Corrupt Desires

by Jennifer Bene

“I promise I’ll play the surprised, helpless girl really well.” Phee smiled too and Easton growled loudly.

  “You two are trouble. Fucking trouble.” Leaning back, he stared up at the ceiling for a minute, his brain obviously running through scenarios. “If we do this, you can’t do anything stupid, Phee. You will do exactly what I tell you to, exactly how I tell you to do it. No arguing with me or being spontaneous. You’ll have a tracker on you, and we’re going to map out every fucking step you’re going to take so that my guys can have it covered.”

  “Yes! I will, I promise. This is going to work, I know it. And then we’ll finally make an actual dent in these fuckers.” Phee was grinning broadly, on the verge of cheering when Easton slapped his hand on the counter.

  “This isn’t a game, Phee! These people could actually hurt you. I don’t even know what they have planned to try and convince Holbrook to take action but I doubt any of it is nice.” Sighing, he physically tensed and then relaxed as Regan set her coffee down to massage his shoulders.

  “You know how kick ass it would be for you to be the one to take down the pro-COF psychos?” Regan asked, and Easton groaned.

  “There’s no room for error in this, Phee. You have to do exactly what I tell you to do.”

  “I promise, nothing crazy.” Excitement thrummed through her at the chance to actually do something for once, and she smiled encouragingly at him, but he just looked stressed.

  Regan kissed him on the cheek as she slid to his side to hug him. “This will work, baby, and then your job will be a lot easier.”

  “I’m only considering this because it would finally make it clear that they don’t get to fuck with us.”

  “That’s right,” Regan whispered, using her sultry flirting voice. “No one fucks with you, baby.” She smiled at him and he turned and pressed her against the fridge, kissing her hard and — based on the soft moan that slipped out of Phee’s bestie — it felt really good.

  When the kiss was still going after an awkward minute, Phee moved into the living room to get ready, bringing her coffee with her to give them some privacy.

  They were a weird match, but she was happy that they’d ended up as such a good couple. She was even more satisfied that she was going to be able to actually do something to help Bryant, something that could make a real difference against the COF supporters.

  She could finally be a warrior again. She could finally wear her crown of fire instead of just smiling at the press while Bryant paraded around in his. Fighting back the reporters and saving the underdog time and again.

  This time it was her turn.

  In her mind she was covered in glittering armor that reflected the flames from her crown, and people were cheering for her. For her, and for Bryant, and for the NDF.

  All she had to do was be the bait, and the COF-rebirth fools would never even notice the noose around their necks before they had them.

  18

  Browsing in the bookstore that afternoon, Phee couldn’t even focus on the words in front of her. Every creak of the old floorboards, every ding of the door opening and closing made her muscles twitch. Her heart was pounding inside her chest while she did her best to look casual. By the time everything was organized with Easton’s squad there had been no time for her normal breakfast stop, so she had to hope her routine wasn’t too off kilter or obvious if anyone was following her.

  “Found anything you like?” The kindly owner leaned into the short aisle she was browsing, but Phee felt like she jumped three feet in the air at the sound of his soft question. She tried to recover with a burst of laughter, glancing down at the random book she’d picked up.

  “Uh, not yet actually.” She smiled at him and he glanced over the books on the shelves.

  “Well, you normally go for fiction, right? Or are you shopping for historical biographies today?” He looked back to her and the heat in her cheeks was brutal. “Is there a specific person I can help you find?”

  “Oh, no! I was just, you know, looking… to see if anything caught my eye. I didn’t really think of anything specific today.”

  “Alright, well, just call for me if you have any questions.” He nodded to her and then walked back towards the front of the shop as Phee sagged against the bookshelf. She was so nervous she couldn’t focus at all. Shoving the book back into place, she wandered over to her normal section and grabbed a couple of books that had caught her eye the last time she was there. With those in hand she checked out quickly and stepped out onto the street.

