Chapter 22
CHAPTER 22
ELIJAH
M y time with my parents didn’t get any better, and I’m still decompressing afterward. I only got home yesterday, and have to say that three weeks away was much too long. The deeper understanding I have of my family company has me even more anxious to bury the little mouse.
If it’s going to be me or her, I will choose myself.
When I texted Jared that I was home last night, I could tell he and the others had been worried. I haven’t had the opportunity to catch them all up on the trip, because it’s not something I want to text about. Then, on my run with Ignacio, we didn’t talk at all, not even when I was on my knees for him at the end, sucking his cock in some fucked up form of penance for his sins.
Needless to say, the little mouse doesn’t deserve any good days. All I want for her is pain, terror, and suffering. The very idea gets my dick hard, forcing me to adjust myself as Jared follows Lili through the streets. Ignacio knows the exact area they plan on going to, because he overheard Lili tell his father to ensure their safety.
Fuck that. The only reason I’m not throwing Rachelle over a cliff is because she has to stay alive for now.
“Easy, man,” Theo murmurs next to me. “I don’t know what’s with you or what happened, but I can tell it was bad. We have to keep our cool to keep this from getting out of hand, yeah?”
“You’re right,” I agree, blowing out a breath. “I’m really fucking angry today.”
“About?” Ignacio asks from the front seat.
“A lot,” I say. “There’s the little fact that my parents kidnapped me, along with everything else. You really want me to unload right now? Aren’t we almost there?”
“Tell us anyway,” Jared encourages me. He’s been wanting to know since I texted him last night to tell him I was back.
“My parents are international sex traffickers,” I sigh. “They funnel underaged boys and girls to auction houses to be sold. It’s a way for my father to not only get his rocks off, but apparently it pays really fucking well. I’ve been in Dubai, Amsterdam, and Hong Kong in the last three weeks. I can’t believe this is going to be my fucking life!”
“It doesn’t have to be,” Theo barks out. “Elijah, listen to me. We’re going to get you out of this. We just need to do what’s necessary as Kings.”
“The agreement is that if we do, we get out of all the shit we don’t want to do,” Jared adds. “We just need to keep pressure on her.”
“We’ve got this,” Nacio murmurs. His lower jaw ticks as he grits it against the other, glaring out the window.
As long as I’m not the only one drowning in anger, it helps.
Lili turns her fancy vehicle into the nature park, and my eyes immediately begin searching for other people. There isn’t anyone around, making me think about all the fucked up things I’ll be able to do to her. We have a backpack filled with stuff to make Lili a non-issue as well.
Parking next to her, we get out of Theo’s SUV while Rachelle slowly walks over to Lili’s side of the car. Lili is putting water bottles into her backpack, murmuring softly to the little mouse.
While we have water in our pack, there’s many other things as well. Crossing my arms over my chest, I’m glad I pulled on a long sleeved shirt earlier at Nacio’s house. There’s a light chill in the air, even for late June, because of the tree cover.
“Aren’t we one big happy family,” Nacio booms out, making Rachelle flinch.
Loud sounds make her uncomfortable, perfect.
“Show us the way, Lili,” I tell her, speaking louder than I need to.
Glancing at me as if I’m losing my mind, she grabs Rachelle’s hand as she starts to walk. That’s not going to work for me. I don’t want to be ignored.
“Ninety-nine bottles of beer on the wall,” I start to bellow, making the guys snicker as they join in.
“You’re dickcheese,” Rachelle mutters inventively. “God, why are boys so obnoxious?”
It’s cute that she’s pulled the girl card, because I find her very presence on this earth offensive. As soon as I can amend that, I plan to.
“Their penises do weird things to their brains, causing them to regularly lose brain cells when it’s hard,” Lili explains.
Nacio snorts as he continues to sing, and I have to admit that it was a little funny. It’s sad that she’s not on the right side. She doesn’t understand the importance of the little mouse being unhappy.
