Locked Together (In Chains)

by Abbott, Michelle

  He slides down the wall until his face is level with mine. His hands are trembling as he cups my cheeks. “You mean everything to me, Savannah. I’m gonna love you for the rest of my life.” He closes his eyes and presses his lips against mine.

  I’m wearing Kayden’s scrubs shirt, which comes down to my knees. Kayden is wearing the pants. As I open the bathroom door, I hear Bailey’s voice. “Get off me, you animal.” Bailey is still tied up at the base of the bed and Reece is kneeling in front of her, her pants have been pulled down to her calves and Reece’s hand is between her legs, his other hand is gripping his cock. Bailey is struggling against her bonds and scowling at Reece. Kayden shoves Reece. “What the hell d’ya think you’re doing?” He glances down at Reece’s cock and frowns. “Put that away.”

  Reece pulls up his pants and stands toe to toe with Kayden. “I was planning on doing the same thing you been doing in the bathroom,” Reece says. “It’s none of your damn business. You said I could bring her.”

  “I didn’t say you could rape her,” Kayden replies.

  Reece smirks. “She loves it.”

  “She didn’t look like she was enjoying it. Lay off her,” Kayden says.

  Bailey is looking up at both of them, she isn’t saying anything. Reece scowls as he kneels down and tugs up Bailey’s pants. He flops down on the bed and stares at the ceiling. I lie down on the bed and Kayden lies down behind me, his arm snakes around my waist, I can feel his hot breath on my neck. “I bet you two had fun in the shower,” Bailey says. I glance across at her, she’s smirking at me. “You’ve had his hands all over your body, bet you wouldn’t find it so hot if you knew where his hands had been.”

  Kayden’s body stiffens and he jerks around to glare at her. “Shut your fucking mouth,” he growls, “or I’ll shut it for you.”

  I reach up and cup his face, pulling his gaze back to me. “Ignore her Kayden.” I turn my head to Bailey. “I know where his hands haven’t been, they haven’t been on you.” I smile sweetly at her.

  Bailey laughs humourlessly. “That’s where you’re wrong, his hands have been all over me, he tried to rape me.”

  Still smiling, I shake my head at her. “I doubt that. Wishful thinking on your part maybe.”

  She scowls at me, then her face breaks into a malicious grin. “Those hands have been in other people’s shit. Did you know he cleaned shitty toilets with his bare hands? He’s disgusting, who knows what diseases he’s given you.”

  Kayden gasps, then he closes his eyes, his face is screwed up, he looks like he’s in pain. He leaps off the bed, heads to the bathroom and slams the door closed behind him. Bailey is wearing a smug smile and I want to wipe it off but I content myself with replacing her gag and tying it tightly.

  I head to the bathroom, open the door a crack and peek through. Kayden’s standing at the wash basin, scrubbing furiously at his hands. I go in and close the door behind me. I turn off the tap and place my hand on his. “Kayden, stop. Your hands aren’t dirty.”

  He’s refusing to look at me; I see his Adam’s apple bob as he swallows. We stand in silence for a few minutes until finally, he looks at me. “Why are you with me?” he asks. “You can do better.”

  “Better?” I frown. “In what way?”

  He looks down at his feet. “You could have someone with money and nice clothes, a man who could take you out places and buy you things.” He wrings his hands together. “Someone who could marry you and give you kids.” He closes his eyes. “I love you but I don’t deserve you, I never have.”

  I take a deep breath before I reply. I don’t bother trying to stop the tears that are now rolling down my cheeks. It breaks my heart that he thinks so little of himself, that other people have made him feel so worthless. I reach up and stroke my fingers along his cheek; he’s still staring at the floor. “Kayden, I don’t want a man for money, there are other ways to get money and it doesn’t buy you anything that’s really worth having.” I place my finger under his chin and tilt his head up so I can look into his eyes. “We can get you nice clothes but I’m going to want to take them off you most of the time.” I smile at him and he reaches across and wipes the tears from my cheeks with his thumb.

  “Baby, don’t cry, I’m sorry,” he says.

