Chapter 27: Chapter 27

Avril woke up with a very heavy neck. She couldn't even move it talk more of sitting up. She had to keep lying on the cold metal she woke up in. She looked around her but it was very dark. Her body shivered on its own because of the temperature of the room. She laid in that darkness for what seemed like ten hours to her. Finally, she heard footsteps coming closer to where she was. She waited patiently until it got super close. Moments later, metallic chains began to rumble and a door was opened. She strained to look at the door which was unfortunately, behind her head.

“Get up”, a harsh voice ordered.

“I—I can't. My neck...I can't move my neck”, she stuttered painfully.

“I said get up!” he barked and she flinched. She moved her arm to help carry her load up but she couldn't move it too far. Was she beaten up while she was asleep? What could be the cause of the pains?

“Please help me. Please”, she pleaded. The man exhaled and walked into the cell. He held her hand and pulled her up. She screamed and cried as pain vibrated through every flesh and bone in her body. She supported her neck with one arm and felt a big bump right at the spot where the dart had hit her. The man began to pull her along and she followed obediently. They got into a lighter side and climbed up the stairs. She wanted to ask questions. Questions about Dakar and what they were going to do with her. But she couldn't bring herself to be ready forthe truth especially if it was a sour one. What if Dakar was dead? If he was shot by a silver bullet, would he make it? What if he was alive and we were both taken captive on the ship? And what if he was left alone on that island.

“No! This is not good”, she thought. They climbed the stairs and walked through another hallway. Then they reached a certain door where the man pulling her stopped to knock. Avril's heart began to race faster because she knew that door. She knew who stayed behind it. The door opened and her eyes met him; Paulo.

“Ah, she is awake now?”he asked with a sarcastic tone.

“Enter”, he said with a smirk and opened the door wider.

“I will no,” she said firmly and he chuckled.

“Bring her in,” he ordered the man and went into the room. The man held hrr arms and tried pushing her inside but she kicked him in between his legs and punched him in the face. His nose broke and he began to have a nose bleed. Paulo was surprised at her action and he stood staring at her.

“Where are my friends?” she asked with very little fear in her voice. If they kidnapped her again, then they will have to put up with her new character.

“I see you've grown some guts. But don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you because you are too precious to Freddie. If we give you any injuries, he'll have our heads. So, just come in and we'll talk. I can not wait to hear of how you survived,” he drawled.

“I am not staying in a confined space with you,” she gritted and moved backwards. The man she hit managed to stand but was looking red in the face, with blood trickling down his nose.

“You, take her to a warm room and get her something to eat. Then prepare the deck for her to have a special interview with me”, Paulo ordered the man and he nodded. Avril glared at Paulo.

“If I was supposed to stay in a warm room, why did I just wake up in a cold cell?” she asked.

“Oh, that was my littlest form of revenge. I will never like you so I cannot treat you good always,” he answered and snickered at her. The man held Avril's hand and began to pull her along while limping himself. She kept quiet all through and only produced a sigh after they reached a door and he opened and pushed her inside. He huffed at her then limped away. She closed the door and stared at the room. It was warm and bright. The window was open and the small couch and blankets were still there. She sat on the chair and picked up a small notepad. She opened it and saw writings with her name in it. The writings read; We miss you, Avril. You don't serve this. The ocean took you away, I guess it loved you more than we did.

Tears formed in her eyes as she read the rest of the messages her friends had penned down, thinking she was dead. If only they knew she had been alive andhappy all these while. Suddenly, she had the urge to see them even more than before. She wanted to make sure they were okay. To tell them all about Dakartoo. She looked around the rest of the room and sighed. She was tired, weak, scared and worried. So many 'What Ifs' ran through her mind and she tried to block them all away.

After a few minutes rest, the door opened and another man she didn't know entered with a tray.

“Your food. Paulo says you should eat and come up to the deck,” he said and dropped the tray on a stool.

“Can I ask a question?” she asked him, and she took it as a yes after he stood still and stared at her.

“Thank you. Please, what happened to the girls that used to stay in this room?”

“Which set of girls? There have been four sets since I came aboard”, he answered.

“Uhh, the ones from early March. Two black girls and one Chinese girl.”

“Oh, there are inMexico. I didn't meet them aboard though, they were the set being delivered while I came in,” he stated and Avril sighed in relief. If there left the ship alive, then they wouldn't be doing too bad. She had thought Freddie would act rashly against them after she had gone.

“Thank you,” she appreciated and he nodded and left. She took the tray and uncovered the plate of steaming rice and boiled potatoes. She took a spoon and tasted it but frowned immediately.

