The Servant Son

Water instantly rushed into my nose and my mouth. Its coldness suffocated me, making me feel like I was about to die.

I struggled with all my strength, my arms lashing about wildly in the air, knocking down the hand soap and scent diffuser.

A few seconds later, the man dragged me away.

I coughed violently and sucked in huge mouthfuls of air. My lungs were burning, and water covered my face. I could not tell if it was from the water in the sink or from tears I may have shed.

“Have you had enough?” The man pulled my hair and glared at me. “Are you still going to pretend to be the master of the house?”

I glared back at him. If looks could kill, he would be dead a thousand times over!

“You’ll regret this. You’re definitely going to regret this!” I clenched my teeth and forced the words out.

The man snickered as he regarded my soaked clothes. “Look at you! You dirtied the floor of my house! What a drag!”

He suddenly let go and pointed at a rag in the corner.

“Strip.”

I was stunned for a second. “What?”

“Take off all your clothes!” The man’s gaze was menacing.

“How are you supposed to work when all your clothes are wet? I’ll have you work stark naked. That way, you won’t dirty anything up! You will clean with no clothes on, and I’ll let you leave once everything’s clean!”

“In your dreams!” I clenched my fists and placed them in front of my chest.

“Still haven’t learned your lesson, have you?”

The man fully lost it. He lunged at me like a madman and started tearing my clothes off.

“Get out of here! My mom will be home soon! You’d better let go of me now! If you don’t, my family will make you pay for this!”

I fought as hard as I could, but I was so weak that it did no good. I had thoroughly tired myself out in the past few days during my vacation. The plan had been to rest well once I got home. My wet hoodie was very heavy. It stuck to me and felt very uncomfortable. The man ripped it hard, and I could hear the sharp sound of it echo in the bathroom.

Another two punches landed on me.

Pain blossomed at my ribs, and my lip split.

My jacket was pulled off and thrown to the floor, then my hoodie.

In the end, I was left in my boxers and huddled into a corner. Both the cold and my rage made me tremble. The chill cut straight into my bones. Worse, it penetrated right through my soul.

I had been pampered from childhood. My paternal grandparents treated me like a precious jewel. My parents had never even raised their voices at me.

My life had always gone smoothly, and I never imagined that there would be anyone who could be so malicious.

The man seemed to be very pleased with what he had done.

He held onto my torn clothes and looked at me in triumph.

“Now that’s better. You would have suffered less if you’d been more obedient.” He kicked my clothes away as if they were items of trash before turning and leaving the bathroom, heading back into the living room.

He smoothed out his slightly messy hair and straightened the silk robe that had gone out of shape because of his bigger size. Then, he resumed sitting on the couch and picked up his unfinished glass of red wine. He was very deliberate as he took a sip.

“Work fast,” he yelled at me. “And don’t think about running away. I’ve locked the front door. If you don’t finish by six, I’ll put your pictures online. Everyone will see what happens to a scammer.”

My mind was hazy, and I felt dizzy. My limbs would not obey my orders.

Right then, the door bell rang.

Outside was a man in blue work overalls, a box of professional tools in hand. He was sweating heavily, and his expression was apologetic.

“I’m so sorry! I’m really very sorry!” The newcomer kept apologizing.

“The highway was so jammed up! I’m from the housekeeping company. Professor Corleone made a reservation this afternoon so I could wipe the windows and do a deep clean. I’m so sorry for being late!”

The atmosphere in the room became immediately tense.

The man who had tormented me froze up.