Not enough to jump from the roof, but close enough. It wouldn’t count if she kills herself.
Walking up the trail, the four of us are as obnoxious as possible. Singing, cat calling because Rachelle’s ass really does look good in her leggings, and scaring the shit out of her by grabbing her around the waist whenever a long enough time period has passed. The trick is to wait for her shoulders to slowly sink back into place away from her ears.
We’ve been walking for an hour by this point, the mountain showing off the beautiful backdrop of Portland. I can see why Lili chose a walk here, I guess it’s romantic if you’re into this kind of stuff.
“Are we there yet,” I whine as loudly as possible. I’m trying to get Lili to lose her temper with me, but she just keeps her attention on the little mouse, whispering things in her ear.
I’m getting bored of this.
Glancing at Jared, I see the way he shifts the backpack so he can access its contents. We are nothing if not efficient.
“Fuck off,” Lili says sweetly over her shoulder. “Thirsty, baby?”
Rachelle nods with a small sigh, and I can tell she’s beginning to get tired. We can’t have that. She needs more cardio if she’s going to keep up with us.
Knowing there’s a special place in hell for me, I say, “Are you gaining weight, Rachelle? I can see some extra cake in your ass.”
“You should know, since you’ve been staring at it the whole time,” Theo says, snickering.
We all know she doesn’t eat enough, and that food is a trigger due to her anxiety. Today, none of that matters, as long as I get the chase that I need. She won’t die from an eating disorder if she develops one from our callous words, we don’t plan to allow her to live that long.
“Her ass is fine,” Lili hisses as Rachelle rolls her eyes and takes a sip from the bottle handed to her. “It looks extraordinary when I have handfuls of it while I’m eating her out too.”
At this, the little mouse chokes on her water as she swallows, while Lili grins and rubs her back. I’ve never been so jealous of Lili before. God, that was masterful. Even Theo winces as he adjusts his cock in his pants.
“They’re loud,” Nacio says with a sigh. “You should work on being a little quieter when you make her come, Lili. I’m pretty sure you made her squeal like a pig a few nights ago.”
Lili’s face is priceless as she snarls, and Rachelle is turned away from us when her girlfriend comes over to hit Nacio. Instead, his hand covers her mouth, his other arm smoothly picking her up into a bridal carry as he walks into the woods. Smirking, Jared strolls after them, his hand already pulling rope from his pack.
Now, the fun gets to start. As soon as they disappear into the woods, the little mouse recovers from her coughing fit, turning to face us. Seeing that not only is Lili gone, but so is Nacio and Jared, her lips part.
Fuck, I bet I could get her to suck my dick and make her choke on it. We promised we’d stay away from the physical shit, but her perception of reality isn’t something I can control.
Or can I?
“Missing something?” Theo asks, a slow, unkind smile overtaking his face as her breathing begins to get faster. “I don’t think breathing so hard is a sign of good health, Rachelle. Overweight teens are a real concern in this country.”
“I think running is a good cure for it though,” I add, taking a step forward as she steps back.
She’s not close enough to the cliff to our right to accidentally fall off it, which is a damn shame. I mean, it’s a plus. Now, to get her to run away from it instead of toward it.
“Leave me alone,” the little mouse rasps. “We aren’t in school, just lay off.”
“Can’t,” Theo murmurs. “The Kings’ attention is for as long as you’re alive, little mouse. Get used to it, or make your peace with dying.”
“Isn’t there an amount of time I have to live?” Rachelle asks, glancing toward the cliff. “If I die early, aren’t you all fucked?”
“Suicidal again?” I ask her. “I thought you were over that shit.”
“Didn’t you hear? I’m a petty bitch,” she says. “I’d rather you lose than get anything good. Jumping from the cliff means you lose? Bet your ass I’ll do it.”
“Wait!” Theo screams as she turns toward it. God, is she really crazy enough to fucking jump it?
How did we end up with someone so unstable?
“Why?” she asks. “I lived to see seventeen, that’s about all I can expect.”
