Whether he was doing this for us or just himself, I still felt stupid for the way I caved. I submitted to him so easily that it was embarrassing. I had never been so obedient and controlled in my entire life, not even as a child. My parents were never really the most chill parents in the world, but they definitely were not as demanding as Arsen.
I felt my panties become wet at just the thought of Arsen having full dominance over what I did and said. I wished he would come back to finish what he had started, but I knew that wasn’t going to happen. So I sat there, close to tears, and not knowing how feel or what to do next.
I felt hopeless at this point. My arms were tied up, so if I’d tried to make any escape, it would be ten times harder than it should. I shifted onto my side and laid down. It was a little uncomfortable for a while, but soon my body became numb and I couldn’t feel a thing.
So many thoughts were flying through my brain that I couldn’t even decide what to think about first. I eventually got so confused about everything that was going off that I just let myself fall asleep to take a temporary break from all of the madness.
Arsen
I left her sitting on the bed and went to my office to check a few emails and see if there was any new information from the guys. I was scrolling through a load of emails from people contacting me to do events and lectures around the world. The guys sent a few messages about how they found out the woman’s name and address. Now they were coming up with a plan of how to get rid of her. I sent out a few replies and continued to scroll through pointless messages until one message in particular caught my eye.
It was titled ‘Watch your back, Arsen,” and it read:
Dear Arsen Lockhart,
I know what you’re up to. As if you didn’t think murdering my father was enough, now you’re fooling around with my best friend?
I raised an eyebrow. What was this person talking about?
The fact that she actually gives you the time of day makes me wonder if is she that stupid or if you are just really good at playing these games. My father has been dead for a year now and if you think my mom and I have forgotten, you have another thing coming. Enjoy your peaceful life as much as you can, Arsen.
The letter wasn’t signed with any name, but when I thought about it, the girl who sat next to Lola the same day that I gave that seminar looked a lot like the woman at the restaurant. That woman had said her daughter had been watching Lola and me around town, and the only person who could possibly know who we both were and what has been going on between us was Lola’s best friend. Was it possible that I had killed Lola’s best friend’s father?
A Billionaire’s Troubles
Part Three
Lola
I woke up in a room I’d never seen before. I looked to the left and the view was almost the same as the view from Arsen’s house. I looked down and I wasn’t tied up anymore, nor was I wearing the same outfit from the night before. I was dressed in a satin top with matching shorts. I pulled myself out of bed and walked to the door. When I tried opening it, it was locked. No matter how hard I pushed or pulled it wouldn’t open.
With a sigh, I turned and went to look at myself in the mirror. My hair looked freshly brushed, which was odd. I pulled it into a ponytail with the hair tie that was on my wrist. I looked down and saw a note laying on the dresser. It had my name on it. I was a bit hesitant about picking it up, but maybe it would explain why the door was locked.
After a couple of seconds of deciding, I finally opened the letter. It explained that there were two doors inside of the room. One led to a walk-in closet, while the other led to a bathroom. It said that there would be various pieces of clothing that were my size inside of the closet. I read over a few more lines about where certain things were in the room and I finally made it to the end, which was what I was looking for.
The reason the door was locked, according to the note, was because I didn’t deserve as much freedom as I wanted. The note was clearly written by Arsen, because it said that I should think about the consequences of my absurd actions. He wrote that he had had a hard time deciding if I should work for him until he trusted me again or if he should kill me. He also mentioned that my phone had been taken away and any source of connecting with someone outside of the house had been blocked off of the computer in the room and my laptop, which he had found in my car.
I rolled my eyes and crumbled the note into a ball. I couldn’t believe that this was happening to me all because I looked through a couple of emails. What I really wanted to know was why it had taken him so long to take action against me. What about the situation changed his mind? Did someone else know?
That’s it. Maybe he told the members of his cartel and they put this entire plan together. That had to have happened, because what else would’ve made Arsen change his mind so suddenly?
I shook my head and slid my feet as I walked back over to the bed. I plopped down and buried my face in the pillow. I let out a muffled scream to release the built-up anger in me. There was a knock on a door, followed by the voice of the woman I had met the first time I was there.
“Ms. Lola, your breakfast is ready,” she spoke.
I got up quickly when I heard the door unlock from the outside. It pushed open slowly and she came inside, walking toward me with a tray of food. It smelled so delicious. I couldn’t wait to eat. As she sat the tray down on the bed, I eyed the cracked door, thinking about whether I’d be able to make it out to find my car keys.
I guess she noticed, because she grabbed both of my arms and looked into my eyes.
“Don’t even try it,” she whispered. “There are two big guards out there.”
I nodded slowly. “Do you know when I’ll be getting out?”
“No.” She shook her head. “Mr. Lockhart doesn’t tell me much”
“Two questions.” I looked at her and she nodded, agreeing to answer them. “What’s your name? And why are you always so nice to me?”
