CHAPTER 4
Freddie sat over a table outside and the ocean breeze violently shook his hair about. He had a bottle of beer in front of him and a tumbler with little of the beer in it.
Few minutes later, Paolo walked over and sat on the chair at the other side of the table. He had a bandage over his face
“looking good” Freddie teased him and began to pour out a drink into the tumbler.
Paolo scoffed and looked away. “Now I have another scar for life” he said
“and you can't hide this one under sleeves” Freddie mocked and gave a short laugh. He sipped beer from the tumbler and dropped it.
“don't tell me. I want to get that girl. Get her and make her pay! That wench!” he croaked
“well, you can make her pay when she's off this ship and off my hands. But as long as you're on my ship? And she's under my custody? You can't lay no finger on her”
“I see you like the girl”
“I do. She has what I'm looking for”
“you want to take her for yourself right? You just want to have a taste of her before anyone else? Eish! You b@stard!”
“Hahaha! No! Of course not! After seeing what she's done to you? Nah! I can't take chances. Besides, my men raped her before bringing her here”
“then why? Why do you care about her so much? You personally killed the Asian girl who dared to cuss at you and hit you. Why won't you let me do same to someone who has ruined my face?”
“your face has always been ruined Paolo. It just got a little bit more ruined”
“stop teasing me. It's not funny”
Freddie laughed and gulped down beer again.
“that girl... Is money in human form” he spoke up with a more serious and evil tone
“she could fetch us millions of dollars. She's exactly what he wants. Tall, fair, beautiful. Do you know how much we would loose if she gets a single scar on her body?”
There was silence for some seconds.
“I'm sorry. I didn't think that”
“I don't want you or anyone else near her or her friends. Let's get them to him and get off this side of the world”
***
“hey, get up! Come out all of you!” another masculine voice echoed through the cell. Avril's eyes popped open and she looked up.
“get up. Up!” he said again and the other girls began to stand. Nana motioned to the Chinese girl to also stand up and she did.
Avril who had slept off with her back leaning against the wall, tried to gain a clear vision first. She then tried to stand but felt s sharp, terrible pain in her lower abdomen. She let out a shrew cry and sat back down.
“Avril! Are you okay?” Nana asked and bent over to her. Avril held her hand and Nana pulled her up.
“are you okay?” Chidi asked
“my belly... It hurts so bad” Avril cried and leaned against Nana
“the pain just settled in. Don't worry, you'll be fine” Chidi said
“follow me” the man said and began to walk away. They too moved out of the cell, helping Avril to walk. They kept walking for too long a distance and Avril couldn't cope with the pain anymore. Her face and arms hurt. Her tummy felt like a hot metal bowl was placed on it and her legs were just too heavy.
“how big is this ship? Why is it taking so long to get to wherever we're going?” Nana asked. She was getting tired of Avril's groans and cries. She felt her pain.
“be strong okay?” Chidi encouraged and smiled at Avril who just nodded.
Finally, they got to a door and the man opened it.
“this is where you'll be staying until we reach our destination. Go in and rest properly” he said and left immediately
“this is where we'll be staying?” Chidi asked rhetorically
They entered and looked around, not able to believe it just yet.
It was a small room but bigger than their cell. There was a table in the middle of the room and a small couch. There was a wooden chair also.
On the wooden chair was a stack of neatly folded duvets and blankets.
“wow. It's warm” Avril managed to say
Nana helped her sit on the couch while they looked around.
The Chinese girl pulled up a curtain and opened a tiny window. Ocean air blew into the room and the girls went to look through it.
“wow. The ocean is beautiful” Nana said
“if only this was a vacation. I would have enjoyed the view”
“how do you like the room. It's better than the cell right?” Freddie spoke from the front of the open door. Non of them answered him though
“well I figured this place suits you better. Oh, you, how is the pain now?” he asked, directing his question at Avril.
“she's in lots of pain. I had to help her walk here” Nana spoke up
“your muscles are sore. I'll get one of my men to bring some hot water and balm for you” he said and turned to go then stopped and looked at Avril
“what's your name? I only told you mine earlier”
“oh. I'm Avril Henderson”
“lovely name” he said and walked out
“he's the guy that saved you?” Nana asked and sat beside her
“yes“
“he's handsome, no doubt”
“I wonder why he's helping you. He was the one who k–” Nana was going to tell Avril that he killed The Chinese girl's friend but Chidi glared at her
“he was the one who did what?” Avril asked
“he was the one who kept us here” Nana said and glared back at Chidi.
“I thought about that too. He seems like the boss here” Avril said
“we have to be careful. Extra careful. But we are however grateful to him for your life” Chidi stated
Nana got up and walked to a door behind them. She opened it and gasped
“look guys! A bathroom!”
“a bathroom! Oh thank God!” Chidi exclusive and ran into it immediately then closed the door in Nana's face.
“hey! I found it and I'm supposed to use it first!” Nana yelled and banged on the door
Avril chuckled softly and stared down at the floor. Even though she was supposed to be happy and relax in the warm room, she couldn't help but worry. Earlier, while walking with Nana's aid, she had stepped on her left leg. That was her jinx and she knew something bad was going to happen to her.
