Derek Simon (the guy in my college course who liked to incite my wrath to keep my attention on him) was tied up with bruises covering most of his bare, broken body. From what I could see, he was the one missing fingers and toes. I could only hope the doctored photos that were sent to the Black Vipers were fake with no truth behind them, but I doubt it.
I swallowed thickly. He looked so thin. How long had he been trapped under the Ivory Tigers' claws? Was he snatched that same day I was picked up by Papa? That was around three months ago.
"Surprised?" asked the voice, then its owner slowly removed the voice-changer. "He was easy to capture."
"Grandma," I sneered. "Oh, my bad. It's Silvia Hunter, isn't it?"
Silvia, my grandmother, slowly rose to her feet and dusted off the seat of her pants. She smirked at me, squaring her shoulders as she straightened. There was no trace of the feeble old woman that she'd been in front of me. Everything had been an act.
"Yes, Theodore. It's a shame my game couldn't go as planned, but I did have fun with that kid from your college. His screams are so nice to hear. You should listen to them sometime."
"Your game is over, Silvia."
She chuckled. "Oh, no, not quite yet."
I snapped my wrist and she dodged one knife, so it clattered to the cement floor. It hit the wall and returned to me as it spun across the floor just as I sent the other knife in her direction. My grandmother couldn't dodge it this time. The knife lodged in her chest and she gasped, coughing at the sudden pain.
"Yes, your ridiculous games are over. Who the fuck are you, really? Why even bother to do all this? Do you hate me or something?"
She spat blood as she laughed. "Oh, you have no idea, Theodore. I hate you so fucking much!" she hissed, grabbing her gun off the desk and aiming at me.
My friends and family must have been evacuated since Aimé suddenly shoved me aside and fired a shot, hitting her in the chest away from her heart to keep her alive. I stumbled over to Derek, gently placing my fingers on his wounded neck. His pulse was so faint, but he was definitely alive. He weakly released a plaintive whine when I stroked my fingers through his patchy hair, avoiding the places that had chunks ripped out.
"Why do you hate me so much?" I asked quietly, turning my head to look at her suffering form.
Her jaw ticked. "Y-you," she started, heaving a shaky, ragged breath, "should not have been born. No matter what did or did not happen in that house, you should not have left it alive."
"But why?" I pressed, carefully moving back towards Aimé with Derek in tow.
I had his waist trapped against my side as I carefully moved him. I could see Silvia's muscles twitching in anxiousness. She was about to do something.
"I hate that you made my daughter's life miserable! You made mine even more miserable when your shitty freak-ass was dropped off at my fucking home! I couldn't kill you because my idiotic husband adored you. So I plotted and planned all this shit to make sure you would become as unhappy as me, but that fell apart. You're too much of a monster. And to deal with a monster, it's better to use explosives."
I lifted Derek a bit higher as she pulled the pin on a grenade and removed the safety lever. I ran and leaped at Aimé to force us out of the room. We had just tumbled into a nearby cell when the grenade exploded a second later. I grunted when something punctured my shoulder a millisecond after the deafening sound. Fire burned my back as I kept Aimé covered with Derek underneath me as well. My man stared wide-eyed at me as I laid over him.
My ears rung and I felt wet heat trail down my face. Aimè moved out from underneath me, saying something as pain and the stench of burnt skin began to consume my senses. He caressed my face, then I turned my head as I slumped onto my right side. Tears were rolling down Aimé's cheeks. My chest and back felt like they were on fire.
"I love you," I forced myself to say, even though I couldn't hear myself.
Aimé kissed my palm and held my hand to his face. He was crying needlessly because I'm just tired. He noticed my eyes were closing and suddenly I could hear him.
"Theo, I didn't mean this when I begged you to 'break me'." he whimpered through his sobs, and I wanted to laugh.
Instead, I smiled and closed my eyes. I would be just fine.
_____________________
I slowly opened my eyes, feeling a dull ache of pain on parts of my back and left shoulder. A continuous beep made me aware that I was either in a hospital or the medical room in my home. The walls and ceiling were eggshell in color, so I was definitely in the hospital. The medical room at home has an underwater theme because Sophie had apparently painted it in her free time.
Wait, where's Aimé? And Papa? And Derek? What about the rest of my family? Are they okay?