“Damn you’re depresso,” I say. “Why the fuck aren’t you on meds?”
Theo and I are stalking toward her, both of us trying to distract her long enough to make her break toward the trees or grab her.
Lili fucks that up by screaming, “Run, Rachelle! Go!”
“Nowhere to go, but I’ll tell you what I can do for the birthday girl,” I croon, still moving forward as she steps back.
Fuck, she’s still too close to the edge.
“I’ll let you live another day if you’re able to outrun me,” I tell her.
“Collectively or just you?” she asks.
“Smart,” Theo mutters, impressed.
She is smart, and that’s one of the largest problems we have with her. She’s competition for our spots for top performers in our class. That’s why Jared ruined her grades. Now, it’s our mission to ruin any bright spots in her life too.
I’m not above using Lili to do it, either. She’s already screamed, may as well use it.
“If you’re a good little mouse, I won’t let Nacio and Jared fuck Lili’s face like a dirty little whore,” I add.
Fortunately, her face pales and she stumbles, catching herself before she goes down. I hate that she’s so damn selfless. I want her to run for herself, not because she’s worried about her girlfriend. Even I have a line I won’t cross.
Lili will always be safe from us because of our history, though Nacio may have fantasies of fucking her still. She doesn’t know that, though.
“Better run, Little Mouse,” Theo practically purrs. “It’s so cute that you’d rather protect someone other than yourself. Run to where the crossroads are at the other side of these woods.”
Leave it to him to have done some research on the park before we got here. Fucking love him.
“Please don’t hurt her,” Rachelle whispers.
“Only won’t if you get away,” I promise her, grinning as she hesitates for half a second more before dropping the water bottle and turning to run.
“We’ve got a live one!” I crow, so the guys in the woods can still hear me.
“Open wide, whore,” Nacio yells, playing along. I can hear Lili whimpering, the quiet woods amplifying the sounds.
The little mouse swallows back a sob, her legs moving as quickly as possible. Her form needs desperate work as we stalk her through the woods. If I can keep her in my sight, I doubt she’ll make it through. She’s more likely to break an ankle at this rate.
Another scream releases from Lili, making me wonder what they’re doing to her before it’s cut off.
“They should be joining us soon,” Theo mutters. “Make sure she doesn’t get too far ahead. It’s two and a half miles to the crossroad. She’ll never make it.”
“Divide and conquer,” I murmur, breaking away from him to start jogging after her. I’m warmed up from my run this morning and the walk, not tired at all. I’m an athlete training for the upcoming rugby season, in peak condition.
Rachelle is a mess.
Slowly though, I start to watch her hit her stride, her running speed moving faster. Eyes narrowing, I begin to chase her.
“Little Mouse, you’re never going to make it!” I roar at her as I run.
“Look at the fat cow move!” Theo yells, his lithe form following her as well.
I can hear her sharp breaths as she struggles to regulate her breathing, but she keeps moving.
“Looks like we have a runner, boys,” Jared says, catching up to us.
Rachelle almost trips at the sound of his voice, knowing he was just with Lili, but rallies and jumps over a log. Hmm. I have questions about that, she should have fallen on her face.
“The little mouse is full of surprises,” I mutter, knowing that no one else will be able to hear me.
Up ahead, I see a glimpse of Nacio as well. We are all wearing dark green or blue, which makes it easier to blend in. All of a sudden, I can’t see her, and I begin weaving between the trees, looking for her.
“Little sister!” Nacio yells. “Hiding is against the rules, baby girl. Come out and play with us.”
Smirking, it makes me feel better that I’m not the only one who’s lost sight of her as we spread out to cover more ground. If she’s hiding…
“Look for stumps with holes or into the trees in case she can climb,” I call out, hoping to scare her into making a noise, anything that calls attention to herself.
The four of us go silent as we move through the forest, searching for the little mouse. I make sure to occasionally step on a twig or piece of wood so the snap rings through the air. If her anxiety is already spiked, it’ll be harder for her to stay quiet.
