I wake up sweating like I do every morning, the nightmare still fresh in my mind.

It’s been the same every night for the past week. My father stands over me, his eyes glowing red, a belt in his hands. I beg him not to, I beg him, I cry and scream but he beats me anyway. He lashes me again and again until I feel the blood flowing down onto the ground.

I stare at the ceiling, my whole body aching, my head dizzy from hunger. The nightmare isn’t so much a dream as a memory, though he never took it that far. He never actually made me bleed.

But he loved that belt. If I ever did something inappropriate, he turned to that belt and he made me know how I had messed up.

I smiled ruefully to myself. Now I welcomed that belt. I would have preferred it to my present hell.

It’s been a week since the night at the club. At least, I think it has been. Time is fuzzy when you’re locked in a cell with nothing but a toilet, a mattress on the ground, and a single blanket. There’s a light on the ceiling that never turns off, and it drove me crazy that first few nights, but now it’s not so bad.

I don’t know what happened to Lacey. I woke up in the cell and I screamed and screamed until a man came and hurt me. He pinned me to the floor and told me that if I screamed again, he’d cut out my tongue. He smiled at me, this creepy smile, and I believed him. He was bald with broad shoulders, and I knew he could easily follow through with his promise.

I didn’t scream again. The bald man came every day in the morning and again in the evening with food, but it was never enough. I was always hungry. I drank water from a spigot above the toilet, and mercifully the toilet flushed.

This morning is different, though. I can’t really say exactly why as I roll over and sit up. Breakfast hasn’t arrived yet, which is strange. Normally the bald man wakes me up with food, but not today. Maybe it’s still early, or maybe they’re not feeding me anymore. Not knowing what time it is or what’s happening outside is maddening.

I don’t know why they took me. They haven’t told me a single thing yet. I asked the bald man on the second day what they wanted from me, but he just hit me across the face and then left. I didn’t get dinner that night. I learned not to ask questions.

I lean back against the wall and stare at the ceiling. I used to think my life was a prison, but it wasn’t as bad as this. Sure, my father is a controlling piece of shit that beats me when I step out of line, but I could manage that. I wasn’t allowed to go to college, but a lot of people don’t go. Father expects me to marry the son of one of his business contacts one day, like some kind of political marriage, but I guess that isn’t happening anymore.

Maybe he doesn’t care that I’m gone. Maybe he’s going to leave me here to rot. He’d probably whip me for getting taken, anyway, find a way to blame me. I’m probably spoiled good now, though I don’t think anyone has touched me.

The sound of footsteps in the hallway outside my cell pulls me from my thoughts. I sit up expectantly, hoping that today the bald man will give me something new, something different. Maybe he’ll give me a sign and tell me what he wants from me.

The slot in the door opens. Instead of breakfast coming through, he pushes a bundle of clothing.

“Put it on,” he says simply.

“What is it?” I ask.

“Dress. Now. Or I’ll hurt you.” The slot closes.

I lean forward and pick up the bundle. To my horror, I realize that it’s an old lingerie set.

I stare at its revealing lace and want to vomit, but there’s nothing left inside of me to vomit. Slowly I stand, trying not to cry, and I take off my clothes. When I’m finished, I pull on the lingerie.

It’s too small, but I manage to get it on. You can practically see my nipples through the sheer cloth and I’m terrified, so absolutely afraid of what they’re going to do to me. I sit back down and cover myself with my old clothes, holding back the tears. I have to be strong right now.

I suspect things are going to get worse for me soon. If I can’t handle this, I won’t be able to handle what’s coming. I need to be strong, or else they’re going to break me and I’ll lose whatever is left of myself. I can’t let that happen.

I take a deep, sharp breath. I have to survive this. I haven’t been able to live my life yet. I went from the prison of my father’s house to this prison, all because I wanted to enjoy one night of freedom.

I won’t back down. Not yet.

After a few minutes, the footsteps return. Instead of the slot opening, though, the door itself slides across. Standing there is the bald man.

“Get up,” he says.

I rise slowly. He grabs the clothes from my hands and throws them on the floor. He grabs my elbow and pulls me from the cell, shoving me into the corridor.

I blink and stare at the other girls lined up there. I had no clue there were other girls in this place. I never heard a single sound the whole time I was locked up. The girls all range in ages, and they look as afraid as I do. Some look like they were beaten a lot more than I was, which frightens me. Obviously these men are capable of more. I got off easy so far.

