A Doll for the Boss
The Dog

The journey back to New York was peaceful, I hadn't heard from Ömer, but I assumed he was fine. When we arrived at our house, the staff greeted me distantly. It's not like we were all friends, but I tried to maintain cordiality. I decided not to give importance to the situation, maybe it was just my imagination. Serkan had to go to the office, so I took the opportunity to take a hot bath. After relaxing for a bit, I decided to sleep. Lately, I just wanted to lie down, my energy was drained.

But just as I was about to fall asleep, my phone rang. I pouted, not wanting to answer, but I didn't know if it was an emergency, so I took the call. "Good evening, Samantha."

The voice was deep, serious, refined. I could swear it belonged to a man in his forties or fifties.

"Good evening, who's calling?" I asked curiously.

"You don't know me, but you're in trouble. You must escape from that house and try to protect your son. I'm the only one who can help you."

My body started to tense up, I was scared and intrigued at the same time.

"What are you talking about? What's your name?"

"My name is..."

But I couldn't hear the rest of the call because Serkan entered without warning. I didn't want him to overhear this conversation. It's not that I was afraid of him, but I didn't want to bother him with nonsense. Like any wealthy man, he would have enemies. If they continued to bother me, I would change my number. In the end, it wasn't my obligation to listen to the gossip and lies of a stranger.

"Who is it?" he asked while looking at me. I quickly hung up the call.

"My mother, she doesn't understand that I don't want to communicate with her. Honestly, I'm still hurt," I lied expertly. He looked at me squinting his eyes, but he had no reason not to believe me.

"You should talk to her and fix things. Not everyone is lucky enough to have a good mother."

"Good mothers don't sell their daughters."

"Touche," he said, approaching to kiss my forehead. "I'll be back later, just came to get a folder I left."

"Don't worry, good luck."

I waited for about thirty minutes to make sure he hadn't come back and sent a message to the number that called me.

"If your intention is to make me argue with my husband, let me tell you that you're wasting your time. We are a very strong couple. And if your intention is something else, let me tell you that I'm not afraid of you. You won't get a single penny from me. Either way, you're wasting your time."

I sent the message and waited for a response, which didn't take long to arrive.

"Money is the least of my concerns. I have enough to live eight more lives. There's no need to lie to me. I'll tell you that I'll be here when you need to escape. You can call me J.J. Erase this message and write down my number on a piece of paper, keep it in a safe place."

An unjustified fear settled in the pit of my stomach. I quickly searched through my purse and found a pencil. With a piece of paper, I did what that stranger asked me to do, sticking the small paper behind the closet mirror. Sleep had left me, I was too nervous, so I went down to the kitchen. As I entered, the staff looked at me seriously, including that young woman to whom I gave those shoes. What was happening?

"I'd like to bake a cake," I said as everyone turned to look at me.

"You can do that, ma'am. We'll leave."

With that, no one else was left in that huge kitchen. I searched everywhere and began to prepare a delicious chocolate cake. Just as the batter was ready, the door to the garden opened. In the distance, I saw the silhouette of a woman, but I couldn't make out who it was.

Immediately, a huge Rottweiler dog entered, looking at me as if a hunter had located its prey. It was a large animal, with smooth black fur and distinct rust-colored markings. It had terrifying teeth ready to break every bone in my skin. "Help, please!" I screamed in terror, causing the dog to start barking. No one came to my rescue, my body felt like jelly, so I dropped the large bowl of melted chocolate and condensed milk.

The noise echoed throughout the kitchen. The dog ran towards me.

"Help! Help me!"

But my screams were in vain. When I tried to flee, my clumsy feet tripped over each other and I fell to the ground. This gave the dog the chance to bite my pants, tearing my skin slightly.

I never thought I would be devoured by a dog. The dog ran atop my chest, its barks only making things worse. I was paralyzed, crying uncontrollably. I would die without being able to bring my child into the world.

I could swear the animal was ready to bite my neck when a voice made it stop.

"Cerberus, stay, sit!"

The dog obediently moved away from me and lay down in a corner as if nothing had happened. Even the animal seemed to be possessed by the spirit of peace.

But what the hell?

"Serkan," I said as he quickly approached, helping me to stand up from the floor. My hair, my body, my whole being was covered in chocolate and blood was running down my leg, staining my clothes. "You're injured, what happened? How did the dog get in?"

"I, I don't know," I stammered, starting to cry uncontrollably. I was terrified.

"Calm down, darling. Where is the staff?" he asked.

"I don't know."

But it wasn't necessary to say anything else because everyone appeared in the kitchen, all with their heads down, pretending they didn't hear me.

"Can I know where you all were?" Serkan asked.

"Sir, we were cleaning the entire house. We didn't hear, I'm sorry," the housekeeper excused herself, but she looked so fake. How could she not have heard me? I screamed as loudly as I could.

"What would have happened if I hadn't arrived? My wife is injured, call the doctor, get rid of the dog. I don't pay you to pretend to be deaf. I will investigate this thoroughly, and by the way, you're all fired."

With that, he took my trembling body in his hands and carried me, not caring that he stained his suit. He went up the stairs as my face hid in his neck. I was still sobbing, still terrified. We entered the room, he gently put me down to remove my clothes and check my leg. Indeed, the dog had bitten me.