ARIA

I was only five, innocent and clueless.

I was made to stand on a platform in the center of a dark room. I didn't understand why I was there or why I wasn't wearing clothes on my body.

All I knew was that there were men, lots of them in black suits, and their eyes were locked on me like vicious predators.

Thick cigars sat between their fingers, and each one had a scary man behind him, also dressed in black suits and shades.

Those men standing occasionally whispered things to the ones sitting.

"Four hundred thousand dollars!" a deep voice shouted.

"Eight hundred thousand!" another voice countered.

Emily was the only woman in the room. She stood beside me and whispered instructions to me. She was the closest thing I had to a mother.

She taught me everything I knew at that age.

I only found out that she wasn't my mother when her son, Daniel, who was two years older than me, told me.

Emily was a caretaker employed to look after me, and this place was the only home I'd known for as long as I could remember.

I wasn't allowed to leave my room or interact with anyone else except Emily and her son, Daniel.

I didn't even know where I came from or how I got here.

However, every night I kept having this scary dream of two cold bodies in a pool of blood. A blonde woman, naked, her thighs looking like they'd been broken with force, and the second boy was that of. A headless man, lying beside her.

I had no idea who they were or why I kept dreaming of them.

Emily touched my shoulder gently, then she leaned in and whispered, "Turn around, sweetie."

I obeyed and turned slowly.

"Five million!"

A man suddenly called from the back.

The room went quiet for a moment; no one could challenge that amount.

A man in a gray suit approached us and whispered something in Emily's ear. She nodded quickly, then turned to me with a smile that didn't reach her eyes.

"Come on, sweetie, let's get back to your room."

It was finally over. I stepped off the platform and gazed up at her.

She smiled back weakly, held my hand and walked me down the narrow hallway, back to my room.

I could still hear the men talking and laughing behind us.

"She'll make a nice doll for my boss," one voice said with a chuckle.

I didn't know what that meant, but somehow, I knew it wasn't good.

Daniel, Emily's son, was inside my room, reading, when the door opened.

My eyes lit up when I saw him, but as soon as he stood up, he walked to his mother and asked the question I hate to hear.

"Can we go home now, Mom?"

"Just a minute, honey. I need to get Aria ready," she said, and brought out a new dress from a fancy bag.

She got me all dressed up after which she knelt, looked me in the eyes, and touched my cheek.

"You did great out there, sweetie," she said softly. "So brave. I'm proud of you."

I looked up at her.

"Am I going somewhere?"

She paused, then sighed and brushed my long hair behind my ear.

"Yes."

"With you and Daniel?"

I asked again.

She smiled - the kind of smile that meant "no."

Then she shook her head; her eyes were sad.

"No, sweetheart. But you'll be taken good care of. It's... it's..."

She paused, as if the words were too heavy to say.

"It's a .....a...good family. They will adopt you. You have to do whatever they say so they'll take good care of you. Understand?"

She had tears in her eyes.

Seeing her like that, summoned tears in my own eyes, and I allowed them to roll freely down my cheeks.

"Hey, honey, you don't have to cry. I promise to visit," she said gently and cleaned my face.

"I don't want to go anywhere. I'm scared," I sobbed and hugged her tightly.

She wrapped her arms around me and kissed my forehead.

"It's okay, honey, it's okay".

She whispered and consoled me.

Daniel came over and joined the hug.

Just then, the door opened.

Daniel immediately stepped back in fear as two scary-looking, tall men in black suits walked into the room.

"Is she ready?"

One of the men asked.

"Yes," Emily said, straightening up, though I was still hugging her waist.

"Let go now, sweetie."

I obeyed and slowly released her.

She handed me my stuffed rabbit.

"Don't forget your rabbit friend."

I nodded and hugged it tightly, sobbing.

One of the men stepped forward and blindfolded me, then sealed my mouth with tape.

I couldn't see anymore.

Suddenly, I felt two huge hands lift me and carry me away.

Just like that, I was taken away from the only family I had ever known-Emily and her son.

The car ride was long and silent, but I didn't sleep.

I couldn't.

I just hugged my stuffed rabbit as tightly as I could, crying silently.