“Tasteless,” she muttered, butate it nevertheless. She finished up and put the plates aside. Then she entered the bathroom and washed her face. As she stared at the small mirror in there, she realized that she was not the same pathetic girl that was first kidnapped the first time. She was lonely then and weak, but she wasn't lonely anymore. Neither was she weak. She had Dakar even though he wasn't physically with her. Then she remembered the charm bracelet. She reached out to her pocket and pulled it out. It felt so smooth yet firm in her palm, and it felt like it had a strong force emitting from it. Somehow, seeing and holding that bracelet gave her strength. Now she knew why Dakar had given her. But how did he know? Was it part of the prophecy? Will she ever meet Dakar again? What if he disappears from the island and she never finds him again?

“Will I be able to live without you, my Island Wolf?” she asked aloud.

Chapter 34

The door to the room opened, so Avril left the bathroom to check who it was and why he couldn't knock. Surprisingly, it wasn't a he but a she. She didn't look like a captive so Aveilguessed she was part of the crew.

“What is it?” she asked with a frown. Her tone somehow shocked the lady and she stood gawking at her.

“I asked a question,” she stated and the lady smirked.

“You have got some guts for a girl who's live is in our hands,” she drawled and Avril chuckled softly.

“I'm guessing you're new onboard. I'm not your everyday kind of girl. Now why did you barge into my room without knocking?” Avrilasked sternly.

“Don't you dare use that tone with me, pathetic girl. I'm not new onboard and you have no idea who I am,” she threatened.

“Hmm, okay. Let's imagine you're the boss here. So how may I be of help to you, mi lady?” Avril asked sarcastically and the lady barged towards her and grabbed her hair.

“You will respect me, if you want to live this ship alive,” she gritted and pulled her hair more.

“Do you understand?” she asked and the answer she received was a blow on her nose. She let go of Avril and staggered backwards immediately.

“Yes, I understand,” Avril stated. The lady touched her nose and saw blood on her fingers. She raised her head and glared at Avril.

“Bitch! You'll pay!” she gritted and tried to punchAvril too. But she dodged and kicked the lady's side, making her fall sideways and crashing into a set of boxes. Avril wasn't done with her yet, she moved to her and sat on her thighs, then she began to punch her face repeatedly. The lady tried to grab Avril's hair but Avril held them and began to twist them to the other direction. The lady couldn't exercise any strength in that position she was and could only scream loudly and try to kick her legs. It was like all of Avril's anger and desperation was transferred to her arms, giving her maximum strength to twist the lady's own arms. But fortunately for the lady, Paolo and two men rushed I to the room and pushed Avril off. She even struggled to go back and beat her even more, but the men held her.

“Betty, what is this? Why are you engaging in a fight with the person I asked you to call,” she scolded and Betty's face lost its color. She had thought Paolo would support her and deal with Avril.

“Get up!” he ordered and she gently got on her feet. Her right eye was surrounded with red skin and her lips burst. Her face was a mess, so was her hair.

Avril stood still glaring at Betty with her arms crossed.

“Avril, what happened here?” Paolo gently asked her.

“She grabbed my hair and threatened to deal with me,” Avril answered.

He turned to Betty and asked, “Why did you grab her hair and threaten to deal with her? Didn't I tell you to just call her and nothing else?”

“She was giving me attitude. I wanted to teach her a lesson,” Betty answered and looked down at her feet.

“Seems you were the one who received the lesson. Do you see my face?” Paolo asked and pointed to the scar running across his cheek up to his eye. Betty looked at his face.

“She did this six months ago. When she was still a crybaby. God knows what she's been through on that island, but I know she's tough now. Imagine what she'd do to you now if she could do this then,” he stated and glanced at Avril. Betty looked at her too and back at Paolo.

“Another thing, Betty. She's Freddie's beloved. And if he should find out she got a scratch while on his ship, you're dead. You know Freddie, you know what he's capable of doing.”

“I am sorry. This won't repeat itself,” Betty apologized and Paolo exhaled.

“Avril, can you please do us a favor and not mention this to Freddie. This is the first and last time you'll be disrespected,” he pleaded. She nodded.

“Why did she come here in the first place?” she asked.

“Because I wanted to ask some questions about how you have been and how you ended up alone on the island,” he answered.

“Alone? I wasn't alone,” she stated. He looked at her with surprise then looked at the other people in the room.

“Leave us. We have to talk,” he said.

The men and Betty left the room, leaving Paolo and Avril. Paolo sat down on the wooden chair after removing the blankets on top. Avril sat on the couch.

“You said you weren't alone on the island?” he asked but Avril did not answer. She was wondering why the men who took her did not tell Paolo that a man was with her. A man they shot.

“Avril, you have to answer me. I will be telling Freddie about you over the phone soon. He needs to know how you have been,” he added after waiting for Avril's answer in vain.

“I was with a man. Your men shot him,” Avril answered.

“A man? Which man? My men did not shoot anyone but you. And it was just a dart,” he said with confusion in his voice.

“Your men shot a man who was with me. We were coming towards the ship when we heard gunshots and he got hit. Maybe they didn't tell you.”

“I was at the shore. I only saw you running. I did not see any man with you. Neither did my men shoot anyone with a gun”