MAN DOWN

ADELINE'S POV

"You know I keep wondering about the next time you're going to kick something and kill another person." Colton's voice is the first thing I hear as I'm taken out of my slumber. I don't hurt as much as I did when I was brought here so I guess the doctor is doing his job well.

"I didn't mean to kill your friend but you know what? Give me another chance and I'll do it again without blinking." I say. The fact that I was raped, kidnapped and killed someone all in the space of two days makes me want to vomit but I can't act like I'm weak in front of these people. I need to figure out their agenda and what they want with me and how I can get away and for that, I have to be mentally strong.

Colton smirks and pushes himself off the wall, walking towards me slowly and steadily. As if he were scared that I might do something. Although in my current condition, I can't make drastic decisions. I have to give my body time to recover and then figure out and escape.

He stops in front of me and pushes a lock of hair away from my face. His gentle touch is greatly in contrast to the way he hit me in the head when I killed his friend. I don't move from my position in the small bed. I glare into his eyes and focus all of my anger on him. I think of all the ways I want to hurt him and make him pay for what is happening to me.

"A little bit of advice for you princess. Don't be so stubborn. It only makes things hard for me and harder for you. You see, the people where you're going to like drugging disobedient girls and that kind of drug isn't something you want to have in your system. If you want to survive, you have to be smart." He says.

"Where are you taking me?" I ask him, although with all that has happened to me recently, I already have an idea of what the universe is about to throw at me. They've been trying to make me look perfect for the past few days. The doctor has treated me but not so much that I recover all my strength and now Colton is talking about 'other girls'. I don't even know why he's trying to warn me. Why his voice is calm and why he's being gentle with me.

"You'll find out soon enough, love." He says and stands up as the doctor walks in. He leaves me in the room with the doctor and walks out of the room without sparing me another glance. For some reason, I like Colton's presence more than the doctor's.

Colton doesn't look predatory, like an animal when he's with me and I know it's crazy because he's the one bringing me to my death anyways. The doctor looks at me like he wants to eat me up. He looks at me the way Adrian looks at me and it always makes me tremble in fear when he's near me.

"Am I being sold to a sex trafficking organization?" I blurt out. The words leave my mouth before I can stop myself but that's the only explanation I can come up with after all that has happened to me. Adrian sold me to sex traffickers. Tears eave my eyes as I stare at the doctor and I don't even try to hide them. I need to know.

"Did Colton tell you that?" He asks me with wide eyes. As if that was information I wasn't supposed to know and his reaction tells me everything that I needed for confirmation.

"Oh my God!" I exclaim and break out into a hysterical sob as the reality of my situation hits me like a tornado. I'm not oblivious to what this means. I've read documentaries and I've watched videos about these sorts of things. I know and I can guess what happens to girls who get sold into the sex trafficking world and I wouldn't wish something like that on my worst enemies.

The training is traumatic. You're dehumanized in front of both women and men. The drugs they constantly inject into your system to keep you in check and your freedom is completely clutched away from you. I'll die before I become one of those girls.

"There are worse fates." The doctor says with a calm voice. He looks at me with pity in his eyes, as if he actually felt sorry for me. But if he did feel sorry for me, he would not be helping the people behind this.

"Worse fates!?" I feel the sound of my voice rising. "Why don't you take my place then? Do you have a mother, daughter, sister? Why don't THEY take my place then?! What exactly could be worse than living the entire rest of your life like a sex doll to be bought and sold by rich fat perverts?!" I move out of the bed and stand, my body running on full anger an adrenaline. I'm still weak and not at full strength and I feel like I'm going to faint if I stand for too long but I have to get the hell out of here.

"You're not strong enough to do that. I suggest you stay in bed." He says with that same calm voice that unsettles me.

"GET ME OUT OF HERE!" I scream and launch my body forwards but before I can get my weak hands on the doctor, Colton dashes into the room and holds me in place with big arms.

"Oh no you don't." He says as he tries to hold me in place. "All your wounds are healed but you still have a slight tranquilizer in your system. Move too much and it'll fuck you up." He explains. They keep acting like they want me to be in the best of states but that's only so I can be perfect as they hand me over to sick people who will use and exploit my body for their personal gain.

"I DON'T CARE ABOUT ANY OF THAT. I JUST WANT TO GET OUT OF HERE. Let me go!" I cry as Colton keeps holding me in place and he's right. The more I move, the more dizzy and weaker I feel. Tomorrow I'll be taken away and I just can't let it happen without putting up a fight.

The doctor grabs a syringe, his face twisting in impatience as if he were fed up with my attitude but before he can get to me, I grab Colton's gun out of his back pocket and aim it at the doctor. I don't even think as I pull the trigger. I put a bullet through the doctor's head and he immediately falls limp to the floor.

"Jesus fucking Christ!" Colton exclaims and then grabs the gun out of my hand before I can aim it at him too. He looks from me to the doctor's bloody face on the floor in complete and utter disbelief and I feel a sense of pride and relief in knowing that he can't do anything about it. He can't hurt me.

My body is starting to react negatively to all the drugs the doctor must have been giving me and added to the fact that I haven't exactly been eating well, I feel like I want to faint.

I was raped. I was beaten up. I was drugged. I was kidnapped. I killed two people and soon I'm going to be sold and there's nothing I can do to help myself.

Dante. If Dante were here, he would know what to do. I miss him. I miss Liam and surprisingly, I miss my parents. I wonder how all of them are doing. I wonder if they're looking for me.

"You're not very good at your job Colton." I say with a small and soft voice and Colton's wide and green eyes are the last things I see before I pass out.