6) Captives in hell

Emery’s POV

Everything was spinning as I slowly started to regain consciousness, my head painfully throbbing with a wave of nausea. Not to mention the kink in my neck or unusually heavy eyelids. What happened to me? All I knew was that I didn’t feel good and I couldn’t stop thinking about the nightmare I just had.

I groaned lightly and rolled onto my back, trying to forget that awful dream. The whole thing was hazy, but from what I could remember, Jo and I had been kidnapped from one of our father’s parties. The vivid image of my sister’s lifeless body being thrown over someone’s shoulder was playing on repeat in my head and I just couldn’t get it to go away. No! That wasn’t real! It had to be a dream, especially since my father would never let anything happen to us. Besides the whole thing had to be fictional because my attacker had been one of the most attractive men I had ever seen. That would never happen in real life.

With an overwhelming need to discredit my nightmare, I quickly opened my heavy eyelids and blinked a few times to clear my blurred vision. I just needed to prove to myself that I was at home in bed and this was all just a bad dream. Only the white canopy and king sized bed I expected to find were replaced with high wooden rafters, large square windows, and an old lumpy faded blue sofa. No, this wasn’t right. Where was I? Had my father transported us to one of his safe houses?

My heart started to race as took in my surroundings. I appeared to be in a large room that reminded me a lot of one my father’s warehouses. Only this one had been converted into dormitories. The room had high wooden rafters, a few support beams, an old hardwood floor, long windows with an internal grid, and half of the room by the windows had the original brick walls, while the rest was just drywall. The room was also filled with old mismatched furniture, a plush tan rug under the bed, and an array of clothes, liquor bottles, and beer cans. There was also only one door at the front of the room.

As I slowly sat up, I quickly began to realize that this wasn’t one of my father’s safe houses. No, I was somewhere I had never been before. My mind instantly jumped back to my nightmare and the last thing I remembered before I woke up. My attacker had grabbed me around the waist and then there was a sharp stab in my neck right where it already felt sore. No, no, no, this couldn’t be happening to me. That dream couldn’t be real. With dread, I slowly reached up and touched the aching spot on my neck and let out a groan when I felt a bump. It was real…all of it.

“Get your ass over here,” a booming voice sounded to my right and I instantly jumped. I looked around bewildered, my heart ready to burst out of my chest from fear. I hadn’t realized I wasn’t alone.

“Wh-what? Where?” I stammered, my voice shaking uncontrollably.

My eyes darted to the source of the sound and I gasped, my heart stopping all together. There on the bed was the extremely handsome man from my dream—the man from the club. Only he didn’t look friendly at all. He looked like he wanted to eat me alive and kill me all at the same time.

My eyes shot back toward the door as I tried to plan my escape, but Brian must have caught on. “Don’t even think about it princess. If you run out that door there are four more guys to handle you, and you don’t want to find out what they will do to you,” Brian’s voice ripped through the silence again.

My heart started racing again and I bit down on my bottom lip. So there were more guys here? Oh, god and where was Jo? What were they doing to her? I felt like I was going to be sick all over again and I could feel both tears and panic rising. What were these monsters going to do with us? That thought alone terrified me to no ends.

“Where is Jo? What do you want? Where am I?” I asked boldly, pretending to be stronger than I was actually feeling. Father always said if you didn’t show weakness your aggressor would back down. I hoped he was right. As I took a bold step forward, I saw Brian’s white dress shirt covered in dark crimson blood.

I gasped, covering my mouth with my hand as I took another step forward. He was losing a lot of blood and if something wasn’t done fast then he could die. I felt the urge to help him, having been trained with my sister on multiple occasions on how to heal and care for multiple kinds of wounds, just in case something ever happened at our home. But I stopped myself short, remembering that he kidnapped me and was still hiding my sister somewhere. God, I hoped she wasn’t hurt too!

“You don’t fucking get to ask any questions, blondie,” Brian snapped, his tone deadly. “Look at me… and look closely, what do you think happened?” he hissed and I cringed. I was terrified of him and what he might do to me. My father had always told us how ruthless the other gangs in the area were and I didn’t want to be their next victim.

“I-I-I... Don’t know…”I mumbled, my body starting to shake as I took a step backwards.

