She is the Queen

Chapter 31

Over the course of the following week, my routine remained unvaried, with sleep and meals consuming my time. Not once did Alex pay me a visit. I reasoned within myself it was for the best; trusting him was not an option. I was nothing more than a pawn in his game. Yet, I couldn't escape the feeling of his watchful eyes, patiently observing me through the camera instilled in the room. I surmised it was his room, two deductions fueling my assumption. Firstly, why else would I be locked away so opulently, if not in the quarters of my confining captor? Secondly, his conspicuous absence that raised questions with no answers.

One day, a troop of maids came in earnest, their arms burdened with an assortment of clothes intended for me. The sheer volume of clothes left me flabbergasted. These were not just one or two outfits but a wardrobe overflowing with thousands of choices. The implication was terrifying. It suggested I would be here much longer than I initially feared. This was not what I had in mind. I had to get back. 

"Laila."

The sound of my name abruptly snapped me out of my musings. I hadn't noticed his arrival, so engrossed I was in my maelstrom of thoughts.

"Yes?" I retorted, masking the shock of his sudden appearance.

His previously dormant icy persona had returned. A thick, impenetrable mask concealed his emotions, with a haunting aura surrounding him like a shroud.

"I have a proposition for you, little rabbit," said he, his voice echoing ominously in the practically bare room.

His eyes, rendered several shades darker, were now an abyss of black. An unnerving grin tugged at his lips, an amplification of the malevolent sentiment that was already lingering on his face. Standing tall beside the bed, his hands casually resting behind him, he began to slowly circle the room. A discordant melody hummed in tantalizing undertones seemed almost alien to his nature.

Intrigued and bristling with trepidation, I asked, "What kind of proposition?"

Suddenly, he was beside me. He extended his hand, beckoning for me to take it, to stand up and follow him. But, I refrained, a growing sense of uncertainty niggling at the back of my mind. Instead, I rose, unaided, facing him with merely a step separating us.

Without warning, he seized my wrist, his grip vice-like and unyielding. He directed me out into the corridor, leading me towards a room, the dominating feature of which was a solitary computer. The starkness of the room was disconcerting, but the mysterious computer stood in silent promise of unveiling the nature of his unexpected proposal. Somehow, I knew my life was about to change irrevocably, in a way I never anticipated. The choice ahead was daunting, filled with uncertainty and the threat of looming consequences. My heart pounded a rapid rhythm against my ribs, an ominous portent of the unraveling saga about to unfold.

His grip on my wrist softened slightly as we stood in the threshold of the room. He released me, the cold air seizing the opportunity to flood the momentarily vacated space around my wrist. 

I had a puzzled expression on my face as my eyebrows were probably flying off of my face. Then I looked at him, and tilted my head.

"Sit."

He pushed me down by my shoulders for me to sit which I didn't fight. I had to sit anyways.

He opened the computer, it was a sniper vision recording pointing to Andrea having a meeting with Jeremy. It didn't take time for me to understand what was going on. I kept an expressionless face, and masked my concern. As he leaned on my right shoulder, he whispered into my ear.

"Now love, these few days my interest have shifted towards something I thought was impossible to possess. I tried everything to keep my mind occupied.' He harshly said. 'But I know what I want.' His sharp eyes seeked me. 'I want you.' His voice resonated inside me. 'Choose. I will kill Andrea if you don't choose voluntarily to be mine. You have to cut all ties with him. You can never see him again and you have to give up on him. You will be mine and only mine. You have to do everything I say, or he is dead this instant."