Would like to thank my beta, ThroughMysoul44 for her help!
Thanks for reviewing. xxx
...
Damon kept tossing and turning in his bed. After Klaus told him about Elena, he had left and Damon had been pacing around the house impatiently. He wanted to get to Elena and fast. He just couldn't believe that that girl had suffered so much, that somehow, she always ended up in a world full of lust and sex. Maybe it was because of her Guardian nature-after all, Guardians did kill and torture during sex-but still, the thought of an innocent girl like her in a brothel was making him feel sick to the stomach.
He could hear Emily cry again, it seemed like her nightmares never stopped. He sighed and stood up to check on her. He found her in her bedroom, sitting on the bed as she wiped tears away from her eyes.
"Another bad dream?" He asked her.
"Very, very bad," She sobbed.
"What was it about?" He asked softly and he sat down next to her.
"Elena," The girl said, sobbing even harder.
Damon's heart was about to break. This was all his fault. "What happened? Do you want to talk about it?"
"A bad man told Elena to throw up," Emily mumbled. "She looked sick."
"What?" Damon asked her in surprise, he hadn't expected that.
"He told her to throw up," Emily muttered. "Bad, bad man…" She yawned and Damon realised that the poor girl was exhausted.
"Go back to bed, Emily…" Damon told her gently. "It's okay. You won't get any nightmares again."
...
Elena wiped a hand over her mouth while Adam sat on the bed, his hands behind his head. He looked her up and down when she emerged from the bathroom and then he got off the bed easily and put a cigarette in his mouth. Then, without any warning whatsoever, he threw her on the bed and Elena let out a scream.
He crawled up the bed like a stalking beast as Elena moved back until her spine was pressed against the headboard. Adam then grabbed both of her hands and pinned them next to her head before settling between her legs and forcing them open. She continued to fight against him but he only found this to be a turn on.
"You are a fierce little tiger," Adam said when she finally stopped trying to hit him, feeling breathless. He exhaled the cigarette smoke in her face and Elena gagged, but he only kept holding her wrists with one hand until they began to bruise.
"Why?" Elena choked out when she felt him rest his finger on the very top of her bra.
"Why what, sweetheart?" He hummed, releasing her hands to hold the cigarette.
"Why are you doing this to me? Why am I here?"
"You are not exactly a saint, sweetheart," Adam said. "You see, when humans act naughty and they are a danger to their race, they are put in a prison or in a mental institution. The same thing is happening to you."
Elena's eyes widened. She looked at him in confusion. "What are you talking about? Are you saying that I'm dangerous?"
He laughed at that and ran his hands down her thighs. "Dangerous in bed, maybe…" He laughed as he started to unbutton her shirt. Elena gasped.
"Come on, 24197. I must have you at least once. It's an honour, you know, pleasuring your superior. I'm willing to have you even though you are a whore. You should feel grateful."
"Please, sir, I can't take much more."
"Oh, of course you can, it's what you are made for," He insisted, taking his pants off, boxers with them. He pinned her down and Elena decided to fight back.
"Go on, dear, you don't know how interested this makes me," He taunted her further before reaching out to kiss her. She only had time for a slight wince before she felt his first thrust.
...
Time passed by agonizingly slow for Elena. Every minute seemed like an hour and when he was finally done and he pulled out from her, the relief and the pain of the action were equal. He started to dress himself without even glancing at her and then he turned to get out of the room, not uttering a single word. As he opened the door, however, he saw 168, her hands raised as she was about to knock.
"Help 24197 out, will you?" He asked her and 168 nodded her head, hurrying into the room. She looked at Elena, who was still on the bed.
"Get off the bed, I have to change the sheets."
Elena remained there, frozen. How could she be so cold? She had basically watched her rapist leave the room and she was going to change the sheets Elena had been raped on. How could she work for people like Adam?
168 put her hand on her waist and looked at Elena impatiently.
"I'm hurt."
168 looked at the bruises on Elena's wrists. Her face didn't change. "You must've put up quite a fight."
"What do you expect me to do? Let him have his way with me without any resistance?"
"He's your superior. You're a whore."
"I'm not a whore! They made me a whore! How can you be on their side?" Elena accused.
"I'm not on anyone's side. I'm just assigned to take care of you. This wouldn't have happened if you listened to me. I told you…You could've had a happy life here if you just accepted your fate. Turn your fucking emotions off and accept the fact that you are here to give pleasure. Did you honestly think Adam would let you go because you put up a fight or because you cried? If anything, you turned him on even more," She said.
Elena closed her eyes and let a tear stream down her cheek.
"Come on, let me put some bandages on those bruises…" 168 said after a while, her bright blue eyes piercing Elena's, turning soft.
"No, you don't have to."
"It's okay, I want to," 168 sighed, "Follow me."
168 led Elena to multiple hallways before she stopped in front of a huge door. She motioned for Elena to get in and Elena looked in disbelief as she saw the finest carpets and curtains in 168's room.
"This is your room?"
168 nodded. "I have some bandages in the ensuite."
Elena nodded her head and sat down on a chair. The room was a gothic-styled one, with lots of candles and dark photography. She felt like she was in a monster's lair, but other than that, it was oddly beautiful.
"You could have all of this if you would just relinquish," 168 said, snapping Elena out of her thoughts. "I was like you, Elena. I caused trouble, I got raped and beaten. I used to believe that a knight in shining armor would get me out of here, but then, I realised that they are fictitious characters and that I was going to be stuck here forever. You can choose to be happy here, Elena."
"How can you be happy when you are forced to have sex?"
168 sighed and started to wrap the bandage around Elena's wrists. "You'll get used to it. You might even start to like it." She looked around. "Look at all of this, 24197. I'm given a decent bedroom, decent food and other benefits. It's better to be with them than against them. If you are wise, you'll do the same."
