Chapter 11: ELEVEN

CELESTIA

The next day when I woke up, the clock beside my bed read nine. Wait…It’s not my bed per se. It’s not even my house. Where am I?..When the realization settled over, I immediately jerked up.

"ARGH!" The bruised elbow rubbed against the fabric, and even the bedding was exceedingly soft, it still ached. I clutched my arm, cradling the elbow as pain throbbed anew. And with that, came a flood of memories from last night.

"Good morning," a voice intoned.

My head turned towards source, and there stood Raffaele, leaning against the bathroom doorway. He was practically naked, save for the towel wrapped around his hips, standing in damp hair and a glorious bare frame.

For a tiny second there, his sinful body made me forget that he was the devil who held me captive. The handsomeness was so clichéd and evident that my virgin eyes could not help but take in the visual treat.

How does a man look so good on the outside when he is nothing but wicked from inside?

A finger snapped before my face.

"Are you staring at me, bambi?" The smirk on his lips stretched wide. "That's not very polite, you know."

"Sorry." I quickly cast my gaze away and whispered, "I was just startled."

Even though I looked elsewhere, I could still feel his intense eyes fixed on me. He didn't say a word for a long time, fiddling with his phone and then casually discarded on the bedside table.

"So, how much do you remember of last night's fiasco?" My eyes flew to his and widened in alarm. I didn't know how the man went from zero to a hundred in mere seconds. "Oh, yes, you do remember." He continued with the same amused tone. "I am glad; at least I don't have to repeat your transgressions when I punish you for the same."

"Punish me?" A glow of anger sparked. "Do you really expect me to sit tight in a locked room where I have been kidnapped?"

"Did I harm you in any way?" he countered.

"You kidnapped me!" I accused back.

His nostrils flared as he pierced me with a glare. "You don't understand this very well, Celestia, so I am going to have to spell it out for you," he said in a calm, controlled voice. The kind of calmness descends over the sea before a violent storm hits hard.

"In this house, under my roof, you have no rights and privileges unless I grant you the same. This is neither a democracy nor a fair arrangement, and I don't give a flying fuck that it is not. I won't harm you, but you don't want to test my patience like the way you did last night. Ever."

His decree patched my throat. I stared at him in silent horror, unable to comprehend how my boring, sheltered life overnight transformed into a dangerous and uncertain one, and I am left at the mercy of a man who was both beautiful and vicious.

"You can't...do this." My own voice sounded hoarse and broken to my ears.

Raffaele marched over to my side, pulling me up by the forearm and grinning viciously. "In case you haven't noticed,bambi, I can and I will," he snarled at my face and directed me towards the washroom. "Freshen up. We will need to talk."

The instant he unhooked his fingers, I hobbled in there and locked the door. I needed space to breathe, to calm my rabbiting heart pumping blood over time, and to assemble my thoughts before I suffer a nervous breakdown.

If my situation was bad before, it was worse now.

The consequences I dreaded were right before me, breathing down my neck like a fire-breathing dragon waiting to consume me as a whole.

Should I beg and plead? I wondered. Would that satisfy his need to punish me? I knew that Raffaele would not listen to my side of the story with an open mind.

"You can't hide in there forever, Celestia," Raffaele growled from the other side of the door as I quickly brushed my teeth and washed my face.

Gingerly, I walked back and found that he was already dressed for the day. Donned in every shade of black, as dark as his soul, he worked on adjusting a tripod stand. A camera was mounted on top as if he was going to record something.

"Come here, Celestia," he beckoned without looking up.

Glancing between him and the camera, I complied, limping along with the distance and stood close.

This time, he turned around and asked conversationally, "How's your ankle?"

"I am fine." My voice came out whisper-soft. He gripped my shoulder and positioned me in front of the camera at an arm's length. "What are you—"

"Just a small punishment to make sure that you won't repeat last night's episode, and I wouldn't have to return home in a rush," he cut me in and then calloused fingers dug into my skin a little too painfully as he continued, "I am a busy man, Celestia. I don't like to leave tasks unfinished and rush home for such silly reasons."

"Please." Tears began to burn at the back of my eyes. "You don't have to do this, Raffaele. I won't run, I promise. I wouldn't repeat. Please, give me one chance. Just one—"

"Enough!" I instantly froze at the voice, at the chilling roar of his baritone. " Do you still want to carry this on?"He narrowed his eyes, warning me that his patience was running out.

I shook my head mutely.

"Good." He stiffly nodded, letting me go and took two steps back. "I want you to look me in the eye and strip."

The ground beneath my feet seemed to slip away.

"What?" I whispered in shock.

"I want you to take off your clothes," he repeated.

I blinked and glanced at the camera. Yes, it was starting to make sense now.

Raffaele continued his business-like tone. "It's like an insurance for your obedience. You strip for the camera, and the recording stays with me as long as you don't do anything stupid. If you do, I can't promise the video's safety, but you are a smart girl to understand that. Don't you, Celestia?" He dared to smirk. "Once you return to your home, I'd destroy the recording."

Anger rose within me like a dormant volcano, and I took a step back. "And I am supposed to believe that, you sick bastard? I am done playing your perverted games, I am done with you!"

Blinded by white rage, I charged at him with my hand raised, but his reflex was remarkable. He caught my wrist in a flash, twisting my arm at the back, and held me captive by the throat. "FYI, that was really stupid. I took you for a girl who is smarter than that," he breathed against my ear and nipped my earlobe as if to punctuate his words.

Pressed against the hard chest, entrapped, I was more vulnerable than afraid. What he demanded of me was beyond my expectations. I could have gritted my pain and taken the pain, but this? I was not prepared to give him a lewd show. I would never be ready for stripping in front of a camera so that a man could hold it as leverage against me.

Raffaele turned me around without releasing and locked his gaze with mine. "Don't make it worse for yourself." The gentle tone couldn't belie the warning in his voice.

"Why should I believe you? I mean…I don't know what you would do with that—" I gulped and pointed at the camera. "You could…you could—" The possibilities were endless and fearsome.

I bit my lips and closed my eyes, letting the tears fall freely. I wanted to fight, I honestly did, except I knew I would never win. I would make it even worse.

"I am done with my explanations and promises." He stood with his arms folded across his chest. "I’ll wait for ten more seconds, and then rip off whatever you are wearing. If I have to do that, Celestia, you are staying naked as long as I allow you clothing."

I knew what he was saying was true. This man was capable of more significant damages than he threatened, so I had to make the decision. But, how? Both roads would lead me to a new hell. I struggled with the voices in my head.

Okay. Maybe, if I listen to him, he'd let me keep a small shred of dignity.

And with this thought, I stepped up before the lens. It took a great effort not to sway and stand with my head held high, even knowing that my modesty would be in ruins very soon.

But I was not ready to give him the satisfaction of breaking me just yet.

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