  The thin layer of fog cloaked her skin like a damp blanket and she wished she had thought to grab the jacket out of Easton’s car before she’d climbed out, but she had been in a hurry to get away from the small army he had brought. She didn’t want anything to tip them off. She wanted to catch them. Of course, the fact that six different cars full of security force guys were spread along her path home seemed extremely obvious to her. The tracker button tucked in her back pocket was just overkill.

  Overkill that had cost them an entire hour just waiting for one of Easton’s guys to bring it, along with the gear to activate and monitor it. At this point, the COF bastards had probably given up looking for her because she’d missed the whole first part of her routine.

  Ridiculous.

  Walking back towards the apartment at a slow pace was torturous, but Phee tried to think of how she normally acted. She was never in a rush back from the bookstore, and she usually skimmed whichever book she’d picked up. Reaching into her bag she dug around for one, and then there was a loud crash, the sound of screeching metal as a car slammed into something. Lifting her head to find the noise, someone ran into her.

  Phee stumbled and dropped the book back into her bag, twisting to see what had happened, but then there was a hand over her mouth. A strong arm around her waist lifted her mostly off the ground, and she tried to scream as she was dragged between two buildings. The bag slipped from her grip as she tried to claw at the hand on her mouth, watching as the walls closed in around her.

  The alley wasn’t even wide enough for a car, just a narrow walkway leading to the side doors for some businesses. This is bad. Get away! She tore in air through her nose and screamed against the hand with all her might before dropping her weight. Their grip slipped on her and she hit the damp concrete, scrambling forward towards the road. “Help! Someone! EASTON!”

  “Fuck, grab her!” Two sets of hands reached for her, and she tried to fight them off, looking around frantically for Easton’s guys. When she opened her mouth to scream again something soft was shoved into her mouth and then a cloth sack pulled over her head. Phee took desperate breaths through her nose and then she felt herself being lifted, thrown over a man’s shoulder that dug into her stomach as she was flipped upside down. They walked quickly, the heavy huffing of breath under her the only other sound as she tried to scream again.

  “Shut the fuck up!” The man dug his fingers into her thigh and she tried to lift herself up, struggling hard, but then she was dropped into the metal interior of a vehicle, her shoulder jolting as she landed on it. People climbed in with her, a door slid shut, and she screamed against the cloth in her mouth again, trying to spit it out as she reached for the bag. Someone grabbed her wrists as duct tape was wrapped around the cloth sack, tightening around her mouth to keep the gag in place. Then there was a hand covering her face, pinching her nose so it was impossible to breathe. Panic seized her and she tried to jerk her head away but she couldn’t.

  “You need to shut up now, Ophelia, don’t make us hurt you.” The voice was filled with rage, and she internally bucked at the use of her full name. No one used her full name that actually knew her, and it grated on her nerves. If she could have drawn a breath she would have cursed him through the gag. “Nod if you’ll behave!”

  Phee pointedly didn’t nod, even though a strange buzzing feeling was filling her ears and the burning ache in her lungs was beginning to turn all her anger into fear and panic.

  Were they really goi
ng to suffocate her?

  “Can you believe this bitch?” The man released her face and she dragged air in through her nose as best she could, but the heady relief of oxygen returning was short-lived as the weight of the man straddled her. She shouted against the gag, trying to buck him off, but they shoved her hands together, and then there was the loud stretch of more duct tape as her wrists were bound. “Slut from the southern district nabs herself a stupid, naïve, rich boy and suddenly she’s all uppity. Pin her arms down for me.”

  “What? I don’t—” Another voice, the other man. The vehicle she was in swayed as it bumped along the street and Phee tried to calm down. Easton had to be close, his men had to be close, they’d watched her leave the bookstore, they had been watching. And she had the tracker. They’d done it, she had got herself kidnapped just like they had planned, and there was no question of the guilt of the COF supporters… now she just needed Easton to come get her.

  Anytime now. Any fucking time now.

