Mrs. Gutieres brought Ashley back inside the room. She made Ashley sit on a chair before once again removing the blindfold. When she opened her eyes and thought to herself that the place was like a showcase window in the mall, in front of the large glass, she knew someone could see her from the other side.
Mrs. Gutieres whispered, "As I told you, if you want to see your family again, nod your head." Ashley obeyed. Tanaga knew she was being forced, and her cooperation was out of fear.
Mrs. Gutieres tried to justify her actions to Ashley. "I’m not a bad person. If you do this and are successful, you’ll be paid millions of pesos. It’s not that bad, right?" The woman was smug with her hands on her hips. "Where else could you make that kind of money in a year?"
Mrs. Gutieres didn’t know Ashley. She didn’t know that she had been raised to value her purity and her dignity over money. No amount of money in the world would be worth that sacrifice to Ashley. But for the safety of her loved ones or her life, she would nod a million times.
Moments later, Mrs. Gutieres brought Ashley into the room where Tanaga was waiting. She stopped dead in her tracks when she saw him. He saw the shock on her face. He knew how important this way. He pretended not to know her. "So, what’s the deal?" Tanaga nonchalantly asked Mrs. Gutieres.
"Everything is alright, she agreed. Right?" What else could Ashley say? "Yes," she answered. It was such a simple word, but at this moment, it held so many meanings.
"Alright, I’ll take her with me now so I can discuss terms with her. You can contact my attorney for the rest." Tanaga walked to the door without even bothering to see if Mrs. Gutieres agreed or not.
Ashley didn’t know what to do. Should she follow him? She jumped in fright at the sound of Tanaga shouting.
"Are you coming or not?" he asked as he walked out the door.
Ashley ran after him as fast as she could. By the time she caught up to him, he was already inside the car, frowning.
"Anytime now! I don’t have all day!" Tanaga shouted at Ashley.
"Yes, sir! I mean, Boss." She hesitantly started to get in the car. She closed the back-passenger door where Tanaga was sitting and opened the front passenger door.
"Where are you going? You sit back here with me. I need to speak with you." Tanaga spoke to Ashley fluently in her native language.
Stunned, she closed the front car door and went to sit in the back with Tanaga. Her legs trembled as she climbed into the vehicle.
As the car pulled away from the property, Tanaga tried to reassure her. "Don’t be afraid, and I won’t eat you." Amused at his own words, he thought to himself, if I did, I would help myself to the most delicate, satisfying part of your body.
Oh, if only Ashley knew what his thoughts were...
"Thank you," Ashley answered softly, though she could hardly bring herself to look at him.
He didn’t know how to start a conversation with her. What should he say? He fell silent and fixed his gaze out the window.
Ashley sat in silence, her mind frantic. She sat wringing her hangs, growing more nervous. She knew nothing about this man or what his true intentions were...