Come out, come out, Little Mouse. I promise not to make it hurt too much.
* * *
JARED
Do I feel bad about tying up Lili and pinching her until she screamed? Not even a little bit. She fought it, I’ll give her that. Nacio tied her to a tree, yanking back her hair as he whispered things in Spanish in her ear. It’s one of the first languages we’re required to take starting in kindergarten, so I understood every word as he threatened her.
“ Scream, tesoro,” he whispered in her ear. “Make her cry and run for us. It’s necessary. Otherwise, I’ll feed you my cock and make you scream before Jared and I take turns fucking you. Be a good girl, or you’ll be coming around our cocks and betraying her either way.”
I can’t say I’m not intrigued by the idea of fucking Lili, but it’s not something that I planned for today. Elijah is fucked up about what’s happening with his parents and their business. I can’t imagine the things he had to see while he was gone. His parents basically kidnapped him in an effort to indoctrinate him into their bullshit.
There’s no way that he’s going to survive that life. While he’s more closed off to the world, he’s also very sensitive. Seeing that kind of continuous abuse and despair will eventually see him dead at the bottom of a bottle or swallowing the barrel of a gun.
I can’t lose one of my best friends to that. Sacrificing the little mouse is the only option.
…who is now lost in the wind.
“Your girlfriend is tied up and naked,” I call out, listening for some kind of gasp or sign that she’s hearing me.
Lili is still protected in some ways, and we would never force ourselves on her. Her father is one scary motherfucker, a visit from him is the last thing any of us need. I would like to keep my cock and my tongue.
She’s perfectly fine, outside of being tied tightly to a tree, arms and legs bound with one of the lengths of rope I brought with me in the backpack I have. I shoved a pair of dirty socks I found in the bag that she may kill me for into her mouth, and then tied a bandana around her mouth.
Whatever, Lili knows that she’s in the way, refusing to step away when we demand it. Regardless of our history, none of us are willing to accept defeat. She can enjoy her time out.
“I bet her nipples are hard as fuck,” Elijah says, ghosting through the trees as he searches under logs and rotted out spots where she could easily hide.
There may be creepy crawlers inside of them, but apparently they’re less scary than we are. She’d be right.
“I’ll have to make a point to suck on them to help her get warm,” Nacio says with a smirk. “It’s starting to get cold, little sister. Are you going to let her continue to freeze?”
The lowest it’ll get later is in the low fifties, hardly enough to freeze, but we are trying to make her feel guilty. However, as I turn and walk around in a circle, listening for any sign of her, I frown as I hear nothing. Did she escape and we didn’t pay attention?
“Let’s keep moving,” I murmur. “I have a weird feeling we’re being outmaneuvered.”
“Spread out farther,” Theo says. “Playtime is over. Find her.”
As one, we begin to cast a wider net, not playing at being quiet anymore. Cat calls, threats, none of it is enough to bring her out.
“I’m going to run up to the road and see if she made it,” Theo says as the shadows begin to get darker under the canopy of the forest.
It is a little cooler now that the sun isn’t as warm, and the breeze whipping through the woods is making an impact. God, where the fuck is she?
I want to scream, and I can see Elijah getting more and more infuriated. This isn’t going the way I thought it would.
Theo’s back disappears as he jogs to the road, and I wonder what he’ll find.
“Do you think she doubled back somehow and left?” Elijah asks. “I can’t imagine how she’d manage that. It would mean she’s better at slinking around than I am.”
“Can’t have that,” Nacio murmurs, agreeing. He looks equally frustrated, but continues moving forward so that we’ll end up meeting up with Theo by the time he returns.
“Let me go! I finished your fucking game,” Rachelle screams.
I can hear her before I see her over Theo’s shoulder as he jogs back. Her ass bounces with every step, and I have to admit it’s pretty incredible. The fat remarks were a little out of line, but I’m not sorry about it.
