Something, I didn't know exactly what at the time, disturbed me in the middle of the night and I opened my eyes to the dark interior of my room. Rolling to one side I checked the clock on my phone; it was only 2:37am. Rolling to my other side, I saw my Remi sleeping next to me. He must have slipped into my room while I was asleep. Maybe that was what woke me. I began pulled the blankets up to my chin with an exhale and prepared to go back to sleep. However, my relaxation was yanked away from me when I heard a clatter from outside my room.

Startled, I pushed the blankets away and went to my door. The sound had been close, as if it had only been a few doors away. My family didn't own any pets, so I knew whatever it had been had to have come from something else moving around the house. After I tiptoed down the hall to glance into the bathroom, I looked around the guest room. Both rooms were empty. I was on my way back to my own room when I thought to peek inside my parents' room. They weren't really night owls, but maybe one of them was sick and had gotten up to use the restroom.

I stopped dead in my tracks. There was a hulking figure leaning over my parents. He had something shiny raised above his head, but I realized what it was too late. He brought it down into my father's chest with an impact that made me jump with swelling fear, and my dad began coughing loudly.

By this time, my mother had woken up from the sound of my dad's coughs and was fumbling around in the dark. "Honey? Are you alright?" she asked, reaching for the lamp on her nightstand. I opened my mouth to shout at her to move just as the man pulled the blade from my father's chest and plunged it into my mom's stomach. She gasped and faltered for a minute, her eyes meeting mine from across the room. Then she fell forwards onto my dad and both lay motionless. I could already smell the blood.

Horrified, I stood frozen in place as my brain refused to process the scene I had just witnessed. Now done with my parents, the man straightened with his back to me. This jolted me into action and I moved away from the door. But I stepped back too quickly and the wood floors creaked softly under my weight. The man stopped and looked back towards the door. I didn't wait to know if he'd seen me as I ran back to my room and closed the door. I hurried to wake my brother. "Wake up..! We have to go!" I hissed, trying not to let my voice shake.

He blinked at me with a look of confusion. "Wha...? Whas wrong?" he asked.

I knew I didn't have time to explain it to him, so I picked him up and hurried to the closet. Shutting the door quietly, I held my breath and placed a hand over my brother's mouth. He tried to move it away, but I shook my head silently. Then the distinct sound of my bedroom door opening could be heard and we both turned to look at the closed closet door. Slow footsteps passed the closet and my brother looked up at me worriedly; I kept my eyes on the door, ready for a fight if necessary.

To my relief, the footsteps appeared to retreat slightly and disappear. Believing he had left, I breathed out a wordless sigh of relief and hugged Remi to me. However, that small sound would be our undoing.

A moment later, the door swung open and the man stood over us, his frame outlined in the light of room's moonlight. I pushed my brother behind me protectively and glared at the man, biting out a warning. The man did not answer. He grabbed my arm with a tight grip and dragged me out of the closet. After throwing me to the side, he then grabbed my brother.

Scrambling to my feet, I tried to get over to protect my only little brother, but as with my parents, I was too late. I stopped, hand outstretched, as I watched the man slit Remi's throat in one swift movement. My brother, who had been crying, went silent aside from some gurgling sounds and the man dropped him carelessly. I wanted to vomit.

The stranger was far from done, however, and he soon turned to me. I tore my eyes away from my brother's body just as he grabbed my shirt and pulled me to my feet. He pushed me back, and I stumbled into my closet door with a slam as he pinned me in place, knife to my neck. With narrowed eyes, the man leaned close enough for me to smell his cologne; it made my eyes water.

The knife moved across my skin and I closed my eyes tightly. "Please..." I whispered. I felt him pause and I swallowed, the action shifting the knife even more. However, after a moment, the man seemed to move back, and when I opened my eyes, I could just barely see him staring at me through the blackness of my room, features indistinguishable yet soft.

