Whisper

It’s cold. So very cold. Everything aches from how cold and wet it is. I try to move, I can’t. I try to speak, I can’t speak. Darkness, that’s all I can see. Not even a glimmer of light. The only sound I can hear is water. Water droplets hitting something around me, though I can’t tell what it’s hitting. I can’t even tell where the water is coming from. I guess it could be a leaky faucet.

The ground feels like cement. Ice cold cement touching my bare skin. It hurts. I don’t know why I am naked and on the ground. Where am I? What happened? I have so many questions but no answers. I don’t know how long I have been here or why I am wherever this is. I just know I want to go home. I’m scared, and so hungry. The water droplets in this silence is too much. I feel like I am going to go crazy. I try again to make a sound. The noise that comes out is barely a whisper. It’s more of a raspy croak than a word. My tongue feels heavy and swollen, my lips ache and feel cracked. My mouth is dry. So very, very dry. I run my tongue over my lips and try once more. “H, hello?” After a few attempts the word leaves my throat but it’s so low, so hoarse.

I try to force my body to move. It feels almost paralyzed. My limbs are weak and incredibly heavy. I try to roll onto my side, but I can’t get my body to move. “Hello?” Once again the sound is so quiet. Even more quiet than a mouse skittering through a carpeted room. My eyes, they feel so heavy. I’m so weak, my voice is too quiet to even attempt to call for help. I’m so tired. So incredibly sleepy. My eyed droop, breathing evens out, my heart rate slows. The cold, it is too much. I can’t stay awake. Maybe when I wake back up I will get some answers, but for now, I can’t stay awake. And with that thought, sleep takes me under once more.

‿̩͙⊱༒︎༻♱༺༒︎⊰‿̩͙

Ouch. I feel things now. My body aches like hell. Probably from sleeping on this cold cement floor. I can still hear the sound of water dropping onto something but now I can tell it’s hitting metal. I still haven’t opened my eyes, not like I would be able to see in the dark anyways. My body still feels incredibly heavy, but this time I am able to stretch out a bit. I finally force my eyes to open and I’m instantly met with nothing. No light at all, just pitch black, nothingness. I roll my body from my back onto my side and realize my hands are bound. Not together, but there are metal clasps around my wrists. The chains rattle as I move.

My heart starts to race and panic hits me like a freight train. I’m terrified. Where am I? How did I get here? How long have I been in this place? Who brought me here? Why am I here? So many thoughts slam against my brain, begging for answers. If I tried to scream would that anger my captor? Captors? Will they hurt me for asking questions? Although fear is eating away at me I take a deep breathe and call out into the darkness as loudly as I can. “Hello?” Something rattles on my right. I hear what sounds like someone shushing me, but I can’t be certain. Maybe I am imagining things. “Hello? Is someone there?” I ask again, this time I definitely hear someone.

“Shh. Stop that! They’ll come for us!” They’ll come for us. So there’s more than one captor and more than just myself taken captive. But for what reason? A psychopath kidnapping women? Am I going to die? I need answers. I need them now. “Where are we?” This time I lower my voice to a whisper to speak to the other person in the room. She doesn’t respond this time. I try again thinking maybe she didn’t hear me. “Do you know where we are?” Once again I am met with only silence.

Several attempts later with me having only been met with silence, I give up hope. Maybe I was just simply hallucinating. Of course with the only sound nearby having been the sound of water hitting metal, I’m not surprised I am going slightly crazy. I also imagine the lack of food or water isn’t helping. But how long have I been here? I still have no answers. I’m...so exhausted. Sleep consumes me once more.

‿̩͙⊱༒︎༻♱༺༒︎⊰‿̩͙

Day, well, whatever it is. I lay in the darkness with my eyes closed. I woke a few moments ago but fear instantly consumed me and I haven’t moved a muscle. Instead of silence I hear crying. A woman is crying somewhere close by. But that isn’t what frightened me. It’s the sounds of flesh slapping against flesh that has me terrified. I think whoever has us down here might be harming her. Assaulting her. “Please, please no more.” Her voice is strained and broken. She’s terrified, but so weak.