“I found her sitting against a tree by the crossroads,” he says. “I’m not done playing yet, I think. We said we wouldn’t kill her, but there’s so much more we can do.”
Smirking, I nod. There’s a creek not far from here, I think she needs a bath.
“We won’t even fuck you,” I tell her. “You really should offer to suck my cock for being so nice to you.”
“I hope it rots off!” Rachelle screams, tears of frustration clear in her voice.
“You should have doubled back and disappeared,” Nacio says, rolling his eyes. “How the hell did you manage to get past us?”
When she doesn’t respond quickly enough, Theo pinches the skin underneath her luscious ass to make her cry out in pain. I think he enjoys making her scream, and her chest heaves because his pinches are always more vicious than mine.
“Theo, you’re a dick,” she gasps. “I’m telling you, Ignacio. Get fucked and die.”
“You two are so cute,” Elijah says, snorting. “Are you going to run to Daddy and tell?”
The words are slightly closer to the truth than I’d like, Nacio’s words running through my head about how his father would kill him if she dies. We’ll have to find a way to get around that when we finally do break and kill her.
There’s no other option than for her to die. She can’t be the one to do it, either. I do want her broken, maybe even begging for death. There’s a fire inside of her as she slams her fists into Theo’s back, struggling to get away.
It’s a good thing I have more rope. I hope she can swim.
“Beer on me when we get back, boys,” I say.
There’s beer in the coolers on ice, camping gear, and everything we need to take a break from the outside world. I’ve already gotten the camping permit as well for the next few days, just in case we had the opportunity for it.
Elijah needs the time to just decompress after his time with his parents, as well. This will give him that chance to breathe as well, but we need to finish up with the little mouse first. If Lili needs to sleep tied up to the tree, that’s just what’ll happen.
If she’s a little dehydrated later, so be it.
The guys all act like riotous assholes, riling each other up, which will be necessary for this. It’s putting me in a really good fucking mood, my dick is hard, which means the four of us will be spending the next few days getting off with each other.
I can’t imagine a better way to spend this camping trip. We’re planning to disappear into the campgrounds, making it hard for us to be found. I know some of our parents have trackers in our phones, but turning off our phones and leaving it in the car while we hike to our site will keep us hidden.
There may be backlash from what we’re about to do, and I don’t really want to deal with it until much later.
A large muddy area is next to the angry creek, which is perfect. Whistling to myself, I pull out the rope and tie her wrists up to her elbows in a complicated manner with pretty knots. It’ll make it difficult to swim, but I want her to be afraid to die. I secretly enjoy her fire, the way she tells me to get fucked, and how she fights for Lili.
Lifting her, Theo tosses her away from him in an impressive show of strength. His time in the weight room is definitely showing as he gears up for soccer season. We’re all in prep for the fall, but a beer or two won’t fuck with that.
Our appetites will be up from chasing and searching after this, so it’ll be the perfect time to cook at the campsite. The four of us are adept at surviving outside and roughing it.
Rachelle squishes into a ball as she hits the ground and rolls down the incline we’re at.
“Cute roll,” Elijah says, stalking forward. “She’s entirely too clean still.”
The three of us follow him, letting him run the show from now on. If something doesn’t pan out the way you expect it to, pivot so it will.
Rachelle manages to awkwardly stand, attempting to run, but Elijah reaches down and pulls her leg out from under her so she falls into the mud face first. Continuing to hold her leg, he drags her across the ground, his shoes also getting covered. Oh well, we'll either clean them or toss them.
I’m not really worried about it.
An idea begins to form as the guys take turns pulling her through the mud, tossing her onto the squishy surface, and taunting her. This is all a good time, but mud washes off easily.
This backpack is also the one I occasionally use when I go to the college library for research, and as I search, I come up with multicolored permanent markers.
“Take her pants off,” I call out, tossing the pack to the side as I walk toward them.
“No,” the little mouse screams, feet sliding as she attempts to get away.
