Sunday, 10:15 P.M.
Ara's P.O.V.
A loud noise jolted me awake from a deep sleep. I slowly opened my eyes. Uncle Roli immediately came into view; he was beside me. He was pounding something using an axe.
A few moments later, I smelled something raw. It was a foul, sickening stench. I peered closely to see what he was doing. He was pounding a pair of feet! Yes, severed feet! Feet of a...
HUMAN!
Because of the gruesome scene I witnessed, I couldn't help but panic. I bolted upright from where I was lying. It was cold; I was shivering.
But why was it like this? I couldn't get up. I scanned the surroundings and noticed that I was in a deep place.
I was in a bathtub! Cold! Reeking! Dark.
Only the moonlight from the window served as light. Half of the bathtub was filled with water. Almost half of my body was submerged!
I looked at the water; it was red. There was blood in the water I was in. Half of my body was underwater, causing me to feel an intense chill.
I tried to stand up but I couldn't. I glanced around the entire area and the truth became clear to me: I was currently in a spacious bathroom. The tiles were white, but...
Blood was splattered everywhere!
That was when Uncle Roli noticed I was awake. He looked at me sharply, yet there was a smile on his lips. His face was covered in blood. "Oh, you're awake..."
At that moment, the memories of the final events before I ended up in this place came rushing back. I remembered trying to escape him. This man is a beast, a monster! He is a demon and a murderer.
He was the one who killed his family—my aunt and my cousin.
I couldn't stop the tears from falling. I couldn't explain the rage I felt for him. "Lamimnyungonum..." Wait, why couldn't I speak?!
Then I slowly touched my mouth. My mouth was sticky and smelled of blood. When I looked at my hand after touching my mouth, I recoiled at what I saw.
Blood!
What the hell is happening to me?! Why is my mouth full of blood? When I looked down, I saw blood flowing down to my chest. Even my clothes were covered in blood, but it seemed to have dried, turning a dark black color.
Then I felt the pain in my head. When I touched my head, I saw blood there too. I remembered Uncle Roli hitting me on the head with a hammer, causing me to lose consciousness. I also felt a sharp sting in my mouth, making me gasp in pain. I bowed my head slightly, and thick, heavy blood dripped from it.
At that point, I broke down completely. I was trembling with fear. My heart was pounding so hard against my chest.
Did Uncle Roli really do this to me? Sh*t! It wasn't impossible that he would eventually kill me.
Moments later, I heard his footsteps approaching me. I couldn't bring myself to look at him. I was horrified by his appearance. His hands were covered in blood, even his face. Based on his actions, I thought he had completely lost his mind.
My eyes searched for the pair of feet he was mercilessly crushing earlier.
I felt an even deeper terror when my eyes finally landed on them. They were indeed feet, a pair of feet! Whose feet were they? If so, even before I stepped into this house, he had already murdered someone. No! This can't be! I need to escape from his hands before he makes me his next victim. This man is insane; my Uncle Roli is insane.
I glared at him.
I could hardly make out his face because it was so covered in blood. I saw nothing but his dark face and his wide grin that reached his ears. His eyes were hidden behind his long, curly hair, which was covered by a black hat.
He was no longer my lover. He was no longer the Uncle Roli I knew.
I wanted to curse him and say terrible things. I wanted to hurt him. But no voice came out of my mouth, and I had no strength to fight him. I was weakening; I couldn't move. My vision was also blurring. But I forced myself to be strong. I had to fight; I had to fight him. I thought of Nana, my Mommy. She was the source of my strength.
"Ara... just a moment, okay? I'm just going to get some food..." His voice was tender. After that, he walked out and finally vanished from my sight. This was my chance to escape.
I could hear noises. Noises of insects like flies and crickets. But no matter how hard I looked, I saw nothing. I only heard their sounds.
I tried to get up again, but I really couldn't. Why? When I looked behind me, that's when I saw a chain—a chain tied to a thick, large pipe behind me. I felt for it under the water and found that it was tied around my waist. It was knotted several times around my midsection.
I looked at the bathroom door; it was ajar. He left it ajar for a purpose. So I quickly tried to undo the chain knotted around me. How many times was it knotted? One? Two? About three knots.
I hurriedly tried to untie it. I got the first knot loose. Suddenly, I heard a creak on the floor—Uncle Roli's footsteps! I moved even faster. I felt the chain again; the second knot was tight.
"Ara..." Uncle Roli's voice called. But his voice was low.
With all my might, I undid the tight second knot of the chain. I got it! Only one knot left!
"Ara..." He was getting closer. I could hear him clearly now! I took a deep breath. The third knot was tight! "Ara."
There he is. Faster, Ara! Faster! "Ara?"
I'm almost done. Faster! "Ara!"
He was close. Uncle Roli was close! I stopped, catching my breath. Silence.
His voice disappeared. My hands felt lighter and I slowly removed the third knot of the chain. I could feel it; he was just around. Close to me. Watching me, peeking.
I took another deep breath to pull in my stomach. This way, I could easily remove the loop.
One...
I breathed deeply. Pull! Pull! Two...
