Daddy nodded his head. “But I want this to be a secret between Mia and Daddy. Can you help daddy keep a secret?“
I hurriedly nodded. “Sure, Mia will keep daddy's secret,” I said. I liked being dad's confidant. He would tell me anything and I would tell him anything.He carried me to the wall closer to the shelves and pointed at them. “Daddy keeps his secrets here,” he said. “I only want Mia to know.“Saying that, he pushed aside the shelf and I was shocked to see a hidden cabinet. “Mia, only you can open it now,” he spoke up and brought my finger to the wall.To my surprise, it opened. A broad smile appeared on my lips. “Wow! That is great daddy,” I said.Dad nodded. “All the secrets here are Mia's and daddy's. Don't tell anyone about it. Also, don't open the shelf until you turn twenty, okay?“I pouted. “That is too long,” I said. That was fifteen years to come. How could I wait for that long?Dad nodded his head. “Daddy knows that it is too long. Just be a good girl, okay?“ I nodded in understanding.Daddy sat me back on the desk and looked at my face. “Daddy is going to miss you so much. Just know that I love you so much,” he said and brushed away some hair from my face.I hugged him with my little hands. “ I will miss daddy too. Come back quickly, okay?“ I said.Dad nodded, but he looked disturbed. He gave me another kiss on the forehead. “Just remember not to tell anyone that I have left, okay?“I nodded and he took me back to the maids. With one last glance, he walked out of the house with his suitcase.…When mom came back in the evening, she asked me where dad was, and I told him he had just gone out.When dad did not come back after a few weeks, mom started questioning me, asking me if he had said anything to me before leaving.It was only after I remained adamant he has not said anything that she stopped talking about him. A year later, she poisoned me, saying that that might attract my dad back.…On Wednesday, I was coming home from class when I saw some cars in the front of the house. I immediately knew that there were visitors at home.Usually, mom never introduced me to any of her visitors. I did not want to bother them. I decided to use the back gate.There was a backyard at the back side of the house. It was the first thing that one would meet when using the back gate.I had just planned to open the gate when I heard loud laughter. I paused. Mom and her visitors were in the backyard instead.“I really want the project, son,” mom's voice could be heard clearly. “I know that you are going to push it for me, right?“There was silence for some seconds. I even thought that it was just some work-related thing they were talking about. I was about to turn and leave when I heard another voice. I froze in place.“Um… the thing is a little complicated. I don't know if dad will allow it…”“Name anything you want!“ Mom interrupted him. But I had already heard it. That was Carlos, Carlos Gilbert.There was another silence. “Anything? You mean anything?“ Carlos asked. And for some reason, I felt my heart beating so fast.“I know,” Mom spoke up after some seconds. I swear I did not want to eavesdrop. But I was just curious. This was one of the few times that mom talked with her visitors in the backyard. “Mia… she is what you want.“I froze in place when my name was mentioned. They were talking about business, how I did he come in?I could hear Carlos chuckle. “You got me here. But I have to confess. I want her. What do you say?“ He asked.My eyes opened wide in shock. Was that the one Carlos Gilbert I knew of? Of all the people I knew, he was the only person who cared a little about me. Yeah, apart from Dan and Emah, the only two friends I had.“I have seen your interest in her for quite a while now. I knew you would want her. But you have to know a little more about her. She has only a few days to live…”Tears welled in my eyes the moment I heard that. Did mom really have the courage to say such words to anyone else when she had caused everything?And what were they talking about? Was mom selling me to Carlos just because of a business deal?Wait! So, all this time that Carlos was so good to me, was it because of his own interests?“So it is true?“ Carlos asked, his voice a little lower. I clenched my fists. Even if I was going to die, was it worth announcing it to everyone else?“Yeap, she has at most two years to go. You can play with her now if she is what you want. After she is gone, there is still Denny. She is not bad either. She will make a good wife…”That was the most I could take. Play with me? After I am gone? Seriously? I knew that my mom hated me, but I never thought it could be to that extent.“Do you think she will give in to me? She seems a little difficult to handle,” Carlos said, his voice a little worried.Mom chuckled. “If I ask her to, she won't have a choice. Just remember not to mention to her about Denny for now…”“Actually, I think I should give it a try first before you intervene,” Carlos said. And it hurt me to think that he, out of everyone, would agree to such a thing. Tears continuously fell out of my eyes as I stood at the gate.“Deal!““Deal!“I could even hear the clinging of glasses as they tossed each other. Hatred, pain and anger filled me. I didn't know how much I stood there, crying. I felt so hurt.I cannot tell how I went to my room. But I did not care about anything else. All I did was cry continuously, until I fell asleep.In the middle of the night, my stomach began hurting. I had skipped both lunch and dinner. And being someone with acid reflux, it was bound to hurt.However, I was still too sad to even open my eyes. I did not want to think about anything else, especially after both mom's and Carlos' betrayal.However, I felt something, or rather, someone close to me. At first, I thought I was hallucinating. Then, the hair on my body stood straight. I felt like I was in real danger.I opened my eyes, and the first thing that came to my mind was to scream! A person! There was someone in my room.The man hurriedly covered my mouth with his hand, blocking the scream. I shivered more, thinking that he wanted to hurt me. I tried struggling against him.But he shook his head at me. “Don't scream! I am not here to hurt you,” he said. I don't know what he did to me, but I stopped s
Was that man in my room? Wait! What if he had done something to me? I tried listening to myself. I only relaxed when I felt that I was good.I sighed again and looked at the drawers. That did not seem like a dream. What did he want? How did he get in?I threw away the covers and jumped in the bathroom. I wanted to catch up with my sleep later on.I hurriedly cleaned up and dressed. I took my bag and rushed downstairs. Aah! Relief! Mom and Denny were nowhere to be seen.I quickly had some breakfast in the kitchen, took my water bottle and rushed out of the house. I did not have a chauffer of my own like Denny. Mom had never organized one for me. And she never wanted this conversation.Anyway, I did not care. I walked out of the house. It was still early. I did not need to call for a curb. I could walk slowly.For the first time, I was among the first people to get to class that day. Still, Dan and Emah were already seated, leaving a seat between them for me.“You tried today,” Emah sai
On Saturday, Emah and I went to the mall for some shopping. Of course, I did not get any permission from mom. I left home when she was not around. Actually, it was Emah who pulled me out by force.Emah kept on buying everything that we found on the way. On the other hand, I was only interested in some snacks. I did not care about the other things.I was carrying a few of Emah's shopping bags as we moved around. This girl was always obsessed with shopping.Suddenly, someone walked closer to me, knocking a bag down. “What the hell…” I wanted to shout at the person when he apologized and bent to pick up the bag.But even after he handed me the bag, I remained frozen. This man… it was him!The man looked into my eyes and I saw him smile. He held my hand and put the bag in it. He winked and hurriedly walked away.I remained frozen in place and looked at the man as he walked away. Emah, who had walked some distance away, came back looking for me. “What is wrong?“ She asked as she shook me.
