Jaws of Death

Chapter 21

Karen Page sat cross-legged on the cold stone floor, her fingers drawing circles on the loaf of bread in her hands. She had no appetite to eat. But she had to. Anyone who refused to eat were punished. One or two women were even taken away separately. They had returned an hour later looking forlorn like holocaust survivors, refusing to talk about what had happened.

She saw no meaning in protesting. It was only going to bring more pain. Blind rebellion just for the sake of it, never had any meaning. She wanted to preserve some dignity, without having to be punished by these men, who constantly thought of newer ways of establishing their dominance over these women. And these men were paid for it.

That's just how life worked, sometimes.

She took a bite out of her bread, which tasted like paper. She tried her best to chew it and swallowed it, coughing. It took her several minutes to chomp down her entire dinner. When she did, she wanted water. But knew she wouldn't get it, unless they wanted to give her that. So, instead, she swallowed her saliva, hoping it would appease her thirst.

At least, she had learnt the rules quickly, within a couple of days of coming here. There were many women who were still learning.

In total, there were forty three women in the room. Or should I call it a cell?

Originally built as a basement for the Warehouse above, it was big enough to accommodate these forty three women. Most of them were her age, late twenties. Some of them were middle aged. There were even a couple of teens who barely knew what the word 'sex' meant. Worse, there were six year old twins. One of them was blind.

Karen shot a glance at the minuscule figure of the kid. While her twin sister let out her emotions by drawing emo figures on the wall, the blind girl had refused to eat at the beginning, crying for her mom. Then, hunger had overtaken her separation anxiety, and she had started eating the foul breads they gave. The men treated her just as they treated every other woman here, with contempt and condescension. They even liked to push her around, teasing her for her blindness. Having lived around Matt Murdock for quite some time, she had quite forgotten that not all blind people have heightened senses. The girl was a reminder of just how painful their lives can sometimes be.

The thought of Matt brought back some pain for herself. She wondered what he was doing right now. Was he thinking about her? Did he know she was gone? Was he regretting opening himself to her? Probably yes!

She loved Matt, there was no denying that. But she couldn't connect with him, no matter how much she tried. Matt Murdock was so complex an individual with a strong capacity to hold secrets. Getting to know him was like peeling an onion. The more layers you see, the more layers are hiding beneath. While she respected his noble heart, the things she wanted out of a relationship could never be satisfied by him. He was just too complex to be dealt with.

Moreover, she preferred someone else. Someone who lived in a greyer area of life, with a simple utilitarian mind-set.

The door opened and a woman was pushed in.

She was old. At least in her early sixties or late fifties, from what Karen guessed. She was too afraid to speak. Yet, she looked like she had resigned to her fate. Silently she hobbled to the loneliest corner and sat down on the stone floor. The men who brought her were already gone.

There was silence. Karen realised that the young girl with vision had sat up, rubbing her eyes.

One of the women mussed up her hair. "What is it, sweetie?"

She piped up, enthusiastically. "I had a dream! We were saved."

"Oh, really! How were we saved, honey?"

"The Daredevil saved us!"

Karen smiled sympathetically. She didn't have the heart to tell her that The Daredevil was in no state to save himself, let alone all of them.

That's when she heard the shouts and screams of men from above!

The Jigsaw smacked Alex in the back. "That was quite an entrance, boy! Those wings look better than you than it looked on your Daddy."

The room was essentially meant to be an Employees meeting room. But it was completely deserted. There were just three men in the room. Alexander Toomes, smiling at his 'comrades' and taking care to subtly flaunt his handsome features before them, as if taunting them with the gifts he possessed. 'The Jigsaw' Billy Russo was drinking wine from the glass. He was tall just like Alex was, but he didn't possess the handsomeness of the latter. Not since he began wearing a mask to hide his face. The third man, Marcus Lyman stood staring at them both, occasionally taking a sip of the glass. He was of medium height and built like a bear with a pockmarked face.

Alex drank his wine. "I was expecting a much bigger party."

The Jigsaw replied. "The real one's in the ship, kid. The Irish have organised something extravagant for the three of us. We are to accompany the women in the ship to ensure their 'safe delivery'. The Irish don't trust Fisk as much as they pretend to. Once we deliver the women, our real party begins."

"The plan is going to proceed flawlessly. I can promise you-"

"Shush!" Lyman held a finger to his mouth.

Alex was disgruntled at being interrupted, before he heard the noise.

Men shouting!

The three men in the room disassembled and ran in different directions, trying to get hold of their weapons.