CHAPTER 5Freddie sent some men to give hot water and a towel to Avril. He also gave them bottled water and some cakes for the girls to eat.After the men delivered those things, Chidi helped massage Avril's body. Then they ate the cakes and spread the blankets to lie down. It was actually noon time but they were exhausted and needed that rest.Avril looked over to the Chinese girl sleeping soundly at the other end of the room. She looked sad even in her sleep. Avril wished she understood Chinese so she could at least talk to her and give her soothing words. She never had friends but she knew what it was like to loose a loved one. That feeling of pain and loneliness.Avril sighed and looked at the ceiling. Her mind wandered around and she tried to not be worried. After about an hour, she too drifted off to sleep.When they woke up in the evening, they were
Avril tossed and turned on the rough surface. She rubbed her leg against a sharp rock and felt the pain in her head. She woke up and groaned. Her body was sore.She sighed and sat up then looked at her bleeding leg.“uhhh! Another injury” she grunted and rubbed the sides of the wound to ease the pain.She was in a cave and the beach was right in front of them. She could see the waves and hear the howling wind but couldn't feel it because it didn't enter into the cave.“but how did I get here?” she asked herself. She remembered waking up on the sand shore but that was all she remembered.She gathered up all her energy and stood up on her feet. She took few steps then remembered what she saw. She froze and held her breath.“that wasn't real, right?” she asked rhetoricallyshe mumbled and wal
A basket instead of the monster? Where did it go? Did it turn into the basket?She shook her head to erase that thought. There's no way it'd turn into a basket. This wasn't a fantasy movie. It was realityAvril sat up on the forest floor and looked around. No sign of the monster. She also looked up at the trees but it had completely disappeared. Her heart raced. She was certain it would pop out of her mouth any second. She gulped down and patted her chest to reduce her heart beat but it even increased.She got on her feet and battled with her legs to stop shaking and stand upright. She wanted to turn the opposite direction and make a run for it but her curiosity got the better part of her. She began to walk towards the basket, limping as she went. She reached it and stooped low. She wanted to open it but so many 'what ifs' began to flow into her mind.“what if this i
Chidi and Nana dressed the men's wounds and went to the kitchen to cook. They had not gotten over Avril's death as they thought she had drowned. Freddie had tried to console them even when he was visibly upset and frustrated.They were sober and hardly said anything. But they were thankful that Freddie did not treat them illy the way he had done before Avril came.After cooking, they set the table and called on Freddie and the men, then they left to eat the remnants.The two men were still very scared. Freddie appeared cool and calm outside but they knew who he truly was inside. He was a monster, a murderer who has no conscience.“come on, sit. The food might get cold” Freddie said to them as they approached the table.They looked at each other again and gave nervous expressions. Freddie saw it and he chuckled but decided to i
A talking dog-like animal. Great! Just great! Just when she thought her life won't get any worse.How on earth did it learn to talk? Could it be a human in a Halloween suit?No. It looked too real. Way too real.“I'm waiting for you. Come on, I haven't had breakfast yet” Dakar said and she gasped and moved back with her butt on the ground“no wait... I didn't mean I would have you for breakfast. I just meant, I wanted breakfast. I don't skip my breakfast. I don't eat humans. I eat fruits and vegetables and sometimes fish and meat. But I'm going to eat omelette and bread today. Care to join me? You look hungry”He began to walk towards her and she screamed and kicked her legs as if it could send him away“get away from me you dog! Get away!” she screamed“Ahh... First impression they say, matters a
A vast green land with beautiful plants and trees arranged neatly and in order. A large waterfall was in sight and there was a beautiful flowing river beneath it. The river had different branches with huge and small rocks around it.Birds flew about, beautifying the atmosphere with their colourful feathers and singing too.Avril was sure there were lots more to see but the place they stood wasn't high enough to show the whole view. She however, loved the little she already saw.“Swing down with this. It's fun” he said and tugged on another rope.“How many ropes do you have here?” she asked in a very low mutter. Even her shadow wouldn't hear her voice.“Actually, I have six. Three at the entrance and three here. One of the three is for emergency situations” Dakar stated“What?” she asked in surprise. Had he heard
They passed the waterfall and walked through a path in a flower garden. They then passed by a cherry garden and then a grape vineyard. Finally, they arrived at a mountainous area with small and large mountains. It was a greenland and was covered with trees and plants. Something caught Avril's attention. It was a tall stature of a man in the middle of the valley between about three mountains. The statue portrayed a broad chested man, shooting an arrow. He was shirtless and wore only a loose skirt that reached his knees. His hair was in a ponytail and he had a type of drawing on his shoulder. The drawing wasn't clear from the distance Avril and Dakar were at.“Is this place some sort of lost city?” she asked“Why do you ask?”“It doesn't look like a place that should be on a deserted island. It looks like a place that was once inhabited”&
Avril took the dress and gripped tightly onto the neckline then sat on the floor, with her back resting against the stone wall. Her emotions were a mixture of terror, delight and curiosity. Terror, in the sense that he (Dakar), was some sort of mystical creature that predicted her coming and was ready and waiting for her, to do her bad maybe. She could be some sort of sacrifice.Delight, in the sense that someone or something wanted her and waited for her. And even made her a dress. It was the first time she received kindness from someone who wasn't her mum or dad. Even though she wasn't sure if Dakar meant good for her, she was overly filled with delight that she received kindness from him.She then hummed as she remembered something.“Dakar is not the only one who's shown me kindness other than my parents. Freddie, Nana and Chidi were also kind to me” she muttered and bit her lower lip. She ag