I had never been one for confrontation, especially when it involved yelling. Hell, even as a kid loud noises scared me to death. I think it stemmed from witnessing my father shoot someone in our living room when I was five, or his ruthless yelling and screaming at his men. It just was very unsettling to me and made me feel like something terrible would happen to me too. So being locked in a room with a screaming, deadly, kidnapper was petrifying. I always did everything in my power to run or hide when loud things happened, particularly yelling, thunder, or gunshots but there was no escape here. I was left to face Brian’s wrath without any protection.

“You don’t know?” Brian laughed humorlessly, looking at me with hate in his eyes. “Why don’t you come closer?! Take a closer look at what YOU caused,” he demanded, using his loudest voice yet and scaring the shit out of me even more.

I swallowed thickly and took as step back, nervously chewing my bottom lip. I couldn’t have caused him to get hurt. I mean, I didn’t even remember doing anything besides trying to get help for my sister. So why did I feel so guilty about it on top of being scared shitless?

“You thought that was a question, huh? It wasn’t, blondie. Get your ass over here!” Brian shifted on the bed and I closed my eyes, letting my heels land on the plush carpet under the bed. I was still going to keep my distance. “Now, listen closely, I got shot because of you. And now, you will fix me. You will help me heal. Now take off my jacket and shirt.”

Do what? I just gapped at him, trying to register what he was saying through the pounding in my ears. I couldn’t have got him shot, could I? I didn’t have a gun and I never saw anyone with a gun. And I would be damned if I was going to help him the way he was treating me, not that I would ever say it out loud. Not to mention that I didn’t want to get any closer because I was afraid of him.

“I-I can’t,” I finally said in a voice barely above a whisper, shaking my head. I could hardly move out of fear let alone be able to deal with the amount of blood in the room right now.

“Fucking hell, blondie. I am not asking you, I will make you do it!” he screamed and I winced again. “You owe me, I got shot because of you… If you feel more comfortable I can fucking put a gun to your head, will get that your pretty little ass moving?”

I took in a shutting breath as he went to move and put my hands up. I didn’t want to see a gun, let alone hear it or have it pointed at me. I didn’t want to die either…I just wanted to wake up from this nightmare and go back to the way things were.

“Oh god,” I gasped, moving toward him. “No, no, no… I’ll try… Just tell me where my sister is... please… Who took her? What are they doing with her?” I begged, the tears welling in my eyes.

I heard Brian curse under his breath and then roll his eyes. “She is safe, that’s all. Now help me get rid of the clothes, and then do something!” he demanded and I moved over to his side, fearing that he would in fact pull the gun on me.

Come on, Em just pretend that he is another one of dad’s men that you’re helping out, I told myself. With shaking hands, I carefully removed Brian’s blood soaked jack, only to see how bad his wound was. He was losing a lot of blood and if he didn’t stop moving and screaming at me, I wasn’t going to be able to help him in time. With each yell, I could feel the bile rising in my throat as my blood coursed through my body in panic.

“I’ll unbutton the shirt now,” I mumbled with a cringe as he cursed at me again. I wished he would stop yelling so that I could fully concentrate on the task at hand instead of being panicked. I was also afraid that if I did something wrong he or one of his friends would kill me in an instant.

Slowly and with as little movement I could muster with shaking hands, I unbuttoned Brian’s shirt. Each button revealed his muscular body and I sucked in a deep breath, trying to push away thoughts of him at the club the other night. I just kept thinking about the way his rock hard body felt pinning me against the wall and how much I wanted him. No, you can’t go there Emery, he kidnapped you. You can’t think about fucking his brains out! I scolded myself. Get this done so you can find Jo and get out of here!

Well, that thought worked to focus me until I started pushing Brian’s shirt over his shoulders, revealing his oh-so mouthwatering tattoos. I had always been a sucker for a guy with ink, and even covered in blood, Brian’s didn’t disappoint. All the curves of his muscular arms were decorated with tattooed monsters and I couldn’t help but take in his delicious physique. He was even hotter than I could have imagined. My fingers gently grazed across his ink, sending shivers down my spine and momentarily distracting me from Brian’s threats and gushing bullet wound. All I could think of was Brian holding me tight as I screamed out in pleasure…

“Fuck, careful… Damn it!” Brian screamed, his booming voice causing me to flinch away. I could feel my heart pounding against my ribcage just as the door flew open and a very tall man with crystal blue eyes and dark hair walked in. Oh, god Brian wasn’t bluffing, there were more of them!

