Sarah’s head was pounding when she slowly opened her eyes. Everything was dark and cold. She tried to move but realized her hands were tied behind her back with rough rope that scratched her skin. Her feet were also tied together.
"Where am I?" she whispered to herself, trying to rember what happened.
The last thing she rembered was being in her father’s house, then the loan sharks taking her. One of them had hit her face so hard that she passed out. Now she was sowhere that slled like fish and saltwater.
As her eyes got used to the darkness, Sarah could see she was inside so kind of tal container. There were small holes near the top that let in a little bit of light and air. She could hear the sound of water moving and ships in the distance.
"The seaport," she realized. "They brought to the seaport."
Sarah tried to sit up properly, but it was hard with her hands tied. That’s when she heard sothing that made her freeze.
Crying. Soft, scared crying coming from sowhere nearby.
"Hello?" She called out quietly. "Is soone there?"
The crying stopped for a mont, then a weak voice answered. "Who... who are you?"
Sarah’s eyes adjusted more, and she could see shapes in the darkness. There were other people in the container with her. Other won.
"My na is Sarah," she said gently. "Are you okay?"
"None of us are okay," another voice said bitterly. "We’re all captives here."
Sarah felt her heart sink. "How many of you are there?"
"Six of us now," a third voice said. "Seven with you."
Sarah tried to move closer to the voices, but the ropes made it difficult. "How long have you been here?"
"I’ve been here for two weeks," the first voice said. "My na is i. They took because my brother couldn’t pay back the money he borrowed."
"I’m Isabella," the second voice said. "Three weeks for . Sa reason - family debt."
Sarah felt sick. These won had been trapped here for weeks because of their families’ debts. Just like her.
"What do they do to us?" Sarah asked, though she was scared to hear the answer.
The won went quiet for a mont. Then i spoke in a whisper. "Bad things. Very bad things."
Before Sarah could ask more questions, she heard heavy footsteps outside the container. Keys rattled, and then the tal door swung open with a loud screech.
Light flooded in, making everyone squint. Three big n stood in the doorway, and Sarah recognized one of them - the man with the scar on his face who had hit her.
"Our new guest is awake." the scarred man said, grinning.
He stepped into the container, and Sarah could see his face clearly now. He was ugly, with yellow teeth and an eyes.
"You know," he said, walking over to Sarah, "when Boss Wang told us we were getting a special prisoner, I didn’t believe him. But then I saw you, and I couldn’t believe it."
Sarah glared at him. "What do you want?"
"What do I want?" The man laughed. "I want to know what it feels like to be famous!"
The other two n laughed too. One of them, a fat man with a bald head, clapped his hands excitedly.
"I can’t believe it!" the fat man said. "Sarah Chen! The famous pop star! My daughter loves your music."
Sarah’s blood ran cold. They knew who she was. This made everything worse.
"You’re even prettier in person," the scarred man said, reaching out to touch her face.
Sarah jerked her head away. "Don’t touch !"
"Oh, feisty!" the man laughed. "I like that. Boss Wang said you’re married to so rich man. Mason Liu, right?"
"Your husband better hurry up," the scarred man continued. "Boss Wang is getting impatient. If he doesn’t show up soon, well..." He looked around at the other won. "You’ll beco just like them."
Sarah looked at the other won in the container. They all looked terrified and broken. So had bruises on their faces and arms. Her heart broke for them.
"Please," Sarah said. "These won didn’t do anything wrong. Let them go."
The fat man laughed. "Let them go? Are you crazy? Do you know how much money we can make from them?"
"What do you an?" Sarah asked, though she was afraid she already knew.
"Rich n pay a lot of money for pretty girls," the scarred man said with a disgusting smile. "Especially a famous one like you."
She instantly felt sick to her stomach. These n were selling won. They were going to sell her too if no one found her.
"My husband will kill you," Sarah suddenly blurted out, trying to sound brave even though she was terrified.
"Your husband?" the scarred man laughed. "He doesn’t even know where you are. And even if he did, he’s just a businessman. What’s he going to do? Throw money at us? I’d appreciate that though."
The three n laughed and started to leave. But then the fat man stopped and pointed at one of the other won.
