Deadly Desire

For a brief, fleeting moment I thought that my prayers had been answered. The door flung open with such aggression that it cracked against the wall, paint and chipped pieces flicking off in all directions. Not that it would make too much difference to the already shitty conditions of the house, but it did make me jump. The morons were up and off the sofa too slowly to stand a chance, inebriated far too much to show a decent reaction time. Marcus would be fuming.

Plenty of my time had been spent imagining a police raid that would inadvertently result in my rescue. In my imagination they would storm in, killing Marcus and any of his cronies that got in their way, and then free me from my chains and take me off to start my new life away from this hell-hole. Unfortunately on this occasion Marcus was not present for it to be wholly fulfilling, but I could cope with that as long as they got me the hell away from him.

I heard the shouting of threats for everyone to get the fuck down. Within a split second four of them had swarmed in through the doorway and a glimpse of their masked faces instantly crushed the hope that I was about to be rescued. These weren’t the good guys raiding the evil lair to put a stop to it all. These were equally bad guys, just ones playing for a different team.

It didn’t even take a second before guns started going off and the screaming began. A couple of the girls ran upstairs in their underwear, begging to be left alone. Those ones had been here by choice, so they were free to roam and partake as they saw fit. I was not in such a position.

I dropped my head, now ready to accept the alternative and second best option. I was about to be put out of my misery. Sure, I had hoped to find some sort of escape, go through some seriously intensive therapy and eventually go back to leading a somewhat normal life. That wasn’t on the cards for me though, and death was still a far better option than this current life. I clenched my eyes shut, tensing and trying desperately to block out the sounds erupting around me.

I felt the presence before I even opened my eyes to see him. Squatted before me was a masked man, only his eyes visible through the skeleton patterned balaclava. Those eyes though, they glistened with vicious curiosity.

‘What have we here then?’ I felt a tremble ripple uncomfortably down my spine. I was trapped, handcuffed to the radiator and not a hope in hell of defending myself against whatever the psycho had planned for me. His fellow delinquent friends continued to rampage the house, murdering and raiding as they went. I pressed my back hard into the cold metal, and clenched my legs tight to my chest. It was all the more disconcerting to only be able to see his eyes. They were glistening with adrenaline, and I had endured that heightened state from my present captor enough times.

I could have begged, but I knew the type all too well to waste my breath. Guys like this didn’t care what I said, I was merely a toy kept around for their entertainment. Sometimes I had an alternative use to them, utilising my nursing skills by cleaning and suturing up wounds. I supposed I could thank them for that if I were to ever regain a normal life, I would be miles ahead of the other students in terms of practical experience. I was sure not many other nursing students had worked under these conditions and pressures. Of course, I wasn’t here for that, but it was a skill that seemed to keep me useful at least.

His fingers gripped my chin, forcing me to look at him, no delicate touch or nice pretense. I scowled, because what else could I do? The guy was likely going to end my life, and that might be a blessing if it were his only intention. Men like him werent capable of anything more than violence and hate. If I were to die at his hand, chained to a radiator in a dirty nightie, then I would do it with a glare. I was pretty sure he smiled more, though I really was only going by the creasing around his eyes so it wasn’t necessarily the most accurate depiction. He looked down at my cuffs and pulled at them, turning and inspecting, yanking my sore wrists in tow. I held my tongue though, unwilling to give him the satisfaction of hearing my pain.

‘Interesting set-up you’ve got here.’ He was toying with me, I knew the game too well to be ruffled, so I simply continued to watch him with disdain. His voice was deep, authoritative even. He appeared to be contemplating something as he stared at my bindings, which was possibly more terrifying. What could he be questioning? Was it pity or something more dark?

‘Blade, come over here,’ if I had felt scared before, I now was so nervous that I wanted to vomit over myself. His masked friend came over, a stoney look in his eyes as he approached. Blade was a little shorter, but he still would tower over me, and he was a good half a person wider. It didn't take much effort to see that he was pure muscle. I was fucked.

I couldn't press myself any harder into the radiator. Blade stood over me, staring down with any icy intensity that I couldnt bring myself to meet for more than half a second. The original guy remained curiously squatted in front of me.

‘What’s up with this one?’ Blade’s voice sounded mostly disinterested. A knife twirled between his fingers, the weapon noticeably painted with someone's blood.

‘We are taking her with us. Got anything to cut these?’ He twanged the metal links which made me wince. Within a couple of seconds Blade had whipped out some wire cutters and was clipping the chain, freeing me from the radiator. The metal cuffs remained around my wrists but the instant release was an unbelievable relief for my muscles that were aching from the uncomfortable angle. They were taking me with them? I wanted to take off running, but I knew that they would catch me within a couple of steps and I would surely be made to suffer more for it.

Blade pulled me up by my elbow and set a pace that my unsteady legs could hardly keep up with. My stumbling didn't seem to slow him at all. In a swift motion he had led me to a car, opened the door and flung me in.

'Stay put.' His tone was no nonsense, and the threat was clear in it. He closed the door and strode back towards the house. I found myself stuck with a dilemma; to run or not to run. They were inside the house, so I could probably slip away if I were quick and quiet. The issue with that though was that I had nowhere to go and no resources. If I managed to keep out of their path, I would still be stuck with no home, no money and no food. I could find my way to a police station, but how safe would I really be with them outside of my imagination?

My time for action ended sooner than I had anticipated, and the decision was made for me; I was staying put. The group of masked men exited the house together and headed straight for the car. I ended up sandwiched between Blade and the nameless one, whilst the two that I hadn't had any interactions with moved to the driver and front passenger seats. My heart thundered again at the close proximity to the unknown danger. I stayed silent, but around me they began to chat and laugh as if it were just another ordinary day for them. I caught the driver's eye in the rearview mirror and felt myself phsyically shrink back.

'So, anyone want to tell me why we have abducted a girl?' My breathing became shallow and my whole body tensed as I waited for the response.

'Ask Seb.' Blade answered, indicating to the other side of me with his thumb. So, Seb was his name. They all still had their masks on so there was no way of me putting a name to a face, but the voices were firmly etched into my brain. I dared a peek, and those dark eyes met mine for a fraction of a second before fixing firmly ahead again.

'Because it will piss off Marcus even more.' It was hard to know how to feel about that revelation. On the one hand it was good to know that the intentions were somewhat less sadistic than I had imagined. However, there was the whole issue of being used by yet another group of egotistical men to get their own way. My torture was to continue, but simply in a new and unknown environment. At least with Marcus, I knew the shit hole and the shit head people that I was forced to endure. There was no telling what conditions these men would keep me in, no telling what they would have me doing either. I stared ahead, refusing to acknowledge their conversation for the rest of the journey