“Gates, calm down,” the man said and I froze. Gates? As in Synyster Gates from the gang Avenged Sevenfold? No, no, no…this couldn’t be happening. Father always told us how they acted with women and I didn’t want to be beaten and rapped. I quickly took a few steps back, hoping that the other guy didn’t see me and get any ideas. God, I just wanted to get Jo and go home!

“I heard you all the way down to the other rooms,” he continued and my thoughts instantly went to Jo. Maybe she was in one of the other rooms? All I had to do was get out of here while they were distracted, find Jo, and get the hell out. Or even a phone! If I could call dad and tell him who had us, then this would be all over!

Suddenly Brian grabbed my wrist and yanked me back toward the bed, pulling me from my escape plan. “Don’t even think about it, you owe me… You will fucking fix me now, or you will pay!” he hissed, squeezing my wrist harder and harder, my body now physically shaking in fear.

“Gates, fucking hell… Don’t make her feel even worse,” the tall one said and my eyes instantly shot over to him. He was sticking up for me? Well, that was certainly unexpected, considering all the stories I had heard. “Here, let me help you so he’ll stop bitching,” he whispered so only I could hear him.

The tall guy held Brian down while I quickly went to work pulling out the bullet fragments and cleaning and cauterizing the wound. The bullet had nicked one of his blood vessels but thankfully his tuxedo jacket kept enough pressure on it so he didn’t bleed out before we could get to. “This is going to hurt,” I said, meeting the tall man’s hauntingly blue eyes as I pulled out the tools to cauterize. The man nodded and I moved in, Brain screaming at me at the top of his lungs and thrashing about.

“We’ll have to give him some pain meds to knock him out,” he whispered as Brian let out curse after curse.

“Is that okay?” I cringed and the Rev just nodded. “Yeah, he’ll wake back up in a little bit and be more himself.”

“FUCKING BITCH!” Brian screamed, his eyes glaring at me though I don’t think he actually saw me. “YOU’RE GOING TO PAY FOR THIS! MARK MY WORDS, PRINCESS!” He howled and I was shaking so bad that I literally dropped some of the tools on the floor. I had no doubt in my mind that he would follow through with that threat. I looked at the tall man with fearful eyes and he shook his head, as if promising me that everything would be all right.

“Gates, calm the fuck down. You’re scaring her,” he said, looking at me with a small kind smile. It wasn’t at all what I expected from one of the Avenged guys. Brian’s behavior, yes but this guy? —Not in million years. “She is doing her best!”

“GET THE FUCK OUT, REV!” Brian bellowed as I moved in to finish cleaning him up. I had just finally got him to stop bleeding. “I’ll talk to her the way I want, now fucking leave us alone!” Brian balled his fists and I could see the vein I had just cauterized bulging and getting ready to break open again, causing blood to pool.

“I’m not going to—” the man Brian called Rev argued as Brian tried to sit up. No, that would rip everything back open and he had already lost enough blood!

“It’s okay. I will be okay… “ I burst, putting my hand up at the Rev and gently pushing Brian back down with the other. “He needs to calm down… or he will rip everything open again,” I said softly, my eyes on the Rev. He looked so concerned and I would have to thank him for his help later, if there even was a later…

“FUCKING LEAVE!” Brian bellowed one more time before the Rev left us, promising to be back later. Maybe I could be captive under his control instead of Brian’s? That might save me a heart attack and my odd attraction to the man that I was so afraid of.

“I’m giving you some more pain meds, you lost a lot of blood…” I said, opening the bottle and syringe that the Rev brought with all the medical supplies. Maybe the Rev was right, he just needed to pass out and calm down for a while. “You might get dizzy and want to sleep, you can… then the pain will not be as bad when I put on the stitches…” I continued, watching Brian’s eyes instantly droop as I injected his shoulder with the shot.

To my relief, he was asleep within minutes, leaving me to finish my work in peace. I cleaned the wound again, stitched it up, and dressed it before the door opened again, the pair of bright blue eyes peeking around the large metal door. “Everything okay in here?” the Rev asked and I sighed.

“I just finished and he’s sleeping from the pain meds, just like you said.” I moved my hands down the front of my dress. Shit, I was still wearing my white gown from the party only now it was covered in blood. Well, I guess I won’t be wearing this again.

