Souled Out ➳ Lauren Jauregui

twenty-one

"Fuck you."

"You and your girlfriend wish." I laughed, getting up because at this point she started yelling and screaming for help.

I walked towards the counter where I sat the duct tape down and pulled out a large strip. Big enough to cover her mouth and a bit of her cheeks. I placed it on the squirming girl to somewhat mute the loud noises she was making in an effort to find some help that would never come.

The back door opened and in walked four men each armed with one black duffle bag. The bigger man, named Eskimo Joe, had a black furred Ushanka on his head that was stained with a little red here and there. "Oh no. Here, I'll show you how to do this." He hurried over and pulled out a pocket knife to flip it open. Donny screamed as loud as she could once she saw the blade, but it was muffled by the duct tape. Joe stared into her eyes deeply and put his index finger up to his mouth to hush her up. Donny was scared enough to take orders from the armed man and staggered her breathing. He waved me over and I got closer to look at what he was wanting to show me. "You did good making the tape tight, and back in the day, my Dad loved to cut the duct tape around the mouth once it was tight enough because they still can't move their mouths especially if you hang them upside down. It's almost like a cleaner canvas on the face and the tape won't come off. Unless it's a hot summe-"

"Enough! This isn't Criminal Arts 101. There's no point in cutting the tape when I'm just about to rip it off. Both of you get in line."

I listened to his order and took a spot at the end before Eskimo Joe, who looked a little irritated, and after David, who looked even more infuriated staring at the girl in the hot seat.

"Now, Donny. My daughter, who you've tortured for many years, is in the hospital and I want you to calm down and talk to me. Do you
understand?" Donny took deep breaths in from her nostrils and tried to slow her rapid breathing. She nodded and continued to listen to him. "So, I want you to promise that you will not scream at all. I cannot condone Joe's actions, but I also cannot control him. So, you must be an adult who is simply just taking a quick survey for us and then..." He put his arm by his holster where his gun was and calmly said, "we can negotiate a plea deal. Sound good?" She nodded once more and he went up to yank the gray tape off of her mouth. Donny yelped, but remembered what Simon said about Joe only a moment or two ago. "Now, Donny. We don't have much time so let's start this interview. Joan Venti. How do you know her; what do you know about her, etcetera. Give me all the details your little brain can give me about this woman you've been texting."

"What woman?" She asked.

He rolled his eyes and began rubbing his temples in annoyance. "Joan. Do I have to spell it out for you? The lady that you've been conspiring with against me and my daughter for so many years."

"I don't know her like that, man. I never conspired against you. That lady found me. She told me her name was Mary and asked me to do something for her. That's the only reason I even knew about your daughter, let alone cared."

"What did she want you to do for her?"

She looked around at all of the people in the room and began explaining, "It happened after I hurt Y/N for the first time. I just kind of scared her in the hallway and stole her money. She originally hired me just to keep scaring her to keep her in line."

"And then what was her plan after all of that?"

"I don't know." She sighed. "Something happened within the next few months and she told me to start acting meaner and getting fiercer. I never knew why she wanted her hurt so bad, but I was told to do it everyday."

"How much did she pay you?" He gritted his teeth. I could tell he was getting angrier with each new piece of information. Donny stayed quiet which only irritated Simon further. "Okay, let's do it this way." He pulled the gun out of the holster and pointed the barrel straight at her head. "Now, you're gonna give me an average number of what you got from her every month, or you'll get a bullet right between your eyes." He placed the cold barrel on her forehead. "It's your choice."

"Three hundred dollars a month." Donny strained her voice. "Maybe $350 sometimes, but not often."

Simon smiled as he put the gun back in the holster and kneeled in front of the giant girl. "Now, I have one more big question that I need for you to answer and then we can move on." Donny was petrified, but she nodded anyways because it seemed as if she was hanging onto a slim thread of hope. "What the fuck was going through your mind the other day when you were smashing my daughters' head in a few days ago?" Simon's voice was very stern, and I could see the fear start to rise in her. "You know, the way I see it, I could have David over there take you out to the woods to shoot you like Old Yeller when he got rabies." Simon pointed to the guy beside me. "You know David, right?"

Donny's head slowly turned to see the man next to me walk over to her. Her face turned a light pale color, almost like she saw a ghost within that five second interval. "Hello Donny." David said to her as he stood behind Simon.

"Look at me, miss." Simon continued to talk to the girl. "Now, I don't think you want that, do you?" She shook her head vigorously. "Well, I don't want to do that either, but there are still going to be repercussions for your actions. Blood for blood, eye for eye, justice is how I see it. Afterwards, you'll be shipped off to some deserted place where you'll recover and live for a few years and then I'll bring you back to general civilization where you'll never breathe a word of this or you will be dead next time around."

"People will still be looking for me."

Simon laughed so loud that it echoed in the huge metal dome. "You're kidding, right? Not only do I know a number of people in the police and government, I also know you have a record." The room was silent as Donny shot daggers at the man who was taunting her. "A little foster kid who's been pushed from home to home. Stealing, assault charges, burglary, the list goes on.  Miss, no one will look for you."

"I have parents now! They will want me and they won't stop until they get me."

"That is where you are wrong. After some cops show up to your house and inform your parents you've been sent off to a youth correctional facility, they'll have to accept it. Especially if you've already signed over your rights." Simon reached into his inside coat pocket and pulled out a stapled stack of papers to show Donny the end of the page.

Her eyes got wide when she saw the signature on the page. "How did you get my signature?!"

Simon started to fold the page back up and stick it back into his pocket. "That's not important." He gave her one more look before turning around to look at us in line. He nodded to Eskimo Joe and began to walk towards the girl. David quickly followed and Joe let him step ahead because it seemed as though they all were in control to do whatever they wanted to do to her now. And the torture was only beginning with a taunt from David.

I feared to watch this grusome act but the problem was that it was like a good scary movie and I couldn't turn away. It was that petrifying dependence I felt that assured me I was safe enough to watch this happen in front of my eyes and not face emotional torment for the rest of my life. My mind was blank until a flash of Y/N's face came across my mind and I suddenly knew what my reason was for being here. I straightened up and stared down the girl in the chair to watch David begin.

+

a/n: the next chapter is gonna have a *TW* on it. so be weary. I'm really trying to put a lot of effort into this single book instead of focusing on all of the other ones for a bit. I'm trying to write this story like how I wrote Our Little Secret. wait on it, babycakes.

"I got us"
-DJ Khaled

- agf