THE BRACELET

There's a difference between a boy and a man, babe.

***

Trigger Warning: attempted r*pe

CHAPTER VI

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“ARACELI!”

Looking up, I saw Vince standing by the junction I told him that I would be standing by with a wide smile on his face as he took in my appearance.

It was Guillermo's idea to wear the yellow sundress that contrasted well against my dark skin. The gold chain and bracelet were both simple, but added a nice finishing touch to my attire. He had a better sense in fashion than he liked to admit to himself and when I asked him about it, he said he judged based on what he liked to see on his women.

I didn't know when I became his women, but I didn't comment on it. I didn't think he wanted me to.

“Vince,” I said, putting on my best relieved voice as I walked nearer to him.

“For a second I thought you wouldn't show,” he said, bringing me into his arms as I forced myself to relax against him. If I was going to do this, I had to do it well.

“It was hard... to get out,” I said, following him closer towards his car. “When I get back, boss is definitely going to kill me.”

He nodded his head as he walked to his car, opening the door for me. “You won't have to worry about that, anymore.”

Furrowing my brows in confusion, I stepped away from the car only to bump into one of his men.

“I-I thought we were just going to sit a-and talk,” I stuttered, about to start freaking out as more of his men appeared almost literally out of nowhere.

“I have a much better destination, beautiful,” he said, just as I felt something hard being pressed against my back. I quickly glanced down at where one of his men was holding a gun to me, his hand grabbing my arm to keep me firmly in place.

“Holy shit.”

“Get into the car without making noise and we won't hurt you, princess,” Vincent chuckled darkly, holding the door wider for me to get in. The guards didn't hesitate to push me in before getting in after me to stop me from running out.

“Let me go, you ass! Why are you doing this?” I asked, directing my question to Vincent who got into the driver's side and started driving.

He chuckled as he watched them wrap a dirty cloth around my mouth from the rear view mirror, a sadistic glint in his eyes.

“Because, beautiful, I don't play risky games. And you are a very risky game,” he said, not casting me another glance as he focused instead on his driving. “I'm going to drive you boys back. Then I'll bring her to the cell, have a little fun with her and then I'll bring her to you so you can have your turn too.”

“Yes, boss.”

“Fuck you!” I screamed through the cloth, but my voice only came out muffled.

“Don't worry, baby girl. We'll be able to do a lot of that where we're going.” I glared at the back of his head as anger started boiling through my veins. I sent my finger into one of his henchman's eye and pulled the cloth away from my face as he yelled in agony.

“You know what? It says a lot that you have to force me to be with you because I would never choose you,” I spat out, fighting against the holds of his henchmen as if I could get out. “You didgust me. You're like the gum cleaners scrape off underneath the cafeteria table; chewed up and disgusting. Nobody would ever willingly want to be with you. You're scum.”

I noticed his hands clench around the steering wheel and a bout of satisfaction rushed through me. I may get my head bashed in, but if I got him riled up while doing that, then I was all good.

“Shut her up. Anyway you can,” he said lowly, not taking his eyes off the road.

“What? Too pussy to hear the truth? I knew it. You're nothing.”

Before any more abuse could fall out of my mouth, I felt a hard thump against the back of my head. Suddenly my vision started to dim and my hearing faded out. Next thing I knew, I was out like a light.

***

I woke up to a throbbing pain at the back of my head, making me wince and cradle my head in my hands. Tears of frustration started to well in my eyes as all the days past events came back to haunt me.

I should've kept my mouth shut. I shouldn't have riled him up. If I at least kept quiet, I would've been able to probably see where he was taking me. Then I would've at least been able to tell the guys.

I suddenly slapped my head as I realised that I wouldn't have been able to tell Daniel and the rest in the first place.

Until...

“Hello? Pablo? Guillermo? Can you hear me?” I said into the bracelet, looking around the dark, musty smelling dungeon I was locked inside. “I-I don't know if you can hear me, but I'm alive and... and I don't know how you're going to be able to find me.”

I cried pathetically as I realised how truly hopeless my situation was. They were too far away to have been able to see Vincent take me and to follow him. I looked around the room and then looked at myself, noting how everything was still intact.

And then my words drifted back to what Pablo said. What if they think I just ran away with him?

But then, in that moment, everything clicked.

