We Were There

Chapter 85: Bound

The stench of decay lingered in the air and it made it harder to breathe in the situation I was in. It was cramped with boxes and scrap, and metal shelves that stood against the walls. It felt like I was inside a tool shed. Lifting my head, I looked around, searching for a way out. I knew it was Mac who tied me up, and God knows what he was going to do. My eyes narrowed at Kim, who was laying silently beside me on the cold cement floor. I knew she wasn't dead. I saw her chest rise earlier. She was alive and was still breathing. But we didn't know for how long though. 

I kicked and kicked at nothing, and struggled with my shoulders just to move closer to Kim. Holding my breath, I nudged her head with mine. 

No response. Kim's face was facing the other way so I couldn't confirm if she was alright. I nudged her again. With the duct tape on my mouth and my hands and feet tied, this was the least I could do to wake her up. 

I heard her groan back. She slowly turned her head to face me, blinking her eyes a few times. 

" Mau? Wha...What happened?" she asked groggily. Luckily, there wasn't any duct tape on her mouth to keep her shut. I sighed in relief to see her alive and well, but shook my head in response to her question. She turned to her side, showing the ropes that tied her hands and feet. She turned to me again.

" Sorry." she merely said. I shook my head to her, telling her it was okay and it wasn't her fault. Still with the both of us combined, we still couldn't break free. I looked around again, searching for something that would be deemed useful for us. With our limited movements, I couldn't search the room thoroughly. And that itself was bad. I wanted to check where the decaying stench was coming from. 

We heard footsteps outside. Our muscles tensed to every step as we knew it was heading for us. Kim and I shared a worried look that, as being bestfriends for a long time, we knew we were doomed. It stopped at the doorway in front of us. My mind was constantly battling whether or not I pretend to still be unconsious or face him head on. But I wasn't given any time to choose one. The door creaked open. 

Light bleamed over our faces and we squinted to it. I was lying on my front and Kim was lying on her back. Kim's view of him would probably be upside down. He turned off his flash light. As my eyes adjusted to the darkness of the environment, I could see a smirk on his face and it was still night time. For how long was I out cold? Two? Three hours? 

" Rise and shine, you two." he greeted. 

He walked towards Kim and went on his knees as he pulled her up.

" Stop! Let me go! Mau!" she called out. " Mau!" He started dragging her on her feet, the sound of grass crunching to their exit. I tried to call for them but the duct tape on my mouth stopped me from doing so. Instead, muffled calls were heard. I heard Kim's screams fading into the night. Where is he taking her, I thought to myself. I started breaking out in cold sweat. Now that I just found her, he was taking her away again. 

Again!

I turned to my side, struggling as I tried to pick myself up. I placed my head on the ground as a support, trying to steady myself on my knees. After countless of pain-staking tries, I finally managed to do it. My hands were tied behind me so my movements were still limited. I tried to stand on my feet, balancing my weight between my waist and my knees knowing that my feet were still bound together. But to no avail, my knees failed me, causing me to lose my balance on the metal shelf beside me before going back onto the cold floor with a loud thud. I felt I had hit something tender and it went with me as I fell.

I grunted to my failed attempt. I needed my hands and legs for this. I needed to save Kim. As my eyes narrowed to what fell with me, disgust and terror had hit me. This was the cause of the strong stench of death. It was a body. 

It was a dismembered torso. 

I felt all my color flushed throughout my body. Bile was forming in my stomach and I knew I had to hold it in. Otherwise, I would be puking it out on my face knowing that my mouth was being duct taped. My eyes darted from the torso to the shelves and that was when I saw them all. On the metal shelves were dismembered body parts. Arms, legs, ears, skin, fingers, you name them. 

" What do you think of them?"

I turned back and Mac was watching me from the doorway, obviously amused. He walked towards me and stripped the duct tape from my face. I winced at the sudden pull but was grateful that he did it. He must have known what I was feeling. I started vomitting on the floor. 

It was embarassing to have someone watch you while you vomit. But to him, this was a form of entertainment. To him, it was fun.  Feeling contented, he pulled me by the arms and carried me on his shoulders. 

" Let go of me, you bastard! Let go!" I screamed at the top of my lungs. I kicked endlessly in the air, struggling to break free from him. I didn't want him bringing me somewhere. Where was Kim? 

" Don't make me add your tongue to my collection, Josephine."

I stopped abruptly and had started to calm down. 

I didn't know which was scarier. 

The fact that he was about to kill me or the fact that he called me Josephine.