I wanted to ignore her and keep walking. After all, she was never going to be up to anything good.“Hey, you! I am talking to you. Can't you see that there is a visitor here?“ Mom called, her voice turning so hostile that I had to stop.I am sure they must have been surprised. Normally, I would talk to Carlos any time he showed up. This was the first time I had ignored him.But… Did I have to pretend to be good for no reason? He was always good, but not anymore. There was no way I was going to laugh with someone like him when I knew very well that he did not have any good intentions for me.I cleared my throat and looked up at Carlos. He was so silent that I could not tell what he was thinking.“He is your visitor,” I said angrily. “Why do I have to greet him?“ I had not called for him to come, why did I have to be the one to greet him?I turned to walk away, but a pillow hit my head the next second. Turning to look, mom was holding a glass, ready to throw it at me.“Come back here! W
I hesitated for some seconds before nodding my head and walking behind her. I did not see the need to keep hiding from her. I needed to know her plans so that I would find a way to fight for myself.I slowly took a seat, a heavy lump in my throat. I looked at the woman in front of me with some hatred. She was my mom! I was supposed to be so happy around her, to talk to her and share my problems!But here I was, fearing for my own life! At times, I always hoped that she was not my biological mother. But again, who else could it be?“You have to call Carlos and apologize,” Mom said straightforwardly, bringing me back to my senses. I creased my brows. Was she asking me to apologize? “Why should I do it? I just told him the truth…”Mom stood up abruptly, looking directly into my eyes. “Listen to me, you unfilial child! You have to do as I asked you. You are going to be in a relationship with him and do as he asks you. If you have other plans, you can do it after I get what I want!“Tears
I was still shocked by the shout when Carlos pressed me against the wall and brought his lips closer to mine. He was going to kiss me.Instinctly, I turned my face to the side and he ended up kissing my cheek. Still, I felt so disgusted. I used some force and pushed him away, using my hand to wipe off his kiss.And before he had time to react, I gave him a super hot slap on the face. I was mad! What the hell was he planning to do to me?Carlos held his cheek and looked at me like I was some ghost. I am sure he had never expected that I would hit him. “Natalie… you dare to hit me?“ He asked in disbelief. But I was too annoyed to answer him. I walked out of the room and slammed the door shut before walking down the stairs. Tears continuously ran out of my eyes.I met mom downstairs. He was obviously still waiting for us. “I hope you have not done anything stupid,” she said when she saw me.My anger escalated. “Your good son-in-law is waiting for you upstairs,” I said before walking out
I could see a smile appear at the corner of mom's lips, and I felt my heart ache more. Did she rejoice in everything that she was doing?“It is a good thing that you don't want to beat around the bushes,” she said and took her phone. This confirmed to me that she actually had abducted Emah.I swallowed hard and fought back my tears. “Why do you have to go for my friends when they are innocent, mom? Why don't you do all these to me instead? I am the one at fault here!“Mom chuckled and looked up at me. The next second, her eyes turned very icy. “What will I gain from harming you? I don't see the need to kill you when you are still going to be dead within the next two years…”“Mom!“ I shouted, bursting into tears. So she decided to harm my friends instead? Was this woman ever going to be human?She ignored me and made a call, putting it on speaker. The next second, I heard a shriek from the other end.“What do you people want from me?“ There came a voice that I recognized immediately.“
Hell! I felt so disgusted. I pushed his hands away, feeling the urgent need to clean that part that he had touched.“Mia?“ Carlos looked up at me in shock. I think he was expecting me to just enjoy his dirty and disgusting touch. “Are you changing your mind about everything?“I shut my eyes in annoyance. “Just keep your filthy hands off me,” I said. What the hell did he think he was doing?Carlos stopped the car suddenly. I looked out, and froze when I realized that we were in some deserted road. I did not see any other people. “Did you just call me filthy?“ He asked, swallowing hard. “Do you want me to tell you exactly what I want to do to you?“An alarm went off in my head. Ah! I should have known it. I shook my head as I watched him unbuckle his seat belt. “I want to have you, right now, Mia!“ I trembled and widened my eyes. “You… you are not doing anything of that sort to me,” I said and leaned away from him. I was just scared, because I knew that he was capable of doing anythin