Captivity

Chapter 15: Transformante

Everything hurt. From the cuts, bruises and scrapes, to the torn ache deep within her loins. It was a feeling she couldn't shake, instilled within her bones and leaving her filled with dread, fear, and misery. Knees giving out on her, Sam slid down the wall she'd been leaning upon, unable to muster anymore strength to continue down the dark and empty halls.

It was long after closing before she'd stumbled out of the mer's enclosure. Able to drag herself away from the sea beast in his slumber, curled up in the shallows where everything had spiraled out of control. It was only upon the clicking of the door, that the mer had awoken, aware that the human he loved had slipped away, leaving him calling out for her.

She could still ear his howls echoing down the corridor, but she dared not answer them, let alone return. She doubted she could ever go near the creature again, less she faced a repeat experience, forced to live out that nightmare again. She refused it. Head in her hands, she cried, unawares of the footsteps drawing near.

"Samantha?"

Sam jumped at the sound of the voice. Whipping around to find the source of her address, she came face to face with none other than Vladimir Masters. He stood there, worry etched into his features, holding a flashlight in one hand. It took her eyes a minute to adjust to clearly see him in the dim.

"Are you alright, dear girl?" his words were laced with concern that didn't reach his eyes, not that the visibly shaken woman could notice in her state.

In truth, the tears had stared to flow freely as she sat there, desperate for comfort from whatever ordeal she'd experienced. Though he knew full well what had occurred within these walls, having watched from the shadows, pleased that his plan was playing out successfully. Now it was just a matter of enacting the next part, and with the poor girl completely unaware of the true source of her discomfort, it would be an easy feat.

"Come now, let's get you cleaned up," He kneeled down to her level, letting the goth cry into his shoulder as he held her in a much needed embrace.

Had she been in the right mindset, she probably would of questioned what the billionaire was doing, skulking about the halls in the dead of night. After all, the man had supposedly been out hunting a rogue whale with her uncle. But as it was, her only thoughts were on seeking comfort from the living nightmare she'd just experienced. Thus she put up no resistance when the man scooped her up into his arms and carried her away from the wails of the beast hidden within.

At some point she'd fallen asleep, though she couldn't recall when, only remembering the soft warmth of blankets wrapped around her. Perhaps it had all been some terrible dream after all, a figment of her worries compiled with a vivid imagination. She'd probably had to discuss her concerns with her uncle later; that perhaps it was time to finally set the dark mer free.

Yet there was something off that she couldn't place; the hum of buzzing in her ears, repeating in a soft tone that echoed the beat of her heart. Eyes fluttering open, she tried to find the source of the disturbance; probably her roommates alarm going off; except it wasn't her room that graced her vision.

White walls surrounded her where she lay, bundled up in a mix of white sheets, the beeping sound coming from the heart monitor off to her left. So it wasn't a dream then... She turned her head to examine her surroundings further. The only thing of interest in the white washed out room was the painting on the far wall. A lighthouse on a rocky shore. There also were no windows to peer out of, giving her no recollection of where she was aside from the scent of antiseptic that hung heavy in the air.