“I’m Ms. Rose, the maid.” She smiled. “You remind me so much of myself when I was younger—independent and spending time with older men. Seeing you makes me nostalgic. After over-hearing Arsen explain the situation between you two, I thought you could use all of the support I can give right now”
“Thank you so much.” I smiled and hugged her. She jumped, not expecting the hug but returning the gesture. She reminded me a lot of my grandmother, who I was really looking forward to seeing this summer, but that plan was ruined because of Arsen.
“Rose, what is taking you so long?” One of the guards asked in a menacing tone.
“I gave you extra bacon.” She smiled and left the room swiftly, closing and locking it behind her. I smiled softly to myself, knowing that someone cared, and crawled back into bed. On the tray were waffles, bacon, eggs, and a bowl of fruit. I was also given a cup of tea with a little bowl of sugar on the side.
After I finished eating, I decided to take a shower. The bathroom looked exactly like Arsen's, so I knew how everything worked. I walked back into the room and went on the computer to play some music. To my surprise, Arsen had a lot of the music I listened to on there already. I made a quick playlist and turned the volume all the way up so that I could hear it in the bathroom.
I started my shower and actually enjoyed my time in there. Some of my favorite songs were playing and I was using all of these fancy and expensive skin and hair care products. I didn’t know if Arsen intended for that to happen, but I was actually starting to have a good day.
I got out of the shower and wrapped a towel around my body. I didn’t want to put on the same clothes, so I went into the closet to see what was there for me. Upon entering, I expected to see just a small amount of clothing, but this was more than that. What was before my eyes was an entirely new wardrobe. There were all types of outfits. There were everyday outfits, night out outfits, an array of night clothing, and even all types of shoes. I looked into the drawers of the dresser and saw different types of undergarments and lingerie. I started loo
king at the tags and everything was the right size. Just like the note had said.
This was sort of strange, but I guessed it would come in handy during my time there. But if I was going to be held in this room for the time being, why would I need all of these different types of outfits? I shrugged away the thought and just picked out a pair of shorts and a t-shirt.
I lotioned my arms and legs and just decided to play on the computer until the day went by. Arsen mentioned my laptop in the note, but I didn't see it anywhere, which left me the only option possible. The computer in the room. Although I used this computer to play music earlier, I was still very concerned that I might stumble onto something that I should not see. That could really trigger Arsen to take my life.
I was very careful about what I clicked on. I made sure to only open the notepad application because my mind was full and I needed to write a few things down. I let some of the music play quietly while I gathered my thoughts together. I decided to start a new novel. Since my laptop was nowhere to be found and I couldn't continue working on the novel that I had already started, this could be something that I would do to pass time here. I titled it, "Locked in with Your Own Thoughts." It was going to be about a girl kept in captivity because of her bad behavior with the man she loved.
I began to type, releasing all of my thoughts.
"Forty-seven days and three hours. That's how long I've been held in captivity in the basement of my Master's house. I never knew that I could make him this angry. I never knew he would turn on me like this. It isn't too bad down here. I have a bed, a TV, and a bathroom, and there's always someone bringing me three meals a day and a couple of new books when I've finished the old ones. The only thing that's not good is the lack of human communication. I have no friends, no family, and no master.
I know you're wondering what happened, why I'm being held captive, and why I even have a master to begin with. It all started a year ago when I signed a contract with a man by the name of Eric Pierce. He is the most gorgeous man that I have ever laid eyes on, and when I first saw him at my job, I knew I wanted to be associated with him somehow.
His skin was smooth and blemish free. He wore ripped jeans, beige boots, and a long t shirt that read 'Angels set free.' He was glowing. He had such a powerful energy that I couldn't believe it. He walked around with his hands behind his back, examining the room I was in.
There was a room in the building where I worked that I used to paint in. I thought no one would ever find it, due to its hiding place, so I hung up a few of my pieces. He smiled at a few and nodded at others. He walked up to me and eyed my outfit, raising an eyebrow at my bright yellow sweater.
"Did you do all of this?" he asked.
"Yeah ...why? You going to tell on me?" I rolled my eyes and spoke in a mocking tone.
"No, none of that. I just saw this place sitting around and wanted to check it out."
I nodded and pointed to his shirt. "I love that album."
He smiled and shoved his hands in his pockets. "Same."
"So how much of my work did you see?" I asked. "And what's your name?"
"Just about all of it," he chuckled. "I’m Eric."
We spent almost an hour getting to know each other and it was beautiful.
One day after work, he stopped me at my car and told me that he'd been checking me out since he saw me. He then proceeded to ask me if I had ever participated in a dom/sub relationship.
I'd already had experience with BDSM, so I told him yes and then let him know that if he was trying to pursue this type of relationship with me then I was very much interested. He smirked and told me that he'd have a contract typed up by the next day.