  “Pin her fucking arms down! Ugh. Never mind, you pussy. I’ve got it.” The man on top of her leaned forward, pressing her wrists against the hard metal floor.

  “What are you doing back there?” A third voice, this one sounded stressed.

  “Teaching this bitch a lesson! Just drive.” A hand moved down over her breasts, squeezing, and Phee jerked, shouting against the gag. The man lifted his weight off her as he shifted and then his hand was at the button of her jeans. She screamed, trying to twist her hips away from him as she kicked, but he avoided her since she was aiming blindly and her efforts only helped him tug her jeans down her legs. Phee felt tears pricking her eyes as cold fear settled heavy in her stomach. Her shoes came off too easily, and then her jeans were off, and the metal floor of the van was against her legs. She still had her panties on, but barely, when the man laughed. “Uppity whore, you’re—”

  “What the fuck is that? Give me that.”

  “This? It’s a button.” The asshole’s voice was calm, and she kicked out, trying to distract them, to knock the little piece of metal and plastic away into the van, but someone grabbed her and slammed her back to the floor.

  “Be still!” he shouted, leaning over her with one hand pinning her down. “That isn’t a fucking button. Shit. It’s a tracker. Wipe it off and toss it out the damn window and then turn. Just fucking GO!”

  The whistle of wind through a window filled the van and Phee screamed uselessly as the weight lifted from her chest, and then the van turned hard. There was a jolt of people catching themselves as the first bastard chuckled and spoke much too close to her. “That wasn’t very nice. We don’t want anyone else invited to this party.”

  Hands wrapped around her calves, yanking her flat just before he descended on her again, and she started to beg against the gag.

  “Man, we’re still in the fucking van—” the second man’s voice was close for a second and then she heard him huff as he was cut off followed by the thump of him hitting the side of the van.

  “Fuck off, she just needs to learn her place, and she likes giving it up to downtowners. She probably fucked a ton of us just trying to catch one who would keep her around.” He seized her face hard through the sack. “Isn’t that right, sweetie? You girls from the southern districts are all the same. Money grabbing sluts.”

  Phee arched her back, shoving at him with her bound hands, screaming as loud as she could against the gag. Her throat ached from the effort, but the man just pressed her thighs apart until the hard cock inside his pants became evident as he rubbed himself against her.

  “I don’t know what the FUCK you’re doing back there, but we have to wait until we get word on the next move!” The driver yelled from the front seat, and Phee felt a glimmer of hope through the fear that had filled her up. The man on top of her rolled his hips, the rough fabric of his pants grinding against her. She whimpered, turning her head to the side even though she couldn’t see a thing through the cloth over her face, and all she could think of was how much she just wanted to see Bryant again.

  “Are you crazy? He’ll kill us!” The voice came from the second man and then the guy on top of her fell to the side.

  “Don’t fucking shove me!” The man’s voice was an aggressive growl as Phee instantly curled into a ball, pulling her legs towards her chest, hot tears burning her cheeks as they soaked into the cloth. “This bitch needs to know that we’re in charge, and I already know what he wants us to do, asshole.”

  “Fuck… look at her ass,” the other man mumbled.

  “Well, damn. See? She likes it rough.” A rough palm squeezed the welts, pinching the skin as she whined and tried to pull away.

  “Shut up, we’re almost there. We’ll call when we arrive and get our next orders, for now fucking knock her out. I’m sick of listening to her.” The driver’s words made her stomach churn, and she curled up tighter. As movement happened around her in the van, Phee realized she was shaking, that she couldn’t stop crying, and all she wanted to hear was sirens or anything that meant Easton was showing up. Even if it meant he lectured her for hours for convincing him to let her do this incredibly stupid thing, even if it meant Bryant was furious with her — she’d take any of that to get out of this.

  Then there was a pinch and she kicked out, feeling the twinge in the muscle of her ass before someone grabbed her hip and turned her to rip the needle free. Fuck, fuck, fuck… Her heart was already racing before that, but it didn’t seem to matter as she struggled and kicked. Someone grabbed her legs, another her arms, and she screamed against the gag as her head started to feel fuzzy.

