10 EIGHT

HARPER'S POV:

The director had received a call yesterday and it seems that someone like it and I'm being picked up this afternoon. I was afraid to meet my owner I thought of every possible scenario, but I hope it goes the best way possible.

"He said you could wear anything you want but for now you are still here, so you are going to wear this one",  the director hands me the clothes and I just take them and change myself. It wasn't ugly, I actually like it "So, now come here put some mascara and lipstick on .... You can do it, alone right?", she asked me and a nod.  "Good, I'll leave you then"

I don't like heavy makeup, so I just put some mascara on and use a little bit of red lipstick with a pink gloss just to leave my lips a little red, as if I'm blushed. I finish it and for now I just have to wait.

IRVIN'S MOTHER'S POV:

He thinks I'm doing this for me, but he is so blind that he doesn't see that he is the one who need something else. He is letting life get away and he has eyes just for money and things mafia related. This shit business took my husband from us, so I want him to be able to enjoy life, the way me and his father tried to. Work is important, money is important, but family is more. And I truly believe he needs some family. I'm his mother, we are family, but he needs something to call just his, a save place where he can let the guard down and relax. And I'm not talking just about sex. Sex is good, in fact is amazing but love a hundred times better and there is no better feeling than feeling crazy in love for someone. Love is unmeasurable.

"Did you get what you want", I came back to reality when Vin talks to me.

"Yes, I did, and it is so pretty. Everything is looking perfect.",  I say while we are walking to the car. I'm so excited for this marriage "and I already prepared the wedding party and it is going to be perfect –

"Sure mother", he says disinterested on what I'm saying. It makes me sad, but I hope this girl will show him how love feels. "let's go and you better drive faster Josh", I tell the driver and through the car mirror he gives me a short nod with a friendly smile on.

The ride takes a while. There are too many cars on the road, but we eventually get there. We were late by an hour or so. I have never been here and this place look like a castle. It is a big five store "house". Very old and dark, but with a beautiful garden. In front of the place has an open view and access to the woods. There are guards and security guards everywhere. It makes me happy to see that they praise for the girl's security here. 

We walk through the front garden to get to the front door. It was a tall wooden door. a beautiful woman opens. She must be around my age, around 50 years. She is tall and slim. Her hair by her waist and black eyes.

"Welcome Mr. Black and Mrs. Follow me please", she says and extend her hand. She leads us to an office room. She sits down and hands my son some papers. "please read and sign bellow", it is like a contract. Vin hands her the papers after reading. "Amazing, now the payment, and after that I'll ask someone to bring her here"

"No, before the payment I want every question of mine answered", Vin said in a rude and mandatory tone, "I'm paying a billion dollar for a product I barely know",  I don't like when he talks about her as if she is a thing but I'm not going to say a thing because he already agreed to this.

"Of course. Everything will be answered –

"Why this price? And what qualities that observation is talking about? Where did she come from? Who is she? – he finishes asking. For someone not interested in the marriage thing he surely is anxious about knowing everything.

"Well – the woman takes a while to star talking and Irvin is getting irritated – her father brought her here three years ago.

"So, she wanted to be here or made?"

"No! she wanted to be here", he didn't say anything, he doesn't seem convinced with her answer. "and in the first she was a total failure. Nothing was perfect and now, three years ago, I can say she is the best girl we have ever trained. I risk saying she is the best one so far and no one is going to do things the way she does. And that's why the higher price."

"Ok, but you haven't answered, what are these requests other made?", Vin said.

"Well, in the beginning, we just thought them to obey and stay pretty but then over the years the buyers were complaining more and more about how they  walked, talked, looked, the way the ate, their weight, posture", he stops to think about more complains. "And measures so lets say Harper is the one who, according to the previous requests, fits the profile.

