The Unwitting Thief

Chapter 7d - Nightmares

Lying down on the hard ground, Thomas had thought it would be impossible to fall asleep, but he had underestimated just how tired he was. After a long day of walking, a belly full of hot food, and a bed time story to top it all off, he was out seconds after he tucked his blanket up round his neck.

Then, suddenly, he was falling. He could hear wind whistling past his ears as he tumbled through darkness so fast he couldn't catch a breath or even scream.

As quickly as it started, it was over.

Thomas was sprawled out on the ground, gasping for breath, dizzy and aching from the whiplash. He'd heard of vertigo before, he'd even had it. That horrible sensation when you're half awake and half asleep, the feeling in the pit of your stomach as if you've just stepped off a cliff. But that had nothing on what he had just felt.

The thought made him pause. What was he feeling now?

He managed to catch his breath only to lose it again to a sense of panic. His hand were tied tightly together with rope. He moved them around, trying to feel his way around in the pitch black that seemed to suffocate him. He didn't need to be able to see to know that he wasn't where he should be. The ground beneath him was cold, smooth stone. He could even feel the grouting in between the slabs around him.

Where was the ground which had been spotted with pebbles and rocks, twigs and leaves? Where was the flickering light of the embers in the fire, the sounds of the forest or the smell of the leftover food?

He moved up onto his hands and knees, then up onto two feet, raising his hands above him in case there was something there. As he reached his full height his fingers found a metal bar. He grasped his fingers around the bar and followed it, making sure to push one leg out further in front of him with each step in case there was something there. He didn't have to move far before he found another bar.

Panic started to settle in as he moved around in a circle slapping all of the other bars surrounding him. The clanging of the bars, the slap of his feet on the stone, and an odd curse word, reverberated around him, bouncing off the invisible walls, making it feel like the world was closing in on him.

He was in a cage.

How did he get here? Had someone moved him? Had he been taken in the night by someone or had the Travellers turned on him? If so, why hadn't he woken up?

Thomas gripped the bars tightly and shouted, "Hello? Is anyone there? Can anyone hear me?"

He knew it probably wasn't the smartest thing to do; to scream out and attract attention. But, what other option did he have?

The sound of footsteps was unexpected. He had half expected to have nothing but the sound of his own breathing as a response.

As the footsteps came closer, Thomas saw a faint glow start to appear in front of him, outlining a doorway.

His heart rate picked up as the light got brighter, and Thomas found himself retreating into the cage until his back made contact with the bars.

When he finally clapped eyes on his visitor as they came round the corner, Thomas breathed a sigh of relief.

"Martin?"

Martin put the torch he had been carrying in one of the holsters by the doorway, and Thomas took the time to take in his surroundings, with his eyes this time.

He was indeed in a small cage, inside a small room paved with large stone slabs. In the corner there was an old wooden chair and table. What was on the table made Thomas shiver from head to toe. Amongst a range of metal tools which could only be here for one purpose, there was a whip. A very familiar whip. He could feel the scars on his back burn, as if they recognised it too.

"Martin what are you doing here? Wait, where is here? Why am I in a cage? Why are those things here?"

Martin turned to him and held up a hand.

That was all it took. That and the cold stare that Martin aimed at him, with a slight twist to the corner of his mouth. Thomas was silent and on edge yet again. Why he had even felt a margin of relief when he'd seen Martin was beyond him. 'Better the devil you know' was only said by those people who had never met the devil.

"Do you like your new accommodation?" Martin tilted his head to one side and his crooked smile grew slightly. "It's a test run." He grabbed the back of the chair and dragged it behind him as he came up to the cage. The wood grated on the floor, a deafening sound coming at him from all sides as the noise bounced off the stone.

Martin stopped and stretched out a hand to stroke his finger along one of the bars, as if he was checking for dust, and then took a step back and sat down. "I was thinking of installing one just like it in my bedroom, you know, for your sister."

Rage flared inside Thomas, and, before he could control himself, he had lunged across the cage, stretching his arms out through the bars and towards Martin's throat. But Martin had anticipated the reaction, provoked it even. He sat there, just out of reach, mere inches away, staring at Thomas's flailing fingers, laughing.

"Just one of my many ideas." He clicked his fingers and pointed at Thomas, "I know, how about this, each night you fail to come back, I'll tell you another one? It doesn't just have to be about your sister. Your two friends will make for great entertainment too, I would hate to leave them out."

Thomas dropped his outstretched arms and laid his forehead against the cold metal. "I've been gone a day, we're supposed to be gone a month, then there's the month back. How long did you expect this to take?"

Martin chuckled, "I know this is going to take a while, I just want to make sure you don't get any stupid ideas about trying to find a way out of this. Your loved ones will be the ones to pay the price, at first. I say at first, because when I find you, and I will find you if you run away, you will pray for death before I am through with you."

Thomas thought back to how many times he had already considered rebellion, and wondered if Martin knew. He probably suspected.

"Now, why don't you tell me all you learned today, let's call it a daily report shall we."

"There's nothing to tell."

Martin stood up and retrieved his trusty whip. "I look forward to playing with some of the newer toys here, but I know this one's your favourite, so it seems the most appropriate place to start, don't you think?"

The crack of the whip came so fast Thomas didn't even have time to flinch. He yelped and jerked back as felt his cheek start to burn, a line of fire sizzling and spitting. He raised his hands to his cheek and the came away red.

He glared at Martin who merely smiled and struck again.

This time Thomas moved fast enough to protect his face, but that only left his arms open. He hissed as two gashes were left across his forearms.

"Enough?"

Thomas wanted to tell him to go to hell, but he could see just how much Martin was enjoying himself, and he didn't even have anything interesting to hide, so he felt the fight leave him as he sank down to the floor and told Martin what little he had learned about his companions and their destination.