He Is My Master

Iris tightened her seatbelt and hugged herself. She continued rubbing her arms which were peppered with goosebumps. She wished Calixto would close the car window and for them to leave this creepy place.

"What are you doing?" She asked in panic when she heard the clicking of a seatbelt being unbuckled.

She bent forward in an attempt to stop Calixto from getting out of the car but she was too late. He had opened the door on his side and he stepped out in the darkness of the night. It was quite dark outside and the red lights from the CCTV cameras all over the fence just made the place creepier than it already was.

"Please, let's just go," she called to Calixto who didn't listen to her, instead, he walked closer to the fence where the camera that caught his eyes was situated. With her heart in her throat, she clenched the seatbelt that was across her small body, leaning forward, trying to see in the dark what Calixto could be doing outside.

She saw him standing in front of the camera that moved and focused solely on him. A strange emotion passed through her, making the small hairs at the back of her neck stand up.

"This is a really bad idea," she said to herself with her eyes still on Calixto that was now talking to a CCTV camera. He must have gone insane!

Her attention was so focused on Calixto that she didn't notice that someone opened the backseat door until the person sat next to her and she screamed, but it was too late. The man had covered her mouth and in an instant, everything turned hazy as she went limp in the stranger's arms.

When Iris woke up she was sitting on a chair with a tall backrest, ornate with intricate carvings that she hasn't seen in her life. She was at a huge dining table. She had to blink her eyes multiple times because the chandeliers that were hanging above the dining table that seemed to stretch forever were hurting her eyes.

But it wasn't what made her feel scared for her own life. It was the fact that her wrists were bound to the armrest of the chair she was sitting on.

"Calixto," she whispered as she scanned the long table that seemed to be empty if not for the two platters of food set up at both ends of the table. She closed her eyes and did some breathing exercises before she slowly opened them to scan her surroundings.

She had noticed that she was sitting five chairs away from the left end of the massive dining table. There were about ten chairs to her right side where the other platter of food was waiting.

"Hello?" She said and heard her own voice echoing in the huge chamber. 'Where am I? And What am I doing at this table?' she thought to herself as she pulled and twisted her wrist from being tied up.

"Anybody home?" She asked in a small voice. Her stomach was churning with nervous anxiety. Waking up tied on a chair in front of a massive dining table would do that to you, she thought to herself as she tried to look around but the tall backrest of the chair she was sitting on was making it impossible for her to see what was behind her.

"Water, miss?"

Iris yelped like a scared animal and jumped up from her seat. She didn't hear nor see this man approach her.

She looked at him, wearing a suit with a long coat, delicately poured water on her glass, holding the glass pitcher as if it was going to break at any minute with his hands covered with white gloves. She just saw this kind of man in anime that she liked watching.

"Who are you?" She asked in a hushed tone of voice. "And where am I?" She added when the man met her eyes.

"My name is Lorenzo," he said in a crisp voice, bowing at her politely before he stepped away from her side.

"Wait," she twisted her body but the rope tying her wrist on the armchairs made it impossible. "Wait, please tell me where I am and what I am doing here? Where is Calixto?" She was now screaming with panic rising from her chest.

"How did you know my son?"

Iris snapped her head to her right and saw a man with silver hair, sitting at the head of the table. She swore that no one was sitting there a minute ago. Same with the man who introduced himself as Lorenzo, he seemed to materialize in thin air.

"Uhm," she cleared her throat and in a shaky voice answered the man. She didn't know him but deep inside her guts, she knew that she had to answer him. "Calixto is my master."

The man with silver hair put down his knife and fork and threw his head in the air, roaring with laughter.

"Imagine that? You now called yourself, master?" He asked in a mocking tone of voice.

Iris knew that the man wasn't talking to her. She slowly turned her head to the other end of the table and saw Calixto, sipping something from a teacup. A wave of relief washed over her body. She never thought that a day would come when she would be glad to see Calixto. But then, when did he come? She was alone at this table just a few minutes ago. Who are these people and where is this place?

"Father," Calixto said, putting down his teacup back on its saucer. "I never expected you to welcome me this way. Kindly untie Iris for her to eat properly."

Iris's jaws dropped to the ground with surprise. It was the first time that she heard Calixto use the tone of voice that he used just now. She didn't expect him to be polite in any way. She was used to Calixto's rudeness and sarcasm.