The Rev nodded his head and stepped inside, his eyes on me as he closed the door. I hesitantly took a step back and grabbed the scissors off the night side table. I had no idea what this guy’s motives were, or any of them for that matter. All I knew were the stories that I’d head. “Whoa…easy there Emery,” he chuckled holding his hands up in the air. “You’re not a knife master so I don’t think you should be wielding those.”

“What-what do you want? How-How do you know my name?” I stammered, taking another step back as he came towards me. The Rev raised a brow at me before plopping himself down on the couch and looking over at Brian.

“I know you’re name because you’re Pagano’s daughter,” the Rev started. “And secondly, you’re safe here. We’re not going to hurt you, no matter what Gates said. He was in pain and not really himself right then, as you might have noticed.” I frowned and lowered the scissors. “Okay, so maybe you didn’t notice that but you will…anyway I’m Jimmy,” he finished and offered me his hand but I just looked at him.

Was this guy for real? I mean sure he was attractive, but I wasn’t about to shake his hand and fall for his tricks. They all kidnapped Jo and I for Pete sake! “Where is Jo? Why are we here?”

Jimmy sighed and ran his hands over his face. “I’m not allowed to tell you any more but I do know your sister is safe and you are safe, Emery,” Jimmy promised, slowly standing back up. “And Gates should be waking up here in the next hour, so don’t be alarmed.” And with that, he headed out the door with nothing more than a smile, leaving me utterly confused. How could a kidnapper be kind like that? I didn’t make any sense to me.

Right after Jimmy closed the door, I heard the lock click into place and I sighed. Shit, I was trapped in here with Brian and there was no way out. I was at his mercy, no matter what he decided to do with me, though I wasn’t exactly sure what his intentions were. Why did these men take us anyway? And why would Jimmy tell me I was safe here? What the hell was going on?

I nervously twisted my hands together in front of me as I turned around to look at Brian’s sleeping form. He looked so calm and peaceful laying there that I almost forgot how brutal and terrifying he had been a few minutes ago. Yet I couldn’t take my eyes away from his gorgeous form. I knew it was wrong and sick, but I couldn’t help myself from being attracted to him. Just the memory of him at the bar was driving me crazy and I knew deep down that I still wanted him, even though I was afraid of him.

“There is something seriously wrong with me,” I muttered to myself, turning away from the bed. “I just need to get out of here…”

I bit my lip and paced the room, trying to make an escape plan. I couldn’t stay here with the Avenged Guys and I had to find Jo. God knows what she was going through right now and I felt guilty for leaving her alone tonight. I should have been by her side, though it wasn’t like I had much of a choice. Dad was too busy trying to sell me off to the highest bidder in his business circle. How could he do that to me?

Without even thinking about what I was doing, I started tidying up the room as I walked, my mind trying to process everything that happened tonight. I just didn’t understand how everything could have gotten out of had so quickly. I mean at the time, I though Brian was going to be my savior or the evening, but I guess he had a different idea. So did that mean everything that we felt the other night at the club was an act? Was he trying to kidnap me then too?

My breaths were coming quickly as I moved around the room in a panic, picking up anything in my path. How many other signs had I missed? I played every possible scenario in my mind as I cleaned, trying to put the pieces together. You see ever since I was a little girl, cleaning had always been nervous habit. Whether I was scared, anxious, or had to tell someone big news I always fell back on cleaning, much to my father’s dismay. He always told me a girl like me should have to worry about picking up but I couldn’t help myself. It seemed to be one of the only things that helped me to relax. And in this situation, that’s exactly what I needed or else I was going to give myself a heart attack.

Only right now cleaning wasn’t really helping me, mainly because I had no idea where Jolie was. All I could picture was her lifeless body being thrown over someone’s shoulder. God I hoped she was okay because I honestly didn’t know what I would do without her. She was really one of the only friends I had ever had.

“Breath, Em…she’s okay. Jimmy said she’s okay,” I told myself, though I didn’t know why I trusted anyone from Avenged right now. Though Jimmy hadn’t done anything to make me distrust him.

With a deep breath, I closed my eyes and started to hum the song Jolie taught me when I was younger. She said it was one that our mother used to sing to her before she passed away. Something about that though always calmed me down and within a few minutes, I could feel my body starting to relax.