Then, to my confusion, he tossed the knife on the floor. He pulled me away from the wall and wrapped an arm around my neck tightly in a choke-hold. Panicked, I scrambled to pull away. With one hand, I reached desperately for the knife at my feet, but he dragged me away, his arm tightening around my airway enough to cut it off almost entirely. I pulled at his forearm as the walls started blurring and the world started spinning, gasping for air though none came. With my last breath I tried to call for help, but it was barely loud enough for even myself to hear.

*******

Not going to lie, I was surprised to open my eyes the following morning. As I lifted my dizzy head from its pillow, I found I was in a strange place. The walls of the room were a barren, white color. There was a small, wooden dresser and a desk with a chair, and across from the bed was a large oak door with an old-looking doorknob. The entire room seemed to be in a state of disrepair, but other than those few things and the bed I was lying on, there were no other pieces of furniture in the room or decorations of any kind. There were no windows either.

As my head began to clear, I remembered the events of the night before. My throat hitched and I tried to sit up, but I quickly found my hands had been tied securely to the upper right of the bedframe. Wriggling into a sitting position, I twisted my hands around until my wrists were red and sore but to no avail.

Just then, I heard the heavy door unlock with a resounding click that made me jump. Straining my neck, I managed to look over my shoulder as a man stepped into the doorway. I could tell with just one glance that he was much stronger than I, and a part of me cowered at the very sight of his hulking form.

"So, you woke, huh? That's good," he said. His voice wasn't as deep as I had expected, but that somehow made him even more intimidating. He crossed the room and sat down at the end of the bed; I pulled my feet up and away from him.

My first instinct had been to glare at him, but now that he was close, I found I could do nothing but stare at him fearfully. This man had killed my family in front of me, and now he had me captive somewhere. Why? Millions of scary thoughts drifted through my head at the possible answer to that question and I clenched my fists tensely in their bonds.

Upon seeing my apprehension, the man reached out and cupped my chin. "You look scared," he observed.

I swallowed the bile that rose in my throat at being touched by his bloody hands. "You-... you killed my family..." I said.

A strange expression crossed his face and he dropped his hand awkwardly, almost shamefully. "Yeah."

I struggled to breathe evenly. "But... you let me live?" I asked.

He furrowed his brow, looking even more uncomfortable. "Also 'yeah'," he said, quickly changing the subject. "Are you hungry?"

My stomach being in knots as it was, just the thought of food made me sick. However, the man didn't wait for me to respond before he stood up and leaned over me to untie my wrists. "I'll be right back, okay?" he said. "Stay here."

He went out and I sat very still, listening for him as he went up what sounded like a flight of stairs. When everything was silent, however, I wasted no time in leaving the bed to pull the door open a crack and peek out. There was a staircase leading up. When I reached the top, I looked out into a living room. It was in far better shape than the room beneath it. I saw the man standing in the kitchen. He moved about the cabinets, murmuring something under his breath.

I prayed he stayed there and moved quickly across the living room and to a hall that I could see lead to a door. Being quiet, I rushed to the door and yanked on the knob, but the door was locked and I had to fumble with the lock. Unfortunately, before I could get it open, a voice spoke behind me.

"I thought I told you to stay there."

I whipped around and pressed my back up against the door. The guy was standing there with a look of confused anger, like he wanted to be mad but knew he couldn't fault me for trying to escape. His conscience unnerved me. "Stay away," I said, reaching behind me for the lock.

He sighed and stepped closer. "Come on. Let's go back down," he urged.

He reached out to grab my arm, but I sidestepped it and ran past him down the hall. When I found myself back into the living room, I looked in all directions, but I only saw one door that wasn't back down to the prison below. I ran to it and pulled it open, hearing his footsteps behind me as I slammed the door closed and hurried to pull a dresser in front of it.

Turning, I looked around for a weapon. I was now in a room with a king size bed and some nice furniture that looked well used. There was also a nightstand and on top of the nightstand, a lamp. I grabbed the lamp and yanked the cord from the wall, readying myself. The door hit the dresser as the man attempted to open it. When he found the blockade, I head him exhale sharply before he pushed at the door and easily moved the dresser aside so he could step into the room. 