IRVIN'S POV:

I hear as she list the requested these girls have to fit and telling me that the only one who fit those completely is Harper, made me question: "But what guarantee I have that you are not bluffing and that she truly had the training and she won't, all of sudden, rebel and start going crazy?", the woman thinks for a while

"Here", she hands me a pen drive with the initials H.H o it. "In their second year we make a 'movie' of an hour showing their training. Many buyers request it. They like to watch so watch it, this is the prove she is perfect and she wont rebel or run away"

"Why would she run away if she is here by choice?".  I remember when she said that she is here by choice.

"What?! Noooo, it is just a way of speaking, she won't run away"

I don't say anything, and she asks if we have any more questions and we just shake our heads – very well, I'll send someone to bring her here and I'll just go get something for her.

We stay there and the only thing I keep looking is at her picture on the table.

"This girl, Harper, she is not here by choice sir.",  some woman says. She is holding a mop and a bucket of water. This woman stays quiet but then she looks at us and when she is about to go the director comes back.

"Get out. Go", she sends her away disgusted with her presence. "She has some mental problem, I'm sorry if she was bothering"

I noticed she that she is holding a square box. She opens it and she put the object in the table. It is a black choker. She takes out a little rectangular control. "Please can you put your digital on it?", the director asks me. I get up from my chair and do it, "but what is this for?", I ask her.

"Well, I saw your concern with the idea if her running away or being rebellious, so this is a joker that you have full time location of her and it gives electrical shocks when someone else's digital touches or try to open the lock or if you click here",  she shows me the remote. "And you can even control the voltage. This is just for keep your mind of the possibly of her running away, that I know she won't.", she stops talking and we here a knock on the door. she goes and she thanks the man and give some space to bring the girl. The director hands are on her back.

We don't meet our eyes until the woman ask her to look forward and put her dark brown hair aside. She looks confused and there is when our eyes meet. Beautiful hazel eyes. It is caramel with green but also a touch of blue. I cannot explain the colour, but it is unique, and it is full of live. But she immediately looks away. She looks away blinking several times, as if she came back from a different reality.

When the woman put the choker around her neck, she seems scared. She is going to touch it but then the director stops her. I watch her little hands go back to the original position with slowly and delicates movements. I follow her hand and now it is the first time I see what she is wearing. Black high hells, black and white checkered skirt and a black long leave shirt. It hugs body but especially her waist.

I return to look at the bigger picture. She felt uncomfortable with the choker. Her head was up and now I could she her face. I look at mom and she was smiling. Ok, I think I just bought a barbie doll for her. An expensive one by the way.

"Here, why don't you give it a try.", the director hands me the remote. I look at her eyes again and they are nowhere to be met. She closed them and her hands were clued to her body. She was waiting for the device to shock her.

I look at the little touch screen from the control and if I roll my digital down the voltage would be lower and up would be higher. I let it in a low voltage, something for me it wouldn't hurt but something you can feel, something around 10 voltz. I put it on the 10 and click it.

I'm not the kind of person that feels bad for other easily but right now I'm feeling. I watch her arms go strict and he hands open and she give a step forward, losing balance. She holds herself on the edge of the table. And after a few seconds she gives a step back, where she was standing, and I watch as her hands close and open, trying to relax her muscles.  As she returned to her original position her head went immediately down. She didn't dare to look up or to the side. The only thing she looked was the floor and possible our feet.

I feel bad. I guess 10 volts going in the neck is too much. But now, at least, she knows who is in command here. But in the first time in a long time I rather be loved than feared. However, is good to be fear by her. I don't know this girl and who knows what is on her mind.

HARPER'S POV:

I entered the room and there he was. He was tall, very tall. His hand was tattooed, and his hair was silk black. His eyes a light green, almost being grey. He was wearing a social outfit. Too formal for a Sunday afternoon. He was standing and I by the way he stepped on the floor I could see that he had a gun to his ankle. On both ankles and when he turned around to look at, what I guess his mother, inside his suit there were two more guns on each side. 

I came back to reality, where I'm not supposed to keep eye contact with the owner, when the director puts a black choker around my neck I was lost. They never told us about chokers. I was about to touch the strange collar around my neck she tells me not to.