"You," he said to a young girl who looked about Twenty. "Co here."
The girl, who Sarah now saw was very pretty with long black hair, started shaking her head. "No, please. I didn’t do anything wrong."
"I said co here!" the fat man shouted.
When the girl didn’t move, the scarred man grabbed her arm and dragged her toward the corner of the container. The girl started screaming.
"No! Please! Let go!"
Sarah’s heart was pounding. She could see what was about to happen, and she couldn’t just watch.
"Leave her alone!" Sarah shouted as loud as she could.
The n ignored her. The fat man held the girl down while the scarred man started pulling at her clothes.
"STOP!" Sarah scread, struggling against her ropes. "YOU ANIMALS! LEAVE HER ALONE!"
The girl’s screams filled the container. Sarah had never felt so angry and helpless in her life. She had to do sothing.
"I’LL KILL YOU!" Sarah yelled at the top of her lungs. "I’LL KILL ALL OF YOU! YOU’RE DISGUSTING PIGS!"
The scarred man looked up from the girl, annoyed. "Shut up, princess, or you’ll be next."
"GO TO HELL!" Sarah scread. "MY HUSBAND WILL FIND YOU AND MAKE YOU PAY! HE’LL DESTROY ALL OF YOU!"
The girl’s screams were getting weaker. Sarah felt tears streaming down her face. She had never felt so powerless.
"You think your rich husband cares about you?" the fat man said, breathing heavily. "If he cared, he would have been here by now."
Sarah’s heart sank. Maybe he was right. Maybe Mason didn’t care about her enough to look for her. Their marriage was contractual, after all. She ant nothing to him.
"He’ll co," Sarah said, more to convince herself than the n. "He’ll co for ."
The n finished their horrible deed and left the girl crying in the corner. Sarah wanted to go to her, to comfort her, but she couldn’t move with her hands tied.
"I’m sorry," Sarah whispered to the girl. "I’m so sorry."
The girl didn’t answer. She just curled up in a ball and cried quietly.
A few minutes later, Sarah heard more footsteps outside. The door opened again, and this ti Mr. Wang walked in.
"Sarah Chen. Sorry, Sarah Liu." he said, looking at her with interest. "The famous pop star."
Sarah glared at him. "You’re sick."
Mr. Wang laughed. "I’m a businessman. And you, my dear, are worth a lot of money."
"My husband will pay you," Sarah said. "Just tell him how much you want."
"Oh, I’ve already told your father. I’m sure he’ll pass my ssage on," Mr. Wang said. "Eight million yuan. That’s what your father owes ."
"Then why are you doing this? why not just let go?"
Mr. Wang’s smile was cruel. "Because I don’t think he’ll pay. I think he’ll try to play gas with . Rich n always think they’re smarter than everyone else."
Sarah’s heart was racing. "What do you an?"
"I an," Mr. Wang said, checking his watch, "if your husband doesn’t show up here before morning, I’m going to sell you to the highest bidder."
Sarah felt the blood drain from her face. "You can’t do that."
"I can do whatever I want," Mr. Wang said. "But don’t worry. I’ll make sure you go to soone who appreciates famous singers. Maybe soone in another country who’s never heard of Sarah Chen."
The thought of being sold to a stranger in a foreign country made Sarah feel sick. She might never see Mason again. She might never see China again.
"Please," Sarah said, trying not to cry. "Just let go. I’ll personally pay off the debt myself." She knew it wasn’t easy, but she would try her best.
Mr. Wang laughed. "But I think I’ll make more money selling you."
He started to leave, then turned back. "Oh, and Sarah? If your husband does co for you, I hope he brings a lot of n. Because I have twenty ard n guarding this place. He’ll need an army to get you out."
Mr. Wang left, and Sarah was alone with the other won again. She looked around at their faces in the dim light. They all looked hopeless.
But she wasn’t ready to give up. She had to find a way out of here. She had to believe that Mason would co for her.
She closed her eyes and tried to think. The ropes around her wrists were tight, but maybe she could find sothing sharp to cut them. The container was made of tal, so maybe, just maybe there was a rough edge sowhere.
She would find it and get them out of here.
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