“It’s not about Owen. I just don’t want this to continue.”
“So you’re redeemed now? What you did to Joel is already forgotten?”
His blood boils as he grabs Nate by the shirt, bringing them face to face. “The last person in the world who can get me redemption is a scumbag like you. There’s poison running in your veins, and I want nothing to do with it. I’m going to say it one last time so you can get it into your thick skull. Get the hell out of—”
Pain explodes in his ribs. He’s sure he’s been stabbed, but the pain is like fire, scorching his nerves. He loses control over his muscles and slumps back, hitting the ground and luckily not banging his head. He’s never been electrocuted before, and the feeling is horrible. Nate enters his line of sight, though Will can’t see him clearly. The pain subsides, but his muscles remain clenched tight. His heart beats so fast that it might explode.
Nate leans down, holding something dark above Will’s face. “Never leave home without a taser. It’s a dangerous world out there!”
Will can’t speak with how clamped tight his jaw is. He just needs to gain enough control over his muscles to try to escape, but Nate doesn’t give him the chance. He puts aside the taser and rolls Will onto his stomach. The side of his face rubs against the ground, his cheek scratches on little rocks that dig into his skin. In seconds, Nate puts cold cuffs around his wrists.
“Calm down, big guy.” Nate crouches with his knee on Will’s lower back, pressing against his spine. “You tried to play it tough, but you live and you learn. Thequestion is, did I make the message clear enough, or should I give you another not-so-friendly lesson?”
Still not fully in control of his body, Will grunts. He’s growing aware of the wetness around his crotch from losing his bladder.
“Are you crying, William? Not very manly.”
He’s not sure if he’s crying, but if he is, those are tears of rage and regret. Rage for being in this situation and regret for allowing things to get to this point. He has no one to blame but himself.
Nate strokes Will’s head. “Relax, baby. Don’t be hard on yourself. Let’s go inside. I’ll take good care of you. You can be a good boy for me, right?”
“Yeah.” Now that the pain is partly gone, a subtle sense of peace floats across his body. It feels like the calm before the storm.
“You think you can stand?”
“I can try. I’m dizzy.”
“Well, yeah, electricity would do that. You’ll feel better once we’re inside. You’ll have a nice, warm shower, okay?”
“Okay.”
Nate helps him up, and Will grunts as his body leaves the ground. His clothes are stuck to his sweaty skin, and dirt is falling from his face. It feels like he’s bleeding from little cuts on his cheek.
Nate stands close to him from behind, holding the taser in front of Will’s face. The device crackles, meaningit’s still active. “Maybe another small hit from my friend here?” He lowers the taser to Will’s crotch. “Should I do it to your balls? It will hurt more because you’ve pissed in your pants like a baby.”
“Don’t.”
Nate chuckles and turns Will around, tapping on his chest. “You’re such a sexy mess. We understand each other better, don’t we?”
With his hands cuffed behind his back, Will smashes his forehead into Nate’s face. A bolt of pain shoots through his skull, but at least Nate has it worse. He shouts in pain and stumbles, holding his face and dropping the taser.
Will shakes his aching head and gets down on his ass. He slides his bound hands beneath him to get them to the front, where he’ll have a better shot at defending himself, or better yet—at attacking. By the time he’s back on his feet, Nate is dashing toward the taser, but Will is faster. He shoves Nate back, smashing him against the police car. Nate shouts and drops to his knees.
Will’s heart jolts when he sees Nate reaching for his gun. He doesn’t want to believe he’s capable of shooting him, but he can’t count on that. He kicks Nate in the shoulder, once more smashing him against the car before he drops onto his stomach.
“Stay down!”
But Nate still tries to get up, forcing Will to land ontop of him. He pins his arms to his body using his legs and holds his head against the ground. “Stay fucking down!”
Nate chuckles. “Look at you! You found your balls!”
“I guess I did.” He shakes his head to focus his sight. “Give me the key to these cuffs.”
“Why would I do that? You love it when I tie you down.”
“Keys.Now.”
“You’ve assaulted a police officer.”