  I peck him on the lips. “I’m crying because when you hurt, I hurt, because I love you.” I kiss him a second time. “Marriage is just a piece of paper, it doesn’t stop us wearing each other’s rings or committing to each other.” I slide my arms around his waist and lean my head against his chest. “You’re thoughtful, loving and gentle. You’re fun to be with and hot as hell. And children, unless you’ve had surgery I don’t know about, there’s nothing to stop us having children.”

  He steps out of my embrace and backs away, shaking his head vehemently. “No. They’d be slaves.”

  I hear loud tapping and the bathroom door opens, Reece pokes his head around it. “I need to take a piss,” he says.

  We’ll have to continue this conversation later because I don’t want to discuss it in front of Bailey. I sit down on the bed and turn the TV on to the news channel. Kayden sits behind me; he picks up my comb and runs it through my hair. They’re talking about government cutbacks, a murder in London and hospital closures but there’s nothing about our escape. “Why isn’t there any media coverage?” I ask to no one in particular. “That’s strange, aren’t they looking for us?”

  “They’ll be looking for us,” Kayden says.

  “Bailey, why isn’t there any news coverage?” I ask her.

  She mumbles something incoherent and I remember that she’s gagged. I pull the gag away from her mouth. “How the hell should I know,” she snaps.

  “You should know because you work there, you must know the procedure for dealing with an escape.”

  “We’ve never had an escape; I haven’t a clue what the procedure is.”

  I put the gag back around her mouth. Reece comes out of the bathroom and throws himself onto the bed. I switch the TV off and lie back down with Kayden. I rest my head on his chest and he wraps his arms around me. Maybe they aren’t looking for us. I’m mentally and physically exhausted; I can feel my eyelids getting heavy. Kayden kisses me on the head. “Go to sleep baby, you looked tired,” he whispers. I listen to the steady beat of his heart, I feel secure in his arms and I can feel the tension slipping from my body. I close my eyes.

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  Kayden

  I gently stroke Savannah’s hair, she looks so peaceful asleep. I badly want to snuggle but I slide out from under her, I need to be able to move quickly in case something happens. My eyes flick around the room, searching for something I can use as a weapon, but there’s nothing. Fuck. I look in the bathroom, wet towels; I guess I could strangle someone with a towel. I grab it and take it back into the bedroom with me. I hear a noise outside and my head jerks towards the window. I stand there, tense, listening, I hear voices but they fade away. No way am I gonna be able to sleep, I need to keep watch, to make sure Savannah’s safe. Reece is sitting on the edge of his bed, rubbing his hands over his face and yawning. I kick his leg to get him to look at me. “We need a plan,” I tell him. I look across at Bailey, “And we should leave her here.”

  Reece scowls at me. “Hell no, I didn’t carry that bitch all the way here for nothing, besides, she might be useful.”

  “Yeah,” I glare at her, “maybe we can sell her body to get some money, she’d enjoy that.” Reece laughs while Bailey glares back at me. I hear the sound of a car engine and I move to the window, pull the curtain aside and peek out. The driver turns the engine off and gets out. I hold my breath and let it out again when he heads towards another room and lets himself in. “I’ve got an idea of somewhere we can go,” I say to Reece.

  “Where?” he asks.

  I look over at Bailey, I don’t trust her. “I’ll tell you later.”

  “Yeah, whatever,” he shrugs. “Do you know how to get there?”

  I shake my head.
“I’m hoping Savannah knows, I’ll ask her in the morning.” Reece lies back on his bed and shuts his eyes. I guess I could tell him that we’ll take turns keeping watch so that I can get some sleep too but I don’t trust him. Savannah’s too important to me, if he falls asleep when he’s supposed to be keeping watch and we get caught, I’ll never forgive myself.

  I’ve been sitting on the floor with my back leaning against the door for what feels like a lifetime but is most likely just a couple of hours because it’s still dark. I’ve been jumping at every little noise; my nerves are shot to shit and my head aches. Savannah’s words keep running through my mind, she thinks it’s strange we’re not on the news. She’s clever, she knows things, she thinks we should be on the news, so why ain’t we? I know they’ll be looking for us; we kidnapped a guard for fucks sake. The chip. My heart stops beating and I feel cold. They don’t need the news because they can track us by our chips. Shit, they could be coming for us right now. I shake Reece awake. “Get up. I’m going out; I need you to keep watch. Stay awake. If anything happens to Savannah, I’ll break your fucking neck.”