The beeping sped up to match the fast-paced firing range of questions in my mind. My heart was pounding like crazy.
The door slammed open, so I slowly turned my head to see Aimé, Papa, Trent, and the nurse rush in at the same time. I chuckled at their panicked expressions.
"I'm f-fine." I croaked, and Aimé hurried to my side.
"Shit, Theo, I leave for two minutes and you just happen to wake up." he said with a weak laugh, curling over me while the nurse fiddled with things.
I weakly lifted my right arm and gently hugged him, kissing his cheek. "Well, I always like to surprise you."
"You sure do, Theo." he whispered with tears flowing again. "You protected me."
"Of course I did. I knew you weren't going to be able to move fast enough. I used momentum and Derek's extra weight to topple all three of us to a safer place."
Aimé curled his fingers on my chest and kissed my neck. "You still got hurt."
"Yeah, but I knew I'd live. I probably wouldn't be able to live with myself if I had let you die." I finished, then heard Aimé sniffle.
Papa came around and kissed my head. "My little bear, how do you feel?"
"A bit sore. The meds have dulled my pain, so I'm okay for now. How long have I been out?"
"A couple weeks, although they kept you under during your back's burn treatments. I couldn't watch." responded Trent, and he looked so sad. "Teddy, your back—!"
"—is kind of trashed. Yeah, I could tell." I finished, rolling my eyes. "And my left shoulder slash chest area is injured. Probably near my heart, if Aimé's reaction was anything to go by down in the cell."
Trent clenched his fists. "None of this would have happened if I—!"
I sighed while I petted Aimè's head, then squeezed Papa's hand with my left one. "Trent, come here."
He shook his head until Papa glared at him. Trent shot over to Papa's side, then he rested a hand on my leg. I smiled at him.
"Trent, this was not your fault. It would have happened anyway, but you could have lost more than just some pride had you been in good health. Just be happy that you're sound in body if not in mind."
Trent pouted, but he took a seat and rested his head on my lap. "I just feel horrible that my beloved little brother is on a hospital bed because I wasn't strong enough to fight back."
"It wasn't because of you, Trent. It was because of that bitch, Silvia Hunter."
"She died, by the way," stated Papa. "Her body was blown to the bits."
"She died the way she deserved." I responded with a smile. "Although it would have been better had she breathed her last breaths in agony."
Papa chuckled and cupped my head. "I love you, my little bear."
I grinned. "I love you too, Papa."
Aimé kissed up to my right cheek and then over to my lips. I giggled happily, nosing his jawline. He sighed and remained curled over me. Papa leaned down and kissed my forehead, brushing his fingers through my hair.
"You're still my beautiful baby boy," he said softly, cupping my head. "Because it's not just outward beauty that makes you that way."
I blushed and pursed my lips, so he leaned down more to let me kiss his cheeks. He drew back and took a seat at my bedside, gently pressing his lips over every inch of skin on my right hand.
"Why don't you sit too, Aimé?"
He grunted and shook his head. "No."
"I want you to sit."
"No."
My eyebrows shot up. "Are you going to disobey your rayiys' one simple command?"
He stiffened, then nodded. I chuckled and tugged on his shirt.
"Then climb on the bed. As long as you lay your head on my chest or torso away from my wound, I'll be fine."
Aimé lifted his head and looked into my eyes. His beautiful brown-hazel ones were shimmering with tears and rimmed with redness. His handsome face was streaked with tear tracks. I petted his right cheek with my left hand. Aimé closed his eyes and leaned into my touch, then slowly climbed onto the bed. My right leg rested between both of his own while he curled slightly to press his upper body along my torso.
"Comfy?" I asked, gently patting his head. He nodded, rubbing his cheek on my hospital gown. "Good!"
Papa stroked the back of my hand with his thumbs. "My little bear, who is the other young man you saved?"
I sighed aloud. "He's probably changed due to his capture and torture, but the last time I saw him he was being a bully to attract my attention. He was interested in me for a hookup."
Aimé clicked his tongue, which made me laugh. Papa pushed his fingers through my hair with an amused expression on his face.
"Anyway, his name is Derek Simon. I don't know much other than what I told you. I think he has an older sister, though."
