I drop to the floor.
Everything goes black.
…………………………………………..
I wake up.
My head is pounding, it feels like a freight train has made mush of my head. It is throbbing like shit.
Did my drunk ass fall down?
Before I can even think of opening my eyes, there is a blow to my head.
Everything goes black.
…………………………………………..
At the club with Kenton…
Kenton ~”Who is the last one that saw Trayton?”
Dominic ~”The bouncer and Jacklyn.”
Kenton ~”Get that bitch over here.”
Dominic hurries off to go fetch Jacklyn.
Ava ~”Kenton what is going on?”
Do I lie and stop her from panicking or tell her the truth and make her panic the shit off her head. The last thing we need is a hysterical Ava going off her head.
Kenton ~”We have not seen Trayton in almost an hour?”
Ava ~”What do you mean you have not seen Trayton?
Ava ~”How can you not see your brother?”
Kenton ~”He went to fetch his phone and he has not come back.”
Ava ~”What do you mean he has not come back? Go look for him.”
Kenton ~”We did, we only found his phone.”
Ava ~”What the fuck are you telling me?”
Kenton ~”We don’t know where he is.”
Ava ~”How do you not know where he is? Get off your fucking asses and find him! How do you lose a whole damn person?”
Dominic returns with Jacklyn.
Kenton ~”Now listen here, I don’t want any wise-ass comments or crap. Do you know where Trayton is?”
Jacklyn ~”Why would I know where Trayton is?”
Ava ~”Because you the only psycho bitch around here.”
Jacklyn ~”From where I am standing you are the psycho bitch around here.”
SMACK
Jacklyn ~”You damn bitch.”
Kenton ~”Ava doesn’t waste your energy on her, she is not worth it.”
Ava ~”Where is Trayton?”
Jacklyn ~”I don’t know.”
Ava ~”Bullshit. Where the fuck is Trayton?”
Jacklyn ~”I told your damn ass that I don’t know.”
Kenton ~”You the last one that saw him.”
Jacklyn ~”Walking past the bar yes.”
Kenton ~”Did you follow him?”
Jacklyn ~”Why would I follow him?”
Ava ~”Because you are sick enough to do it.”
Jacklyn ~”I don’t know where it is. If you cannot keep your lap dog on a leash it is not my damn fault.”
SMACK
Jacklyn ~”Fuck you damn bitch. You can be glad that I need this job or else I would have nailed you.”
Kenton ~”We will see about that.”
Jacklyn ~”What is that supposed to mean?”
Kenton ~”Just get back to work. But I swear if something has happened to Trayton and you are behind it then you are good as dead.”
Jacklyn ~”Yes boss.”
Kenton ~”Jacklyn do not test my patience.”
We wait for her to walk off before we speak again.
Ava ~”Do you think she knows where he is?”
Kenton ~”She is too dumb to pull something off by her own. If she has taken him, she would have needed help.”
Ava ~”What do you mean if someone has taken him?”
Kenton ~”Ava it is very unlikely that Trayton disappeared on his own.”
…………………………………………..
Somewhere with Trayton…
I wake up.
It is highly unlikely that my drunken ass fell again.
Being knocked out, yes.
I soon become aware of my surroundings. I have a blindfold on, tied on a bit too tightly. I am either in a very dark room or it is still night, possibly even both.
I am tied to what feels like a pole, it is cold and smooth to the touch. My feet are tied to the chair that I am sitting on which is probably tied to the pole as well.
Whoever has tied me up has done it so that there is no way that I can move or even attempt to get out.
…………………………………………..
At the club with Kenton…
Ava ~”What now? Can you guys not go search the parking lot again? Have you checked downstairs?”
Kenton ~”We have checked everywhere Ava.”
Ava ~”What about the cameras?”
Kenton ~”Dominic is looking at them.”
Ava ~”Can he not look any faster? Did you speak to the bouncer again?”
Kenton ~”He knows nothing.”
Ava ~”Who says maybe he is lying?”
Kenton ~”Believe me after the pounding Dominic gave him, he is definitely telling the truth.”
Ava ~”Did you speak to Jacklyn again?”
Kenton ~”No but we have one of the other bouncers watching her.”
Ava ~”Can you trust this guy?”
Kenton ~”Yes, he is one of Jackson’s old crew.”
Ava ~”What does that mean?”
Kenton ~”He ran with the mob.”
Ava ~”Has anyone told mom?”