When the car finally stopped, they removed the blindfold. It was late in the night, but what I saw in front of me looked like another world.

A beautiful, massive estate with rows of identical white mansions. Each behind stone gates, with many shiny cars parked outside.

They led me inside one of the mansions and took me to a luxurious room.

Pink walls. Pink curtains. A bi,g giant bed covered with a bed sheet designed with cartoon characters.

There were giant teddy bears, toys, and shelves lined with brand-new Barbies and Bratz dolls.

Those men told me to rest and left the room.

I slowly sat on the edge of the bed, still clutching my stuffed rabbit, until I fell asleep.

---

The next morning, someone knocked on the door.

I immediately hugged my rabbit like it was a form of protection.

A woman in a black maid uniform walked in with a tray of food. The most delicious-looking food I had ever seen in my life. My mouth watered instantly.

"Good morning".

I greeted.

She ignored me and placed the tray on a table in the corner, where a pink, princess-like chair stood.

"Your breakfast is served, take a bath, brush, and eat," she said dryly, then left the room.

I didn't move.

I just stared at the food, swallowing hungrily but too afraid to touch it.

Minutes later, the woman returned and saw the food untouched.

She looked offended.

"You have to eat, or you'll be punished," she said coldly.

Immediately, I walked to the bathroom, she followed and helped with my bath time,e, then watched me brush my teeth.

Afterwards, I ate the food while she watched. Once I was full, she carried the tray away.

About an hour later, two other women dressed in the same uniform entered and began dressing me up.

White stockings, black shoes, a pink dress, and combed my hair before putting it up into a ponytail.

"Such long golden hair, she looks like a doll."

The first maid said and pinned a bow at the back of my ponytail.

"Poor thing. Where are her parents?"

The second added.

"Enough with the gossip-do you want to be killed?"

The first maid whispered.

Without saying a word to me, they left the room.

Once again, I was all by myself, alone.

I sat on my bed, looking around the large room. It was far bigger than my old one, which only made it more terrifying.

Suddenly, the door creaked open.

I jumped to my feet, startled.

A man stepped in-I recognized him instantly as the one who had shouted five million.

He was followed by another unfamiliar man who was wearing a large, glistening ring and a black coat draped over his shoulders.

His eyes found me, and he paused on the spot.

I looked down nervously.

"She's a rare beauty".

I heard him say.

"I knew you'd like her, Lord Vince," the first man said proudly. "Young and innocent... beautiful blue eyes, rare golden lashes, hair like spun gold. Skin pale as snow. She looks like a fairy. I paid five million."

Lord Vince walked over and sat on the edge of the bed. He took a slow drag from his cigarette, his eyes locked on me.

"Worth it," he said, and exhaled the smoke.

I coughed loudly because of the smoke and looked up at him.

He patted his thigh.

"Come here, kitten."

I didn't want to. I was scared.

But Emily had told me to obey-so they'd treat me nicely.

I slowly sat on his leg, eyes fixed on the floor.

He reached up and stroked my long hair.

"You'll need training," he said softly.

Then he leaned in and whispered into my ear.

"Call me Daddy."

I felt an uncomfortable chill all over me.

My voice came out tiny and trembling.

"Da... Daddy."

He laughed.

"Haha! Good kitten. Tell me, what name were you given?"

"ARIA."

I replied, my voice still shaking.

He brushed his finger over my lips, slow and deliberate, before sliding it into my mouth.

"Open wider," he instructed.

I gagged slightly, eyes watering as tears began to form.

"Still tiny," he muttered with amused cruelty.

Suddenly, the door burst open, which startled me. I gripped his shirt around my tiny fingers instinctively.

Three women were thrown in-battered, bloodied, their bodies bound in heavy restraints.

A dozen men followed, their faces blank.

Seeing those women in that condition terrified me. Then my horror intensified when the men descended upon them.

Clothes were ripped away in violent jerks.

The women screamed, their cries echoing inside the small room.

I turned my face away in horror, burying it into Lord Vince's chest.

But he grabbed the back of my head, fingers like iron, pushing my face back to the terrifying sight.

"Don't look away. This is your future, little kitty."