What's Said in Silence

Sera-XXXXXX

Cold water doused my face, shocking my entire system and ripping me from sleep. I gasped as the frigid air surrounded me. I had grown used to the temperature but the water amplified it, making it that much more unbearable. If hypothermia hadn't set in yet, surely this would do the trick. Compared to the hunger pains I had experienced the first couple of days, freezing to death didn't seem like such a ridiculous notion. 

I wasn't sure exactly how long I'd been locked down here, but I know it was long enough to count to ten thousand over and over again and self-loathe beyond repair. At one point I had mistakenly thought I'd heard Vessel. His bourbon voice had filled me with warmth and hope. That was until I realized it was just his song stuck in my head.

"Wake up." His harsh voice cut through the silence. I blinked the water out of my eyes, my tongue darting out to catch a few drops. A few of the times that he'd come down here, he'd given me sips of water, sparingly, just enough to make me realize how badly I needed it. This time though, a warm, delicious scent wafted through the air. My eyes zeroed in on the source. 

In his hands was a small plate of shredded chicken, the steam coming from it could almost be felt from my position on the floor. He plucked a strip from the plate and held it in front of my mouth. I hesitated, looking at him for any signs that this was some sort of sick joke.

"You're no use to me dead, eat it." He ordered. My self-preservation wanted to turn my nose and let him know I'd rather die than to be of his service again. However, the survival side of my brain kicked in, making me open my mouth to allow him to feed me. Once he placed the tender piece of meat on my tongue my stomach chewed its way through my spine, eager for the first scrap of food I'd had since my arrival. 

I chewed and swallowed, but my body lurched and it nearly came back up. After living on an empty stomach for so long, food was foreign. My body both craved it and rejected it in the same sense. He picked up another piece and I accepted it with much less hesitation. I ignored how dirty his hands were, only caring about the next bite I was going to get as he fed me piece by piece.

"Now, do you feel better?" He asked, holding another strip out to me. I bit it and chewed, refusing to answer his question. "C'mon Seraphine, we used to be so good together. We were the couple that could give 'Bonnie and Clyde' a run for their money. Powerful, compatible, perfectly matched."

Pushover, naive, easily manipulated is what I had been. At one point I would have taken his word for gold. Now, it may as well be venom, seeping into my bloodstream through my ears, poisoning me from the inside out. 

"I remember a girl that loved me so much, she'd have done anything just to see me smile. Where is that girl, my girl?" The phrase 'my girl' coming from his mouth made the chicken in my stomach churn and I feared it would come back up. I glared at him, the girl he was searching for wouldn't be found behind my eyes. She was long gone. 

"You know," He curled a finger under my chin, holding my face still. I stifled the instinctive recoil in my skin. "I was hurt for a long time by your betrayal, but I've worked past it and I'm willing to let by-gones be by-gones. I'm sure you can do the same for me." I'd sent this man to jail. He'd murdered my sister in front of me. Our misdeeds were not the same and quite frankly he could shove his 'by-gones' idea up his ass. 

I tore my face from his grasp. I turned my gaze towards the ground, refusing to look up at him. He took a deep breath, gearing up for his next manipulation tactic, when a bang came from the other end of the house. Both of our heads turned towards the stairs, as the commotion grew louder. Lots of yelling and cursing could be heard and it sounded like furniture was being broken. 

Preston stood and ran up the steps, locking me in the basement. Once again leaving me shrouded in darkness. I concentrated on deciphering the sounds coming from just above me. Adrenaline kicked through my system and I had to force myself to take slow steady breaths. A helpless part of me hoped that it was Vessel, but a realistic part of me knew that it was unlikely. 

"Dion. What's all this about, man?" Preston's greeting sliced through any remaining hope I'd had. I had known Dion would come looking for Preston, I just hadn't expected him to be this quick about it. Apparently, neither did Preston.

"You cut it." A gruff voice vibrated through the floorboards. A different wave of fear rolled through me. Suddenly, I was glad to be locked in a basement. I couldn't imagine being on this guys radar. 

"I'm sorry, I'm not sure what you're talking about." Preston deflected, pretending he didn't know anything about what he'd done. I detected a slight tremble in his voice and my previous daydream came back to mind, only it wasn't as delicious as I'd previously hoped. Not when I could very well endure the same fate. 

"You know damn well what I'm talking about. I sold that shit to fifteen clients. Everyone of them came at me demanding their money back because I'd given them bad shit. Do you know what fifteen accusations does to a reputation?" Dion's words grew more and more malicious with every syllable. 

"Look, we can work something out, I promise your reputation isn't ruined. How about you get your men to take the guns out of my guys faces and we talk this out, yeah?" Preston said. He had tried to come across stoic in his words, but his tone betrayed just how terrified he was. He'd been caught by law enforcement, but never by a client. This was new territory for him, for all of us. 

"We're way past talking." With that, a series of gunshots went off one by one. Preston's yell came out quickly before it was snuffed out. More dust fell on top of me as bodies tumbled to the floor. I held my breath, not wanting to make a single sound and lead them directly to me. I imagine several things a drug lord would want to use me for and none of them sounded appealing.

Heavy footsteps stomped around above me, likely looking for anyone else in the house. My heart pounded in my ears and I feared it was strong enough to shake the walls. The stomps made their way around until they were in the direction of the door. 

I dared a peak and saw two shadows in the small sliver of light. It seemed like whoever was behind the door was contemplating whether or not he wanted to open it. Seconds felt like hours as I watched the eerily-still shadow, a quiet tear spilled from my eye. 

Finally, the shadow moved. A couple of muffled exchanges could be heard, but they were quiet enough that I couldn't make out what was said. Multiple sets of footsteps made their way out of the house. Once I heard the faint engine of a car start up and distance itself from the house, I finally let out the breath I'd been holding. 

After a few minutes my racing heart beat finally settled and the tears dried, the remaining wetness frozen to my face. It seemed to have dropped another few degrees and it occurred to me that I never heard them close the door. I mentally cursed that fact until one a lot more terrifying set in. 

No one alive knew where I was.