Having seen his strength in action, I felt my heartbeat quicken with fear. "Don't come any closer," I pleaded, moving back as he advanced.

When he got to close and I had nowhere else to go, I swung the lamp at his head, but he snatched it right out of my hands with a growl. Then he grabbed my wrist and dragged me close with a glare. "Enough," he said.

I stumbled as he pulled me from the room, clawing at his grip desperately. "Fuck you! Let me go!" I shouted. "Help! Somebody help me!"

After he lugged me back down the stairs, he threw me at the bed roughly. Immediately, I ran around to the other side to put something between me and him. He stared at me coldly. "Why did you disobey me?" he asked.

"Because you're a monster," I snapped. "Because you killed my family!"

Reaching across the bed before I could react, he grabbed my shirt. I flinched back as he raised a hand as if to strike me. However, he stopped at the last minute and seemed to consider his actions. He released my shirt. "You will not talk to me that way," he said firmly. "You... You are mine. I own you now."

The stress of it all hit me then, and tears made a smooth path down my cheeks. "I don't belong to you-" I tried to protest, but a single glare sent me into silence.

"You. Are. Mine," he said again. His tone was warning me to tread lightly.

Numbly, I dropped my eyes. This was enough, and his features softened out. "Good." He smoothed out the sheets on the bed and sat down to look at me."Why don't we start with introductions?" he suggested.

I didn't respond. I didn't even look at him.

He frowned and cleared his throat. "Alright... My name is Cliff. What's yours?" he asked.

I think the only reason I answered was out of fear. "Z-Zane."

He nodded thoughtfully. "That's a good name. How old are you?"

"Nineteen...." I murmured.

He smiled as if trying to break the ice. "That's what I was going to guess," he said good naturedly. Then he paused. "Oh, yeah. I never did finish making you food."

I looked towards the door hopefully, but he noticed. He stood up and grabbed the rope off of the desk. Realizing he meant to restrain me again, I avoided his groping hand. "Please don't tie me up again," I begged.

He frowned and studied me for a long time, seeming unsure if he should trust me. Finally, he sighed. "Fine, but if you leave this room," he warned, "I will start keeping you tied all the time. Do you understand?"

I nodded. "Yes..."

He nodded curtly and left.

I waited longer this time before I moved, afraid he would come back down and scold me if he found me out of place. However, when he didn't come back, I hurried over to the desk and pulled the drawers open, looking for anything to help me. They were all empty. I ran to the dresser too, but there was still nothing. Despairingly, I sank to the floor and put my head in my hands, fighting back the rising panic that threatened to ensue. I was trapped.

I head footsteps descending the stairs and I scrambled back to the far side of the bed just as the door opened and the man walked in holding a tray with a sandwich and a glass of water. He only glanced at me briefly as he brought it to the desk. Then he turned to me and smiled cheerfully. "Hope you like ham. It was all I had at the moment."

I didn't move right away, so he came over to persuade me. Terrified of him touching me, I didn't even let him speak before I crossed the room and sat down in the chair tensely. He sat across from me on the edge of the desk. I looked at him, then at the food, but I didn't dare touch it.

Frowning, he asked, "What's wrong? You must be hungry, you were out for a whole day."

Glancing at him, I hesitantly picked up the food and took a small bite before immediately placing it back on the plate. 

He nudged the food closer. "Eat more than that," he urged. "You'll get sick if you don't."

"I'm not hungry," I said in a whisper.

He sighed, clearly frustrated. "Fine. I'll leave it here so you can eat if you get hungry," he told me.

He was walking towards the door when I finally mustered up to courage to ask. "Why...? Why did you do it...?"

He stopped, but he didn't look at me. I hoped he would say something, but he just stood there with his back to me. Then he shook his head. "It doesn't matter," he said, and he left the room.

*******

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