Page 1 of The Caged Girl

PROLOGUE

“Mop the blood up, now!”Alister shouted at me. I stood there, staring down at the shiny white marble floors. The blood continued to spread as the woman with her head fractured open laid there with her eyes widened, but no life left in them.

Sighing, I feel annoyed. She’s made my work all that much harder. I’ve heard people say that life isn’t black or white, but in my humble opinion, it is, in fact, one or the other, tinged with red. Droplets of blood splattered against both good and evil. Alister said girls should have structured time in the darkness to stay pure and calm. He said girls should be obedient, referencing dated religious material. He believed that women could threaten humanity with hysterical behavior triggered by menstruation and needed to be tamed by men.

Alister Ivory is the owner of the stunning, exclusive resort, La Gabbia. He also happens to be my new boss, and my former boss’s estranged brother. Dr. Ian Ivory was a renowned and demented surgeon who enjoyed keeping girls in cages at his lavish estate with an all-white aesthetic back in America. I didn’t think I’d survive the hell I was in. I was the housekeeper and was forced to marry their son in another one of the Ivory family ploys. They called me, ‘the favorite girl’.

I did not want to be the favorite ever again in my lifetime.

After barely escaping, I found myself on a small, private island. Alister happened to know the people who “saved” me when I was stranded in the middle of the ocean. I knew better. Nothing was a coincidence. The Ivory family had my entire life mapped out for me, even when they were dead. But here I was, knowing I could either be the cat or the mouse, and I had to be the cat this time. I had to hunt them slowly. This would take endless time to map out a plan of perfection and execution.

Dropping to my knees, I swirled my finger into the pool of blood.

“What on earth are you doing, stupid girl!” Alister’s high-pitched voice rang in my ears as he kicked me in the ribcage with his hideous thick, black shoe.

Sucking in a breath of air, I clenched my eyes shut as I stood. I didn’t feel pain. Not anymore. Between being sold into trafficking at a young age by my own parents, and then working for a family who sold brides for a living, I was fortunately now a rock. But even rocks have cracks, and the unknown can seep in.

Grabbing the mop, I began sloshing the blood around while staring at the woman. She’d probably drank too many Miami Vices after eating at the all-you-can-eat buffet. The on-site doctor loved taking his time. Granted, he had his work cut out for him, with the guests ending up sick with food or alcohol poisoning. But I wasn’t a fool. I knew he was tied up in something else—something worse and gruesome. I knew he was just another one of Alister Ivory’s pawns and helped with the alternate business he had hidden away at this resort. I just haven’t found it yet, but I will. Even if that means I must be the favorite girl.

“Did you read the fucking manual yet?” Alister shoved it at me aggressively as I held the mop between my hands.

“You must choose something and be good at it. I think for now we will keep you as a dove.” He shook his head as I opened the booklet and looked at my options.

Dove Training 101

Nightingale Training 101

Breeder Training 101

Disposal of Products

Distribution of Products

Cadaver Maintenance

La Gabbia Skincare

“What are the products?” I raised my eyebrow as I ignored the dead woman on the floor.

Alister snickered as he licked his lips. “You are a dove. You need not to worry about anything beyond serving our female clientele.”

CHAPTERONE

The ropesaround my ankles tighten as the chirping grows louder. Sweat beads drop down my temple and I’m terrified. I’m frozen in place, wishing I could run. The window is open, and the salty ocean air is swirling around me, yet I can’t breathe.

“Hello, my precious little bird…” he rasped into my ear as my heart pounded so hard I was convinced my chest cavity would crack. His hand trailed up my leg as I remained paralyzed in fear. His fingertips padded against my inner thigh just before he brushed them under my panties and pushed them inside me.

Jolting upward, I screamed and dared to open my eyes.

“Shh…Demi, it’s just a dream. You’ve got to stay quiet.” Marcie, my roommate, rushed over to me.

Blinking into the darkness, I reached down to my ankles, checking for the rope I so vividly felt.

“Demi, you’re a sweaty mess,” Marcie whispered as she pressed a cool washcloth against my head. Her long, bleach-blond hair was tousled over her shoulders, gently brushing against me.

She had a small, battery-operated desk lamp turned on, which I knew was a risk of its own. Alister loved darkness, and La Gabbia, the luxurious wellness resort, had strict hours where the lights at the entire resort were powered off, even though we were ‘doves’ and on the light floor.

I looked around our room. Everything was still white, including the brick walls surrounding us, but I could tell his preference was black. The way he only dressed in all black, the way he hated the light, and had white and black tiling scattered like a chessboard. Alister was Ian Ivory’s younger brother, and something told me he was trying to be a shadow of him, but at the same time, had his own unique sickness that just begged to come out.

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