Kidnapped

Tender- 9

Emma POV

I quietly ate my Mac n'Cheese; my mind focused on the feeling of the cold metal under my pants. I can't get caught, I need to be careful, I need to get on their good side, and then when they lower their gourds, I'll fuck their lives up. 

"What are you thinking about?" Alex's question snapped me back into reality. Apparently, he had been watching me. 

Feeling beads of sweat form on my forehead, I said, "Nothing to do with you." Alex frowned, and I couldn't decipher what that meant. 

"I know this is hard for you," he gave me a sympathetic look. "I understand that you're angry and scared. But you have to be more careful with your words." 

That wasn't the first time they warned me. But any beatings they would give me won't be more painful than what I already experienced in the past. I eyed him, trying to take deep breaths, and nodded my head. No use keeping on having this talk with them again and again. Alex seemed pleased with my response. 

"Now, let me have a look at your wrists." He said, holding out a hand expectantly towards me. 

Shivering, I inched closer to him and let him touch me. I wanted to cower away from him but decided to stay on Alex's good side. I need allies. I need allies. I need allies. I need allies. I need allies. I need allies. I need allies. I need allies. I need allies. I need allies. I need allies. I need allies. 

"Sorry if this hurts, I'll try to be as gentle as I possible," Alex brushed his thumb softly over the rope burns. I was surprised by how sincere he sounded, and how comforted I felt for a moment by a few kind gestures. I didn't say a word, and just a slight nod of my head signaled for Alex to start on his work. 

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Alex POV

Emma seemed to be holding back from showing any signs of pain as I applied the disinfectant to her wounds. It was hard not to look at the bandages covering her sliced and scarred arms. 

"Sorry, I'm almost done." I soothed after she hissed from pain as I took care of a particularly nasty wound. She didn't say a word, just sat still. I took that as her way of saying, 'let's get this over with.' She was still shaking. From fear? Cold? Maybe both? 

"Do you want to take a warm shower before I wrap these up?" I nodded toward her wrists. Emma snapped up her eyes to meet mine, with surprise painted on her face. Was she expecting us to keep her completely deprived of her simplest needs? I supposed I shouldn't blame her for thinking of the worst-case scenario. 

"Can I?" She asked quietly, her eyes hopeful. For some reason, it made my stomach tighten. She shouldn't be mixed with us. With this bullshit. But I couldn't disobey orders. Evan was right; she could lead to the downfall of us all. 

"I will get you a change of clothes and some soap," I told her, gesturing for her to stand up. Chris had already taken care to clean out one of the bathrooms of anything she could use to cause us trouble. 

I grabbed Emma's elbow, helping her up when she stumbled. She was so frail. So starved and abused. It was a wonder she had any energy and courage to insult us. 

I walked Emma up the stairs, leading her down a hall towards her "room," which contained a bathroom. The room was left bare since we had just moved to this place recently. So it was easy to clean out any few boxes that lay in the room. Now, the room had a mattress with a blanket and a bare bathroom. Emma was looking around, drinking up her surrounding, trying to take in every last detail of the house. 

"Will you guys ever release me?" 

"No, sweetheart. The only way out is through death.

Josh replied from behind us as he exited his room. 

Emma snarled at him, flipping him off. 

"That's cute, but let's see how cute you can be after a week here. Prince charming won't always be there to save you." Josh smirked with malice. 

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Art by: Ko Byung Jun