"Hmm," he hummed. "Well, he is under our care for the time being. He is awake and conscious, but he's been asking to see you since he awakened a week ago."
Aimé curled tighter, carefully hugging me. I giggled and ruffled his hair to hear his cute whine.
"Relax, Aimé. You're the only one for me."
He huffed and rested his chin on my chest. "Really?"
"Yep," I replied with a broad grin, then gestured for him to sit up so I could kiss the tip of his nose. His bright smile made me so happy. As he tucked his head down again, I looked back at Papa. "What are Derek's injuries?"
Papa bit his lip. "Four missing fingers and toes, broken ribs, crisscrossing wounds over his entire body, one eye had to be removed to keep the infection from spreading to the rest of his body. His right arm was shattered in multiple places, his hip was popped out of joint, his spine was broken in several places, and his ankles were also broken to keep him from running away. He was also the one that was raped, so those pictures were definitely fake."
I slowly exhaled. "Yeah, I really wish that bitch had died breathing her last breaths in horrible agony."
Papa smiled. "You are definitely my baby boy."
I beamed at him. "Of course!"
Trent pouted. "Yeah, you're both monsters."
I smirked. "Yes, a bloody one. Did you hear about it, Papa?"
He shook his head. "What did I miss?"
"There were games that had to be played to retrieve five hostages—wait!"
Aimé blinked at my sudden shout. "If you're worried about Drake, Tyrone, and Corbin, they're safe. Corbin wants to say thank you at a later date and your other family members are desperate to see you, but Sir Lionel sent them back to the mansion to rest." he explained, then dropped his head and purred after I thanked him with a kiss to his forehead.
"What is this about a game?" asked Trent, so I sighed.
"The bitch had me play games to win the hostages. If I failed, two fingers would be chopped off whoever I was trying to win."
"Shit," breathed Trent. "Jackson was the first, right?"
I nodded. "I was asked a riddle. It was ridiculously simple and I grew suspicious that I probably knew who had done all of this."
"What makes you say that?"
I tilted my head. "Well, Trent, if you're asked a riddle that involves a good portion of the hostage's life story in it that very few people know about, wouldn't you get suspicious, too? That bitch slipped up in her twisted excitement."
Trent pursed his lips. "That's true. What did you have to do for me? You were covered in blood when you cut me free. There were bodies everywhere, too."
Papa's eyebrows shot up at that knowledge. "Those bodies weren't living people caught in the explosion?"
I shook my head. "The second game I had to play was where I fought a shitload of big guys with no gun. I was tricked, though, because knives were allowed—and every guy had one."
"He was so beautiful, Mr. Lionel." murmured Aimé, who was almost asleep on top of me. "He used my knives to kill them. I was so honored and turned on."
Papa's golden-brown eyes gleamed and he smiled with a pleased expression. He leaned over and kissed my temple. "Such a good boy," he cooed, stroking my cheek.
I blushed and smiled, snuggling into the bed. "Thank you, Papa. How did she get in, by the way?"
My papa closed his eyes for a moment. "She came in first with a few men and, because she was your grandma, no one suspected her. The flood of her subordinates came in not long after. And regarding those child molesters..."
"Yes?" I whispered.
"They're both dead. They were in one of the cells down the right hallway from the control room, but both were killed by debris from the blast."
I smiled gently. "I see. Did they die painfully?"
Aimé twitched. "I hope so."
Papa chuckled. "Yes, both of them died in agony."
"Good." I replied, in tune with Aimé and Trent. "Is Landon dead?"
The vicious gleam in Papa's golden-brown eyes made me smile, but he leaned down to tell me there was a special death in store for the evil man. That made my smile broaden. I pushed my lips out, so Papa swiftly pecked them and my cheeks.
"Are you sleepy?" he asked softly.
"Mhm." I hummed, threading my fingers in Aimé's hair while he slept. "Papa, please stay?"
He nodded and cupped my right cheek again, so I leaned into his touch and closed my eyes.
Someone correctly guessed who would be the ringleader of the Ivory Tigers, but that's okay because no one spoiled it for anyone else. ヾ(๑╹◡╹)ﾉ"
See you again tomorrow! I love you all very much. <3
- Alessa (Kelpie) xoxo
Updated: 11/21/2023
Word count: 2623