Kidnapped by Pierce the Veil

Some Kind of Madness Has Started to Evolve

I stared at my stinging arm, the scratches still bleeding lightly from Chris's fingernails. A drop of blood beaded and ran down my arm, finally falling off of my fine trips. I examined everything with my eyes, as he had refused to untie me earlier.

"You will never put up a fight again." Chris sneered. His phone lit up as he received a text. "They're almost back." He rushed over and cut the ties off me quickly. He glared at me. "Remember our story." I nodded.

Not long after, four sweaty men waltzed through the front door. Chris pretended to be helping me dress my cuts.

"Hey, guys." He greeted.

Tony's eyes got wide as he saw my arm. "What happened, Bethany?" He actually sounded concerned as he studied my injury.

Chris shot me a look. "A dog came by earlier and hurt me. Chris chased it away." The words were sour in my mouth.

Tony nodded. "I'll go get some bandages." He disappeared with Chris into the next room.

Mike gave me a serious look. I felt like he could read my mind. He knelt down next to me. "Why are your wrists red?" He asked. I felt like he already knew the answer.

"I, um..." I attempted to piece together a lie, but I didn't have to. Tony and Chris returned, prepared clean up my arm.

"We'll talk later, all right?" Mike whispered in my ear. I nodded.

I figured that Chris may be a bit nicer if I made the story more believable. So I tried my luck.

"Thank you, Chris. For getting the dog off me." My voice shook, and Chris did his best to fake a smile. He ruffled my hair, still smiling sickly.

"You're welcome, kid." I noticed the dried blood under his nails. Chris retreated into his room, and I saw him attempt to clean his hands just before he walked in the doorway.

Mike held out his hand. I was hesitant to take it, after everything that I'd seen. But his eyes told a different story. He took my hand in his own, and led me to the back porch.

It was then that I finally got a good view of the place. Pine trees surrounded the wood paneled house. The weather was pleasant, and the sound of birds chirping rang through the vast space. Everywhere you looked, the mountains were visible. It was beautiful. The rain had stopped about an hour ago and the sun was warm on my skin. I felt relaxed for the first time since I'd been with them.

Mike led me to a porch swing and we both sat, taking in our surroundings. Mike sighed before he finally spoke.

"We used to come up here with Chris all the time when we were younger. I remember this one time, we started rolling down hills and got poison ivy everywhere." He chuckled. The corners of my mouth curved into a slight smile.

"The only real vacation I ever got was to Disneyland when I was 7. I got dehydrated and passed out while talking to Jasmine."

Mike laughed quietly, before his demeanor changed.

"I didn't mean to shoot Casey." He mumbled. I turned my face to look at him. "I just wanted to scare him into apologizing. He jumped at me, and the gun went off when we were fighting on the ground."

I stared down at my hands, the information sinking in. "It doesn't matter. He's still dead, and I'm still here." I swallowed hard. "But I forgive you." It felt good to make peace with the war inside of me.

"Thank you, Bethany. Thank you." He smiled, squeezing my hand. Mike's smile quickly disappeared, as his eyes landed on my injured arm. "That looks bad. And I know you didn't get attacked by a dog either."

I shook my head. "He'll hurt me if he finds out you know."

"'Chris is going down to his mom's place for a week. After that, we'll find a way to get you home."

I knew I wasn't going home anytime soon. I had a feeling that they all knew it too.

Mike turned to face me, a look of fear in his eyes. "What did he do?"

I closed my eyes, the scene replaying in my mind.

"You really are something. Now I know why Mike took you."

I held my bound wrists to my chest, cowering in fear. Chris grabbed my arms and threw me to the floor. He climbed on top of me, trying to shove his hands up my shirt. I pushed him off of me and attempted to crawl away, but I wasn't fast enough. His hand closed around my ankle, pulling me back swiftly.

I flailed and squirmed as he Chris tried to regain control. His hand closed around my arm and I tried to pull away. His nails dragged down my arm, blood surfacing.

Chris slapped my face, hard. My cheek stung. I finally gave up.

Mike looked enraged as I described the events.

"He didn't go far. Just touching." I played with my fingertips, fearing Chris' wrath.

"He leaves tomorrow. We'll stay here for a few days, then leave too." Mike mumbled.

How long would it be before I got to see my brother again? They couldn't keep me forever! My hands shook with anger and I sprang to my feet.

"Bethany?" Mike's concerned voice asked. I whipped my head around, steam practically rising from my ears.

"What?!" I snapped at him. His steps began to falter, my response taking him aback. Mike stopped in his tracks, raising his hands in surrender.

I pulled the door to the house open and let it slam behind me. Vic and Tony jumped on the couch in surprise.

"Beth? You alright?" Tony asked quietly.

"Peachy!" I shouted at him, making my way to the door to the guest room.

I felt a hand close around my wrist and spun around. My eyes met Vic's. He looked confused, and even a little angry.

"What happened to you?" He shook his head, his eyes narrowing slightly. "Why don't you ever let people in?"

I tugged on my arm, but he kept his grip tight.

I stared at him dead in the eyes. "Something inside of you changes when you witness both of your parents die."

Chapter song: Madness by Muse

-Gracie