  I shake Bailey awake and and untie her gag. “Have you got money?” I ask her.

  She narrows her eyes at me. “A little.”

  I run to the bathroom, Bailey’s uniform is still on the floor. The pants look okay, but I ripped the shirt open and most of the buttons flew off. I sigh. She’ll have to wear Reece’s scrubs shirt and wear her shirt over the top. I pick up her stuff and go back through to the bedroom; I drop the clothes at her feet and untie her hands. She glares at me as she rubs her wrists. I untie her ankles, I’m waiting for her to kick me, but she don’t. I point at her clothes. “Get dressed.”

  She pulls down her pants, I really don’t wanna see her naked but I have to keep my eyes on her, I don’t trust her. I watch as she puts her guard’s pants back on, Reece is sitting on the edge of his bed, drooling over her. She picks up her shirt and frowns. “How am I supposed to wear this, it’s ripped?” she says.

  “Shush, keep your voice down, you’ll wake Savannah,” I tell her. “Reece, give her your shirt.”

  She glares at me as she puts the shirt on. Savannah’s wearing my scrubs top, so I’m gonna have to go out bare chested. It’s dark; I’m hoping there won’t be many people about. I grab hold of Bailey’s arm and lead her over to the door. Before I open it I put my hand around her throat and push her up against the door. “If you scream, or try to run, or do anything to get us caught, I’ll snap your neck,” I snarl at her. I open the door and pull her outside.

  “Where are we going?” she asks.

  “A shop. I need to get something to take off this collar, and take out my chip.”

  She laughs. “Good luck with that, I hope you kill yourself.”

  I walk as fast as I can, I can’t see any people. I hold my breath as a couple of cars go by, but they don’t stop. I don’t know if there’s a shop near here, I’m hoping there is. I try to move faster, dragging Bailey along with me. I’m running out of time, they’ve probably already tracked us; I need to get rid of this damn chip. I see a big store and it’s lit up, it must be open, I run.

  I push open the door and pull Bailey inside. No one looks at us. I can see a couple of people shopping but they ignore us, they’re too busy doing their own thing. I drag Bailey past shelves filled with food and clothes. I need to find a knife, or something sharp. Finally I find the tools. Keeping a grip on Bailey I run my thumb along the edge of a thin saw, it cuts my thumb, it’s sharp enough. I pick up a knife with thin changeable blades. “Have you got enough money for these?” I ask her.

  “Not on me,” she smiles.

  I stare at her. “You told me you had money.”

  She laughs. “I do, back in my purse at the Compound.”

  My mouth is dry. I look down at the tools in my hand, I need them. I look over at the door, there ain’t many people here. I flip open the blade of the knife, grab a handful of Bailey’s hair and force her head back. I hold the knife to her throat. “We’re gonna have to make a run for it.” I dig the point of the blade into her skin. “Don’t do anything stupid,” I snarl at her. Holding the knife and saw, I grab her arm and run for the door. As I burst through the alarm goes off, I can hear voices calling out and footsteps running behind us. I don’t look back.

  Reece jumps up off the bed as we get back in the room. I’m panting and my heart is pounding. I look across at Savannah, she’s still asleep. I push Bailey into the bathroom and Reece follows us. “Get the sheets and tie her up,” I tell Reece. He ties her wrists and ankles and she sits on the bathroom floor, scowling. I look in the mirror and press the tip of the saw against my collar. I move it back and forth, I think it’s cutting it, but it’s taking forever. Finally it cuts through. I rub my neck; the skin that was underneath the collar is red and sore. I hand the knife to Reece. “Cut out my chip,” I tell him.

  I rest my arms on the wash basin and lower my head. Reece rubs his fingers over the back of my neck. “Where is it?” he asks.

  “I dunno, it’s in the back of my neck somewhere.”

  He rubs his fingers over my neck again. “I can’t feel it. Where shall I cut?”

  “Let me do it, if he does it wrong he could harm you,” Bailey says.

  I stare at her. “You think I’m gonna give you a knife? And what do you care, you wanted me to die earlier.”

  “You don’t want someone cutting into your neck who doesn’t know what they’re doing,” she says. “If he does it wrong he can paralyse you.”