Kenton ~”No not yet.”
Ava ~”When are you going to tell her? Are you going to tell her?”
Kenton ~”I want to take you girls home then I will tell her.”
Ava ~”I am not going anywhere.”
Kenton ~”Ava I don’t know if it is save for you to be here.”
Ava ~”I am not going anywhere. I will stay with Dominic, you can take Emma home.”
Kenton ~”Ava please.”
Ava ~”No.”
Kenton ~”You don’t leave Dominic’s side, I don’t care if you need to use the ladies room.”
Kenton ~”Do you understand?”
Ava ~”Yes. Are you coming back?”
Kenton ~”Yes I will be back as soon as I can.”
…………………………………………..
Somewhere with Trayton…
All hopes of breaking loose have just gone out the door.
The fuck that has me tied up definitely knows what he is doing.
Who the fuck has me tied up.
I don’t get my ass tied up.
This must be someone that I know well or someone that knows me well.
Then.
There is a door opening and I can hear someone enter the room.
…………………………………………..
At home with Kenton…
I have to tell mom that Tray has gone missing. I don’t know how to do it, I don’t even know if I can do it. I have just gotten out of prison, I do not how to handle a situation like this. The worst I am used to is a scuffle on the cellblock that is broken up by the guard in minutes. The last time mom got the devastating news, she refused to speak for seven years. But I am her son and she needs to know from her son that we don’t know where her other son is.
Mary ~”Hey you two. You back early tonight. Where are Trayton and Ava?”
Kenton ~”Ava is at the club with Dominic still”
Mary ~”And Trayton?”
Kenton ~”Mom please come sit with me in the lounge.”
I take mom to the lounge, it feels like my heart is beating out my chest and I am about to die. The same feeling that I get when I see Emma but only this one is a very bad one.
Mary ~”What is going on? Has something happened to Trayton? Please don’t tell me someone shot him. Did someone hurt him? Is he okay?”
Kenton ~”Mom we don’t know.”
Mary ~”What do you mean you don’t know?”
Kenton ~”He went to fetch his phone from the car and he never came back.”
Mary ~”I don’t understand”
I tell mom everything that has happened. She is shattered into pieces. Emma is holding her while she is sobbing her heart out. She is in absolute torment and pain and I have no idea how to fix it. I can’t even fix myself let alone my mom. Big brothers are supposed to look after their little ones and I have failed mine.
Mary ~”Kenton please find him.”
Kenton ~”Mom I don’t care what I have to do but I will find him.”
Emma ~”Go Kenton, I will look after mom.”
Kenton ~”Phone me if anything happens.”
Emma ~”I will.”
Before I go, I pull mom into my chest and give her a reassuring hug that everything is going to be okay. I pull Emma into my embrace too, not thinking clearly, probably from all the tremendous panic and stress on my shoulders, I pull her close and kiss her, not a peck on the cheek or lips, but a full-on passionate kiss.
Totally shocked and mostly embarrassed, I turn around and leave to make my way back to the club. Whatever happened now, I will deal with later, and all I want now is to find my little brother.
…………………………………………..
Somewhere with Trayton…
I hear someone enter the room. It sounds like it is only one person. The footsteps are heavy, it is definitely a man. He stops but does not say a word. He is standing close enough to me that I can smell the scent of his spicy cologne.
Trayton”Who the fuck are you?”
I cannot see through my blindfold but I can sense from his movement what he is about to do.
He smashes the flat of his hand into my face. My neck snaps to the left.
Trayton”Aaargh.”
He changes hands and smacks me so hard that it causes my neck to snap to the right.
Trayton”Take this damn thing off my face.”
Sensing that he is dissatisfied with his attack, He jabs me square into my right temple, I can almost feel the skin split as the blood start flowing down my cheek.
Trayton”I am going to fucking kill you.”
His second attempt makes contact with the bridge of my nose, I can taste the blood as it rests on my lips.
There is no way I am getting out of this, he is clearly here to destroy me.
…………………………………………..
At the club with Kenton
I arrive back at the club to a very panicked Ava.
Ava ~”We are never going to find him. We can’t find him. We can’t see him.”
Kenton ~”Ava, sweety, we will find him.”
Ava ~”You don’t understand, we can’t see him.”
Kenton ~”What do you mean you can’t see him?”
Dominic ~”Cameras were damaged.”
Kenton ~”You got to be fucking kidding me.”
