Ensnared

by I N Foggarty

  “Physical appearance is, of course, a priority. So too is physical wellbeing. The status of her virginity can also play a key role, in both a positive and negative manner. I also take into consideration the current owner’s willingness to sell and to allow a thorough inspection to be carried out before purchase.”

  What did he mean by that? Ramone’s curiosity got the better of him. “When you say thorough inspection do you mean what you just did to her?” He pointed at the naked girl.

  The man chuckled slightly. “My dear fellow, I simply glanced over this young lady.” He gave them an amused look like a kindly elder when confronted with confused children. As though he found their questions quaint. “No. In order for me to pay top dollar for a purchase, I would insist on inspecting the product much more in-depth. Coupled with a medical examination carried out by my personal physician.”

  Ramone was glad that the visitor did not elaborate further and indeed now regretted asking the question to begin with. Roca meanwhile seemed to be becoming impatient in regards to the lack of talk about money.

  “Aww just gimmie a number already.”

  The visitor tilted his head slightly, the thin smile had returned. “Is sixteen ok for you?”

  Ramone glanced between the visitor and the ever blank Roca. Well, you did ask for a number he thought and laughed internally.

  “Sixteen wot?” Roca barked.

  “Carrots? Bananas? Ways of skinning a cat? To be honest with you I have absolutely no idea, My friend.”

  “Why the hell’d you say it then?” Ramone could see the look on Roca’s face darken. The man did not like being made a fool of and the visitor seemed capable of doing so on a whim. His hand itched for his gun again. If only to use it to prevent a fight breaking out.

  “Because you simply asked me for a number, so I gave you one.”

  Time to end this visit Ramone thought. Roca had a bad habit of proving just what a fool he could be in such situations. “What he meant to ask you for was the average price you would pay for a girl.”

  “You know I have never given the matter much thought,” the man mused looking pensive again. “However, for the right specimen I have, in the past, paid sums in the region of a few hundred thousand dollars.”

  Ramone’s eyes almost popped out of their sockets and rolled around on the floor and by the looks of him, Roca’s were more than willing to join them. Had Tanya known that they could potentially have been dealing with that sort of money?

  “In the end, I suppose it is quite irrelevant to you two chaps,” the visitor then said, signalling for his henchmen to follow him. “Now, I think it is time we departed. Farewell gentlemen and enjoy the rest of your day.”

  “I’ll show you out,” Ramone said hastily as he opened the door; only just realising he had been standing with his hand on the knob the whole time.

  The party followed him out and he quickly led them upstairs and back to their car. They were about to drive off when the visitor rolled down his tinted window and looked at him. “Do not forget. Should your situation change… you have my number.”

  Before he could respond the car had driven off. He watched it speed off down the dirt track and Ramone let out a slow breath that he felt like he had been holding ever since the visitor had arrived. Reaching into his pocket he pulled out his phone. He grimaced on finding Tanya’s number and hit the call button. She was not going to like this.

  “So Rae, how’d it go with the girl? Are we in business?” the chirpy voice on the other end answered.

  No hello? No random talk about rubbish? That wasn’t like Tanya Ramone thought. She must either be very busy or really interested in the result of his meeting. If the latter were true he had a sneaking suspicion that she had known about the sort of money the visitor had mentioned. Regardless he had no intention of complaining. The quicker he got this over with the better.

  “No. He didn’t like her.”

  “Shit,” he heard her say though he had a feeling that it had been private.

  “So are you going to send someone to collect her?”

  The silence on the other end of the phone made Ramone smirk to himself. It wasn’t like Tanya to be at a loss for words. Maybe for once, it would not be his eyes staring down the barrel of Sergio’s Desert Eagle.

  “Just keep hold of her for now.” Not the reply he had been hoping for.

  “Why?” he demanded, trying not to sound too eager to be rid of her. “The man didn’t bite. Sergio would say just get rid of her.”

  “He’d, like, SO prefer it if we made a profit,” she snapped back. “Just keep her safe for now and I’ll try and find another buyer.”

