Slices

Part 4

Water dripped from the ceiling and gathered in a puddle on the concrete around his feet. Each foot was bound to a chair and his hands were bound to the arms. Tape was wrapped around his head, covering his mouth. His head hung from sleep deprivation and blood continued to drip from his nose. His blonde hair was ruffled and caked with dirt from the street and stuck up in wild directions. Purple bruises covered his jaw and one of his eyes were swollen shut.

It was a forest, with trees gently swaying in the breeze. The river was calm, bubbling and flowing through rocks and tugging at seaweed on the riverbed. A bird called out over the quiet wood and darted through the trees to come to a nest. A deer anxiously slipped through the wood and daintily hopped across the stones in the river. A gentle breeze ruffled the leaves and carried on it the song of silence. Guppies swam in the peaceful waters and bunnies frolicked in the grass. Trojan drew in a breath of fresh woodland air, pine and chestnut brushing his nostrils. He sat down in the grass and quietly absorbed the serenity of his surroundings. A deer peeked through the brush at him, then slowly stepped out of the cover of the leaves. With great care, it inched forward, extending its neck and gazing curiously at Trojan. Trojan extended his hand slowly and the deer came still closer and a GUNSHOT! Trojan started violently, jolting up in his chair, eyes wide open. His heart pounded in his chest.

"Goddamnit Lincoln! Don't slam the door or someone might hear us!" Alexander swore from the kitchen.

Lincoln rolled his eyes and walked over to where Trojan sat in the garage. He ripped the tape off of Trojan violently and tossed it aside. "So, you feel like telling us where she lives today?"

Trojan glared up at Lincoln, hatred practically radiating off of him. He pressed his lips together tight and sat quietly.

Lincoln nodded. "Okay. We can try this again, I don't mind." He yawned and sat down next to Trojan, looking up at him sideways. "You remember when Dawns house burnt down?"

Trojan remained silent.

"Well I'll just tell you it wasn't an accident."

Trojan scowled. "Untie me."

An obnoxious laugh erupted from Lincoln and he stood up. "You're hilarious." He leaned close into Trojan's face. "You Aren't going anywhere until you tell us where she lives."

"Why would I tell you? I'm not stupid."

"Pain can't be endured forever." Lincoln swung hard and his fist connected with the right side of Trojan's jaw.

Trojan's eyes were wild as he stared at the ground. He couldn't fight back. He couldn't fight back. The worst feeling in the world. Helplessness.

"Come on pretty boy," Lincoln lifted Trojan's head up, grabbing his chin and turning his face towards him. "I'm only getting started." He stood in front of the chair and appeared to be thinking hard. Then, a twisted smile flashed across his lips and he pulled Trojan's shirt up. "A cut on your back huh? I ought to help you with that." Lincoln picked up a metal wire cable and swung at Trojan's back, like a whip.

Trojan let out a chilling scream, agony ripping at his skin. The chair tipped forward and his face hit the concrete. A crunch echoed throughout the room upon impact.

Lincoln flinched. Trojan's nose was broken. This was getting a little out of hand. But the more worn Trojan was, the more likely he was to tell the address.

"Hey what's going on in here?" Alexander walked in the door. "Why is he on the ground?"

"The chair tipped."

Alexander frowned. "He still won't talk?"

"No, and I doubt I'll get anything out of him."

"Let me try."

"Good luck." Lincoln breathed a sigh of relief. It felt wrong doing this, but otherwise, Alexander might report him to the police, and he did not need his records revealed.

The world was blurry and throbbing, coming in and out of focus like a camera. A hot sensation prickled at the back of his throat. His nose was numb. "Set me back up, set me back up!" Trojan suddenly yelled, frantic. "I need a trash can. Quick a trash can!" He gasped, still lying face down.

With surprising speed, he was lifted and a can dropped in front of him. His stomach contracted violently and he found himself gagging and coughing up blood into the trashcan. The convulsions that wracked his body sent more and more blood spewing into the can.

"Oh God. Lincoln. Lincoln what do we do?"

Lincoln stood next to Alexander, wringing his hands. "Fuck, he's puking his guts out. We can't bring him to the hospital or they'll arrest us."

"There's a gun in the drawer."

"Hell no Alex are you crazy we never agreed to kill him!"

Trojan gasped between coughs and felt suddenly very dizzy. He couldn't wipe his mouth, his hands were bound, so he sat there, blood dripping from his lips and nose, slowly slipping out of consciousness. I love you Riane. I love you so much. He said in his head before his eyes fluttered closed and his head drooped.

"I'm not a murderer. I'll be sentenced to death if they find me." Lincoln began hyperventilating.

Alexander walked over to the chair and untied Trojan. "Help me with this Lincoln I have an idea."
They stuffed him in the car and put gloves on. Pulling out of the driveway, they parked in an alley. Putting on masks, they laid Trojan on the ground and drove off quickly. Once they were a ways off, they removed the masks. "Stay here." Alexander got out of the car and went a little ways down the walk. "Hey can I use your phone for a minute?"

"Yeah sure." A lady gave him her phone, smiling in a sort of flirty way.

"911 yeah there's a guy in an alley, he looks pretty beat up, I don't know, he's passed out." Alex hung up and smiled at the lady, then walked back around the corner to the car and Lincoln and him sped off.

"Good thinking. Remind me why you want Riane so much again? " Lincoln thought all of this was getting out of hand. It better be a darn good reason.

"Because I love her."

"Sure you do, what's the real reason."

"She owns diamonds."

"Aha, that's more like it." Lincoln nodded. "How'd you figure that out?"

"She told me."

"What! When?"

"At the bar. She was drunk as hell just spewing random nonsense."

"Nice." Lincoln stopped at the curb across from Dawns house. He's figured out her new address a while ago. "Riane might be here, we can wait to see if someone exits. By the way, why'd you leave her for a week without questioning her?"

Alexander nervously wring his hands. "Cause Trojan kept going there and I didn't know if he'd told the police what I was doing. They could have bust outta there at any time."

Lincoln shook his head. "You're so stupid."