Nona slowly opened her eyes and tried to sit up, but pain shot through her body, making her gasp. She looked around and realized she was in an apartment with no doors. The windows were covered with newspapers, and the air was thick with the smell of alcohol and cigarette smoke. Her head ached fiercely. There seemed nothing on it except an awful pressure behind one eye, which made her wince involuntarily whenever she moved or breathed too deeply.


    Her face and body were bruised and battered, and her arm was burned as if with acid. Almost seemed it was covering something that used to be there.


    She tried to remember what had happened to her, but her mind was blank. All she felt was pure terror, and she couldn''t understand why.


    Nona tried to get out of bed, but her legs gave way, and she collapsed onto the floor. She crawled to the nearest wall and leaned against it, trying to gather her thoughts.


    She heard someone walk into the apartment, and as soon as they entered the room, they saw Nona lying on the floor, bruised and battered. She saw a man with a stoic face, hazel eyes and wild curly hair. He looked as if he felt a pang of guilt and concern. ''Baby, what happened?''; he asked, worried as he knelt beside her. ''Are you okay?''; his voice was calm and soothing.


    ''I can''t feel my legs.''; said Nona weakly. She looked up at him, her eyes wide with fear: ''I don''t know.''; she whispered: ''I don''t remember anything.''


    The man put on his most caring smile and helped her. He led her back to the bed and aided her in lying down. ''Don''t worry.''; he said, stroking her hair: ''I''ll take care of you. I''m the only one who knows how to make you feel better.''


    Nona tried to pull away from him, but he held her tight.


    ''Don''t you even dare!''; he snapped, his smile quickly turning into a scowl: ''I''m trying to help you, and you''re being ungrateful.''


    Nona shivered at the sudden change in his demeanour. She couldn''t shake off the feeling that something was off about this man. She tried to remember what had happened before she woke up in this place, but her mind was blank.


    ''Please, just let me go.''; she pleaded, tears streaming down her bruised face. ''I don''t want to be here. Let me go!''


    The man''s grip tightened, and he leaned in close to her. ''You''re not going anywhere, not until I decide you''re ready.''; he said, his voice low and menacing. ''You''ll stay here with me where you belong.''


    ''What do you want?''; Nona asked, fear and desperation evident in her voice.


    The man''s expression softened slightly as he looked at her. ''I want you, Nona.''; he said, his voice low and intense. His hand slid under her shirt. ''It has always been about you.''; he added, pulling her closer, so their faces almost touched. ''I want access to a perfect timeline, and you''re the key to that. Together, we can create a future where everything is perfect. With you, it can only be perfect.''


    A wave of nausea swept over Nona. This was all wrong, and she knew instinctively that whatever this man wanted would bring disaster for everyone. ''I don''t understand.''; she said: ''I don''t know what you''re talking about!''


    The man leaned in even closer, his face just two fingers away from hers. ''I''ve been studying time travel for years, and years, and years.''; he said. ''I''ve found someone who can draw the perfect time map and find the perfect timeline, but you betrayed me! And given the key to unlocking the secrets of time to someone else! Someone who doesn''t deserve you!''


    His words sent waves of horror coursing through Nona, but she didn''t say anything more. She stared into those strange greenish-hazel eyes and thought furiously, searching for some escape route, any means by which she could survive. Nona shook her head in disbelief. This man was insane. ''I don''t want anything to do with time travel.''; she said. ''I just want to go home, please.''Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.


    The man''s grip tightened once again. ''You don''t understand, Nona. This is home!''; he said, his voice growing more urgent. ''This is bigger than just you and me. This is about creating a perfect future, a world without pain or suffering. And you''re the only one who can help me achieve that.''


    He pulled her closer still, and Nona began to resist desperately. She struggled against the hands holding her arms tightly but couldn''t break free.


    ''Stop it!''; she cried, struggling to speak between gasps of breath as her struggles grew stronger and harder. ''Let me go! Let me go!'' Nona looked up at him, her eyes filled with terror. She knew she had to escape, but how?


    ''This is unfair, Nona. There was a time you loved me!''; he continued, his voice full of regret.


    ''No.''; Nona gasped, her throat burning as she fought to breathe. ''I would never love someone like you. You are no better than frogs!''; she shouted, unsure what the words meant, but he immediately released her.


    ''Frogs...''; he said, confused as he backed away from her.


    Nona turned away, her heart pounding. ''You are no better than the frogs, filthy rabbit.''; she said between her teeth as if spitting an insult.


    ‘You don’t even remember my name.’


    The next day the man, her captor, was cleaning the apartment. He seemed to be in a good mood, humming a tune as he swept the floor. When he noticed that Nona was awake, he turned to her with a smile.


    ‘Good morning, sleepyhead. How are you feeling?’; he asked, his voice surprisingly gentle. ''I hope I didn''t hurt you too much last night.''; he put his arm around her waist and leaned close to whisper into her ear: ''It''s all right. You liked it.''. She shivered involuntarily at this strange touch of an unknown hand on her body. The man leaned further and forced his lips against hers. She restrained herself not to push him away. He was pleased. With another smile, he said: I knew you''ll learn to like it.''


    Nona tried to push herself up, but her body ached all over: ''I''m in pain. Please, can you tell me what''s going on?''; she asked, her voice shaking.


    The man walked over to her and sat on the edge of the bed: ''You don''t remember, darling? You don''t remember, do you?''; he asked, his expression turning serious: ''Well, that''s understandable. You had a nasty fall, and you hit your head. You''ve been confused since then. My poor baby, you are very clumsy.''; he reached out for one of her hands. As he held it between both of his own, he looked intently into her eyes. His grip tightened painfully. She could feel his fingers digging into her flesh through the thin fabric of her shirt.


    Nona looked at him sceptically. She had a feeling that he wasn''t telling her the whole truth, but she didn''t want to provoke him; ''Can I please go home?''; she asked softly, her eyes pleading.


    The man''s face hardened: ''I''m afraid that''s not possible right now.''; he said: ''But don''t worry, I''ll take care of you. Are you hungry? I can make you some breakfast.''; he stood up, taking her by the shoulders so that their faces were almost touching: ''Don''t try anything funny,''; he warned, staring hard into her eyes: ''Or else... I''ll be mad.''


    Nona hesitated for a moment, but her stomach growled, reminding her that she hadn''t eaten anything in a long time. ''Yes, please.''; she said quietly.


    The man got up and went into the kitchen, and Nona heard the sound of pots and pans clanging together. After a few minutes, he emerged from the kitchen with a plate of scrambled eggs and toast. He set it down on the table in front of her.


    ''Here you go.''; he said, his eyes fixed on her: ''Eat up before it gets cold.''


    She picked up the fork and began eating mechanically, her mind preoccupied. Nona didn''t want to eat anything he had prepared, but she knew she needed to keep her energy up if she wanted to escape. She forced herself to take a few bites, but the food tasted bland and unappetizing as if she was eating dry lentils and chippered wood.


    She tried to think of a way out of her predicament as she ate. She knew that she had to be careful not to provoke the man, but she couldn''t just sit there and do nothing. She had to find a way to escape and get help. Her thought was interrupted by the man brushing her hair behind her ear: ''Do you remember at least my name?''; he asked.


    ''No'', she replied honestly. ''Why should I have any idea who you are?''


    He smiled again, his teeth showing whitely. ''Because we''re married.'' To prove his word, he placed a wedding ring over the table with the inscription Love of my life AM.