  Perhaps he was getting tired of the whole affair, or that it just did not sit right with him Ramone did not know. “For fuck sake Tanya she’s no older than 16. Just let her go.”

  “So?” Tanya barked at his defiance. Her tone brimmed with venom and he could tell that his words had caused her mask to slip. “Do you think I care how old she is? Do think anyone who purchases sex slaves cares how old they are? Do you think someone cared about me when I was…” The line went dead.

  Ramone just looked at his phone. He did not know where either of their points had come from. Though it was Tanya’s final comment that lingered with him as he made his way back inside.

  Roca stood waiting for him with the still naked girl when he got back downstairs. “You sure took your time.”

  “I phoned Tanya and told her the news.” He pointed to the trembling girl. “We’ve got to keep her for now.” A wicked grin spread across Roca’s face. Ramone almost punched him. “She’s not for that,” he said firmly. The last thing he needed was for his partner to get any funny ideas.

  The big man’s face fell back into its usual hard scowl. “Fine. But we’re sticking her in with the other two. I can’t be assed opening that fucking door at gunpoint every sodden time.”

  “Fine. Take her next door and I’ll grab her clothes.”

  It never failed to surprise Ramone just how lazy his partner could be. However, in this instance, he agreed. Keeping the three of them together would be easier to manage. Though he had an ulterior motive. Roca had just given an indication of his intentions towards her and Ramone had a gut feeling that should the big man attempt to do something troublesome while he himself was not around to stop him, the red-haired girl would not easily allow him access.

  A hollow laugh sounded inside his head, there was an irony somewhere about this. Trying to protect a girl from the sexual fantasies of one man only to ensure that when they came to sell her, and he did not doubt Tanya on her word of finding another buyer, she remained unsullied in order to satisfy the sexual fantasies of someone else.

  An unexpected arrival

  Anna’s eyes snapped open as she felt a hand grip her left shoulder. In a flash, she flicked her hand around and seized her assailant’s wrist. Slipping out of their grip, she twisted her body around behind them and pulled them towards the floor. When the perpetrator's arm straightened, she pushed her free forearm against their elbow. It would only take minimal effort to break the joint. She froze…

  “NO! Anna... please!” Dylan cried out in pain.

  When her piercing green eyes locked onto his terrified brown ones she recognised him. She let go of his wrist. Her breathing slowed and she recoiled from him slightly. Eighteen months ago she would not have hesitated long enough to discern his identity. Had his touch, not by chance coincided with the part of her nightmare where she got stabbed, then perhaps she would not have reacted so. Though there could be no guarantee. Maybe she would forever exist in a permanent state of hyper-alert.

  Stumbling backwards the boy cradled his injured arm and scowled at her reproachfully. “I know you hate me and all but that’s no reason to break my arm.”

  Dylan’s words brought her back to reality with a cold shiver. “Sorry,” she said instinctively though without conviction. “Why did you wake me?”

  “You were really restless and you we
re all flushed and sweaty. I thought you could use a drink.” He held a bottle of water out to her.

  Anna looked at it sceptically but reached out and took it nonetheless. “When did they bring us this?”

  “I don’t know,” Dylan replied glumly. “I woke up about two hours ago and it was sitting there with a loaf of bread.” He pointed towards the bars. “They must have left it while we were asleep.”

  While he spoke she unscrewed the cap and took a short mouthful. She stifled a grimace as a burning pain shot through her throat and into her chest when she swallowed; she doubted it was from dehydration. Her skin felt warm and she did not need a mirror to know that Dylan’s observation about her looking flushed had probably been true. Defiantly she took another drink. She would allow him to think her ill. She gave him a firm look when she caught him staring at her. “I’m fine, Dylan.”