Dominic ~”What it looks like it was done probably just before he entered the parking lot.”
Kenton ~”Do you want to tell me someone has been following him?”
Dominic ~”It seems like they were waiting for him to be alone.”
Kenton ~”For fuck sakes. Who has he recently pissed off?”
Dominic ~”There is Joseph.”
Kenton ~”Is he clever enough to pull something off like this?”
Dominic ~”He can if he had help. Maybe Becca?”
Ava ~”She is way too stupid to even think of something like this. I am telling you it’s that bitch Jacklyn.”
Dominic ~”I don’t know, she is obsessed with him but I don’t know if she will go this far.”
Ava ~”What about her and Joseph?”
Kenton ~”That is my best guess as well. Where does the asshole live now?”
Ava ~”He has moved in with Becca. Emma saw him there when she fetched the last of her stuff.”
Kenton ~
“Let’s go then.”
Ava ~”Who is going to wait for Trayton here if he comes back?”
Kenton ~”I am not leaving you alone here and I am not taking you with me either, I will take you home.”
Ava ~”No I am not going home. I am waiting here. Don’t you dare tell me otherwise? You are wasting damn time standing here and arguing with me.”
Dominic ~”Jackson is on his way, he will be here in five, she won’t be alone.”
Kenton ~”You call me if anything goes wrong. If you fucking hit your toe against the chair, you phone me.”
Ava ~”Yes I will, please just go now.”
Jackson arrives before we leave.
…………………………………………..
Somewhere with Trayton…
So the asshole that has me tied up has gone with the typical behavior of a captor. Beat the shit out of the person he has captured.
He has not said a word to me yet.
My face is taking a pounding, I have stopped counting where he has ripped my skin open, blood is coming from places I did not even think it is possible to come from. I can smell and taste it.
Trayton ~”You better fucking hope that I don’t get loose from here. I am ripping that damn tongue of yours out seeing that you can’t talk.”
He punches me right in the guts.
Trayton ~”Aaargh. You fucking asshole. You are going to have to do better than that.”
He punches me again but with more force.
Trayton ~”My fiancé can punch harder than that.”
His fist snaps my neck.
I am out.
…………………………………………..
At the club with Kenton…
Kenton ~”Fuck I am so glad to see you. I have no idea what I am doing here.”
Jackson ~”When last did you see him?”
Kenton ~”It is about three hours now.”
Jackson ~”Shit! Did you check the cameras?”
Kenton ~”Smashed.”
Jackson ~”Car guard?”
Kenton ~”He was on the other side of the parking lot.”
Jackson ~”Has anyone phoned?”
Kenton ~”I don’t think someone is doing this for the money.”
Jackson ~”And he has a list of people that wants him dead.”
Kenton ~”Right now we considering Joseph.”
Jackson ~”Joseph is too damn stupid. But let’s go.”
Ava ~”I am coming with.”
Kenton ~”No you are staying here.”
Ava ~”You are wasting time. I am coming with.”
Jackson ~”You don’t leave my side, do you understand me?”
Ava ~”Yes, let’s go.”
Too much time has gone by and we have done too little. Anything could have happened to him while we were looking for our own asses. I know he will fight back, but every person has their breaking point. Only the person that has him knows what is going to happen to him. We are hoping and believing that he is still alive. But what if we find him dead.
…………………………………………..
Somewhere with Trayton…
I come to again.
My head is pounding worse than it did before. My face is sore from all the cuts on it, the dry blood is pulling at my skin. It hurts where he punched me in my guts. My body is taking a beating and I think this is only the beginning.
What hurts the most is that today I might die and I left home without saying goodbye to Ava because we are fighting.
I am ripped away from my thoughts when I hear the door opening.
This time there are two sets of footsteps. The second does not sound so heavy, it is definitely that of a woman. Neither one says a thing as they come to a stop in front of me.
Trayton ~”Did you bring a friend that is just as mute as you?”
The woman slaps me in my face, a normal slap that comes from a girl.
Trayton ~”My mother hits harder than that.”
I hear them walk away to the other side of the room, they are whispering. I cannot hear if it is a familiar voice nor what they are saying. The whispering turns into arguing. After quite a bit of time they walk back to me.
The man starts pulling at my blindfold to loosen it.
He takes it off.
It takes a few seconds for my eyes to adjust to the dark.
I stare at the two of them that are standing in front of me.
Everything comes into focus.
Trayton ~”WHO THE FUCK ARE YOU.”