, as you should be, with your head down" his low voice reaches her ears, mocking her. She keeps her head down to not anger him further. No one says anything but Isabella hears everything that was meant to be heard. He grips her face tightly and forces her to look at him. Their faces inches apart, his amused eyes bore into her teary and ashamed ones. "What a pity! You could've been mine but God gave you to me like this" he says calmly. Her heart starts beating so fast, she can hear it ring in her ears, drowning out his voice. "Now - his dangerous voice grabs her attention - you will do EXACTLY as I command if you do not want your pretty little face to be ruined, okay?" he says with a fake-sweet voice and a wicked smile. She nods her head quickly but he digs his fingernails in her cheeks. "Words, darling. Use them." he warns. She forces the words out, refusing to cry in front of him. "Yes, sir. Understood." He smiles sadistically. "Excellent. You will obey my order as you have always done." he reminds her. "What do you need me to do, sir?" her voice barely manages to come out. "Marry Lucifer without making a sound and serve him as you have served me. Be his pet, his trophy wife, his bitch. Do that and I'll let you live a little longer" he reveals. Her heart aches at the idea of being someone's property. Not allowed to talk, to do anything without his permission and forced to give herself to him, whenever and wherever he pleases. She panics but goes against what her entire body is trying to tell her. Trapped, she gives away her life, her dignity, her respect and her freedom. For nothing in return. "Yes, sir" The words fall out of her mouth with venom wrapped around them. "Fantastic." he pats her cheek. "You've had some practice already" he says angrily. Confusion fills her eyes, clearing her vision as she frowns. "You're okay with grinding like a horny whore on a random dude's dick but not Lucifer's, aren't you, you two-faced slut?" he calms explains. Her eyes, wide open and with fear in them, get teary once again. He's been watching her every move. He gets up, suddenly, grabs her hair and drags her to his desk, despite her yelps of pain. He smashes her head on the desk, causing it to bleed. "Do anything without my permission ever again and I'll cut you to pieces" He whispers in her ear. She leans on the desk and opens her mouth to apologize when his hard palm meets her soft cheek, allowing her to taste her own blood from inside her mouth. He grabs her neck and pulls her to him. " Mention this and you're buried alive. Now get the fuck out." He threatens as he pushes her out of his study. Trying to contain her tears as she runs to her room blindly, she covers her mouth with her hands. She locks the door behind her and completely lets go. Her knees give out and she falls once again to the floor. She cries her eyes out and winces, between her sobs and hiccups. Helpless and powerless, sandwiched between her father's cruelty and her obligation to respect her parents and elders, she cries until she trembles. She cries until her head's about to explode from the emotional and physical pain. She cries until she feels numb. Her screams bone-chilling and her hands tightly gripping her chest, as if to rip out her own shattered heart. She cries to God, her heart praying to him. God, O merciful God. Help your servant keep her dignity. help me. Lighten the burden on my heart and shoulders as you have done before. Keep me protected from this cruel world, keep me in your light. Don't let the darkness find me. Send me an angel of yours to guard me. Give me strength and patience. O lord, I have no one to turn to. It's just you. You deemed me strong enough to live in this world, please make it easier for me to obey your commands. Put some pity and humanity in his heart, if he has one. Tell me what my mistake is, Lord. Her exhausted body falls limp on the floor as she faints from the pain. She wakes up again during the night and cleans the blood on her forehead, applies ointment and lays on the bed. Isabella keeps the blanket tightly around her to keep her cold body warm, as if it can protect her from cruelty. She's about to fall asleep, when she gets a message. Deciding she will check it in the morning, she goes back to sleep but she is disturbed by the continuous messages. Picking it up, she sees an unknown number messaging her.

Unknown: "Hey, it's Lucifer."

Unknown:"I just wanted to check on you."

Unknown:"I know you must be asleep but please do assure me of your well-being in the morning."

Unknown:"After everything that happened yesterday, few would be unfazed."

He wrote to her?

She's confused but likes that at least someone in this world worries about her. She sees that he's online so decides to answer.

Isabella: "Hey, i'm fine. Thanks for asking. How'd you get my number, anyway?"

Unknown:"Your father gave it to me."

Isabella: " Oh, ok. Why message me this late?"

Unknown: " I'm actually on a business trip to New York, the time difference threw me off. I'm sorry for waking you up this late at night. I'll be more careful next time"

Next time? Does he plan on texting me regularly?

Isabella: "No, it's fine. I was already awake"

Unknown: " Why?"

Shit.

Isabella writes her answer and then deletes it multiple times, not able to give him an answer that can satisfy him.

Isabella: " I've got insomnia. I can't get a full night of sleep. I wake up like 30 times"

He didn't respond for what felt like eternity. He started writing and she got anxious. Maybe I shouldn't have told him that.

Unknown: "If you have trouble sleeping, try something warm like turmeric milk before bed"

Isabella: " Ok."

Unknown: " Have you ever been to New York?"

Isabella: "No, but i would like to someday"

Unknown: " Would you like me to bring something back for you?"

Isabella: " No, no! It's fine, you don't need to"

Unknown: " I didn't ask if I needed to. You don't need to be so modest. I would happily bring you anything you want"

Oh.

Isabella: " No, i don't want anything, thank you"

Unknown: " Alright, I'll let you sleep now. I have some work to do. Good night!"

Isabella: "Good night"

She clings the phone to her chest, reflecting on what just happened. Why was he so concerned about her health and well-being, in the first place? He's her fiance, okay, but they JUST met yesterday. Isn't it a bit weird? He said he's on a business trip. What does he do exactly? I'll google him. She opens chrome on her phone and typed "Lucifer Pierce". She squinted her eyes in the dark to see a picture of him with his usual mask. His eyes. I love his blue eyes, they're like the ocean. What else is there?

Full Name: Lucifero Alessandro Theon Leonardo Fiorenzo.

Age: 29

Birth date: 9th of November 1997, Cardinale Ascalesi Hospital, Naples, Italy

Occupation: Businessman and Lawyer

Net Worth Estimate: $257 billion

Holy. Fucking. Shit. He'll turn 30 this year?!?!! I'm 18!!! That's hot. He's napoletano, as well?! Sign me up. That's a long ass name....oh, he's rich, too. That's just the cherry on top.

She falls asleep thinking about him. With a smile on her face. And red cheeks.