  Of greater concern was that she had allowed their captors to come and go without her waking… twice. In fact, she had not seen them since getting herself Tasered for a second time. Another issue was that since neither she nor Dylan had access to a timepiece, they could not tell what time it was or even what day. The latter she could at least make an educated guess at. It had been the early hours of Saturday morning when they had been kidnapped and assuming they had not been continually re-dosed with Ether, then they had probably regained consciousness later that day. Their captors had since returned to feed them twice. So if there was any logic to this mess, this would make it day three since they had been kidnapped; which meant Monday.

  Finally, there was the question of where they had been taken. The dank barred hovel could have been anywhere really. For all Anna knew, they could have been taken to the other side of the country. Unlikely, but still a distinct possibility. One thing she had deduced was that they were underground. With no obvious air-conditioning, had they been above ground, the room should have been a lot warmer due to the current climate. Such an estimate of their whereabouts was flimsy at best, however, should the chance to escape arise the more information she had to work with the better.

  Anna forced herself to drink another mouthful of water; at least it felt relatively cool. The smell emanating from the far corner would soon become unbearable if they had to keep using it to relieve themselves. Considering this, she cautiously she brought her nose to her armpit. Her nostrils wrinkled; she could almost feel her eyes water. Her body felt sticky and her hair greasier than the school cafeteria chips. What she would give for a shower and a fresh set of clothes.

  Anna’s ears pricked up at the faint sound of a door opening from the opposite end of the room. Without thinking she sprang to her feet. Though in truth her movement was more akin to a sponge expanding than a spring. Even so, her eyesight remained sharp. “What the hell…” she exclaimed aloud when her gaze fell upon the group of three people that entered the room.

  The man she had bruised, referred to as ‘Rae’ by his comrade if she recalled correctly, came first. Behind him, the thick man entered, but he was not alone. Between them she could see clearly a ginger-haired girl being forced into the room; she appeared completely naked.

  “Move it bitch,” she heard the large man grunt as he shoved the girl forward, almost causing her to fall over.

  A muffled cry followed. The trio drew closer and Anna could see that the ginger-haired girl had been bound, gagged and blindfolded. A sideways glance told her that Dylan too had gotten to his feet and that he looked horrified.

  “You two,” Rae barked on reaching the bars. “Put your faces to the opposite wall and don’t move. Got it?”

  From the corner of her eye, Anna saw Dylan scamper backwards in compliance. Taking a moment to survey the group she casually walked back towards the wall.

  “I said to face the wall, Girl,” the man snarled at her.

  Anna looked at him calmly. Well, she had nothing to lose… “Say please.”

  As the words left her, she could see the twisted look of outrage appear on the man’s face. A thin smile formed on her lips. From beside her, she could almost hear the crazed shouts of panic that she knew were filling Dylan’s head.

  The man withdrew a handgun from a holster under his left arm. “Kiss the wall or I’ll put a cap in you. And this one isn’t a fucking Taser.”

  She locked gazes with him. “I’m well aware of that. But you’re not going to shoot me. You already threatened to do so if I spoke last time we talked. I’m still waiting. Now, why don’t you put that away and come in here and make me kiss the wall.”

  Before her adversary could respond the thick man spoke. “Aww enough with this shit.” He shoved the girl towards the cell door.

  Anna watched him roughly unlock it and with a strong push force the girl inside. The movement forward seemed to catch her by surprise causing her to stumble. Acting on instinct Anna hurriedly stepped forward to catch her. However, the girl’s momentum proved to be slightly more than either anticipated causing both to stagger for a moment before finding their balance. By the time Anna had fully regained her footing a loose bundle of clothing was tossed in her general direction and the gate slammed shut. Opportunity missed for now, Anna locked eyes with the gunman and smirked.

  “My name’s Anna by the way,” she said as the big man forcibly dragged his partner away.

  Once their captors had gone, she felt a wave of tiredness wash over her taking with it the adrenaline that had spurred her to speak. She wanted nothing more than to sit down again and sleep. Unfortunately, the girl started to shake violently and instead Anna was forced to wrap her arms tightly around the fragile looking teenager to save her falling over. The girl began to scream into her gag again and Anna had to fight to keep hold.

