Induction

Mel remained in the doorway while Dave stormed off, presumably to change. I looked up at him and croaked out, “What have you done with Meg and Nancy?” My throat burned from the acidic vomit, and the sound of my own words increased the pounding in my head. I tasted the blood in my mouth and felt it still seeping from my nose.

“Don’t you worry your pretty little head about them, darlin’. They’re just fine. We’ve got them strung up in the other bedrooms. Oh and we found your little girl, so you best not think of tryin’ anything funny. I’d hate to have to give her a swimming lesson.” He closed the door and left me tied on the bed. I screamed for my friends and got no answer. My face contorted with anger at the thought of them hurting Gabby. I needed to get free and stop them somehow. If only the dwarfs would stop all the construction inside my head. The nausea came back and my vision went fuzzy.

I must have blacked out, because when I opened my eyes again the sunlight had shifted and the room had gotten darker. It reeked of sour vomit and I had to concentrate hard so as not to add more to the pile. Gabby was crying somewhere at the front of the boat. The door to the bedroom had been opened at some point, and I heard the men talking in the hallway. I couldn’t tell which voice belonged to which man, but that really didn’t matter. What mattered was what they were saying.

“Shut that fucking kid up.”

“What am I supposed to do, tell her a bedtime story?”

“I don’t care how you do it. Shut her up. She’s giving me a headache. Suffocate her with a pillow if you have to.”

My breath caught and I panicked. They were talking about killing Gabby. I started screaming and thrashing on the bed like a wild woman.

One of them stepped through the door. “What the fuck is all the racket about, bitch. You’d best shut up if you know what’s good for ya.” He didn’t dare come closer for fear that I’d throw up again.

I could see the other man start down the hall to where they presumably kept Gabby. “Please, don’t hurt her. She’s just scared. She’ll be quiet, I promise.” I silently begged Gabby to be quiet. He didn’t stop walking. “Please! Stop! I’ll do whatever you want. Anything, just name it. I won’t fight back, I swear to God.” Gabby stopped wailing but still made muffled whimpering noises, and I shook with relief as the other man turned back.

Dave smiled at me lasciviously. My relief turned to fear as the thought of making good on my promise took hold of me. “Well, look at that. You were right. You’re also right that you’re gonna do whatever we want, but not yet. I’m saving you for last. First I’m gonna go get me some of Meg’s sweet little ass. But don’t you feel left out, I’ll be back for you soon enough.”

No amount of screaming and pleading stopped him from walking into Meg’s room. I could hear the muffled sounds of his taunts and Meg’s cries as he manhandled her. Then something unexpected happened. Dave screamed and there was a slap like meat being tenderized. I flinched, knowing the recipient of that slap was Meg. Dave came stumbling out of her room holding his crotch. His pants were around his knees and his dirty underwear looked as if they hadn’t been washed… ever.

“That. Fucking. Cunt kicked me.” His words were punctuated by sharp intakes of breath as he bent at the waist and worked on catching his breath. The fury on his face scared me more than anything I’d witnessed in my life.

“Meg,” I screamed. “Meg, are you okay? Talk to me!” I didn’t receive a response and my thoughts raced with possible scenarios, none of them good.

Mel poked his head into my room and grabbed the doorknob. “Why don’t you shut the fuck up and start worrying about how long you’ll be okay for before I come in there and gag you.” Dave had righted himself and was peering into his underwear and assessing the damage. If the situation hadn’t been so messed up, the sight would have been funny.

“Jesus, I need some ice. Fucking apocalypse.”

I hoped she got him good. Maybe he’d bleed out internally from it. Not likely, but a nice thought anyway.

Mel began closing my door, grinning pure evil at me. “Let’s get some payback. This time, you hold her down for me.” The door closed and I resumed my screams for them to stop. I fought with my binds to get free. The only thing I succeeded in was rubbing my wrists and ankles raw from friction. My efforts were useless and I was out of ideas. I fell still and resumed my crying. I begged Jesus, God, Buddha, any spiritual being I thought could favor me with some divine intervention.