Ghosts

10) Silent Tears

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He stands just inside, staring down at me. He smirks, noticing that I was cowering as far as I could get from the man, my back pressed hard against the concrete wall. Wanting too or not, I was terrified. Like a mouse standing stock still, shaking in fear, as it is stalked by a hungry cat.

I took a breath and averted my eyes from the floor, staring him down, trying to portray the disgust I felt at his very existence, whilst masking the terror. I liked it better when he disappeared.

He saunters forward as if he's stalking prey, his eyes darkening. He slips the denim jacket off his shoulders and drops it to the floor.

"How are you, hmm?", he grins, reaching for his belt.

"Feel like talking yet?".

I refuse to dignify his comments with a response, turning my head up at him and lifting my chin, staring him down as he approaches.

"No? – he grins and his eyes darken even more, as he threads the belt through the loops and pulls it taught between his hands – well... as much as I would love to hear the details, these... sessions... have become rather fun, wouldn't you agree?"

My face hardens for a change.

I narrow my eyes, and glare at the man,

"You sadistic prick".

His face storms over, and he lunges.

I can't stop myself from fighting back, using whatever strength I have left. My fist connects with his chin and he grabs hold, slapping me hard across the face as he swears.

"What did I say?", he spits, as he lands a heavy punch into my ribs.

I shudder, and recoil as a wave of pain radiates up and down my chest.

He leans down and snarls in my ear, one hand reaching up to pin both my arms above my head,

"You're gonna regret that".

He uses his free hand to yank my shirt off, and then reaches down for the band of my sweatpants. He uses both hands to pull them down my legs, landing a punch in my stomach when I go to move. He moves one hand back to bind my wrists, and grasps his belt in the other.

He whips it out at my torso, the hard leather slapping hard against my stomach and up over my breast.

I can't help but scream at the overwhelming sting, and he smirks. He lands hit after hit, my body trembling at the onslaught of pain. A hit between my legs has me seeing stars.

Suddenly, his mouth crashes down on mine, his teeth nipping my lips as he pokes his tongue out and forces it inside. He free hand explores my tender body, venturing up and down my torso before finding my right boob. He deepens the kiss as he squeezes his hand over the delicate flesh before he toys the nipple between his fingers. He pinches down, hard, and then pulls, before moving over to the other side. When my body starts to respond, he moves his touch down, trailing his fingers down every bruise he can find. His touch is tantalising slow, and yet rough, pressing down on a bruise just above my naval before his hand drags over the skin between my legs. He wastes no time, rubbing his hand roughly over the sensitive flesh, trembles racing up my nerves with every move. I jolt when he abruptly stops, yanks my underwear down, and forces himself inside in one movement.

He grunts as he moves, pausing occasionally to land a punch or tug at my breasts. He moves faster, slamming himself against me, grunting as he goes, not caring that every move scrapes my back over the springs and presses down on the bruises painted over my skin. I can feel him tense before he slams himself inside once more, making me whimper, before he shudders and slowly thrusts to a halt. He grabs hold of my breasts and tugs as he pulls out, using my own body to wipe off any fluid, smirking when he notices my disgust. He stands up and stares down at me whilst he pulls his own clothes back on. I can't help the flash of contempt that flitters across my face. He narrows his eyes, before flicking his hand still holding his belt. He laughs when the leather cracks down over the center of my body. I barely notice when he turns on his heel and slams the door shut behind him.

                                    ____________________________

My dreams were haunted by figures standing just outside my vision, disappearing when I turned towards them. They were vaguely familiar, almost like I knew them, but I couldn't remember what they looked like, or who they were.

A tall, male silhouette would stand just outside the doorway. I would try to run out to meet him, but I was frozen in spot, forced to watch as a flash of ginger from his hair flickered in the sun and his silhouette disappeared from view. I was startled awake with a jolt, my heart racing and sweat beading up my back. I groaned as I tried to breath and shuffled my body, sending a wave of pain up my nerves from the night before.

I sucked in a breath when I realised he was standing in the room. I couldn't help but dart my eyes down to the floor as he strolled over and stood a foot away, just towering over my body. He doesn't speak, and just stands there smirking, before he drops a little paper bag onto the concrete. The contents rattles and clangs as the bag hit the ground.

Then he saunters out, that smug, fucking smirk, never leaving his face for a second.

I hadn't realised I was shaking until after the door had slammed shut and his heavy footsteps echoed through the warehouse into the distance. I took a deep breath, before I reached for the bag. I pulled out a small bottle of water, a sandwich that was almost completely rock-hard, and a little blister pack containing a single, little, white pill.

I could guess what the pill was. I definitely did not want to get –

Popping it out of the pack and throwing into my mouth, I undid the cap of the bottle and took a swig, letting the water coax the pill down my throat as I swallowed. I reached for the sandwich next, slowly undoing the plastic wrap, before taking nibbles of the stale bread.

My mind wandered as I ate, allowing the pain reverberating through my body to pull back my attention. My breath hitched and I grimaced as I swallowed a mouthful, my tender ribs protesting at the slight movement.

                                      ____________________________

Pain was my new normal. It was the thing that greeted me after a restless night's sleep, the thing that poked and prodded at every inch of my being. It goaded and taunted my mind as I lay still at night, daring my consciousness to try and slip away. And then it laughed when it succeeded.

I had learned to live with it. It was barricaded into the furthest corner of my mind I could muster, locked away with other emotions I had no desire to feel anytime soon. It's not like I hadn't done that before.

Still, it managed to poke through when my concentration wavered, overpowering my strongest defences.

That's all I felt. Pain. And numbness.

Booth came and went, sometimes disappearing for a week or more. I relished his disappearances; I would spend all day and all night lying on the filthy mattress trying to sleep, or sprinting from one end of the room to the other to try and get my fitness up; It was hard to do that when your body was covered in cuts and bruises, and ached every time you moved. At least then I could feel something other than pain.

Every time he returned, I would drown in my reality, his anger exponential. It was obvious he enjoyed taking out his frustrations on me.

                                    ____________________________

A distant door slammed shut, and footsteps echoed through the building, signalling his return. My ears pricked at the sound of hushed voices slowing getting closer. Still, I jump when the door bounces open and Booth saunters into the room.

My stomach drops when he immediately reaches for his belt, and stalks over to me. He claps his hand over my mouth and smirks. Something in his hand catches the light from the window, and I realise too late what it is before something is plunged into my thigh and a sharp pain radiates out from it. I shudder in a breath as he throws the syringe into the corner of the room, and he stands back to watch. My mind races, trying to figure out what exactly he just injected into me. It doesn't take long for the cloud to start seeping through my brain. I could barely decipher his voice calling to someone.

My heart stops when another man appears in the doorway. They both stand there smirking, as my consciousness is coaxed backwards into my mind and I fall into blissful oblivion.