Pablo may have trusted me, but Daniel was his boss and Daniel definitely didn't trust me. He must've sent Pablo to warn me. He must've sent Pablo to—

There was no time to waste. Lifting the bracelet up to my mouth, I started to speak again. “I-If you put a tracking device on me, they didn't touch me. It's my exact location. He's alone. There might be a few guards, but not many. He dropped the others off while I was out. I'll try and stall him as long as I can.”

I hoped, prayed that they would reach me. It seemed so obvious after I realised it. Touching the bracelet resting on my wrist, it just became so much clearer.

Daniel didn't trust me, so he tracked me. With the bracelet.

Before I could spend any longer pondering over the jewellery situation, the sound of footsteps reverberated around the grey, stone walls of the small cellar, making me snap my head up to the steel bars.

“Oh, good! You're up. I've been waiting a long time for this moment,” the man, Vincent said, allowing himself into my cell. I looked up at him, not letting myself say a word as I pondered over what I should do.

I had to stall him. But for how long? I didn't know if I was hours or minutes away from the guys. How long would it take for them to get to me? How was I supposed to stall him? Make him angry or keep him placaint?

I decided that things could only get worse if I made him angry, so I would stay on his good graces.

“Oh no. Is the beautiful Araceli ignoring me?” he asked, feigning sadness even though there was a wide grin on his face.

For a second, I believed nothing was going to happen. That fantasy only lasted as long as it took for me to realise Vincent was taking off his belt.

“Vincent, I'm sorry. Please, just don't hurt me,” I hesitated. “I'll do anything to be with you. Just please, forgive me.”

“Don't be sorry about a thing, sweetheart. You can make it up to me right now,” he said, getting down on his knees in front of me.

I tried to stand up and run away, but he grabbed my ankle and pushed me back against the cold hard floor.

“Please, Vincent, please don't do this,” I begged, more tears trailing down my cheeks as I finally got a grip on what was happening. What was going to happen.

“Don't worry, beautiful. We're going to have a lot of fun together. All you have to do is behave and you'll enjoy this as much as I will.” He held my hands down flat against the ground and used his belt to tie them together. He hitched my stupid yellow sundress up as I struggled against him.

“Help me! Somebody help me, please! Help me!” I started begging for help, quickly becoming hysterical as he unbuttoned his shirt. “Let go of me! Please! Please, stop this. Please.”

“Yes, keep begging me.”

“No! Please stop! Help me! Somebody please help me.” My voice quietened down as he got to slowly pulling down my dress, realising that we were alone. Nobody would help me. With a last whimper, my voice coming out weak through tears, I begged one last time. “Please, stop. W-What if I was your daughter?”

“I don't have a daughter.” His hands felt all over my body as I shuddered in disgust.

“Then your sister. Your mother!” His eyes snapped to me as I said this, the colour in them quickly darkening as he got off me and kneeled instead.

“You bitch,” he sneered at me in disgust before raising his hand and slapping me right across the face.

I thanked the heavens for that slap because the alternative was so much worse. I sat up quickly, pulling the top of my sundress over my chest as he continued staring at me in disgust.

“You bitch, you bitch, you bitch.” He slapped me with every abuse that came out of his mouth. It hurt so much that my cheek soon numbed out the pain. He stared at me a bit more, I guess willing the image of his mother to go away before he suddenly stood up. He turned away from me and walked to the door, the anger evident even with his back to me. “Don't think this is over yet.”

“Araceli!” A voice called out from above us, getting the both of our attention instantly.

Without even glancing at Vincent, I screamed. “I'm here! I'm right here. I'm in—”

I was cut off by Vincent's hand on my mouth, stopping me from saying anything else. Obviously, after the stunt he pulled, I wasn't actually going to listen to him.

“Fuck!” he yelled after I bit down on his hand hard, drawing blood. Before he could recover and restrain me some more, I continued yelling.

“I'm down here, in the basement!”

“You women are so evil,” he growled, his fingers wrapping around my neck threateningly.

Glaring at him, I scoffed. “I'm the evil one? Because I'm the one threatening rape, right?”

“You think rape is worse than what you've done? I'm going to lose my life!”

“You should've known better than to fire a gun at Daniel then,” I snarled, spitting in his face as he tightened his grip on my neck, halting my ability to breathe.

