She May Not Belong to One of Us, but She Belongs to All of Us

Chapter 3

"What's your name?"

Truly the question was one of the simplest I've ever been asked. Yet my mouth and entire body was locked into position, unable to move even if I wanted to.

"Bitch, I asked you a question and now I expect an answer."

Still the calls and questions from the outside world disappeared, I was lost in my own world, completely suspended in time and space. It was then with a slap to the side of my face that was so strong it sent my body crashing to the floor, I was finally startled.

"Look bitch, I just shot your dad, move on. Besides he clearly wasn't father of the year any fucking way. So pick your ass up and get your shit together because your father made a deal with us. He owed us over $150,000 and when we came to collect he told us it was between the house or you. We chose the house but he picked you instead. So I'm going to ask one more time, what is your fucking name bitch?"

"Melissa. My name is Melissa."

Still with shock running with my veins, I spewed out the name and prayed that my empty compliance worked for me now as it had in the past. When a beating got especially cruel or when I was supposed to be a good girl for my father's friends, my mind always just shut down and kinda went on extended airplane mode. It was my main survival tactic and I pray it will continue to keep me alive.

"Alright Melissa, get the hell up so we can leave this shit-hole. I'm more than ready to go and see exactly what we just paid for. Christ you head to the police department and make sure the chief investigates this himself. As for the girl, tell him she was picked up by some family and now is staying with them permanently. You, Melissa, are coming with me."

The man giving orders was the most muscled one of the group, with arms that looked bigger than my entire skull, his dark brown hair in a well groomed buzzcut.

"Where are your manners Shads? I'll introduce you to us all, considering you'll be getting very close with us soon. That guy to our left is Reverend or Rev. Next is Shadows, followed by Vengeance and lastly but certainly not least is Christ. As for me, you can address me as Syn sweetie."

A shiver ran through my body as the man's deep hazel eyes scanned over my body. My eyes scan over each member of this group. First a skyscraper of a man with startling blue eyes and his inky black hair styled into a tall spiky hairstyle. Next, a picture of hulking muscle and with the way he barked out orders I can assume those muscles weren't just for show. Beside him, a slightly shorter man with piercing green eyes and to my most right the final member. He was the shortest of the men but he held an air about him that definitely did not lend itself to even thinking that one should underestimate him.

These men now own me and dictate how my future will play out. Is there even a proper emotion one is to have? Fear? Anger? Anxiety? Joy? Hope? With the childhood I've experienced, truly I should've seen this coming or at least been prepared for it. But what I do know is that I am stuck in this and the most I can hope for is that these men don't just choose to kill me now and that I try to appease them long enough to stay alive.

"Melissa, get up. Let's go. We are going to our house and that's where we will decide what we're going to do with you."

Standing up calmly, I do as I'm instructed, walking behind the wall of muscle outside, blinded by the small amount of sunlight that was trying to peek out behind the gray rain clouds. Shielding my eyes I enter the black and yellow Hummer truck, allowing the heavily tinted windows to take over the job protecting my eyesight. Seated in the middle of the second row, I have Syn and Vengeance, their muscled bodies almost physically oozing power and control. My eyes focus on the road outside the windshield as my mind tries to really process how my entire life has changed in what honestly feels like a snap of the fingers. The drive was a short reprieve for my head before Reverend cleared his throat, effectively gathering everyone's attention.

"You'll have to excuse me but I am the curious one of the group, so indulge me in answering a question. Your dad told us the biggest reason he hated you was because you killed your mom. But if you did kill your mother, why not also kill that fucktard? We can all clearly see the bruises. And after hearing that fucking spectacle I, for sure would've killed him first."

Of course I should have seen this question coming. My eyes drop down and lock in on my interlaced fingers.

"It was at her three month sonogram that she learned this pregnancy was a very high risk one for her. They both had wanted a baby for so long that she thought the gamble was worth it. Forty minutes after delivering me, she hemorrhaged and was dead before she even had a chance to say goodbye. My dad didn't hit me. I'm clumsy and I fall down the stairs a lot."

Silence fills the big vehicle as I continue staring at my hands, refusing to even attempt looking any higher.

"Well that lie is not a new one and it's pretty shitty one at that. One thing you should know toots, is that none of us like when our girls lie, no matter what it's about. We demand the truth at all times. Do you understand?"

"Yes, I understand."

Nodding his head, he looks me up and down studying me. It feels almost trying to understand my reason for the deception I know he can see through. I lower my head even more allowing my hair to cover my face, unable to handle the intense staring I can now feel from all directions. It would be another fifty minutes of staring at the floor of the car and very uncomfortable silence before a hand roughly wraps around my jaw and directs my attention outside the window to a sign revealing our ultimate destination, 'YOU'RE NOW IN BAT COUNTRY'.