The next day came and we went over the rules during lunch. One of the main rules was that I would address him, and only him, as Master. Since that day, he's been my master and I have done everything he has asked.
Exactly forty-eight days ago, I messed up. When I say I messed up, I mean it. It was really bad. Eric has been out of town for a week, and I needed sex so badly that I felt like I couldn't wait another day for him to get home. It felt as if I was going to die without it.
He came home a day early to surprise me and walked in on the worst thing ever. He caught me in the act of being with another man, and what made it worse was that I was so caught up in the moment that I called the other man Master.
The look on his face was terrifying. I had never seen him that angry or aggressive before, not even during one of our dom/sub moments. Before I knew it, I was being thrown into this basement.
“Lola.” I heard Arsen’s voice and jumped. I hadn’t even heard the door being unlocked and opened. I had been too caught up in writing.
“Yes?” I turned to him and spoke with a slight attitude.
“What have you got there?” he raised an eyebrow and tried to look at the computer screen behind me.
“Nothing of yours, don’t worry,” I scoffed and crossed my arms over my chest.
“Fix your tone of voice, Lola. You’re lucky I didn’t kill you …yet” He smirked and walked towards me. He handed me two spiral notebooks and a box of pens. “One book has all of the jobs you will be doing for me while you’re here, and the other you can use as a journal when you get bored.”
I began to read through the book and saw that there was a list of groceries that I needed to pick up tomorrow. It also mentioned that I’d get the money tomorrow and the driver would be there at ten to pick me up. Something told me that he didn't really want to punish me. It was just something about the tasks that I had to do. I mean, was grocery shopping really a task you would give to someone you were holding hostage? I didn’t know. His intentions were beyond me.
"Before I go, come here.” He spoke in a very demanding voice.
I got up and walked over to him. He grabbed my waist and pulled me closer to him. Our noses were barely an inch apart and he flashed a smile that made my heart melt. It felt like everything around us stopped. One of his hands grabbed the back of my neck and he kissed me. He kissed me so hard that I stopped breathing. He pulled away and chuckled, licking his lips and walking out of the room in one swift movement. Hearing the lock on the door made me snap back into reality.
That kiss just proved that someone had put the idea to kidnap me in his mind. If he was angry enough to kidnap me all on his own, he wouldn't have come in here and kissed me like that. I brushed my fingers over my bottom lip because it had begun to tingle. I wasn’t sure what it was, but that kiss had felt magical. He had kissed me with so much love and passion within that three seconds that it was scary.
I didn’t even get to ask him why he kissed me. I sighed and saved the document on the computer. I let the music play while I opened the window and looked at the view. I was surprised that the window wasn’t nailed shut, but after looking down at the bush of thorns, I understood why. I sat on the window seat and pulled my knees to my chest.
I was bored out of my mind and had nothing better to do but watch the clouds go by and see what types of shapes they made. Besides the song playing, silence filled the air. The house, this area, the sky—it was all completely quiet. Though I had longed for this type of silence back on campus, I was starting to miss the various sounds that had surrounded me there. Being locked up, even if it had been only a couple of hours, made me miss school and my home.
I started to think about what my parents and siblings are doing at that very moment—probably playing board games or watching movies and having lunch. That’s something that I’d never missed out on and I would have given anything to be doing that with them in that moment. Actually, I would have given anything to take back my horrible actions. I wish I had never looked through Arsen’ emails.
Maybe I’d have a life to live.
Arsen
During the entire process of abducting Lola and holding her hostage, I could do nothing but keep her comfort first in my mind. The boys had wanted to keep her inside of some rough, cold building where she had very little water and food,
but I couldn’t bring myself to do that to her. I couldn’t have lived with myself if I had done that to her. With anyone else, I would’ve done it in a heartbeat and maybe even have taken their life without any thought put into it. With Lola, things were just different. They had to be different because something about her led me to believe that she was the one I’d been searching for years after my divorce.
I wanted to deny my strong attraction to her, but every time I did, my feelings just became stronger. I even had to take a deep breath before walking into her room. She doesn’t know that she’s my weakness. She’s not even a little aware of how hard I’ve tried to remain calm around her.
I went into her room, admiring her beauty from behind. I called her name and watched her jump. I hope I sent shivers down her spine. I had to brace myself for when she turned around. When I saw her face, I had to hold back a smile. She looked very well rested and sort of happy, but when her eyes met mine, her face cringed into a look of disgust. She was definitely upset with me.
I gave her the two spiral notebooks and pens I had for her. One of the books I gave her to write in when she was bored and the other was a list of things I needed her to do for me. I didn’t know if she noticed when she flipped through a couple of pages, but a couple of those tasks involved spending time with me for a couple of days—dinner dates, some trips to the mall, and outings to a couple of other places. Hopefully, those outings could lead to us having mutual feelings for each other, because at this moment it seemed like I had more feelings for her than she had for me.
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