  Stay awake, stay awake!

  “How long does this shit take? She almost got my face.” The angry growl came from near her feet, and she tried again to kick, but her reaction had a lag.

  “I don’t know, it’s supposed to be fast.” An answer from near her head, the more level-headed one, and she whined, pleading incoherent babbles as she fought to take in air through her nose, all of her nerves responding in blunted alerts. The hard, metal floor of the van wasn’t as sharp against her back, and even the cold was taking longer for her brain to process.

  Please, please don’t fall asleep. Fight it, fight!

  Groaning, she felt the van turn, the bastards holding on as they all leaned.

  “Is she out yet?” the driver asked, and she tried to struggle, but everything was getting so hard. Like moving in quicksand.

  “Almost. How much farther?”

  “A few minutes.”

  No. Easton, where are you? Between one moment and the next, Phee realized she’d let herself slip, and she renewed her weak struggles, crying, trying to stay conscious. But it was a losing battle, every beat of her heart moving whatever drug they’d injected her with through her bloodstream. Even as she tried to force her eyes open to the dim haze of the bag, straining to listen for the sirens that would be her salvation, she slid. Farther down, under the quicksand, until there was nothing.

  Sluggish panic drew her towards consciousness. She knew she should be afraid, knew she should fight, but it was like laying under heavy blankets. The first twitch of her muscles felt strange, delayed, and when she tried again she realized it was useless. Her arms were caught on something.

  Caught. Taken. Kidnapped.

  Everything surged back at once, and she fought against the bindings. Phee sniffled hard, trying to clear her nose so she could get a decent breath, but as she started crying again it was beginning to stuff her up and raw panic was setting in. She whimpered and started to rub at the duct tape around her head, shoving her face against her arm with desperate sounds as she screamed weakly, still dizzy from whatever they’d injected her with… or the lack of oxygen.

  Kicking, she found her legs tethered as well, lying on something stiff, and the tears surged, blocking her nose, until she made horrible noises just trying to breathe. Rubbing her face harder against her arm to try and free it.

  “Stop that!” Someone shoved her head back to the bed, and sh
e sniffled hard, barely getting air in. “Are you having trouble breathing?” The voice had the barest hint of concern and she was pretty sure it was the second man from the van. Phee nodded fast and she heard him curse under his breath. “Wait here, and do not move. I’ll be right back.”

  Time ticked by slowly and she did her best to take slow breaths through her running nose and her gagged mouth. It made her stop crying at least as she focused on counting the inhales and the exhales.

  “Okay, I’m going to ungag you, but I’m keeping the sack over your eyes. If you fight me, you’re not going to like the results.” His voice was serious and so she just nodded, grateful for the promise of air. He worked quickly until her mouth was free, and he pulled the gag out so she could gasp in the oxygen she so desperately needed. He kept his promise though, only shifting the bag above her nose, and then he wrapped another set of duct tape around it to hold it in place over her eyes, catching her hair. Phee didn’t even care though as the cool air filled her lungs and edged back the panic.

  “What the fuck, man? Who took her pants off?”

  “Why did you ungag her, idiot? She’s just going to scream and I already have a fucking headache.” That voice was the violent guy from the van, the first voice… she hadn’t recognized.

  “Hey, I asked you a question! Where the fuck are her pants? What did you guys do?” The new one again.

  “Relax, we haven’t done anything yet.”

  “Knock her back out, he’ll be here soon.” The new man seemed to be in charge, and she couldn’t resist the chance to beg.

  “Please, please let me go. I haven’t done anything to you!”

  “SHUT UP!” the angry one yelled, and someone pressed their hand over her mouth.

  “You need to be quiet, or we’re going to have to gag you again.” It was the one who had cut the gag away and let her breathe, and her fear of suffocating made her nod a little. “You have to go back to sleep, don’t fight it.”