Just as I bent down to pick up the last article of clothing on the floor, I heard a groan from behind and whipped around. Shit I almost for that he was still in the room with me. I guess my peace was short lived. Brian appeared to be asleep and I let out a light sigh of relief. I wasn’t ready to face his harsh tone just yet, especially since I hadn’t come up with an escape plan yet. But maybe there was something wrong with his dressing?

I quietly made my way back over to his side, my eyes instantly traveling over his toned tanned skin. He was so damn handsome and I couldn’t help myself being drawn to him like a moth to the flame. My hands gently moved to his stomach and bicep as I leaned in, checking to see if he was still breathing. Within seconds, I felt his warm breath on my cheek and I smiled lightly.

“You should be waking up by now… Rev said you should wake up,” I said to myself with a light sigh, brushing a strand of hair out of his face.

With a shaky breath, I let my hand trail down Brian’s amazing body, just admiring it. He was so damn handsome and I just couldn’t stop myself, not when I had only gotten a small taste of what I really wanted. No, Emery we’ve gone over this! It’s not happening! I told myself and then moved over to check his bandage.

If I knew what was good for me, I would get out of here now before he woke up. Who knew, maybe the clicking sound I heard was a lock but just he door latching? Could I be that lucky? I slowly pulled my hands away from Brian and gave him one last look before I crept towards the door.

“Don’t even think about leaving, Em. You are responsible for this so you will be the one to take care of me… and you won’t be going anywhere!” Brian’s voice sounded behind me and I froze. Damn it!

“I-I was just going to see if Jimmy—“ I started, slowly turning around to see a wide a range of emotions flash across his face.

“He’s the Rev to you,” Brian hissed in deadly tone and I swallowed thickly. Why was he being so harsh? What happened to the kind man I met at the club, the one that I was so very attracted to? “And you’re not going anywhere, sweetheart. So get your ass back over here. I’ve got a cramp in my bicep that needs you attention.”

I slowly padded across the plush carpet and when I was close enough, Brian grabbed me by the arm and pulled me onto the bed with him. The sudden contact felt like a shock of electricity and I just gapped at him. What the hell was that? I’d never felt anything like it before in my life. It had to be that I just uncomfortable being in this situation with him, right? I didn’t want to be anywhere he would have an advantage over me and a bed seemed to scream—fuck me.

Without a word, my hands slowly started to massage Brian’s arm, feeling the tight muscle loosen in my hand. “Fuck yeah…” I Brian practically moaned, putting his head back. “At least you’re fucking good for something.”

“I-I’m good for a lot of things,” I muttered back under my breath and I was actually surprised when Brian burst out laughing.

“Please, sweetheart, you’re nothing more than a fucking pain in the ass princess,” he laughed, patting my upper thigh. That motion alone sent a wave of arousal over my body and I gapped at him, making him chuckle even more. “You wouldn’t have been able to handle me anyway, princess.”

“I’m not a princess,” I mumbled and Brian laughed more just as the door opened.

Matt’s POV

“I don’t fucking care what you want to do, get your ass out on patrol,” I grumbled, tired of fighting with Vengeance. He just needed to follow orders and stop arguing with me. If this plan was going to work out at all, we had to make it look like we were never in the area. And patrolling would accomplish just that.

“But what about the girl? Shouldn’t I be the one she wakes up to since I drugged her?” and why the hell did he look so cocky? I could smack that look off of his face right now.

I threw my head back and laughed humorlessly. “You honestly think that I can’t handle the girl?” Zack smirked at me again and I could see the smartass comment coming so I just moved forward. “Fuck you, Vengeance. Now get your ass moving. You and Christ will be our alibi.”

“I still don’t think this is the best idea. She’ll respond better if—“

“Get you ass moving, NOW!” I barked, making my decision final. I wasn’t going to stand here and argue with him, not when I had already made up my mind. I was going to be the first one the girl woke up to. Why did I like the sound of that?

There was just something about Jolie that caught me right from the get go. She was extremely beautiful and I just couldn’t look away. It was almost like something was pulling me toward her but I couldn’t quite put a name to it. I didn’t even know here and already I felt the need to protect her, not letting any of my douchebag friends near her. No, she was too special for them. Whoa, now where the hell did that thought come from?

