VICTIM

3.

FEAR stifled my actions. I swallowed hard and averted my gaze, trying to think of some bullshit answer.

"Um, well, I," I mumbled. My heart pounded harder with every passing second. I could feel his blazing hot glare beaming down on me through that mask.

"You don't know?" The aggression in his voice rose.

"I didn't want to!" I stumbled over my words, praying it would please him, "They just took me!" The man shifted in his seat and I braced myself.

"Who did?" His voice was near toneless. I dared to glance at his face.

"The police," My voice was barely audible. When he didn't respond, I elaborated. "They found me and took me and kept asking me questions. I didn't want to answer, I just wanted to go home," Tears formed and threatened to spill over. I covered my face with my hands.

A large hand pet my hair. I jumped at its presence before becoming statue-like.

"I see," the man murmured, seemingly in thought. He took his hand from my hair and I heard the scratching of the fork on the plate. The rest of the evening was silent.

""

When the man spoke again, it was to tell me goodnight. I was back on that filthy mattress with every limb burdened by chains. My body shivered from the damp cold that haunted the room. I tried to curl up for warmth, but was restricted to a half open ball. Half-heartedly, I wiggled my toes, wondering if I could still feel them. I barely could.

Meekly, my voice rang out, "Master?" My call echoed around the room. "Master?"

Slowly, my calls became louder and a little more confident until I was near yelling. They stopped when I heard the doorknob wiggle. Immediate fear silenced me as he stood looming over me at the end of the bed.

"What?" He spat. I didn't have to see his eyes to know they were glaring at me.

"I-I'm cold," I answered quietly, almost choking on my words, "May I have a blanket?"

He stood there for a while, evaluating the situation. Then, he turned and left me in darkness. Almost immediately, I began crying at my failure.

I had been taken from my home, brought back to the hellish nightmare, and now I couldn't even get a damn blanket. Quiet sobs began to slip from my lips as the exhaustion of the day took over. I was emotionally wasted and in desperate need of a release.

Suddenly, the doorknob wiggled again and I wiped the tears off my cheeks. The man silently stood in, placed a blanket over my body, and sat on the edge of the bed. I clutched the wooly fabric around my shoulders, my skin crawling when he began stroking my head.

"Elysia, why were you crying?" He asked soothingly.

"I thought you left," I answered, somewhat truthfully. The man hummed in response and continued stroking my hair.

My eyelids were heavy but I fought to stay awake, refusing to give this monster any advantages over me. Sadly, my body had other plans and I fell asleep as the man began to hum.