Dumbfounded by the question, she quickly came up with a reply.
" Not as bad as it did before ", she answered truthfully before saying again, " Thank you Atticus "
" For? "
" Everything ", she said with a sincere smile on her face making his heart beat tense up. Strange.
" How did you end up in such a pitiful state at the auction hall, please enlighten me ", he sat on a chair crossed legged with his chin resting on his knuckles as if waiting to gain entertainment from a tale of her misfortune.
She wasn't looking directly at him but she could feel his piercing gaze which gave her goosebumps. Why this question all of a sudden?
" Oh... ", she said as she tightened the grip on her dress. She was reluctant to remember what happened but still she began to tell the handsome man everything that had transpired before she had met him at the auction.
The man remained eerily quiet throughout out the whole story. She couldn't figure out what was going through his head and she had a feeling she was better off not knowing at all.
" So you think your family sold you off? ", he finally spoke, his eyes remained down as he played with the ring on his fingers.
" I not sure ", she whispered. The man removed his gaze from the ring and looked up at her, his grey eyes misty.
" Isn't it obvious? ", he said. His expression suddenly became bored. " They probably got rid off you cause you where in their way "
Layla thought about it, what could they possibly gain from selling her off? She just couldn't understand. Her chest suddenly began to ache.
" Layla ", his voice rung through her head and the pain began to numb.
" I've decided we'll be going out tomorrow, get ready ", he then got up and coolly left the room not looking back once.
" Out?? ", a smile appeared on her beautiful face.
++++
In a luxurious villa located in one of the affluent parts in the southern district of city V, an old man sat in his private lounge as a maid servant opened a new bottle of expensive champagne. The occasion? Nothing special just being himself was enough of a reason to open a bottle of champagne, right? He sat peacefully sipping from his glass when the doors to the room flung open.
" What is it?!? ", the old man said angrily. His nearly combed hair had strands standing up.
" Grandmaster Owen ", the man in the black suit bowed.
" What happened to her?!? ", he stood up abruptly. What had happened to his precious granddaughter?!
" Well...
" Grandfather!! ", Grace suddenly barged in. The old man's heart ached as he looked at his granddaughter's sorry state. Her cheeks were already red and swollen with bright red handprints. She looked like a pig. Who dared to touch his precious granddaughter.
" Who did this?!? "
" It was Atticus ", she said as she sobbed, her face looking worse every minute.
" How dare he ", he hollered and he tightened his fists into a ball, the veins seeming vulgar. Atticus had to pay!!
++++
Early the next morning, Layla walked out the mansion ready for the this uncertain trip outside of the villa. Remembering the last time she went out with him she couldn't help but feel worried. Will anything go wrong? She quickly threw that thought at the back of her mind. When did she become so negative?
She believed nothing would happen on this trip or at least she tried to believe that. She walked towards the jeep were a handsome man stood, he wore a wine colored long sleeved v- neck shirt with black Jean's and white sneakers. His signature gelled back hair was now in a beautiful mess. His face wore an aloof expression as he looked elsewhere into the distance.
He noticed her presence and looked in her direction, he was surprised to see her wearing brown cargo pants with a black cropped hoodie sported with white high top sneakers and a brown bucket hat. Her long black hair swayed from side to side as she walked towards him.
He was expecting something more.... feminine but this look actually suited her quite well. Layla ofcourse didn't really fancy such pretty dresses, she preferred sneakers to heels or so the saying went.
The two stared at each others striking appearance and the maids and workers couldn't help but stare at the two who looked very compatible together but they dared not say it out loud fearing for their lives and could only think about it.
" Are you ready? ", he asked and began heading for the drivers seat not waiting for her reply. She could only nod to herself and get into the passengers seat. How rude!
Soon the two drove out the villa gates and were off.
The drive got stiffly quiet and the atmosphere was suffocating, Layla looked towards the man who didn't seem inclined or willing to start a conversation. She wondered if it was okay for her to start a conversation with this master of hers.
" You're free to speak ", his words caught her off guard. Could he perhaps read minds?
" And no I can't read minds ", he added starling her even more, " Also when speaking don't cross your boundaries ", reminding her that she was just a mere slave and nothing more.
" So where are we going? ", she asked.
" Where I'm driving to ", he didn't bother explaining which made her grumble a bit. What a cold man, well at least when he wasn't being a narcissist.
" So what do you do in your spare time? ", she asked again.
" Work "
" Apart from that, what else do you do? ", she urged him to at least contribute meaningful to the conversation.
" Sleep ", she rolled her eyes at his one word reply, what a strange man.
" What business are you into then ", she asked but didn't receive a reply. His silence made her uncomfortable, so she didn't continue with the conversation. The two remained silent till they reached a densely populated forest. The car drove towards a huge barbed wired fence that surrounded a wide expanse of the forest.
A large sign stood upfront
" Heavenly Game reserve "
Her eyes widened. Of all places to go he chose a game reserve? They finally reached the gate and he rolled down the window and handed the guard a ticket and moments later there was a loud buzz and the gate opened then the jeep drove in.
Layla jumped down from the jeep since her legs weren't long enough to reach the ground in one go. She went over to face the huge forest, more like a jungle with another fence surrounding it.
A man in a ranger's uniform walked over and waved at the two, " Hi I'm Chris and I'll be your guide today, just ask me anything and I'll be at your service "
He man smiled and sounded very professional.
" Cut the act Chris, this is embarrassing even for me ", Atticus suddenly spoke which made Chris face turn red.
" Hey not cool, give me a break dude, don't embarrass me in front of the girl ", he gave Atticus a sharp glare with a blush still on his face.
" Aren't you meant to be a guide a something, do your job please ", Atticus ignored his rambling.
" Jerk ", Chris puffed his cheeks.
" Just give us our stuff man ", he said unbothered by the comment.
Layla was surprised to see Atticus talking like a normal person, well sort off. Her usually cold and aloof master was actually having a slightly friendly conversation with someone. She wondered who this Chris could be as she watched the two squabble like seven year olds.
Chris was actually quite good looking but not as beautiful as Atticus or had a roguish handsome look as Leo did. He had this mesmerizing play boy aura around him which made him really attractive. His dark brown hair with cinnamon highlights and hazel colored eyes made him really hard to ignore.
He could feel her gaze on him, he looked at her and smiled warmly which she reciprocated.
The three walked through the second second gates into the dense trees. Different species of birds and insects flew past while Chris gave a very detailed explanation of each. Soon they began to see different jungle beast like monkeys, apes, boars even Jaguars and Tigers!
Layla was petrified but actually dared to run up to some monkeys that played with her hair. She was amazed at how friendly they were.
" Aren't they dangerous? ", she asked.
" Only when they get hungry ", Chris then glanced at his watch, " And feeding time is in a few minutes so they must be starved ".
Layla shrieked and quickly ran to Atticus's side. This made him grin, " You're such a baby ", he said before walking off.
" Let's move on to the Savannah zone ", Chris said and they soon left the jungle zone. They soon reached the gate for the Savannah zone and Layla was amazed. It really looked like the real thing!! But without any shade Layla soon felt very hot, plus she was already tired from walking too much.
" This place is gorgeous ", she said
" Yeah, but this is the fun part ", Chris said excitingly.
" What do you mean? ", she asked only for Chris to suddenly pull out a rifle gun from his bag and handed it to Atticus before bringing out a double barrel for himself.
" We're going hunting ".