The next thing I feel is a chock to my neck. A sharp pain spread to my whole body. It hurts really bad. The chokes had two sharps end inside, and that's why it hurts so much. The sharp ends were inside my flesh. Right now, even my feet hurt. 

Why did he do that. I didn't do anything I was quiet and obedient. Why did he punish me? He is bad and he hurts me. I respected him already, he didn't need to do this. I feel scared and extremely vulnerable right now, so I just do what they tell be to do: low my head, even though this choker is too thigh, I can barely breath but I don't want to receive another chock.

"Edward!", the director calls the man who brought me in. "Please take her to their car". I go, and they are left alone in the room, again.

IRVIN'S POV:

The man takes her away and this woman starts to talk again. "So, for better relationship, I'm going to give you something like an operating instruction ", she laughs and hands me more papers but this time with keywords and instructions. "So, we build these girls to follow rules and they need orders, so if you want her to talk or look up you have to say to her directly. She won't do otherwise. You can scream, slap her or say things to her but she won't speak or look up unless the command is given. When giving a command use direct and explicit works, for every single thing you want her to do. From walking to sex fantasies or fetishes you might have, the commands are in this one paper.".  I feel like talking to my dog, not that i have sex with my dog, which I don't but she is basically a dog.

The woman stops talking and finally we head back to the car. From the garden I can see her standing with the Edward guy beside her.

HARPER'S POV:

As I walk to his car, Edward stops by my side and without looking at me he says: - this is a universal key to open the choker. I stole it – he says and hands me the key, in a very discreet way.

I take It and this is my shot. It is just me and him here. The garden is open to the woods so I could get away. I was about to give one step forward I hear:

"I believe the car is this way", my owner says from behind me, in my ear. I look down and nod, agreeing with him. I hold my hand in front of me and wait for a command. Does he want me to open the door or what? What do I do? I don't know so I just stay there, with the key in my hand. – you can go- he says to Edward. He is so nice and yet the owner is being very rude, but I'm not the one standing between them. "If you wanted to run away you should have picked a shoe with no heels", he says and I have to give him the impression I was not trying to run away. He notices I wanted to say something, but I let it go. "Speak!", he commands.

"I wasn't trying to run away, I just lost my balance", I look at the floor and it was not a straight floor, it was made of small blocks of cement placed beside each other. "My heel went in-between, and I lost balance", I say and return to silence and submission.

"Good", he says. "Try to run or do something of the type and the choker won't be the only thing choking you"

We all get inside the limousine and the car star moving. I wanted so bad to sleep but I don't want to lose the view. I haven't been out for three years and now that I'm, I'm going to enjoy the view and the landscape.

Two hours later....

We get out of the car and we entered his house. It was not big, it was huge, something insane. Everything is so beautiful, modern and bright, something I haven't seen in years.

His mother seems so happy, I wish she could share with me the smallest amount of happiness. – I'll be right back, don't move – she says, and I immediately stop walking. I stay in the middle of the huge Livingroom waiting for her to come back. When she does, my owner enters into the house and a girl come running and hug him. She has mid length black hair and drown eyes. She is pretty.

I return my attention to his mother. She is so sweet and lively. She starts talking and when she is about to lead me somewhere, she wanted me to go, the girl interrupts his mother.

"Hey Lily", the girl says to his mother and she says the same but using the girls name: Brooke. "who is she? Your niece? OH MY GOD, you are so beautiful.", she says to me, being all nice.

"No, she is the wife", Lily says. Brookes face chances and I wish I wasn't here – and her name is Harper-

"Wife?!", and from, a nice person she because an angry one. I just stay quiet. Brooke looks at him and she starts to scream and do a scandal. Please don't scream, please don't scream, that is all I thought, he will punish me and you. I start to feel out of place here.

"Come darling",  Lily says and gives me her hand. She is so sweet, and she is nice. "Let me show where you are staying", as we were leaving, she was telling me so many things that I couldn't get all the information. And as a background sound, Brookes voice was echoing in the big house.