As I walked back toward my room after a conversation with Jimmy, I stopped just outside the door. What was I even going to say to her? I knew I had to be firm and get her to cooperate with whatever it was that we needed, but yet somehow I couldn’t bring myself to yell at her. Hell, she just looked to fragile when I left her sleeping in my bed.

To my surprise, she was still cuddled up in my bedding when I came into the room, only she looked terrified to see me. Okay, so I should have expected that but still it felt odd. Jolie had to know that we would never hurt her and that this really had nothing to do with her or here sister. It had to do with teaching their father a lesson and they just happened to be collateral damage.

“Sleeping beauty is awake?” I said, looking her recoiling form in the bed. I understood she must have been terrified but did I really look that menacing in a tux?
“Are you hurt? How are you feeling?” I asked, taking a step towards her to have a closer look. She was my responsibility and I would be damned if something happened to her on my watch.

The only problem was that she really wasn’t talking to me; she was just staring at me with those bright blue eyes. “I’m not going to hurt you,” I promised her as I took off my tuxedo jacket. Maybe if I looked more normal she would open up and say a few words to me. Though I wasn’t quiet sure why I was adamant on hearing her voice—I just knew that I had to.

“Where is my sister?” Jolie finally asked and I smiled lightly.

“Oh, you did change your mind, nice,” I said and then frowned. I couldn’t tell her about her sister yet because then I would any and all leverage that I had. I still needed the upper hand her. “I can’t talk to you about that. But are you hurt somewhere? Are you still feeling dizzy?”

I took another step toward her and slowly started to pull the blankets away. If she wasn’t going to talk to me, then I would just have to look for damage myself. It was only then that I saw her really for the first time. Those long tanned legs, that fit beach body, and those hauntingly beautiful blue eyes. Damn I could get used to seeing those everyday. Where did that come from? She was leverage and nothing more! Though that didn’t stop me from licking my lips as I looked at her. Damn she was gorgeous.

“Don’t be afraid,” I smiled “I just want to make sure you are okay, screaming is for later,” I added with a playful wink but apparently she wasn’t in the mood for jokes right now.

“And?” I asked again and she just gapped at me, pushing her hair behind her ears.

“What?” she asked carefully.

“Are you hurt? Still feeling dizzy?”

“I’m not hurt.” Jolie shook her head, creating a slight curtain of dark brown hair move over her shoulder.

“Good, and dizzy?” I asked again, swallowing thickly. My eyes were hooked on her plump lips now and I knew if I didn’t move away soon I was going to cross some boundaries.

“No”

“You want to get rid of that dress? Something more comfortable?” I offered and when she said yes, I quickly moved over to my dresser. I handed her and old Iron Maiden t-shirt. “Here, this should do nicely,” I said and she just gapped at me.

“I hope you don’t expect me to change right here in front of you,” she finally said and I smirked lightly.

“Don’t worry princess, I’ll turn around, scouts honor,” I chuckled, just picturing her naked body sprawled on my bed.

“No,” she said simply and crossed her arms in front of her chest. What the hell did she mean ‘no’? That wasn’t an option.

“Well fine, stay in your dress then,” I shrugged. “But I don’t think it will be very comfortable to sleep in tonight.”

Jolie’s eyes grew wide as she looked up at me, trying to read me. Good luck, sweetheart, not even my best friends could read me very well. I wasn’t called Shadows for nothing. “Where am I sleeping?”

“You’re looking at it,” I shrugged, pulling my shirt over my head and stripping down to my boxers. I could feel her eyes watching my every move as I pulled on a wife beater tank and a pair of gym shorts. So she liked muscles and tattoos, huh? Well I liked brunettes.

After a moment Jo shook her head and looked up at me, meeting me eyes. “I’m sleeping here? With you?” she gasped and I nodded. I didn’t seem like a hard concept to me.

“Yep, we cant risk you trying to get away, and don’t even try. We are both locked in for the night. So you’re stuck with me,” I lied a little bit. We were locked in here and it only took a secret pass code to get in and out of any of the rooms. Lucky I knew all of them…

“You cant be serious,” Jo said, shaking her head and looking at me disgusted expression.

“I’m dead serious, now move over.”

Notes

Here you go lovely readers! I hope you enjoy the newest chapter! Comments please! :) We want to know what you think!