Feral

FERAL YOSHIKA BHANTORA To anyone trapped in a toxic household or relationship, you are seen and you are loved. Remember there's always light at the end of the tunnel, no matter how never-ending the tunnel seems to be. This isn't the end and you've got this, little fighter. CHAPTER 1.Adriana POV‘Keep running, Adriana. You can't just lose after all these efforts. You can make it. Just a little bit further.’ Frightened Adriana said as she ran for her life through the dense forest when all she wanted to do was to rest a bit. Her knees wanted to give up desperately. But she knew if she gave up this instant, she would die so she kept going through all the panic and pain. She wanted to live, even if it was for just one more day. God, she was only 20.Cuts, bruises and scars were everywhere on her body like ornaments decorating a Christmas tree. Except this wasn't a freaking Christmas tree and it was ugly. She detested every single scar and the person who did that to her. Her knee-length white dress was completely covered in mud. Her legs were almost giving up from running for so many hours, especially on an empty stomach. And, she was lost. She was scared. No! She was terrified. She couldn't remember the last time she was out. Was it when she was five? Nothing around her made sense. Her head was spinning. Her feet were killing her. She was losing blood. But what still kept her going was her desperate will to survive.This world looked completely different from the world she grew up in. To be precise, she basically grew up captive within the restraints of four paintless walls. ‘Aaahhhhh.’ She exclaimed loudly. She was running too fast that she tripped over a branch and fell down, spraining her ankle. This can't be good. This can't be happening. She can't afford to slow down when she is probably being chased. She can't afford to be dragged back. This was her only chance to freedom. Adriana slowly took support from the tree nearby and slowly tried to stand up. She closed her blurry eyes for a bit to regain her composure. She opened her eyes with the determination to get out of here. She limped the whole way. The whole way to the highway with the hope of finding help. Her sore legs were screaming in pain. She was dizzy. Adriana could see the highway from afar so she continued to limp through all the pain, keeping her undivided focus on reaching the highway and asking for help. She stepped onto the highway without checking the road. How would she ever know how to do that? And there it was, a car was coming towards her at full speed. Was this the moment where she dies? After everything she had to go through to reach the highway? The car came closer to her and this was the moment when the colorful world in front of her eyes went black. She collapsed right in front of a speeding car. What a horrible way to die! Gabriel's POV.Gabriel Whitlock stepped out of the car utterly shocked. He thought he ran over someone. But then, after pressing over the brakes and coming out of the car, he was relieved after realizing that he didn't. He took a few shaky steps forward towards the unconscious figure on the ground in front of his car, still shocked from what just happened and what could have happened. He knelt down on his knees and looked at Adriana. He forwarded his shaky and sweaty hands and checked Adriana's pulse. She was still alive. Just unconscious. He felt so relieved. He looked at her unconscious body. At the pitiful state she was in. At that time, he knew. He knew that she was in some kind of danger. Her tattered dress. She was barefoot. The bruises and fresh wounds from her head to toe. He was debating whether he should take her to the hospital or do something else. He was a doctor and yet, he didn’t know what to do. Gabriel was confused and scared. And why wouldn't he be? Adriana was a complete stranger and Gabriel didn't know what happened to her and why she was in such a state. Gabriel scooped Adriana into his strong, muscular arms and put her in the backseat of his car. He drove hastily and after a few minutes of driving, he arrived by a manor. The land stretched into a big orchard of different varieties of big trees. Some trees contained flowers. Some contained apples. He continued driving through the driveway and there it was. A spectacular manor. He stopped the car right in front of the front door, took her out of the car and entered inside. The servants stopped and stared at him in bewilderment.“Bennett, will you call my parents into the guestroom, please?” Said Gabriel to one of the maids while walking away.He laid Adriana onto the soft bed and stepped back. His parents entered the guestroom and was aghast. He looked at his parents. His mom wasn't that shocked but his dad was. And he already knew what his dad was going to say.