Don't Touch

-48-

A/N: Content warning for mentions of sexual assault/r*pe.

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Lali laid in the center of the room that had become her prison. In the almost two weeks she'd been in there, she barely got out of bed and she dreaded the morning - waking up each day being reminded that this was her reality and not all just some horrible nightmare.

The man she spoke to when she first regained conscious was not Sean's friend as he pretended to be - it turned out he was an enemy whom she learned was named Santiago Mendoza.

But he wasn't the only one pretending.

When Santiago revealed to Lali his true intentions with her, he also explained to her that Sean was one of the most powerful men in the Western Hemisphere. He wasn't just friends with mafiosos, mobsters, gangbangers, etcetera as he made Lali believe... He was their boss. Not only that, but Simone ran things alongside him.

Lali was surprised when she learned the truth, but not in total disbelief - the revelation filled in a lot of blanks that she didn't bother to look into before.

When Lali first met Simone their freshmen year of college and she told her she'd been emancipated since 16 because she 'didn't believe in her family's lifestyle,' Lali had assumed it was a religious thing and didn't pry. And then when Simone reconnected with her family and went public as Simone Davidson, Lali realized that her initial assumption was wrong. However, she didn't bother to pry further - a decision she was now regretting.

Laying in that bed for almost two weeks, Lali had been thinking about a number of regrets. She regretted never learning Spanish, unable to understand what the people there were talking about when they came around her. She regretted not being adamant about learning more of Simone's past, perhaps she would've practiced more caution or ended their friendship early. She regretted getting involved with Sean, endangering her marriage and now her life for her own selfish reasons.

Lali turned her head to look at the analog clock on the wall to her left and saw that it was 11:38PM. She took a deep breath, knowing that her body was telling her to sleep, but at the same time, dreading closing her eyes because she knew that she'd just wake up in the same room. Something about sitting in her reality, staring aimlessly to different sides or corners of the room, was better than waking up to it everyday as a fresh reminder.

Late nights also meant that she wouldn't have to see her captors. The three men terrified her. Santiago, who was obviously the leader, first approached her as if a kind friend of Sean, but as soon as she revealed to him that she was pregnant with what she believed to be Sean's child, he immediately changed. He pondered aloud whether he should rape her and 'leave a gift inside for Sean.' Lali was thankful that he didn't go through with it... at least not yet.

The other one - Viktor - seemed out of place until Lali learned that she was being traded for a Russian mobster named Dmitry. She figured that they were related, but wasn't quite sure how. Viktor didn't talk much other than when it came to discussions about the exchange.

And then there was Javier, the man who brought Lali to Santiago. He seemed to be Santiago's right-hand man or deputy of sorts - he was always with him and would follow whatever orders Santiago barked. Javier made Lali deeply uncomfortable. Santiago had a malevolent air about him, but something about Javier seemed even more sinister. Lali had been completely unconscious when he transported her and when she woke up, there was a soreness between her legs. She'd initially assumed it was just another symptom of her pregnancy, but each time Javier was in her proximity, his gaze on her was unsettling. She tried not to think about it and hoped that her assumptions were false.

Lali held her stomach as a tear fell from her eye, reminding herself that she needed to get through whatever it was she was facing for her child.

Hours passed with Lali staring into the darkness of her room until the sleepiness began to take over and she felt her eyelids grow heavier. Just when she began to drift off, the sound of her door slowly opening startled her and her eyes popped open and body stiffened as she heard footsteps approach.

"Mi bomboncita," Lali heard a gruff whisper. [My little candy.]

Her heart stopped at the sound of Javier's voice and she pretended to be asleep.

"Bomboncitaaaaa," he sang, still in a whisper, but this time against Lali's ear. She winced when she felt him get into the bed with her and rub his rough, calloused hand along the side of her leg. "I know you're awake," he said into her ear before rubbing his nose up and down her neck as if breathing in her scent. Lali was holding back tears, squeezing her legs together, and stiffening up even more at the discomfort of feeling his hands roam over her and his erection against her backside.

Suddenly, he stopped and took a sharp breath. "Unfortunately, we cannot have any fun tonight..." he placed duct tape over her mouth and Lali began to struggle, unsure what his plans were for her. The fight she tried to put up against him was useless. With him being twice her size, he easily flipped her over and handcuffed her hands behind her back. "Stop fighting," he growled lowly in her ear. "I am your knight in shining armor here to save you... But if you continue to resist, I will leave you here."

Hesitant at first, Lali finally gave up her fight and Javier blindfolded her before he threw her over his shoulder and walked out of the room, taking her down a hallway.

"Asegúrate de traerla de vuelta en una pieza," Santiago taunted as he saw his deputy leave the house with Lali in tote. "Y no arruines su cara... Tiene que parecer sin tocar por el canje." [Make sure you bring her back in once piece... And don't ruin her face... She has to look untouched for the exchange.]

"Si, jefe!" Javier beamed. "Gracias por este regalito antes que le damos a Simone." [Yes, boss...Thank you for this little gift before we give it to Simone.]

Javier threw Lali in the backseat of his car and they drove for what felt like hours. He kept her blindfolded and restrained and would periodically reach back to touch her leg, each time causing her to grow even more tense.

Finally, the car came to a stop and when Javier opened the door to get Lali out, she heard the sound of an aircraft.

"You can walk for this one, bomboncita," he cooed, standing her up and holding her tightly by the waist to guide her direction. Lali's heart was racing and she was in a state of pure panic. She had no idea what was happening and given that Javier was scarier to her than Santiago, she wondered if she made yet another regrettable decision by going with him rather than staying as Santiago's prisoner and taking her chances with the exchange he had planned for her.

It sounded like they'd gotten closer to the aircraft and Javier yelled over the sound of it when they came to a stop.

"Hola, princesa!" he yelled. "Aca, tengo tu... cuñada? Entonces... tenemos trato?" [Here, I have your... sister-in-law? So... do we have a deal?]

Lali heard a woman responding to him in Spanish, though she could barely make out the voice with the sound of the plane overpowering her sense of hearing. Suddenly, she felt Javier's grip on her tighten as he spoke rapid Spanish in what sounded like an angry tone. She heard the clicking of a gun on the other side of him and then a pop that almost sounded louder than the plane. In that moment, she felt Javier's grip loosen completely and heard a thump beside her.

Still handcuffed and blindfolded, Lali had no idea what was happening and began to sob uncontrollably as she fell to her knees. "Please! Please help me! I'm having a ba-" she was cut off when she felt herself being lifted from the ground and carried toward the plane.

The sounds of its engines were silenced when she was brought on board and the door closed. Lali was still in a panic, even when she was gently sat down in a comfortable seat.

Finally, the blindfold was pulled from her eyes and sitting across from her was a visibly furious Simone Davidson glaring back at her.

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A/N: Short chapter, I know! Which is why I did a double update with this and the last one. I'm really trying to get to this important milestone coming in chapter 50, so pls send me good energies so I can hopefully get it done by Sunday!