Jade barely slept through the night regardless of the comfort. Every sound, although not threatening, felt like a nightmare and the environment was awfully quiet, so much so that the security patrol at night felt like footsteps approaching her room. She had never felt more uncomfortable in a place that was seemingly very secure.
The morning came fast, and she had an alarm clock to announce it. The time was seven a.m., and she was back to freaking out, knowing that sooner or later someone would be here to get her, and that her job might start almost immediately. Deep down she would rather die than do any of this, but clearly, human nature prevailed. She wanted to live, and you cannot blame her.
"It only gets worse from here," she thought, sat up, and stretched under the silk sheets, when suddenly the door was flung open. No knocking, no regard for her privacy, just straight-up invasion by the same man who had locked her up to begin with. She had sort of expected that.
"Freshen up, dress nice, and come down. You have ten minutes." He did not just speak, he gave an order and even dropped a stopwatch on the standing art piece near the door. As soon as he pressed the button and the countdown began, he walked out of the room and locked it again, leaving Jade lost for words.
For a moment it felt like she had been transported into some sort of Hunger Games challenge, and who knew what would be done to her if she dared not keep up with time. "A customer is probably waiting," she thought, and it brought tears to her eyes. But then a glimmer of hope came in along with that thought. If this was really what she thought it was, then she had better chances at escaping.
Jade got out of bed, fatigued, and walked into the bathroom. She freshened up in less than five minutes, which was unlike her, then she settled into one of the dresses in the wardrobe. As she gazed upon herself in the mirror, Jade was seconds from shedding another tear. This was an outfit she would have condemned if it were on another person. Everything that made her a woman was almost out there for the world to see and worse, and no option was better than the other.
"I look like a whore," she muttered with frustration, only for the door to be flung open a second time. Instinctively, her gaze shifted to the stopwatch and he was right on time, not a second to spare. Honestly, it was impressive.
He looked at her and nodded. Without a word he gestured toward the door and Jade simply obeyed. "Would I get to eat at least?" she asked him. Even the man was shocked that she spoke.
"Just go down," he replied.
This time, the LED ceiling was no longer as impressive as it was last night, no one really cared much about a sky view. Her legs shook with each step. It felt as though the walls were closing in on her, and she could not help but adjust something on her dress each time she felt the man's gaze on her. She could never get used to this.
He led her down the staircase and through a wing that she had not seen before. This part of the house was not particularly fancy, neither was there any exuberant piece that he owned just for the sake of it, nor was there any special ceiling. It was neat, classic, and simple. They stood before a thick wooden door and the man with her knocked twice. Without waiting for an answer he opened the door and Jade stepped in. It was the moment of truth.
The room was huge, twice the size of the one she had slept in, so huge that it had its own living room and a corner for a foosball machine. It was funny to know that his own room was on the ground floor, nothing so dramatic about it aside from its size. Before she knew it, the man that brought her in was out of the room, closing the door behind her.
"Why does he do that?" she wondered.
Still trying to process the fact that she was left alone in his bedroom, she heard footsteps coming from the bedroom area and stood firm, staring in that direction and waiting for his figure to emerge. She took a deep breath as the shadow drew nearer and held her breath the second he stood in front of her.
Just to throw it out there, he was good looking, but not the kind that makes you instantly think, 'I must have him'. Clearly, if he did not have as much money as he did, he would look worse. His face was shaved clean. Whether he had six-pack abs or not was unknown to Jade because they were hidden behind his thick white vest. The black sweatpants looked good and as for the tattoos stretching down his left arm like a sleeve, it was something.
Finally, his hair. Well, there was nothing to speak of about his hair because he was bald. His expression was unreadable, no smile, no words, just staring down at Jade as she stood there staring back at him.
"It's the right fit," he muttered and walked toward the table in the center of the room, picked up his bottle of water and emptied it before turning back to her. "Can't greet?"
"I'm sorry," she quickly apologized, not knowing if this was the man who bought her for twenty million or the first customer with whom he intended to make back his money. "Good morning."
"We will go over the rules." He simply cut her off and changed the subject, his gaze piercing, staring at places that made her very uncomfortable. "This is my house," he continued. "You will not scream in my house.
"You will not attempt to harm yourself or try to run away. You will not disobey me or any of my guards. But I like being tested." He paused, looked her straight in the eyes, and smiled. "Now, let's talk about your job. I am sure you must have been waiting"