“Who is this girl, Gabriel?” Exclaimed his father in shock and confusion.“I don't know, dad. She kinda just appeared in front of my car and fainted in the middle of the road. Luckily I pressed the brakes in time or I can't even imagine what would have happened to the both of us.” Said Gabriel, worriedly.“How can you just bring a stranger home? We don't know her. We don't know anything about her. Not even her name or where she came from?” Said Gabriel's dad, perplexed about the whole situation. “Not now, dad. Can't you see the state she is in? Her muddy clothes? Disheveled hair? Gosh, even the bruises on her body?” Said Gabriel, trying to calm his dad.“And this is the reason why you should have taken her to the hospital and informed the police. We don't know what happened to that girl.” Said Gabriel's dad.“You could have taken her to our hospital instead of here.” Gabriel's dad said again.“And what if that girl is in danger? What if nowhere is safe for her?” Said Gabriel, weaving his hand through his hair in confusion.“Dad, let's just wait for her to wake up. We'll find out what happened to her and then we'll see what we should do.” Gabriel said again. “Fine. Do whatever you want, Gab. You've already made your decision to never listen to me anyways. I'm outta here and I want this girl gone as soon as possible.” Said Gabriel's father, in anger and stomped out of the room.Gabriel's father wasn't a bad man. He was just scared about the safety of his family and for his reputation, of course. He has a name and status in the society which he built on his own for so many years. He wasn't about to let a lost puppy, like Adriana, who he doesn't even know to jeopardize whatever he has built over the years with his sleepless night, hard work and sacrifices. He built this entire manor and a reputable hospital all on his own. And, rumors spread like wildfire, especially when you're loaded with money and when the spotlight is always on you. He did feel pity for the state the girl was in but then again, that girl wasn't his responsibility. In fact, that girl smelled trouble.Back in the room, Gabriel let out a heavy sigh, torn into two, between his responsibilities towards his family and between helping someone who looked so desperately in need of help. Even though Gabriel didn't know her at all, not even her name, he didn't pity that girl at all. Not even for a second. All he could see was her pretty, innocent and bruised face that was lying weakly in front of him on the bed. Unconscious. Gabriel couldn't help but wonder what had happened to this girl that brought her to such a pitiful situation. Being a doctor, Gabriel could notice how malnourished and physically weak she is. Gabriel sat on the edge of the bed, grabbed Adriana's hand carefully, as if he was worried she would crumble into pieces if he held her a little tighter. He checked her pulse and realized that she's fine and is going to wake up momentarily.His mom who was still in the same room approached him slowly and laid her comforting hands onto Gabriel's broad shoulders.“I'm gonna go downstairs in the kitchen to make something for her when she wakes up. She seems like she's gonna be famished when she wakes up.” Gabriel's mom said, squeezing his son's shoulder lovingly, looking at how fragile Adriana looked.“Also, don't take whatever your father has said to heart. At some point, he's right in worrying about his family too but that doesn't make you wrong either.” Said Gabriel's mom, reassuring his son and then walked out of the room. Gabriel stood up and went to sit onto the sofa that was inside the room, waiting for Adriana to wake up. Gabriel didn't even realize when he dozed off. After a few minutes, he woke up from some sounds. He opened his eyes quickly and looked around the room frantically. His eyes landed up on Adriana. Adriana was having a nightmare. She was muttering something in her nightmares and Gabriel couldn’t find out what it was from afar. He stood up from the sofa quickly and stalked towards her. He sat on the edge of the bed and leaned a bit towards her, trying to figure out what she was saying. Adriana's POV. “No. No. P- Please. Don't hurt me. Please.” Said Adriana, in terror.Adriana was sweating profusely. She looked so terrified and vulnerable.Gabriel was shocked. He didn't know what to do. Hell, he didn't know how to wake the girl up from the nightmares, without scaring her even more than she is right now. Adriana tried so hard to open her eyes but she couldn't, no matter how much she badly wanted to. She was too weak to even move her eyes. Gabriel mustered his courage, extended his hands towards her and shook her shoulders a little bit. She opened her big rounded hazel eyes, filled with fear as quickly as she could. By instinct. As soon as she saw Gabriel, she got more fearful and moved far away from him at the other end of the large bed. She was shaking like a leaf. Gabriel stood up from the bed immediately, trying not to scare her even more. Gabriel thought she was kinda having a panic attack.