“And you should have known better than to test me. Unfortunately, you're going to have to die too.” I clawed at his fingers with my restrained hands, trying to ease them off but they didn't budge as I slowly started to lose feeling in my body.

“Even if she does die, it's not going to happen today.” He quickly stood up, pulling me up with him and holding me in front of him. Thankfully, his fingers weren't putting as much pressure on my neck anymore, but they were still there, holding me in place as my sundresses started to slip off again.

I didn't struggle against him. I was too busy trying to recollect my breath as he whipped out his own gun with a speed I had never seen and pointed it right at Daniel. I winced as the grip he had on me became more painful.

“Put the gun down, Daniel. I have my men on their way,” Vincent said, cocking his head to the side as he kept his gaze on Daniel. “And, I've got this beautiful girl here, with me.” He grabbed a handful of my breast and squeezed as I cried out and tried to pull away from him. “It would be such a shame if I just accidently... killed her.”

I let out a pained sob, trying to pry my hands out of the makeshift cuffs he made with his belt. What scared me even more than Vincent though, was Daniel. I wasn't a threat to him. He didn't falter because he didn't care if I died.

I would just be collateral damage.

“And I have my men with me here, Vincent. Whether you kill her or not you're still going to die,” Daniel said nonchalantly. “You may as well take one last sin off your long list of them and hand the girl over to me. So when I finally kill you, you won't be punished as much.”

“Isn't she your bitch? Don't you care about her?” he asked as I met Daniel's eyes. His cold eyes that gave nothing away.

I had my answer before he gave one.

“No.”

The room was silent. I looked down to my feet in an effort to hide my tears and Vincent, I guess stunted by Daniel's reply, didn't make a move behind me. He only tightened his arm around me, holding my shoulder instead of my neck and pulling me into him.

“You won't kill me. I know you won't kill me.” He had the audacity to sound smug as if he had something on Daniel.

He might have. I realised then that I had no knowledge of the situation. Daniel and Vincent were both running crime organisations. They knew each other better than I knew any of them and in the moment, all they saw were each other. I couldn't rely on luck or for one of them to take pity on me.

I had to take pity on myself and save myself before one of them just happened to shoot in my direction.

Before I could talk myself out of it, I sent my body into Vincent's outstretched arm, taking him by surprise and making him drop the gun. I didn't let him regain his senses and realise what happened. I instead sent my body into him next, knocking him to the ground at the sudden weight.

I fell on top of him, adding to the stars he probably saw as I made it more difficult for him to recover.

“Get the fuck off me, you bitch,” he growled, attempting to buck me off him, but I stayed on him until the rest of Daniel's men finally showed up.

“Tie him up, knock him out and take him to the basement,” I watched Daniel give them orders before they nodded and walked over to him.

“Fuck you! Fuck you all!” Vincent shouted as they yanked me off Vincent and sprayed something into his face. Within seconds, his eyelids drooped and he became unconscious.

A large man that I was unfamiliar with came up to me and helped me take the belt off my hands. He picked me up and flung me over his shoulders, making me let out an 'oof' as his shoulder blade pressed into my stomach and I hung upside down.

“What the fuck are you doing?” I almost yelled as he carried me like that out of the musty looking cell we were in.

“Don't fight him,” was all Daniel said. His words didn't put me at ease, but I decided to put my trust in him even if he couldn't do the same with me.

I squinted as the sun came at me on full blare once we finally stepped outside. I let the man gently place me in a black car before getting into the passenger side and driving away.

Quickly getting up and turning, I watched from the back window as they carried an unconscious Vincent to a white van with no windows and a foreign logo printed onto it. I couldn't help but wonder what they would do to him.

Well, I was about to find out. 

*****

I told myself that I wouldn't double update with this book, but ahhh guys, I can't help it. I felt like it would've been so mean to leave you guys hanging on that last chapter when even I wasn't that big a fan of it.

Warning for Thursday's chapter for all the readers that are squeamish.

Also I didn't know how to add the trigger warning without ruining the aesthetic, but health over aesthetic any day.

Anyway, don't forget to vote and comment if you forgot to... I'm still trying to figure out how to beg for votes without coming off desperate or forceful. At the end of the day, just do whatever works for you.

Love you, ommy xx