bullets and bouquets

65

"Have you guys figured anything out?" Bella asks later that day when she and Jenna return to the mansion. They stand in Conference Room A, away from the children who occupy the rest of the mansion.

"We have," Natalia answers. She is hesitant to share the information, "Sadie's told you about her ex-girlfriend, right?"

"Her ex-girlfriend kidnapped her?" Bella jumps to conclusions. She doesn't know that Sadie's men were ordered to take care of her.

"Not exactly," the gang leader replies, "Sadie's ex-girlfriend is dead. But, she might have a family."

"Was her ex a gang leader?" Bella asks, not understanding what Sadie's ex-girlfriend's family would have to do with her disappearance.

"No, Sadie, uh... had her taken care of... after they broke up," Jenna explains.

"Sadie killed her?" she exclaims.

"This isn't the point of the story," Joe interrupts, "Her family is probably angry at Sadie."

"Yeah, I can see why!" Bella exclaims, "But you don't know if she actually does have a family?"

"We have a name, but it's not well-known," Dacre answers.

"What does that mean?"

"Like how Sadie isn't known to the Italian police, this person is the same way," Finn explains, "Their name is Z Harris."

"Okay, so what do you know?" Bella asks.

"Z Harris is a gang leader in Moldova, but again, not well-known. There's no exact location for where he/she/they are located," Dacre informs her.

"What about Sabrina?"

"We think Z Harris took her too. Since Gianna knew you, you essentially led them to her," Natalia explains.

"Okay, so what now?"

"We go to Moldova and we look for them," Finn states.

"But I thought you said you don't know where this person is located?"

"We don't," Dacre states, "But the dogs might."

***

Briar, Gianna, and Robin are left at the Estate to take care of the children until they return. Trent is also at the Estate to help keep them safe with the help of Florence. Today, the medics begin to give the children check-ups, knowing most of them are malnourished. Some of the younger children also don't know their own ages, so Carlo will do his best to give them an idea of how old they are.

A third of the children have fresh cuts and bruises from being forced to fight each other. They recount the stories to the girls of their fights and how they learned to help each other out in the fights. They would take turns beating each other up but letting the other "win" before one would die. This kept more children alive but still satisfied the sick people that bet on and watched them.

One child in particular, a boy named Stefan from Germany, is in bad condition. He was recently in a fight and is fighting for his life in the infirmary. He's eight years old and was forced to fight a sixteen-year-old. Some of the fights include weapons like pocket knives, but others are just fist fights.

"How is he?" Gianna walks over to Carlo.

"His leg is infected. I've administered antibiotics and cleaned it, but I don't know how long he's had an infection," he explains, "the best thing we can do right now is give him a comfortable place to rest."

"You don't think he's going to make it?" she asks quietly. He looks over at the boy who sleeps peacefully with his left leg wrapped up.

"I hope for the best, but he is very sick," Carlo states, "I'm doing everything I can for him."

Gianna gulps and walks back over to the boy. She lightly wakes him, "Stefan, I brought lunch."

"Thank you, ma'am," he answers politely. Gianna smiles as he begins to eat his sandwich.

"You can call me Gianna," she says. He nods while eating, "Want more?"

He shakes his head. She frowns slightly. She knows that he really doesn't feel well if he doesn't want more. He's thirty pounds lighter than he should be.

"Okay," she answers, "I'll be back to check on you later okay?"

"Okay."

***

Sadie and Sabrina are both extremely weak. Their wrists are raw from being held up and they barely have enough energy to lift their heads. Both of them are covered in blood.

"Wakey, wakey," a man walks in and sprays them with a water hose. Both girls jolt awake from the cold water. They screech and close their eyes as the water drenches them both. He laughs and stops spraying them. He walks over to them and releases their wrists from the chains. Both girls drop to the floor. They shiver now, "Cold are you?"

Sabrina barely lifts her head. He smirks, "Take your clothes off."

Sadie's eyes widen.

"Take them off or I will," he threatens. He walks over to Sabrina and Sadie sits up.

"Mmmf! Mffm!" she mumbles. The man steps away. Sadie looks over at Sabrina who cries. The redhead gives her an affirming nod before striping the blonde of her shirt. She takes the girl's pants off too, leaving her in her underwear. Sadie then strips off her own clothes and sits in front of Sabrina.

"What an obedient girl you are," he comments, "Stand up."

Sadie grabs Sabrina's hand and drags her up. Their bodies are covered in discolored bruises, along with the blood staining their pale skin. He approaches them and Sadie pushes Sabrina behind her, ready for whatever he is going to do. He grabs her hands and chains her to the wall again. He does the same with Sabrina.

Sadie sighs in relief. The man goes over to the hose again and picks it up. He begins to spray them again with cold water. The girls scream as the water holds them back against the cement wall. It washes the blood away but hurts their bruises and even leaves more on their bodies. He soaks them from head to toe before leaving the room.

The two girls shiver as they try to retain body heat. Sabrina doesn't know how long it's been since she's been taken and Sadie hopes that the others have noticed her absence. Sabrina still cries and Sadie tries to comfort her, but she can't even talk to her.