“Did your mother tell you?”
“No.”Eli.“A friend of the family told me. He explained that my outbursts and reactions to things could be some of the underlying effects of my mom having done drugs before and while pregnant with me. So he was trying to tell me that my bad behavior wasn’t always my fault or completely within my control,” I further explained.
I noticed that saying my dirty past out loud to someone had made me shake.Yep, my mom was the famous swimsuit model Haley Cooper. And yep, she snorted coke while she had me. And nope, I don’t have a dad.I took a deep breath and looked down at my legs that were buried under blankets to give me a chance to settle down.
“But I think I paid my dues for my poor behavior. I got it handed to me.”
James moved from his chair and sat on the edge of my bed.
“Brandon, being held captive in a kink house is not some sort of punishment. What happened is a crime. It’s considered such a crime that it’s a federal offense and is being handled by the FBI.”
“What’s a kink house? Is that where I was at?”
I was eager to hear what information he knew of the place where I had been. He reached up and pressed a button on the heart monitor again and then sat beside my legs.
“Yes. That’s exactly where you were at. Typically, it’s a place where there is usually one person in charge, and they make it appear that they’re taking care of less than fortunate people. They make it sound like a great place to someone down on their luck. They offer a place to stay, food, cigarettes, alcohol, and drugs—all for sex.”
“The others went willingly. Well, at least, that’s what they told me. The others raved about it being a great place. They just got high all the time and said they liked being there. Except, there was another girl that I didn’t know. She must have arrived after they started keeping me in the dark room and the cage.”
James glanced up at the heart monitor and then stood and pressed another button on it.Was something wrong?
“Is something wrong?” I asked.
“No, Brandon. Your heart is racing, and it picked up quite a bit as we started talking about the kink house. Then it jumped again when you mentioned the cage and dark room.” James sat and pushed my blanket bear against my right side until I took hold of it. “Your body is reacting to talking about a place where you were tortured. I’m simply pressing the button to let the nurses’ station know that I’m here and watching over you.”
“Thank you.” I loved the fact that he was watching over me. I’d wanted someone to care for so long. I thought I had that once, though. I tried to smile and reached for my mouth. James chuckled and then patted the blanket of my bear against my side.
“Don’t hurt yourself,” he joked.
I nodded and encouraged him to tell me more about the kink house.
“They’re all run underground and typically move after a few years. They draw their victims in with enticing things, some of which are life needs. They feed off of desperation. For example, someone who is homeless and on the streets, after a winter they might do anything for shelter. And they do. But the kink houses also draw their victims in through other means. Those ways are even more sinister; slavery. The ones they can’t entice, they simply lock up and keep against their will.”
“Me.”
“Yes, you.” James paused long enough to press the button on the monitor. “How did you end up at that party?”
Eli.
The dull ache in my chest and feeling like I had just been kicked in the stomach was a reminder that the hole Eli had burned in me was still very hot and raw. It was also a reminder that I needed to be cautious with who I trusted.
“A friend took me. He said we’d have fun.” I looked over at the window and, for whatever reason, I kept talking. “I thought he cared and was interested in me.”
“Was he a friend that you were interested in, or was he a boyfriend?” James asked in an even tone. It was encouraging that he hadn’t sounded repulsed by the idea that I could have had a boyfriend.
I didn’t know what we were. I shrugged and looked at James. I honestly didn’t know. I was so young. I was only eighteen and fresh out of high school. He encouraged me away from my mom and to move in with him. I thought he cared.
“I don’t know exactly.”
James nodded as he looked at me, and suddenly I felt so incredibly stupid for ever listening to Eli. I didn’t know how he could have done that to me.
“Was he a friend from school?”
I shook my head.
“How did you meet him?”
“I met him while I was in high school. He was a friend of the family, kind of.”