“Relax. I- I'm not gonna harm you. Please. J- Just take deep breaths, okay? You can do it.” Said Gabriel, trying to help her out.It was probably the first time that Gabriel felt this scared.“Close your eyes and- and concentrate on the only thing that makes you happy or brings you peace.” Said Gabriel again.Adriana closed her beautiful but fearful eyes and the only thing she could think about was her mom. Her mom was the only person on earth that brought her peace. The only person who always puts a smile on her face. Thinking about her mom made her feel at home. In her 20 meaningless years of life, Adriana never knew what a home feels like. She has never known what loving someone or being loved is like. The only time she felt loved was when she was five years old and she missed what that felt like. She wanted to be loved again one day. She was hopeful, despite everything she had to go through. She tried to find happiness and goodness in everything she came across. But, her goodness has never been able to calm her fears. She has been traumatized after all. She opened her eyes after a few minutes. She was calm. But that didn't mean that she wasn't scared. Her eyes were wary. She has always been in danger. She didn't trust anyone. Not even her own shadows. Some might say she's being dramatic and overreacting but the things she had to go through made her keep her guard up all the time. Her eyes darted around the room and landed on Gabriel.“Wh- who are you? And, what am I doing here?” Adriana said, stammering a bit.This was the first time she was talking to another human being after 15 years, let alone a man. It felt weird to her. So weird. She was not used to all this. She did not know how to talk to the man in front of her. Gabriel was just about to answer her when his mom entered the room with a tray of pancakes and a glass of milk. Gabriel's mom broke the tension that infiltrated the entire room. Gabriel's mom noticed the tension inside the room. She took a glance at Adriana and saw how scared she was. She pasted a warming smile on her pretty face and walked towards Adriana. She put the tray on the bedside table and sat onto the bed near Adriana. Adriana never let her guard down, not even for a little moment. Adriana moved a bit away from her. Gabriel's mom looked at her and her smile remained the same. She extended her hands towards Adriana.“You can rest assured, sweetie. None of us are gonna hurt you.” Gabriel's mom said, trying her best to reassure her. Adriana looked at her and blinked. She didn't know what to say. Adriana looked at Gabriel's mom's extended hand and was wondering whether she should trust them or not. Even though Adriana was wary of everyone around her and didn't trust a soul, she still couldn't deny the fact that she felt somewhat near an affection when Gabriel's mom came near her. She forwarded her bruised yet soft and pretty hand into Gabriel's mom's hands. As soon as she grabbed Gabriel's mom's hands, she felt something that came close to comfort. It warmed her heart. Something she has never felt her entire life. Something she has never known existed. A feeling she has forgotten a long time ago. After all, it's been a long time. Gabriel's mom's brownish eyes widened as soon as Adriana held her hands. Her hands were scorching hot. She let go of Adriana's hands immediately and put her palm onto Adriana's forehead. She flinched by the burning sensation that came from Adriana's forehead. Adriana was having a fever. Gabriel's mom looked at Gabriel with a worried expression on her face. Gabriel walked towards Adriana hurriedly. Gabriel's mom moved away from the bed, giving Gabriel space to take a look at Adriana. Adriana's calmed expression shifted to that of a panicked one when she saw Gabriel approaching her. Her whole body tensed up but for some reason, Gabriel didn't care. He sat onto the bed and took out a thermometer from the bedside drawer. Adriana looked at the thermometer in disbelief. She wondered what in the hell was that thing! Gabriel noticed her expression. “Don't worry. It's not gonna hurt you. Trust me.” Said Gabriel, throwing a reassuring look her way.Adriana took some time to process what Gabriel told her. She nodded hesitantly and grabbed the thermometer in her hands. Gabriel looked at her for a long time. Then, he chuckled lightly. In his mind, he was probably thinking, how can someone not know what a thermometer is? At some point, Gabriel thought that she might have lost her memory.