“If you speak, I will cut out your tongue. Then we’ll sell you to the Chinese to work as a mute slave until you die.” He says it loud enough for everyone to hear, but he’s looking right at me.

I nod, not wanting to risk responding. He shoves me into line with the other girls. We avoid each other’s gaze as the bald man crosses his arms and looks at us.

“You’re a sorry fucking bunch,” he says. “If you want to survive, you’ll do as you’re told. Now come.” He turns and we begin to follow him in a single file line.

For a second, I wonder why we’re not trying to attack him. But then I see the gun in his pants, and I know he’d kill most of us. Maybe all of us. And he can’t be alone. We’re a bunch of scared, mostly-naked women, and they have guns. We’d get killed without a doubt.

And I want to survive this. I can get through it.

We follow the man down a series of halls. There are other guards posted at various places, but they don’t pay us much attention. Finally, the bald man opens a door and ushers us into a room. He lines us up with our backs to the wall. The room is long and thin, empty save for a mirror on the opposite wall.

“Stand where you are. Face the mirror. If you move, you will be shot. You know what will happen if you speak.” The bald man disappears from the room and shuts the door behind him.

We stand there and we don’t move. I don’t even look away from the mirror. I stare at it, and in the very dim light, I stare back at myself.

I look horrible. I looked tired and scared and underfed. I look like the other girls, though not as beaten and broken.

I can hear the other girls breathing near me, but I don’t dare look at them. We’re a bunch of strangers standing in this room, mostly naked, waiting for something to happen. I’m terrified, and my heart is beating through my chest, but I’m determined. If I play by the rules, maybe they’ll let me live. Maybe I can get through this.

I don’t know how long we’re standing there, but suddenly the lights come on. They blind me for a second but soon I blink them away. We continue standing there, unmoving, for what feels like a very long time.

I want to scream. The waiting is the worst part of it. I need to know what they’re going to do, but standing there and waiting for it is driving me nuts. One of the girls starts crying, but I don’t look. She sobs to herself, and someone else tries to shush her, but she just keeps on crying. After a couple of minutes, the bald man comes in and takes the crying girl by the arm.

“Come,” he says.

“Where are you taking me?” she says through her sobs.

“Come,” he says again.

“No!” she screams. He bashes her in the face with his fist. I hear it hit her with a dull thud.

I don’t look. He drags her out of the room and she never comes back.

More time passes. I smell something horrible, like someone wet their pants, but I keep staring straight ahead. I want to sob, but I know what will happen if I do.

Finally, the door opens again. The bald man walks in and stops in front of me.

“Come,” he says.

I step toward him. He nods and I walk in front of him and out of the room. He doesn’t touch me this time.

“End of the hall,” he says, pointing.

I glance at him then back down the hall toward the door that he’s indicating. I take a deep breath then walk toward it.

My heart is pounding. The bald man doesn’t follow me. I don’t know what’s going to happen to me and I’m afraid, very afraid. This could be my last moment on earth. The uncertainty is driving me insane.

I reach the door. I take the handle and slowly pull it open, then I step inside and shut the door behind me.

The room is empty except for a chair with a bright light directly above it. I pause and step toward the light.

“Stop,” a voice says.

I nearly jump and scream, but I control myself. I stop moving completely.

I watch as a man steps from the shadows and into the light. He pauses next to the chair, and I get a good look at him.

He’s in his early thirties at most and incredibly handsome. He has scruff on his face with a square jaw and piercing blue eyes. There’s a small scar on his chin that only makes his otherwise perfect face that much more gorgeous. He’s wearing a white button-down shirt and perfectly fitting jeans. I can see tattoos on his wrists, and for a second I wonder if they cover his entire muscular body.

He steps toward me and I take a sharp breath. I’ve never seen a man like him before. He stops in front of me and reaches out. I don’t flinch as he takes my chin and lifts my eyes to meet his.

“Riley,” he says softly. “My name is Logan.”

“Hello,” I manage to say.

“Do you want to survive this?”

“Yes,” I whisper.

“Then you’re mine now.”

I blink at him, surprised. I don’t understand what he means by that.

“You’re mine now,” he repeats. “Do you understand?”

“No,” I say honestly.

“You will.” His smile is intense and makes my skin shiver. “You’ll find out very, very soon. And you’re going to like it.”

I take a sharp breath but I don’t look away. I can’t look away, even if I wanted to.