Cartel│Mark Lee

Abandoned

The little light coming from underneath the doorway was the only thing that seemed to keep my mind from going through a dark spiral. I felt abandoned as days went past in this dark room. I sat alone and scared by myself. Taeil was using me as his bait for Mark to come and find me and to completely let his guard down.

But Mark never came.

It infuriated Taeil to the point where he took his anger out on me. I secretly prayed to see Taeyong or Mark in my doorway every time a person approached, but it was never them. For the first time in my life I felt complete and utter hopelessness with no one to rest my head on. I began to learn I was not the person i thought I was. I was not strong nor in charge. I was a fraud in my own body.

I seemed to have no tears left to cry as my body shook in agony. I should have known better that my life was not worth Mark risking his entire Cartel to save. Footsteps approached the doorway and I braced myself for what was to come. "I think I misplayed this game with Mark." Taeils voice echoed throughout the room as he walked in. "You mean nothing in this war Vanessa." He almost laughed at my pity. He looked at my body in disgust and spat on the ground. "I might have to accept defeat on this strategy. He is not coming to find you." Taeil walked toward me and I winced as he inched closer. Instead of harming me with his dirty hands he untied the rope around my hands.

I let out a hard breath as my hands were finally free from the Itching of the rope. I rubbed them togther and sat confused in front of this man. He starred at me, bewildered by my stillness when I now had my hands free. "It is amazing how broken a person can get with some training." His hand reached to brush the hair out of my face. I wanted to pull away from him and fight. I wanted to give my everything to make him hurt. I wanted to use my now mobile body to hit him as many times he hit me. But I couldn't. I froze in the presence of my captor. My trembling body fought only the urge to cross Taeil. "You are either smart or extremely terrified Vanessa." He marvelled at his rotten bait. As if I was his new pet he examined me. "You may have also realized you are worthless in everyone's eyes. You have no family and you built your life around a cartel that made you feel important. But the shocker here is that the cartel doesn't care for you the same way you cared about it." He watched me crumble at his words with ease. "You are now even worthless to me, your greatest enemy."

Taeil paced around the dark room as I eyed him. My silent voice was weary and I felt nothing but an empty pit in my stomach where hope used to live. "You are right." My voiced cracked as my first words in days replaced countless screams. Where could I turn to now? Taeil stopped in his tracks and peered down at me. A small smirk took over his face. "You poor girl. You're almost pitiful." He grabbed my wrist and stood me up. My legs wobbled at the stability and I felt weak. My worst fears came to life as he lead me out of the room I had spent days in.

He walked me through a series of hallways and I stumbled behind him. We entered a room that looked to be a medical facility. He sat me down and grabbed supplies. I starred at his every move as I wondered why my captor and abuser was now helping me. "It wasn't always like this. Between mark and I." Taeil sat beside me and began to treat my wounds. "What do you mean?" I asked as I winced at his touch. "We were friends once. Haechan, Mark and I. While Haechan was mad that Mark took control of the Cartel, I sat aside and watched our friendship get torn into pieces." He bit the inside of his cheek as he focused on a cut on my cheek. Mark had dressed my wounds once before but it didn't feel like this. I was terrified of Taeil I didn't trust him but with Mark I felt cared for. I missed that feeling.

"Once Mark got everything he wanted he abandoned everyone that was close to him. That is what Mark does, he uses people till he can't get anything out of them anymore. You must be realizing that right now." He made eye contact with me and I looked away. I didn't want to believe his harsh words but I couldn't help but nod to them. "Mark had my father killed in an act of power. My father wanted to help Haechan get what he deserved in that business and Mark didn't like that." Taeil stuttered at the memory and continued helping me. "This business is cut throat, I know that. But we were friends and he did something I could never forgive him for. That is why I want to defeat Mark and become more powerful then him. I want to show Mark that he can't control everything and that he can't always get what he wants." His face went hard and he began to get angry. "That man does not deserve anything he has." Taeil grunted.

My eyebrows furrowed at this information and I couldn't help but feel for Taeils words. I said nothing as I looked at myself through a mirror on the far side of the room. My hair was tangled and the cuts and bruises all over my body left me speechless. I looked almost dead on the inside and out. "Does it hurt you?" I asked. He stopped his actions in confusion. "Does it hurt you that you are capable of doing something like this?" I continued to stare at myself through the mirror. I grabbed his hand and placed it on the torn open flesh on my wrist. "That you are able to hurt someone so badly who has been abandoned by the hands of the person you hate." I looked at him and his eyes ran soft. "Does it bother you that you could be just as evil as Mark?" I couldn't believe the words that left my mouth as I finally spoke up for myself. He was left speechless as he gapped at me.

"Please just take me back to my room."