“You're not supposed to be grabbing it. It's to go into your mouth.” Said Gabriel, with a heart-stopping smile.“Open your mouth for me, will you?” Said Gabriel.She blinked her big eyes twice in confusion and then opened her mouth hesitantly. Gabriel was left agape. She looked so pretty, despite her dirty and muddy clothes. Gabriel's Adam's apple bobbed as he gulped hard when he saw how beautiful Adriana is, especially with her mouth open like that. He pushed his unholy thoughts aside and put the thermometer inside Adriana's mouth. After a while, he removed the thermometer and checked it. Adriana's fever was high. Very high. Gabriel looked so concerned. He immediately got off the bed and looked at her mother.“Feed her something, mother, while I bring the medications and first aid kit.” Said Gabriel, walking away hastily. Gabriel's mom came and adjusted the pillows behind Adriana's back. She sat on the bed again and pulled the tray on her.“Eat something, sweetie. You'll need the energy to get better and stronger.” Said Gabriel's mother.Adriana's mouth watered as soon as she saw the pancakes and the glass of milk. She never had these good foods. She barely ate. Some days, she would eat once a day and sometimes, she would go days without eating, which explains how thin and fragile she is.Adriana took a handful of pancakes from the tray and stuffed it all into her mouth. She was eating like she has been hungry for days, which was true. She looked kinda uncivilized by stuffing her mouth with food but she didn't care. “Slow down there, hon. The pancakes are all yours. Take your time to eat it so that you don't choke on it.” Said Gabriel's mother, looking concerned. But Adriana wasn't the one to listen. She was famished. If she could, she would have swallowed the entire house. Her entire mouth was covered with crumbs of pancakes. She didn’t even give herself the time to swallow and kept putting more in her mouth. On one hand were pancakes and on the other hand was a glass of milk. She drank the milk while her mouth was still stuffed with food. She ate like a baby. Or even worse than a baby.Gabriel came back with the first aid kit and was shocked, looking at the scene unfolding in front of him. He looked at her mom for a possible explanation but even his mom was shocked. Both of them gaped shockingly at Adriana while she ate. Adriana wiped the whole plate and glass clean. Not even a crumb was left onto the plate. After she finished eating, Gabriel approached her slowly, still recovering from what he just saw. He couldn't believe out of the entire earth, this was the girl that just made his heart skip a beat just a few minutes ago. But even though Adriana looked as to what came close to an untrained and untamed animal-like human being, Gabriel was still curious as to what Adriana was like on the inside. He was still fascinated by Adriana. Her mom took the tray and glass from Adriana and walked out of the room, leaving Gabriel to tend to Adriana's fever and bruises. Adriana had bruises and untreated wounds all over her body. She's lucky to have not caught an infection. Gabriel wondered how she got all those wounds and bruises. She must be in so much pain. After his mom left, Gabriel sat onto the bed, still maintaining a distance between Adriana and himself. Adriana still kept moving away from Gabriel, unwilling to trust him or anyone else, except for Gabriel's mom who made her feel at home. “I- I would need to treat your wounds.” Said Gabriel, signaling at the bruises on her hands.Adriana forwarded her hands hesitantly over to Gabriel and allowed him to treat her wounds. Gabriel saw that the wounds on Adriana's hands were deep. He was concerned for her. As a doctor, of course.“I think you would need to go to the hospital to get your wounds treated. It's deeper than I thought. And I think you should get a scan too, just in case.” Said Gabriel, examining her wounds.“N- No. I'm not going to the hospital. I- I can't.” Said Adriana, panicking all over again.“But why? You clearly need treatment. You're far from being physically fit right now.” Explained Gabriel.“I just can't, okay! I can't- I can't get into a police case right now.” Said Adriana.