Albarez9

Chapter 1: The Isolated Shore The sun hung lazily over the turquoise horizon, casting a golden glow over the secluded stretch of beach. The waves lapped at the shore in a rhythmic lullaby, their melody the only company Emma Carter had wanted. She stretched out on her beach towel, reveling in the warmth of the sand beneath her. This—this was paradise. After months of grueling work in New York, escaping to a quiet, untouched corner of the world had been the perfect idea. The small coastal town had been charming, the kind of place where time slowed down and the worries of modern life melted away with the tide. ...

Endings It was a peaceful Friday evening. Most of the students had already gone home for the semester, which meant that the campus was extremely quiet. The usual hustle and bustle of student life was nonexistent at this time of the year. Jessica Green was lounging on her bed, talking with her friend and flatmate Cory Fox. It was late May and the end of the academic year. For most students, the thought of the summer holidays was fantastic as it meant not having to do assignments and exams, instead relaxing at home with their family. However, the thoughts of returning home to her family in the Bronx in New York was egregious for Jessica Green. Her family was dysfunctional and a constant source of stress for Jessica. Her mother was unemployed and a narcissist, and her father was an alcoholic who was never around, not to mention her drug-addicted older sister. ...

Helen stood at the edge of the road, the harsh neon lights of the city casting an ethereal glow over her delicate features. Her auburn hair cascaded in soft waves down her back, catching the light and shimmering like liquid gold. Her skin was porcelain smooth, with a hint of rose at her cheeks, and her eyes, a deep, captivating blue, seemed to glow out of her eyeballs. She wore a simple, yet elegant dress that hugged her lithe, ballerina frame, emphasizing her grace and poise. Even in stillness, there was a fluidity to her, a testament to years of disciplined training and unyielding passion for the art that had shaped her body and spirit even though she was only in her mid-twenties. Her posture was confident, shoulders back, head held high as if she were about to step onto a stage rather than wait for a car on the dimly lit street. ...

“Happy birthday!” The voice of her parents startled Hope awake, their cheerful tones echoing in her ears as she opened her eyes to a day she had long been anticipating. “I am finally eighteen!” Hope muttered to herself with so much ecstasy and delight. Hope had always been the golden girl; growing up in a picturesque suburban town, she had the looks, brains, and charm that made life seem like a series of effortless triumphs. With her long, flowing blonde hair and bright blue eyes, she was the epitome of perfection and the center of attention in her small town. ...

Remembrance Jacinta Hidalgo woke up to the sound of birds chirping softly outside her bedroom window. She stretched out in her comfortable bed and opened her eyes, looking forward to starting the day and refreshed after her sleep. She sat up in bed and stared around the room. The sunlight was pouring into the room, and Jacinta could already feel the heat from the sun warming up her southern-facing room. She could hear the wooden struts above her bed moan and groan as the warmth caused them to expand. Jacinta retrieved the remote from her table and flicked on the TV. She briefly listened to the news as she brushed her teeth. The news reporter was talking about how the United States had fallen into a deep recession and how businesses were going under ubiquitously. ...

Dreams Amy Sexton sat with her legs crossed on the floor next to the Sheikh. Amy Sexton was dressed in a blue burqa, covering herself completely. She was listening intently to the man who was speaking English in front of her. Amy was working as a translator for the Sheikh, Rameen Rasheed. Amy was 21 years old and had just graduated with a bachelor’s degree in journalism. She was an American woman from New York, and she had come to Saudi Arabia for a very specific reason. There had been rumors that the Sheikh had been kidnapping Saudi women and keeping them as sex slaves in his harem. The international media didn’t want to touch this story for fear of upsetting their oil partner, but Amy wanted to be the one to break the story. This could get her a Pulitzer award and kick-start her career. ...

A Long Day The din of traffic was grating on Mira Holden as she walked down the sidewalk in Queens. She was heading home to her apartment after a long day of work. At twenty-eight years old, Mira was one of the youngest officers on the police force. She had reached the upper echelons of the force and was a director of the organized crime investigations unit in downtown Manhattan. Mira dressed formally, wearing black suit pants, a white shirt and a black suit jacket as she journeyed home. It was a warm September day in New York, and she couldn’t wait to get back to her apartment and get some much needed rest. ...

Joy The Convergence The fluorescent lights of the underground car park were ominous, Joy thought as she stood waiting impatiently for her contact. Joy shifted her weight from foot to foot and stroked her hands together as she waited. Although Joy Joyce was a medical doctor, you would never know it from the clothing she wore or the vehicle she drove. She was wearing a black conservative dress that came to her knees, and a white shirt underneath that. She was wearing a black pair of high heels and she had her nails painted black to match her black hair. At age twenty-five, Joy still was in touch with her goth roots. Her clothing was cheap, and her vehicle was an old petrol engine car from the early twenty-first century. There were very few of these cars left on the road in the year two thousand and twenty-five. ...

Act 2 – The Twist in the Tale Sarah was awoken by the sound of birds chirping which brought a smile to her face. She had quite a migraine, which she figured was caused by her excessive drinking from the night before. She stared up at the fantastic deep blue of the Greek sky, not a single cloud was in sight. She relished the heat of the sun beating down upon her. She closed her eyes and enjoyed the warmth of the sun. Something was bothering her though, how had she ended up outside? She didn’t remember leaving Robert’s mansion the night before, she assumed she had fallen asleep in his house – but how had she ended up outside. ...

Act 1 – The Island At first, Sarah had been sure that she wouldn’t be able to handle the heat of the Island, never mind the Mediterranean as a whole, imagining long and sleepless nights wrapped in sweat-soaked bedclothes and days of fatigue that would follow. She was used to a colder climate and the need to wrap up in warm clothes on a daily basis, but to her surprise, she found herself acclimatising within the first day aboard the ship that would carry her around the various islands on their cruise. Somehow the warmth seemed to sink into her skin, rather than fluster her, and she grew to enjoy the sensation of the sun on her bare skin more than she could have imagined. ...

Act 4 – The Journey Nine months later “Beep, beep, beep, beep,” Sarah’s alarm clock went off to wake her up. It was eight o’clock in the morning and as usual Sarah woke up, went to the bathroom, brushed her teeth, showered, and waited patiently for Robert to come and pick her up and take her upstairs where she was supposed to cook breakfast for Robert. Her cooking skills had improved drastically over the past few months. She now jokingly said she had the cooking skills of a MILF but the body of a twenty-one-year-old. ...

Act 5 – The Mermaid Three months later Sarah was swimming lengths of the pool and staying in the water as the weather was particularly warm today. Sarah was also preoccupied with the significance of the day: it was her one-year anniversary since she was kidnapped and turned into a big-titted mermaid. She was swimming as fast as she could trying to distract herself from thinking about the importance of the day, and she was sure that Robert had concocted some new form of humiliation or punishment to inflict upon her. ...

Act 3 – Slave Games The party started as the guests began to mingle and talk amongst themselves as they watched Sarah out on the island. Sarah for her part did as she was told by Robert, she smiled and waved and ensured her hefty breasts were on full display. Sarah watched from afar as the party progressed and grew worried as more and more alcohol was consumed. Sarah was instructed to swim over to the guests and pull herself out of the water. Sarah sat on the edge of the pool and put on her best fake smile, afraid of what will happen if she doesn’t comply. ...