Her voice is raw, the terror making me chuckle under my breath. I’m not interested in fucking her right now. I have another idea planned. Without asking me why I want her pants removed, Theo and Elijah pull off her shoes and leggings.
“Pull her up to where it’s not so muddy,” I command. “Then pin her down. I don’t need her foot in my cock.”
There’s a dirt path a little further up where it’s not so muddy, and the guys pin her to the ground as I open a black permanent marker, gazing at her thighs. I can see the thin scars at her hips, which piss me off. Her life may have been shit, but what gives her the right to hurt herself?
That’s our job.
Weak . That’s the word I write across her hip bone, her pupils blown wide with fear and disbelief.
“These are the things people think about when they see you,” I murmur, writing Bloated across her stomach, even though it’s flat. She could even probably stand to eat a little more.
“That’s a fun game,” Elijah says, ripping her shirt and sweater over her head. It’s difficult because her hands are tied, but I pull the knife from my pocket to cut the rest of it off.
Guess she’s going to be naked for her dip in the creek. Oh well.
Theo picks up a marker, and I move my body so that my knees are pinning her thighs down.
“Pick a word and write it is our new game?” Theo asks, grinning as I nod.
Victim is what he writes across her breasts, the words perfectly legible because she’s being held down by many hands at her shoulders, chest, and hands. Handing a marker to Nacio, I raise my brow at him.
I’m not stupid. He lives with Rachelle, which could fuck with his head. He sees more of her, the vulnerability, and the way she falls apart after a rough day. I need to make sure she’s not turning him against us.
Grabbing it, he looks down at her body as if thinking about the word he’ll write. Swallowing hard, he grabs her hair to pin her head to the ground, biting the cap off to write Fail across it. Damn. Ignacio is cutthroat, the killer amongst us all, and he went for the jugular there.
Plus, this will be a bitch to get off her skin. As one, we write words like “fat cow,” “flabby,” “dead girl,” and more. In a sense, some of these words are true. Rachelle Reyes will be dead by our hand one day.
Elijah’s gaze is dark as he writes the word “ungrateful mouse” on her entire side like a brand. Tears run down her face as she struggles until she can’t anymore, exhausted as she sobs.
“Hope you have enough strength for this, Little Mouse,” I tell her, tossing the marker away as I pick her up in a bridal carry.
Walking quickly, I move toward the creek, which is deep, wild, and getting angrier.
“Let me help,” Theo grunts, taking her legs from me.
Adjusting to grab hold of her upper arms, we begin to swing her body as she screams.
“Hope you can swim, Little Mouse,” I say.
Nacio and Elijah creep closer as they watch, waiting for us to let her go flying.
“You may catch some air, little sister,” Nacio says. “It’ll be the closest you get to flying, I’m willing to bet.”
“That shit will be cold,” Elijah says, wildly laughing as we toss her into the middle of the creek.
I watch as Rachelle is pulled away from where we stand quickly, struggling against the current as she tries to swim.
“Beer anyone?” I ask, turning away to pick up her discarded clothes and throw them into the water as well. If and when she gets out, she’ll be making the trek back naked. It’s what she deserves.
“We can’t kill her yet, right?” Nacio asks, gazing as she disappears from sight.
The water feels as if it’s louder now that she’s gone, and my chest clenches for a moment as I move to pick up my things to repack my backpack. I’m going to need to pick up more rope. I doubt I’ll be getting it back now.
“Nah,” I say. “The creek gets more shallow as it goes.”
Theo gazes at me for the lie, his blue eyes narrowing. It’s over and done with now, I can’t deal with Nacio losing his shit.
“Yeah,” Theo says. “She’ll be fine. Let’s get out of here, I’m hungry.”
Walking together, we trek back down to where our car is, evading where we left Lili. I don’t want to deal with her yelling at me. I want time to unwind, and enjoy the lesson we are teaching the both of them.
We always win, no matter what.