The Bad Boys and the Fighter

19

When I woke, I was tied to a metal chair in the middle of an abandoned house.

The floorboards were covered in a layer of thick dust. Grey paint peeled from the walls, and the only piece of furniture, an old floral couch, was covered in plastic. The only thing in tact that I could see was the old, sliding glass door, which overlooked a beautiful, calm lake.

"She woke up," a familiar voice said from behind me. The voice's owner walked over in front of me, causing a groan to escape my lips. "You've been out for a couple days," Chase mused. "It's Monday."

"I haven't been getting much sleep lately," I responded with a sneer. "The chloroform really helped, so thank you."

"Always a smartass," Daniel chuckled as he made his way over next to Chase. "I see you're in a...bit of a predicament."

"What are you going to do?" I asked Daniel, trying my hardest to stay calm. "You spent years planning this, and so far you've been very...boring."

"I forced you into witness protection and then found you, you incompetent child," Daniel.

"I'm incompetent? You only found me because I was going stir crazy!" I fought back, thrashing against the restraints.

A wicked grin crawled its way onto Daniel's face. "Stir crazy? Is that what you call guilt now?" I stopped fighting against the ropes. His grin widened at my reaction to his words. "Guilt. You see, Ariel, I know you. You're not completely emotionless, but when it comes to the few emotions you do have, you feel them one hundred times stronger than anyone else. That's your weakness. That's why you're here."

The one thing that always scared me about Daniel was his ability to accurately psychoanalyze someone, and then manipulate them to his advantage. That's what he had done to me. Danny had used a combination prior knowledge and knowledge someone like Chase had of me to hunt me down and force my hand.

He was brilliantly vile.

I jerked against the ropes and sneered, "You're fucking psychotic."

Daniel moved behind me, grabbing the back of my chair and yanking it backwards, so my head hit the old, hardwood flooring. I groaned, moving my head slightly to alleviate the pain as much as I could. Stars danced in front of my vision as a figure pulled me upright.

"What do you want?" I murmured. "What have you ever wanted from me?" My tone was pleading.

"Everything you took from me," his cruel voice whispered in my ear, "but for now, nothing."

I watched with heavy eyelids as several blurred figures left the room. Soon after, I felt myself drifting off.

I woke up, God knows how long later, by ice cold water being thrown on my body. This time, however, it didn't feel like I was sitting. As I started coming to, I realized I was dangling from the ceiling. Panic surged through my body as I looked around the room. Relief flooded when I realized in the same room, just a different position.

Daniel stood in the doorway, leaning up against the frame with his arms crossed over his chest, and a smirk playing on his face.

"Good evening."

I turned my head to the window. Bright constellations decorated the sky, making me smile ever so slightly. The moon and porch lights illuminated the lake, while a lantern lit up the dock. The fireplace burned, warming up the room little by little.

"Good evening," I responded, suddenly becoming hyperaware of the pounding in my head.

Daniel took a step forward, the floorboards creeping under his weight. "So here's how it's going to go. You are going to give me everything I want, and then I'll the ponder the thought of letting you go."

"I literally have nothing that could be of use to you," I snorted, tugging at the ropes that held me up.

"You'd be surprised," He chuckled before turning his head towards the door and calling out, "Ty! Chase!"

"Have you considered how pathetic it is to use high schoolers to do your bidding?" I offered as Ty and Chase, dressed in jeans and white t-shirts, sauntered into the room holding two large duffel bags.

Ty curled his lip. "Shut the fuck up."

I mimicked them, trying not to let my fear show through my damaged facade. They both set their duffle bags down, the sound of metal clattering against each other causing Daniel to grin. I watched with intensity as Chase pulled out a hunting knife and walked over to where I was hanging.

My eyes widened as he flipped open the blade. "Chase...Chase, stop. Chase, please."

Something evil glistened in his eyes as he brought the blade to the neckline of my dress and cut it. With his hands he ripped off the rest of the material, leaving me in my bra and panties. I had never felt more exposed than right then, and I couldn't do anything about it.

Chase walked over to Daniel, handing him the knife. "Alright, Ariel," Daniel began, "let's start off easy. What did Michael and Lisa leave you?"

"Half of everything," I responded as I eyed the blade cautiously.

Daniel dragged the tip of the blade down my left thigh, a slightly yelp erupting from the stinging sensation. "False."

"No, it's not!" I insisted. "They left the other half to you, but you were in jail, so half went to the state and the rest became available when I turned eighteen."

He smirked. "Happy belated birthday, by the way. How did you celebrate?"

I looked down at the dripping blood. "I didn't. You forced me into hiding."

"You have to adit, my timing was impeccable." He sighed. "Next question. What affiliation does your boyfriend have with the Ghosts?"

"The Ghosts? I've never heard of them!" I cried out as he dragged the blade down my arm.

"Wrong answer."

"It's the only answer!"

Daniel walked over to the duffle bags and pulled out some type of metal stick. He walked over to the fireplace and put the tip of the rod in the fire before walking over to where I was.

"It's rumored that Cole supplies ammunition and weapons to the Ghosts, which is a gang in the shitty part of that tragic city you like so much," Daniel drawled.

"Cole never involved me with any of his gang stuff. Tyler said they were starting to distance themselves from everything," I protested.

Ty snorted from the doorway. "You really believe anything they say?"

I looked frantically back and forth between him and Daniel. "What does he mean?" I wondered through gritted teeth, trying to distract myself from the pain.

"In the days leading up before you went into hiding, Cole renewed the deal with the Ghosts, lengthening their deal by one year," Daniel explained. "In exchange for supplying them with ammunition, Cole and his little friends get this...immortality deal. Ammunition for protection, if you know what I mean."

"Protection? What sort of protection?"

"Turns out, the Ghosts and the Vipers have a common enemy. Me." Daniel walked over to the fire and pulled out the glowing iron rod. "They killed my men, they cut off all my resources, and you know what really pissed me off the most? They think they can get away with it."

I watched with terror as he inched closer. "Daniel..."

"They're not getting away with it."