“You know what, I'll just leave from here then.” Adriana said again, trying to get off from the bed to leave.“Gosh girl. Wait a second, will you? And, stay on the bed. You badly need to rest.” Said Gabriel, taking out his phone.“I guess, I'll just have to bring the hospital over here, then.” Said Gabriel, sighing heavily while dialing a few numbers on his phone.Adriana looked at the phone curiously as if the phone was from another world or something. She wondered what in the hell was that thing? Adriana was living in another world compared to the rest of everyone. A world containing only her. A world full of lies, traumas and manipulation. She so desperately wanted to escape and this was her only chance. She might be dumb and isn't able to adapt to this modern technological world, but she was sane and smart enough to not let herself go back to where she came from. Before running away, she knew that this was going to be a long fight and she has been preparing herself for it. She would rather fight and die instead of being dragged down to the hell she came from. She wasn't about to go down without a fight, not after what she had to go through to be able to get out. Adriana looked at the cell phone curiously and she was in awe while Gabriel was talking on the phone. After a little while, Gabriel disconnected the phone call and looked back at Adriana. He noticed Adriana's expression and the way Adriana was staring at the phone in his hand.“Wh- What is that?” Asked Adriana, her eyes still fixated on the device.“It's a cell phone. Don't tell me you don't know what a cell phone is?” Asked Gabriel, shockingly.Adriana shrugged. Gabriel exhaled deeply. Adriana was so hard to figure out. Is she even human? Is she an alien or something? How can someone from this modern and technological world not know what a cell phone is? “People normally use a cell phone to communicate with another person. It's part of technological evolution.” Explained Gabriel. Even though Adriana couldn't understand a thing about what Gabriel was saying, she still listened intently to him. She was fascinated by him, by the way he was talking. By the way the sides of his eyes crinkled. By the way he looked. He looked beautiful. Beautiful was a small word to describe how Gabriel looked. Gabriel was sinfully drop-dead handsome. She got lost in Gabriel's blue eyes. It was the same color as the ocean. Adriana wanted to drown in them. Adriana's eyes dropped down at Gabriel's lips, almost by instinct, admiring the shape of his lips. Admiring how his lips moved while he talked. His lips were thin, rosy and looked so seductive. His lips were just like juicy strawberries. He had a lip piercing which gave his lips a more alluring look. He was the kind of person who can bring the entire room to their knees. Everything was perfect about him. His juicy strawberry lips. His sharp jawline. His cheekbones. His mesmerizing blue oceanic eyes. He could hypnotize anyone with those dreamy eyes. His aura. His broad shoulders. Literally everything about him was perfect. He looked unreal. Too good to be true. Like he just came out of a fairytale. “Stop staring.” Said Gabriel, meeting Adriana's eyes, snapping Adriana from her wandering thoughts.Gabriel threw a smirk towards Adriana. “I would need you to remove your clothes and lie down onto the bed.” Said Gabriel, seeming hesitant.But he tried his best to not hesitate. After all, it is his job. He is a doctor. Adriana stared at him for quite a while, trying to contemplate what Gabriel just said. This is the first time she has come near a man. A stranger on the top of that. Obviously she will be nervous and shy. And now, she wasn't only talking to a man, she would need to strip naked in front of him so that he could treat her wounds. “Relax. I just need to treat your wounds as your doctor. If you are not comfortable with me treating you, I can take you to the hospital.” He said to Adriana, trying to make her feel comfortable around him.“No. Not the hospital, please.” Said Adriana worriedly. Adriana reached her hands out and removed her clothes hesitantly one by one. Gabriel's eyes dropped wide open as he saw Adriana undressing herself. He tried his best to compose himself. He swallowed deep, his Adam's apple bobbing. Adriana already looked so pretty in her knee-length white dress, even though it was muddy. She looked like an angel. To be honest, Adriana looked dirty. Messy hair, muddy white dress, scars and wounds all over her body, untrimmed and long nails but despite all that, she was definitely beautiful. So pretty. With big shiny hazel eyes. Fair skin. Long and dark hair down to her slim waist. But now, she looked even prettier, despite the scars and bruises that covered her entire body. Gabriel took a piece of cotton, poured the medicine on it and started applying it on all her wounds.