Page 2 of Empowered
Chapter II
Amelia
Iwished sleep would come easily in my cell, but it never did. The mattress on the floor was hard and uncomfortable. The cement floor beneath it was even worse. There wasn’t much in the way of furniture— just a bench bolted to the wall. There were no windows either, so I could only tell the time of day by the presence of sunlight through the skylight above the hallway in front of my cell. At night, the skylight was dark, triggering the lights in the hallway to turn on.
I didn’t even have a toilet, just a hole in the ground where I had to squat to pee. I tried hard to hold it if I could, until my bladder was painfully full.
I heard keys jangling, which meant a guard was approaching. They usually stopped by twice a day with a bowl full of unidentifiable mush they called a “meal.” I had held out for the first few offerings, skeptical of what the slop was laced with. However, my stomach had eventually gotten the best of me. It was even more putrid than it looked, but my belly had begged for something to fill it, so I managed to swallow it down. That first time, I’d had to squeeze my nostrils shut with my fingers to swallow whole without chewing to avoid tasting it. I needed every bit of strength I could get if I were ever going to break out of here.
This time, the guard didn’t come to my cell. Instead, he dragged a tall woman with long brown hair behind him. She didn’t resist his handling and followed behind him without making a sound, like she was used to this. He opened the gate to the cell directly across from mine and despite his prisoner’s cooperation, he shoved her inside like she was trash before locking the gate and walking away.
I studied the woman who lay glued to the cement floor. I noticed she didn’t wear cuffs around her wrists like I did, probably because they knew she would never try to fight back. She wore traditional Indian wear made of cotton—loose pants with a dress-like tunic that fell to knee-length. The colors were vibrant and very unfitting of a woman who was supposed to be a captive. But then again, what did I know about the formalities of being a captive? Hell, I was dressed in a skimpy red evening gown, or whatever remained of it after all the rips.
Her curtain of shiny hair blocked her face so I couldn’t make out her features. She was too thin, like she needed a good meal, and her skin was marred with dark bruises. They were a stark contrast to the beautiful henna that was sprawled over her hands and forearms. These men must really be monsters if they would hurt a person who seemed as compliant as her.
I rose from my mattress and walked closer to the bars on my cell. “Hey, are you okay?” I asked.
The woman looked up at me, her eyes wide from fear.
I tried to calm her down. “It’s okay. I just wanted to see if they hurt you.”
She backed away to the far wall of her cell. More of her hair shifted out of her face and I got a better view of her familiar features.
“Salena,” I gasped. I was sure it was her. She looked just like her photo, beautiful yet robbed of the life in her eyes. Except now, those eyes were filled with terror.
“Salena!” I called out louder. She huddled against the wall like a cornered animal, turning her face away to avoid me.
“I’m Amelia. I’m a friend of Shyam’s.” I hadn’t uttered his name aloud in so long that it felt like a prayer on my lips when I said it. Salena seemed to have the same reaction at hearing her ex-fiancé’s name, staring off in a daze.
“Shyam?” she repeated back in disbelief.
Another nearby guard must have overheard us because he stalked over to my cell with a murderous expression and opened the gate with a murderous expression. “You want to talk, bitch? I’ll teach you to talk,” he spat as he neared me.
“I’m sorry.” I threw my hands up in surrender. “Please don’t hurt me.”
I tried to retreat deeper into my cell, but he grabbed me by the throat and threw me to the ground. My head slammed against the concrete. His foot smashed into my stomach, forcing the wind out of me. Black dots freckled my vision.
My hands instinctively moved to my stomach to protect myself from another blow. I didn’t anticipate the fat fingers that grabbed me by my hair. He pushed his face up close to mine as I gasped for breath. He was missing teeth and tattoos covered his face. “Keep your mouth shut, you cunt.” He threw me back down onto the ground, causing my face to hit the cement with blinding force. The metallic tang of blood coated my mouth. I stayed frozen, face down, until I heard his footsteps fade.
Before he left the hallway, I heard him threaten Salena. “You’re lucky you’re marrying the boss; else you’d get the same.” He banged on the gates of her cell to reinforce his point. She let out a yelp that sounded more like the squeak of a mouse.
She had clearly been the victim of abuse, but maybe it wasn’t all from the guards. I was betting herfuturehusbandwas a participant.
I listened for the guard’s steps to disappear before rolling over onto my back, then I let the tears that I had been holding in release. I prayed for the strength to recover from the blows I had been dealt. I prayed that one day I would see Shyam’s face again. And finally, I prayed that I would survive another night in this hell.
Chapter III
Shyam
It was torturous to get out of bed and dress myself this morning. My body was still hard with muscle but the days of drinking scotch and lying sedentary had caused me to lose some mass, making my suit fit looser. Dark circles encased my eyes, and my skin lacked its usual tan color since I was so dehydrated from all the liquor consumption. I didn’t even bother grooming the stubble that had taken over my jaw.
Luckily, Sethi Tech had remained intact during my absence. We had competent employees who could carry on regardless of management presence, but it was rare that I was ever out of the office for days on end. At least I could count on Jai to be there. He had stepped up and taken over the reins while I had been licking my wounds at home like an injured dog. Despite his reckless tendencies, I knew I could depend on him.
I stepped out of the elevator and onto my floor. The building was quieter than usual since most people were away on holiday vacation. A couple of lingering board members who were there tying up loose-ends stopped me to bid pleasantries. I wasn’t in the mood to make small talk, so I cut the conversations short and headed to my office. Though, I had the nagging urge to make a pitstop first. I wandered past the fountain and maze of glass sculptures that we had paid an arm for.
I reached the closed door of my destination. I knew I shouldn’t look, but it was like a car crash that I couldn’t ignore. Turning the door handle, I moved inside and flicked the light switch on.
Amelia’s office.Everything looked as it had before she was taken, except she wasn’t there. The office still smelled fresh, like she had just been sitting behind her desk, nose buried behind her monitor, typing furiously. The ache in my chest, which was always with me like an old friend, now turned into a piercing pain. I closed my eyes and rested my head against the doorway, needing deep breaths to steady myself. When would this guilt ever go away?
