Hostage

14: Punishment

"And in breaking news, earlier at the library, a teenage girl who looks exactly like Aubrey Bates entered the building. When called out, she claimed she was somebody else and is told that she looks like the missing teen a lot. She walked to the nonfiction bookshelf in the back, remained there for two minutes, and then walked out of the building with a bulge in her pockets. It is assumed that the teen took pages out of a book and then walked off. The librarian, Ms. Jones, noticed the suspicious activity. When the teen left the building, Ms. Jones called the authorities and alerted them about the situation. When she got to the shelf, she found that a book filled with all of the files of the citizens in the Northern Los Angeles area had fallen on the ground. She took a look through the files to see if any were missing. Sure enough, the two files of Finneas Baird O'Connell and Billie Eilish Pirate Baird O'Connell were gone. Could this be a sign? And if the girl really was Aubrey Bates, could the files that were taken be the files that belong to her kidnappers? Once police investigate more on the case, an update will be given. Keep an eye out for any activity. If you see the teen that looks like Aubrey Bates, don't hesitate to contact the proper authorities."

The breaking news switches back to the episode of "The Office" that we're on. I look at them nervously, and they stare back at me, faces red and flustered. They look angry. I don't blame them, though.

And then I remember what I saw in the closet. The shoes won't do anything, though; the shoes are just for her. But I remember the whips and everything else in there. There's no other way to face it: I'm going to get punished.

"Aubrey, I trusted you!" Billie groans. "You promised that you wouldn't do anything stupid! And when we leave, what do you do? You go to the library and risk blowing our cover!" She hesitates for a second and then looks at me in confusion. "Why did you take our files in the first place?"

"I — I had a plan," I admit with a sigh. She raises an eyebrow. "I took the files and was hoping to add something on them. I was going to — I planned to get you guys to sign the bottom of the files so it's like you adopted me legally. That way, if the police did find us, you could be declared innocent."

Billie nods with a small smile. "Smart thinking there, Aubrey! It could work. Or it could totally fail. It just depends on what happens."

Finneas clears his throat. We both look at him. He looks at Billie, who takes a quick look at me and then back at Finneas.

"She broke the rules, Billie. She needs to be punished."

"But —"

"No buts, Billie. She needs to be punished! So go upstairs and find some way to punish her. Teach her a lesson. Use the whip; that always works!"

I gulp. Billie looks at me, silently apologizing. Then she looks at Finneas and nods.

"Yeah. Okay. I'll take her up."

"And to make sure she doesn't run or move away, I'd like you to tie her to the bed. It's the only way."

Billie sighs. "Okay, fine. Come on, Aubrey."

She leads me upstairs. I begin tearing up as we reach her bedroom. She shuts the bedroom door and locks it, taking out a special effects kit. I raise an eyebrow in confusion as she pulls out the materials needed to make bloody gashes.

And then I suddenly understand.

She's going to pretend that she's whipping me, but she won't really.

"Sit on the bed," she whispers. I obey as she grabs a whip from the closet and approaching me. She takes some of the special effect putty and puts ten mounds on my back, smoothing them down. She makes a cut in each putty and puts in some fake blood. It looks real. She begins to rub her thumb around each fake gash to surround the results with red skin. I guess if my skin is pale without the red skin, Finneas will catch on. Then she slides off my shirt, leaving me in my black sports bra so Finneas can see the results after we finish.

"Make sure you count along, or it won't count!" she says. She whips the bedpost. I scream out shakily the number one. We repeat this process until she finishes the tenth one. I can cry on command, so I begin sobbing hysterically.

"Are you okay?" she whispers to me.

I nod. "I — I can c-cry on c-c-command."

She nods. "Good girl," she whispers back, giving me a small hug. She tosses the whip to the ground after spreading some fake blood on it and puts the special effects kit back in the bathroom cabinet. We walk downstairs. Billie looks extremely intimidating. I continue sobbing. Finneas smirks when he sees the wounds.

"Good girl. Did you learn your lesson?"

I nod, not wanting to speak.

"And what is that?"

"D-d-don't leave the h-house without per — permission," I manage in between my sobs. "Or I'll g-get p-p-punished." 

He nods. "And you're exactly right. Good job Billie. Now change her clothes and send her to bed. And since we can't trust her, tie her to the bed tonight."

Billie nods. "Okay. Come on, Aubrey."

She leads me up the stairs and takes off my jeans, sliding a fresh nightgown over my head. I lie down, positioning my arms so she can tie me to the bedframe. She grabs a roll of tape and begins securing my wrists to the bedframe. Once again, she leaves my feet free and doesn't bother to tape my mouth shut.

"If you need anything, let me know," Billie tells me. I nod. "Goodnight, Aubrey."

"Goodnight, Billie." 

She turns off the lights and closes my bedroom door. I close my eyes. After half an hour, I fall into a dreamless sleep.