I’m too afraid to open my eyes. Too afraid to move. “That’s enough, Erik. Don’t break her completely.” A mans voice says to what I’m assuming is the woman assailant. His tone is soft but deadly sounding. A rich, deep toned voice. “Ah, come on Killian, she likes it. Look at her pretty lips, so swollen for me.” A man speaks back to the initial speaker. His voice is gruff and harsh. So there’s at least 2 male captors. The woman sobs louder and I hear what sounds like a smack. “Stop it, bitch. Your teeth grazed me. Be careful or I’ll pull them all out.” Oh Gods, he’s assaulting her mouth.

Fear races through me and I accidentally let out a whimper. “Wait, what was that?” The one with the rich, velvet sounding voice says. “I think she’s finally up, Kill.” Panic shoots through my body and I still myself. I roll a bit, acting as though I am still asleep and the noise I made was simply a dream or nightmare. The sound of 2 sets of footsteps approach where I am laying on the ground and it takes everything I have to not open my eyes and feign sleep. A hand grips my chin and harshly jerks it upwards causing a pained grunt from my lips. “Good morning, bitch.” The man with the harsher voice speaks.

I groan once more and realize faking sleep isn’t going to get me out of this. I might as well face the music. I slowly open my eyes and stare at the man before me. I can barely make out his figure in the dark. He seems like a rather large man. Almost like a huge wall. He isn’t fat, but tall and muscular. I hear a chain rattle and a small light comes on above us. It’s a singular bulb hanging down from a string. The man gripping my chin has tan skin and weirdly yellowish green eyes. He has a twisted smirk on his lips. He has very little facial hair, but definitely a 5 o’clock shadow thing going on and his dark brown hair is pulled back at the nape of his neck. He’s wearing all black and has a black bandana tied around his throat.

“There ya go, look at me. You’re a pretty little bitch aren’t ya? What’s your name?” My name? Fuck, what is my name? I rack my brain and hesitate for a moment, trying to clear the fuzziness in my head. “Lyla. My name is Lyla.” Lyla Pembrooke. I remember now. I’m 26 and live alone in New Orleans. I own a small 2 bedroom house and drive a black 2020 Volkswagen Jetta. Memories flood back to me as the fog clears up in my brain. “You stupid or are the drugs still wearing off?” The man, Erik I think his name is, says to me. “H, huh?” I am confused. I answered his question. “I asked how old you are.” I didn’t even hear him ask that. “I’m sorry. I’m 26 years old.”

As much as I want to keep my information to myself, maybe if I behave nothing bad will happen to me. I glance around the room looking for my other captor. I think Erik said his name is Killian. I find him standing with his back resting against a wall. He is also in all black with a black bandana around his neck. He has long black hair to match it. I can’t quite see his eyes from here. His skin is much lighter than Erik's and he’s a lot less tall, but still very muscular judging by the outlines on his black sweater and pants. “Why ya looking at him with me right here, bitch?” Erik bites out between clenched teeth.

Clearly feeling disrespected by my actions. “She’s just seeing how many of us there are, Erik. Probably also trying to get a good look at us in case she somehow manages to escape. Am I correct, little bird?” He pushes himself away from the wall and walks towards me, arms crossed over his chest as he stares me down. His eyes are pale blue, almost silver. Wow, they are beautiful. I realize I need to answer so I gently shake my head. “No, this is just the first time I have seen any light in...”

I don’t know how long. “4 days.” Killian answers for me. He bends down causing Erik to have to shift away from me. “You’ve been here for 4 days, in the dark. You were out for the first 2 days due to the drugs. They should be completely out of your system by tomorrow. Tonight you can have some jello and bread but you’ll vomit anything else up until the drugs clear out.” He says nothing more, but squeezes Erik's shoulder and nods his head towards somewhere behind me. I’m assuming the door that I can’t see passed the shelves. “Go get her some food and water. Boss said to feed her once she’s awake.” Erik looks ready to protest but he stands and exits the room. Before I can ask Killian any questions he takes out his phone and makes a call, leaving me alone once more. At least I have light this time.