Gaia
There was a knock on the door. I had a strong urge to ignore it. I wanted to go home, get the hell out of this place, but they had my brother. I swung the door open, and Geraint stood there.
“What do you want?” I asked, frowning, my arms folded over my chest, mirroring his stance.
“You want to see your brother?” He asked gruffly.
“Yes,” I said through gritted teeth. “That is kind of obvious.”
He started walking down the corridor, the silence stretching between us. His eyes glowered with anger whenever he turned to see if I was still following him. I noted the bandages on his hand and knuckles.
“Where’s the blindfold, asshole?” I asked.
“She’s a feisty one, isn’t she?” Another man said, cocking a brow.
“More like a rabid fucking dog, this one.” Geraint turned to me. “Who knows if you’ll leave here alive, so see all you can until then.” His grin was sinister, and I matched it with one of my own.
I followed Geraint into an elevator. He stood beside me silently.
“So, how long have you been his bitch?”
He looked down at me, his face void of expression. I knew he wouldn’t answer, but it still felt good to say it.
I hadn’t seen Arthur since his big reveal, the mighty Arthur Calthorpe, killing a man with poison. Pathetic. I was so angry at him for bringing me here, for kidnapping me and my brother. God knew what they were doing to him. Gabe wasn’t strong like I was. He’d bend to their will, he’d give in. He always did.
Geraint folded a hand over the one I’d bitten. These monsters were crazy if they thought I’d go anywhere without a fight. Fight was all I did, to keep sane, to survive the life I’d been born into.
We rode the elevator down a few floors, and it opened into darkness. Geraint stepped out, and a single light came on above us, bathing us in a yellow glow. We approached a set of steel doors, and he bent at the waist to look into a screen. A retina identification system, I noted. I might have to score an eye at some point tonight. If I survived. I was not chained. Arthur, as he’d assured me, was not holding me prisoner. So why did I feel like one? And now I was being led to God knows what fate awaited me.
The doors opened, and we walked down another passage. I kept in stride with Geraint, which had him smirking at me a few times. The man was not used to being challenged, and I was not used to being attacked in broad daylight in the parking lot at my place of work. We were pretty much even if you asked me.
I’d imagined my brother in a dungeon of sorts, being brutally beaten and much worse, so being led into what looked more like a penthouse, complete with entertainment center, bar, and a sauna, completely confused me. Geraint led me into the room, and I gasped. Gabe. He was alive and well and was lying in the middle of a water bed wearing just a pair of boxers. I knew it was a water bed because the half-naked women surrounding him were bouncing about with champagne glasses in hand. He looked up at me, barely seeing me.
“Gabe!” I stepped forward, almost at the foot of the bed. He considered me, frowning. His green eyes were sparkling, always an indication that he was in his happy place. Alcohol was on almost every surface, and lines of cocaine were held in front of him on a glass tray by a topless woman.
“Not my type,” he cackled, waving me off I wanted to slam my fist into something.
“Gabe, it’s me, Gaia!” I shouted. “What have you done to him?” I turned to ask Geraint.
“Nothing he didn’t consent to.” He said.
“Come here,” Gabe slurred, ignoring me while grabbing a blonde around her waist and pulling her toward him until she was on his lap. He stroked her thighs and planted a kiss on her lips.
“Gabe, we need to go home,” I said, trying to get through to him. He was so high, he looked at me through hooded eyes.
He laughed. “Why on earth would I want to leave? I’m in heaven. If you insist on joining, I could make an exception,” I knew the drugs were talking, but it didn’t hurt any less.
He stared at me, his eyes unfocused and unresponsive. When the blonde climbed into his lap, straddling him, I looked away. This was too much.
I charged at the man who’d brought me here. “I’m going to fucking kill you all!” I bellowed. He simply held me at arm's length while I tried to break free.
“What exactly have we done to your brother that he didn’t want?” I heard the deep drawl coming from behind the bulk of the man holding me. I broke free, and he let me. I stalked toward Arthur. He stood tall, smugly. He looked at me sternly. “We can do this easy way, or...” he looked over my shoulder at Gabe.
“You people are disgusting, inhuman monsters.”
I turned away, unable to look at my brother in that situation. Moans filled the air, and I covered my ears, pushing past Arthur and running down the corridor, tears streaming down my eyes. I was stuck here, and that bastard knew it. I could never leave Gabe. He’d been my safe place my entire life, and I could not leave him.
I heard the door open and shut. I’d prayed that he wouldn’t come tonight, but he did like he had every night for as long as I could remember. I sank deeper under my covers. Maybe if I closed my eyes and wished him away, my wish would come true. I knew what was happening was wrong. They’d told us at school that nobody should inappropriately touch us. I wanted to tell someone, but he said he’d kill Gabe if I did.
