Chapter 2

Her lips quivered. "Sasha." 

Those bluish-gray eyes slid down to her lips, observing their movement. Heat raised up to her face, feeling the embarrassment that his scrutiny caused. At these times, she wished she was born as a man. Life would have been much easier. 

"Sasha." His lips spelled her name, feeling how smooth it came out. She had a beautiful name. One he wanted to call for the rest of his day. "So, Sasha..." He released her chin, only to make his thumb trace her lower lip. It was not too plump, rather very chapped. He could tell that she was not the one to take care of her assets. But it still churned something inside him. The desire to feel them in his mouth. He had seen better lips, more plumper ones. And knew the fact that they weren't real. Most were the result of injections. "Do you know how much... your father had loaned it to me?" She smelled of perfume. The effect of her last job of selling perfumes and female accessories in the store. 

"Please, Mr. Bolgov. She is not involved in this—" 

"Hush!" He waved his index finger in the air, his gaze not leaving Sasha for a second. "I'm talking to your daughter. Don't interrupt. Can you imagine the amount, Sasha?" He leaned closer to her, his touch making her feel bitter tingles down her spine. 

"No." Her voice was soft but it did not reflect the fear that was glistening in her eyes. If it would have been anyone else, they would not have been able to see through it. She was good at hiding her fear and desperation. But she was like an open book to him. The one he wanted to read. 

"One million." Her eyes bulged at the mention. That was an amount she could never imagine her father loaning. Was he drunk when he asked for that amount? Now, she understood how her mother was admitted to a good hospital and from where all the expenses of her operations were coming from. Treating breast cancer was extremely costly and to lend that much amount of money for them was almost close to impossible. 

But the day her mother was lying unconscious on the floor, she did not have the time to think about where the money came from. Her father assured her that he would manage and she trusted him. Her trust wasn't broken as her mother was admitted in the private HealthOCore building. It was extremely expensive but worth the risk because the environment was safe. Going to government hospitals was like risking her life all over again as the environment itself was not sanitary enough. Even after the admission, she did not question her father. Because she did not have the time to think. Work and house responsibility kept her mind occupied. 

"I will pay that amount." She said, gathering all the confidence she could within her. There was no way she could, but this was the only door available right now. To lie. Maybe she would have to go to explicit levels to gather that amount. And stop her father from gambling, but still survival was the only option. Values and morals did not matter anymore. 

A smirk appeared on Russell's lips. "What a brave daddy's girl. I'm intrigued. But you see, sweetheart... I'm an impatient man." He moved away from her and turned his back on her. He walked to the right side of the room, where one of his men was standing. The man moved away, giving Russel the space to look at the picture frame that hung on the wall. It was Sasha's picture. It was taken at a time when she was much more carefree. The glint of ecstasy in her eyes and the smile lit up her olive toned face. "I gave your dearest daddy five months. He could not pay me back. So now, I want the payment. And I think…" his voice trailed away as he turned around to see her. "...I know what can be done to pay the debt." 

"What?" Her father asked impatiently.

"Your beautiful daughter will pay the debt for you." His eyes bored holes into her skin and she felt more bitter tears reaching the brink of her eyes. She knew where this was going. 

"Huh? Sasha…" he looked at his daughter who was looking at the ground as if holding it for support with her stare. 

"Yes. In exchange for the payment, your daughter will be mine." 

Her father fell on the floor, making Sasha bend down and hold his shoulders. He joined his hands, as tears fell down his eyes. "Please, Sir. Don't do that. I promise I will pay you. Please show some mercy."

"This is my mercy, Mr. Rodrick. If you reject this, then I will kill you and your wife and take your daughter with me forcefully. Will that be a good option for you?" 

"No!" Sasha realized that the voice was of her own. She blinked, thinking of some other way. But nothing came to mind. "Please don't kill them. I will go with you." The last words were more of a whisper. She had no choice. Her life was already messed up. She had accepted it from the day her father walked into the roads of gambling and alcohol consumption. There were times when she tried to end herself, but the pain stricken face of her mother and father would not let her jump off the high-rise building. Her mother was a stripper, her father was a gambler. What could she expect from her life? Her parents were messed up, but they were the only hope she had. She could not let her hope die. 

"Good girl." Russell had a mischievous smile on his face. She did not expect her to be this obedient. "Then come already." 

"Can I please have a few seconds with my father?" Her hazel eyes, the exact replica of her mother's eyes, pleaded. 

"Make it quick, sweetheart. If you try to run away, then we are just outside the house." He winked at her and strutted away from the room with his men following him behind. 

"Sasha." Her father turned towards her and cupped her hands in his. He rested his head on them, while his shoulders shook. "I'm so sorry, my child. I swear I wanted to fix all this. I thought–" 

"It's okay, Dad. I know that you did this for Mom. Please take care of her while I am not here. If she asks about me, then…" she looked away, pressing her lower lip to stop more tears hurling down her eyes. She was so tired of crying. Yet it never stopped. "Take care of yourself."

"Sa-Sasha." He pulled his hands away and wiped his tears. "I will release you out of his grip. I will collect the money. You just hold on for a few months. I will bring you out of there." 

Her lips curved into a smile. A sad one. "Thanks Dad. But it's one million. Nobody would give that amount of money, even if we sell ourselves out there. It's okay. I'll be fine there." She pulled him into a hug. "Goodbye, Dad. Tell mom that I love you both." She whispered in his ear, and he weeped more. Wasting not another second,she pulled away from him and gave him another reassuring smile. 

He wanted to stop her when she walked away and out of the door. The little princess his wife and he brought into this world was only facing thorns from the beginning. There was a time when she screamed and cried. But after a certain time, they all died down. Maybe he never noticed what she was going through as he swimmed into the world of lunacy and addiction. 

Sasha walked out of the door, not daring to look back at the small house full of mixed memories. Most of them were unpleasant. The good ones, almost forgotten. She exhaled and stepped inside the backseat, the door of which was held by a blonde man wearing one of those statement black suits. 

He was already sitting there, his eyes following her every movement. She settled in the seat, maintaining a fair distance from the man who would be her owner now. What he would do with her, she did not want to think. 

The one thing she knew was, if she had to survive, she had to lock in all her emotions and throw them away somewhere, only to be found when she became free. 

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