Pull! Pull! Ara, pull harder! I poured all my strength into removing the knot while my eyes were fixed only on the door.
Three!!!
I stopped what I was doing, and I almost wished I could sink into the ground. My gaze shifted toward the doorway. I saw eyes. They were peeking at me. They were blinking while staring at me.
My hands moved again to remove the third knot while my gaze didn't break from the eyes peeking at me. I was sure those weren't Uncle Roli's eyes. If so, whose eyes were they?
Soon, I undid the third knot. I raised myself slightly from my seated position to get a better look at those eyes that were still peeking at me now.
I felt like I had seen these eyes before. As time went on, they slowly became familiar to me. Who exactly had eyes like the ones I was currently seeing?
I swallowed hard when I realized who those eyes belonged to. Right! I knew whose eyes those were! But... Impossible!
I jumped in shock when the door suddenly slammed shut. I was gasping for air, and my heart was racing. I knew who that person was! I knew that person peeking!
Only a few seconds passed before the door slowly opened. I could hear it creaking, causing me to close my eyes in fear. I felt like I couldn't bear to see whoever would step through that door.
Silence.
I slowly opened my eyes. "Ara!"
Oh God! I thrashed around in total shock!
"Eat first," Uncle Roli said as he offered me the plate he was carrying. His face was dark, and only his terrifying smile was visible.
I didn't acknowledge him. I wanted to tell him that I didn't want what he was offering, but how? I couldn't speak.
He sat in front of me and peered at my face. "Eat first, and then... we'll go home."
Go home? Who was he kidding? I shook my head.
"Eat first, come on..." he pleaded while forcing the plate toward me.
"Ngwi..." I only groaned because no voice truly came out of my mouth. Besides that, I felt something strange in my mouth. It stung. It hurt. I couldn't explain it.
His expression changed, and in my eyes, he seemed to look like a demon. "Are you going to eat this or not!?" he snapped at me.
I felt an intense fear when he shouted at me. I was startled when he suddenly grabbed my hair. It was a tight, strong, and violent grip. It felt like my hair was going to tear away from my scalp as he shook it.
"Will you eat this? Or will I make you bald!" His grip on my hair was firm.
I had no choice but to sob in pain. It hurt so much! I had no other option, so even though it was hard, I was forced to nod in agreement.
He let go of my hair. I caught a glimpse of a few strands of hair that had fallen onto the tiled floor from his hand. He was so strong. He only grabbed my hair for a moment, but he had already pulled out so many strands from my scalp.
He handed me a small plate with a little rice. On top of it was a side dish. I took it from him.
"Eat, okay! Hurry so we can go home." Here he was again, his tone so tender.
I had no other choice but to eat. Besides, I needed it to gain strength. STRENGTH to escape.
I looked at the food—warm rice and on top of it, a piece of meat.
Wait, what kind of meat is this? My vision seemed to be blurring.
I rubbed my eyes to make sure I wasn't seeing things wrong. It was a piece of meat. It was red. No! Brighter than red. Pink!
I touched it; it was a bit hard and rough, sticky and...
Oh NO! It can't be! Is this why I'm like this? Is what I'm seeing real? Is my suspicion right?
"Eat that, Ara. So you can speak again..." after he said that, he smirked.
I began to sob again as I slowly raised my hand to feel my mouth. I slowly opened my mouth and felt for my tongue. My tongue was gone! That's why I couldn't speak. He cut off my tongue.
I almost lost consciousness because of what I discovered. This beast was going to make me eat my own tongue!
"Eat it!" He glared at me. In my fear, I closed my eyes and ate it.
I started with the rice and chewed it slowly. Next was the meat—my tongue. I chewed it too, but I couldn't taste anything. All I knew was that I was forcing myself to chew it slowly.
Uncle Roli just looked at me. Watching my every chew. His eyes were fixed on me, yet they were very shifty.
As I chewed, I wept.
Oh my God!
Why did this happen to me?
Is he going to torture me first before he kills me?
No. I can't die. What about Nana? What about my Mommy? He was still staring at me. His eyes were still the same, very shifty. "Roli?!" A woman's voice called from outside.
Uncle Roli quickly went to the window, and a smile immediately formed on his lips. I think he was expecting that woman's arrival. But who was it?
He turned to me. "Stay there, Ara. I have a surprise for you." The bastard was smirking. Then he went out of the room but left the door slightly open as he always did.
When he vanished from my sight, I got up with all my strength. I emerged from the water of the bathtub. Since I had undone the chain, this was my chance to escape.
I stepped out. When I was about to step on the floor, I fell to my knees. Why? Why couldn't I take a step?
I looked behind me. My heart sank at what I saw. Oh my God!
I was overwhelmed with despair.
I felt like I was nailed to the spot. It couldn't be.
What will happen to me now?
Nevertheless, I crawled and quickly searched for the severed foot in a corner. The foot that I think Uncle Roli cut off.
Then I went to the corner and hugged it. I couldn't stop myself from sobbing. This foot, this one foot...
This is...
My RIGHT FOOT...