  “What the hell were you thinking, Anna?” she heard Dylan shout at her. She ignored him.

  “It’s ok… Calm down,” Anna soothed. “We are not going to hurt you so please try and calm down.” It took time but slowly the girl ceased to thrash. “It’s ok. You’re safe now.” It wasn’t true but she had to say something. “I’m going to untie you… do you understand?”

  The girl sobbed, swallowed a couple of times but eventually nodded. Cradling her softly Anna reached behind her head and undid the gag and blindfold. When they fell away she got her first proper look at the girls face. She was lightly freckled with blue eyes and soft features, swollen from tears. Though above all Anna noticed that she could only be about fifteen. The ginger-haired girl whimpered and tried to turn both her face and body away. Glancing to her left Anna could see that Dylan stood with his gaze fixed on the newcomer.

  “Quit gawking at her like she’s a creature in a zoo,” Anna snapped at him.

  Dylan must have only just realised what he was doing for he hastily turned around to face in the opposite direction. She turned her attention back to the newcomer. “Hold still and I’ll untie you.”

  Examining her bonds Anna discovered the girl's t-shirt bunched up behind the rope holding her wrists together. Gently she pulled it up over her head and back to where it belonged. The rope itself felt coarse and had been tied tightly but at the same time haphazardly. The thick man’s handy work she guessed as she worked the various knots out. When the last one came free in her hands she untangled the unsavoury mess and tossed it aside. It had cut into the poor girl's wrists enough to draw blood.

  Anna watched the girl stumble away from her, bring her hands up in front of her chest and begin to slowly rub at the rope marks. Picking up her jeans and underwear Anna held them out only for the girl to snatch them from her grasp. While the other girl dressed Anna picked up the bottle of water that Dylan had given her. She looked down at her own top. It's ruined anyway she thought as she tore two strips from the bottom. She chuckled to herself. Now it was a halter top.

  “If you like I can clean those cuts on your wrists,” Anna said softly, holding up the strips of material in one hand and the bottle of water in the other.

  The girl looked up at her wide-eyed before nodding slowly. Taking that to mean ye
s, Anna sat down and indicated for the girl to join her. Reluctantly she crossed the distance between them and sat. Gesturing at the girl to hold out a wrist Anna tore a small piece of material from the first strip and soaked it in water from the bottle.

  “This might sting a little,” she said slowly, giving the ginger-haired girl the opportunity to pull her wrist away; she didn’t. Applying light pressure Anna wiped away the blood on both wrists and turned the remainder of the scraps into makeshift bandages. She then repeated the process for the second wrist. “I’m Anna and that’s Dylan.” She indicated the boy who stood with his back to them. “What’s your name?”

  “Chloe,” the girl said in an almost whisper.

  “Nice to meet you.” Anna held the remainder of the bottle of water out to her. “Here.” Chloe took it cautiously but drank deeply. “Are you hungry?”

  “Yes,” the girl replied meekly.

  “Dylan, can you pass some of that bread over,” Anna called out, never taking her eyes off the newcomer.

  Dylan tossed the loaf over to her. “Nice of you to include me.” She gave him one of her sub-absolute zero glares and he quickly dropped the bitter tone. It amazed her that even now he could act so childish. “You still haven’t answered my question.”

  “I needed to see how they would react,” Anna replied offhandedly, offering Chloe a slice of bread.

  Dylan snorted at her. “Wasn’t it obvious? He was going to shoot you.”

  “He didn’t shoot me,” Anna replied firmly. “And he wasn’t going to either. It was an empty threat.”

  “How could you possibly have known that?” the exasperated tone Dylan retorted in sounded somewhat hysterical.

  “I’m good a reading people. The important thing is I now know which of them is going to make the mistake that will give us the chance to escape.”

  Dylan looked at her in disbelief. “How on earth can you possibly have formulated a plan based on what just happened?”

  “I didn’t say I had a plan.” She turned to look at Chloe. “I’m going to get us all out of here. I promise. Only I need to ask you a few questions. Is that ok?”