“This is going to hurt you a lot. You can... you can hold my hand if you want to.” Said Gabriel to Adriana. Adriana didn't want to hold Gabriel's hand but as soon as the medicine came into contact with her wounds, she had to reach out. She dug her long nails into Gabriel's hand and Gabriel didn't even say a word. It hurt like a b*tch, to be honest. She grabbed Gabriel's hands and held it tightly as her bruises burned. Her untrimmed nails dug deeper into Gabriel’s skin, leaving claw marks onto his hands. Gabriel knew this pain was nothing compared to Adriana's pain. Seeing all these scars on Adriana's body, Gabriel felt angry. He felt murderous. He wanted to find the person responsible for this and make them pay for the rest of their life for each and every scars. How on earth can someone be this cruel? How can someone hurt another person to this extent?“Who did this to you?” Gabriel asked, his eyes burning with rage. Adriana looked at Gabriel for a while but couldn't answer his questions. Why would she? She didn't trust him. Hell, she trusts no one, except herself. Not even the police. She averted his gaze. Gabriel was still so mad but he didn't press any further. He knew it would take time for Adriana to open up. He somehow knew that she must have gone through a lot to have turned out like this. Some untrained human beings. Someone who didn't trust anyone. Neither the police nor the hospital. Every time Gabriel tended to every wound on Adriana's body, he flinched. It was as if he could feel the stinging pain that Adriana was feeling. Seeing him, Adriana left the possibility to trust Gabriel open even though she wasn't ready to do that anytime sooner. “You should take a bath later when you feel a bit better and change into these clean pairs of clothes.” Said Gabriel, handing the clothes his mom left in the room to Adriana.“If ever you need anything else, call for me or anyone else. Just don't get off the bed. Your body needs rest and time to recover.” Gabriel said again. Adriana half nodded, unsure of how to respond. This was the first time someone is showing concern towards her. Even if Gabriel said that to her as her doctor, deep down, she definitely felt good.“Here you are. Drink this with your glass of water and go to sleep. You don't have to worry anymore. You're safe here.” Said Gabriel with a reassuring smile, giving her the pills to cure her fever and heal her bruises.Adriana drank the medicine and slumped back onto the bed. Gabriel stood up to leave but stopped in his tracks.“What's your name?” Gabriel asked her. Adriana looked at him for a while, unsure of whether to tell him anything about herself or not. But then again, Adriana should be grateful to him since he's helping in keeping her safe from harm, fed her and is taking such good care of her. Even though Adriana looked and behaved like an untrained and unsocialised animal-like human, if there was one thing that she's proud to have is her pure heart. She just didn't know how to behave like other human beings. “Adriana Elizabeth Brown.” She said to Gabriel.“Well, nice to meet you, Adriana. I'm Gabriel. Gabriel Whitlock.” He said.Adriana blinked at him.“Well, I won't keep you awake any longer. I'll get going.” Said Gabriel, walking out the door.He closed the door behind him and left Adriana to have some personal time to sort her thoughts out and to have a proper and undisturbed rest. Adriana closed her tired and drowsy eyelids and fell asleep faster than she could have hoped for.

CHAPTER 2. George POV George Brown, brownish hair, black and slightly big eyes with a slightly muscular body. He is a middle aged man, who is the dreadful father of Adriana Elizabeth Brown and the husband of deceased Alli Brown, the loving mother of Adriana. On the outside, George looks so calm, nice and kind. This was the exact impression he wanted to give to everyone. But on the inside, he was as rotten as an apple and was a complete psychopath. He successfully managed to hide his villainous rotten self from the whole world. Only Adriana knew what kind of person he was and what he was capable of doing if he went out of control. That particular morning, George went out to buy groceries and some household supplies. He has been feeling restless and has had an extremely odd feeling since morning. He tried ignoring that restlessness in order to carry on with his daily routine, after all, everything was under his devious control. That is what he thought, which was at