"I could never just accept my fate here."
"Then you are either too good, or too stupid," 168 said. "You'll never survive if you are either one of those. They will try to break you. If not the superiors…the other prostitutes."
"So that's what you're suggesting? To just…give up?"
"You're never getting out of here, so yes," 168 said calmly. "Give up. Relinquish. Show them that you're the boss, that you are the bad bitch everyone's talking about. Use your talents and do not let sex break you."
"And you are honestly happy here? You don't want to get out of this place?"
"24197," 168 picked up Elena's hand and held it in hers, "There is a huge difference between being wise and being true to yourself. I do not feel, I cannot feel anymore. If you cannot feel, then all that remains is being wise, and doing what's best to survive. Happiness is a foreign word to me."
"That's not true, and you know that."
168 shrugged. "I don't even know what I know anymore."
...
Evening came and Damon sat on a bench in the front garden, waiting for Klaus. He was going to pick him up soon and Damon felt sweat covering his forehead. He couldn't tell her the truth. He couldn't tell her that he was the one who set her up, but he also couldn't bear to lie to her anymore. Now that he was so close to finding her, to bringing her home, he was scared.
His journal was open on his lap and he had been skipping through the pages. He had everything written there, everything he had learnt about Elena ever since she was a baby. Every Pre-Guardian and Guardian detail. Yet, somehow, whenever he thought of Elena, he just saw that innocent baby. He didn't see Courtney killing his wife and child or climbing on top of him to kidnap him as she fucked him. All he saw was Elena, a normal girl. An innocent girl.
He heard Klaus honking and it was then that he realised that his friend was parked in front of his house. Damon sighed, put the journal away in the small gazebo, and sat on the passenger's seat.
"You were so busy reading, you didn't even notice me sitting in here for ten minutes."
Damon smiled. "Sorry."
"Ready to meet your girl?" He asked after a while.
"Yeah…" Damon replied.
"Damon-"
"I know what you're going to say."
"If something happens, it's on you. If Elena goes crazy, if Elena's a guardian…you'll have to kill her. You promised."
Damon nodded his head.
"You know it's incurable."
"I know," He assured him. "I got it."
"Good."
Klaus turned the radio on and drove faster than usual. He had learnt the way to the brothel by heart now, because it was quickly becoming his new favourite place to go. When they finally reached their destination, he parked the car a few minutes away from the entrance and was greeted by the usual guards.
"New guy?"
"Yes," Klaus answered a bit quickly and Damon forced a smile.
"Enjoy your night, mate," The guard said to Damon, and Damon thanked him through clenched teeth.
After countless hallways and guards, Klaus led Damon to the main stage. "If she's not here, we'll go to the other one," He whispered in Damon's ear. It wasn't like they didn't have any money.
Damon sat down on a chair in the middle row, not wanting to be the centre of attention. He didn't want Elena to freak out and screw everything up. He waited, impatiently tapping his foot as the girls walked up the stage. The entire stage was set in red and black, making the scenery look haunting and even more erotic. The girls were all dressed in leather, all in a precise line like soldiers. Then, another group of girls dressed in even more seductive clothing appeared, all blindfolded. They knelt in front of the other girls and started to dance slowly to dark, suggestive music.
Klaus looked at Damon, whose eyes were fixed on the girls.
"That's her!" Damon nearly shouted as he pointed to the third girl from the right.
"How do you know?" Klaus whispered, "She's blindfolded and we are not so close to the stage…"
"Trust me, I know," Damon said, his gaze locked on the girl's skinny body. She was even thinner than he remembered and dancing more sexually than when she was an exotic dancer in Mason's club.
"Then you have to be the one to choose her tonight," Klaus insisted.
"What if someone else chooses her instead?"
"They won't. As a new client, you'll get a turn tonight. You'll be the second to choose, I asked the guard to reserve a place for you."
Damon nodded uncomfortably and continued to watch the performance. Sweat started to cover his forehead once more as he held onto the seat for dear life. When the performance was over, he straightened and wiped his sweaty hands. Then, he was called to the front line with the other new clients and like Klaus said, he was the second one to choose. Damon held his breath as the first one walked onto the stage, in front of the kneeling women, and took a girl's hand, helping her off the floor, since there were apparently no cages that night. When he watched them leaving, Damon breathed out a sigh of relief, walked to the stage and stopped next to Elena, who was looking down, blindfolded. She must've felt his hand because she took it without complaint. He cleared his throat and helped her up, taking her hand and unwillingly letting his fingers stroke hers, as if to show her that he had got her.
He helped her get backstage and didn't dare talk to her. A man greeted Damon and showed him the way to the bedroom.
"You're one lucky guy tonight. The performance was a bit different, usually they ask the girls to dance in cages, but it was spectacular as usual."
Damon smiled and led Elena to the room, nodding his head as thanks. He unlocked the door and tenderly helped Elena in. The room was full of candles and his heart nearly stopped. Usually, another guy would've been having his way with her.
"Sir," Elena began to nervously stammer, "I'm g-going to take my blindfold off, is t-that okay with y-you?"
She knew that it was a stupid question, but she had to get the customer's permission.
Elena was surprised when she felt the customer's hand run down her hair so softly, so tenderly. In a place like this, there was no tenderness. But this time, there was warmth, gentleness. She felt his mouth on hers in a soft kiss.
"Sir?" She whispered breathlessly.
Instead of answering, Damon reached out to untie her blindfold, emotion clogging his throat whenever he tried to speak. One of his tears fell onto her cheek and her eyes snapped open at that. She remained frozen in front of him. It couldn't be.
"D-Damon?" Elena whimpered, nearly collapsing to her knees at the sight of him.