  “And I don’t wanna give a knife to someone who might stab me with it.” I rest my head in my hands. We don’t have time for this, it’s gonna take too long, they’ll be here soon. I’ve gotta give Savannah chance to get away, without us she has a chance. “Bailey, I’m gonna give Savannah time to get away and then I’m gonna turn myself in.”

  “Hell no,” Reece snaps, “I’m not going back to that place.”

  “You don’t have to,” I tell him. “Leave now and take your chances, just don’t go near Savannah while you’ve got that chip.” I push past him and head for Savannah. I can’t tell her I’m gonna turn myself in, she’ll wanna stay with me. I gently shake her awake.

  “Baby, you need to leave, someone from the Pound is gonna be here soon.” I pick her clothes up off the floor and hand them to her. Her eyes are bleary and she’s looking at me, confused. I lower my voice so only she can hear me. “Do you know how to get to the farm where Clay is at?” She’s still frowning but she nods her head. “Get dressed and go there now,” I tell her.

  She puts her hand on my arm. “Aren’t you coming?”

  “No.”

  “Why not?”

  I have to make sure she leaves; I have to get her away from me to keep her safe. I swallow the lump in my throat. “Because I stand a better chance on my own. I don’t wanna have to worry about you. You’re slowing me down. You’re gonna get me caught.” I look down at the floor before she sees the pain in my eyes.

  “Kayden,” she gasps. “You don’t mean that, do you?” She leans closer and cups my face in her hands and I wanna cry. I wanna fucking cry. “We have a better chance together,” she says, “two sets of eyes and ears are better than one.”

  I take a deep breath and force my mouth to say words that I don’t mean. “I don’t love you Savannah, I never have. You should have listened to your brother because he was right, I’ve been using you and now you’re slowing me down. We’re done, it’s over.” I can’t say anymore because my throat has dried up. I can’t look her in the eye because I’m scared of what I might see there. I pull her hands away from my face and rush back to the bathroom. I don’t look back at her, I can’t, because if I did I’d be down on my knees begging her forgiveness, pleading with her not to leave me. My legs are trembling as I walk into the bathroom, close the door behind me and lean my head against it. I close my eyes and try to breathe.

  When I open my eyes, Reece is standing at the mirror, sawing the
collar off his neck. The door handle turns, I lean against it to keep it closed. I can’t face her, if I see her again I won’t be able to walk away and I have to, it’s too dangerous for her to be with me. I press all my weight against the door. She taps at the door and then I hear her voice. “Kayden, please open the door. I know you love me. We need to stay together; we can leave now before they get here.”

  I swallow and my breath shudders. I don’t answer her; I don’t trust myself to speak. Savannah taps on the door again. “Kayden, let me in, we need to talk.”

  Dammit, she’s not gonna go and they’re gonna be here soon. I have to make her go. “Savannah,” I scream through the door, “Get lost will ya. I wanna be with Bailey; we’ve been seeing each other behind your back. Now go.” I squeeze my eyes shut, my muscles are tense, my throat feels like sandpaper and I think I’m gonna throw up.

  “Okay, I’ll go.” I open my eyes, my stomach lurches. “You know where I’ll be, meet me there,” she says. I hear the door to our room open and then close. She’s gone. Reece goes back to sawing at his collar, as if nothing has happened. My head feels like it’s gonna explode. I drop to my knees in front of the toilet and spew my guts up. I reach for some toilet tissue to wipe my face.

  Reece is untying Bailey. “What the hell you doing?” I ask him.

  “I need her to cut out my chip,” he says as he unties her wrists. “I ain’t going back to that place, d’ya get what I’m saying? Even if they don’t track us, the damn chip will set off alarms if I go into a shop, or somewhere.”

  I freeze. Thoughts jumble up in my head. Alarms. I frown; I didn’t set off any alarm when I went in that shop with Bailey. They didn’t use my chip to shock me when I was at the Pound. Maybe it ain’t working. Maybe they turned it off. My breath catches in my throat. If it ain’t working, then they ain’t tracking me. I need to find Savannah. I leap up off the floor and grab the door handle, then I stop. “Bailey,” she has the knife in her hand, Reece is bending over the sink, she could kill him. “My chip, do they do something to it, to stop it working, or to make it work? Coz I didn’t set off no alarms?”