As Nia walks down the hallway, she overhears Mr. Chav’s voice followed by two other unknown voices. Some of the words she hears are “dinner” and “kitchen.” Those must be the other guests Mr. Cash invited to the castle with Chav in the dining area. I think I can return the key and then come ...

Once she locks the door, Nia puts her clothes back in her suitcase. Afterward, she blocks the closet door and sits on the edge of her bed. What the hell was that all about? A woman I never met before pops out of the closet! Thank God I didn’t undress when she came in. Does ...

Hikari falls through the closet door and lands on the open top of a large pink suitcase. When she looks up, a frightened young woman holding pepper spray meets her eye. “Wait! I’m not an intruder. Mr. Cash invited me. I won’t hurt you!” The woman hesitates, backs away from the closet, and allows Hikari ...

Thunder from the approaching storm grows louder while the ocean waves below the castle create a deep hum that echoes into the upstairs hallway. At the writing desk, Nia taps her pencil on the journal page while she thinks of words to improve her poem. So far, it goes like this,             Bubble poppers,             ...

Hikari stares at the castle and its decorations; it shows confidence, despite its messy appearance of mismatching décor and the approach of an angry thunderstorm. She smiles to herself. Mr. Cash always has confidence, even giving it to his home. I want to have that kind of feeling in myself. She heads towards the front ...

The castle’s entrance walls are a deep shade of bloody red. Throughout the great hall, paintings and photographs of various games surround every which way. Nia tries to walk in quietly as possible, not wanting to disrespect Chav and to make herself invisible to any other guests who may already be in their rooms. However, ...

Kofi arrives at the same sidewalk block heading towards the castle. While thunder quietly rumbles, he pulls Nia the rat out of her carrier when the taxi drives off. Nia happily nuzzles Kofi’s cheek. Nia stops when Kofi’s hand quickly puts her back in her carrier. A taxi arrives and stops on the same sidewalk ...

*Content Warning* This story contains themes of kidnapping, drug abuse, animal cruelty, and physical and verbal abuse. Read with caution if such themes may be upsetting. *** Shelby slowly walks down the corridor into the living room, where she sits in a round wicker chair. She looks down at her feet and clasps her hands ...

Hikari exits the taxi with her luggage, tips her driver, and walks to where the directions on her map lead to the castle. She happily sighs as she listens to the birds singing in the palm trees. I can hardly wait to see Mr. Cash, Hikari thinks to herself. This meeting is the thing that ...

I’m finally holding on to letting go.  What is the power of letting go? Well, when you have to find your own power, when you feel powerless, you learn how strong you really are. About a month ago, I did something crazy. I got on a plane and went halfway across the United States without ...