A/N: Okay now I've never written one of these before and it's nothing like anything I've written before so I apologise if it's awful. But I'm absolutely in love with these books and I know the style is upbeat and funny but I sometimes wish for a bit of tension and something more heroic for Morelli. So I hope you enjoy it.

Warning: Dark at the Beginning and Rated M for a reason.

(This takes place during Hard Eight when Steph and Valerie are kidnapped by Abruzzi, just continued as though Valerie didn't smash her way in and save the day.)

Part One

No matter how much they tortured me, I couldn't tell them where Evelyn is. They'd have to torture me until I was dead.

"Okay," Abruzzi said. "One more time. Where is Evelyn?"

I frantically tried to think of something I could say, but ended up just staring at him, hoping the look in my eyes would make him believe that I had no freaking clue.

Abruzzi looked at me with sick smile and nodded at the Bag, would dragged me roughly out of the chair by my arm pits and started dragging me towards stairs going down into a basement. I screamed and struggled, lifting my legs and pushing them against the closest wall causing the Bag to stumbled and fall. Abruzzi kicked me hard in my gut, causing a wave of pain and nausea to go through me and cried out.

The guy in the Clinton Mask grabbed me by my hair while the Bag put more tape over my mouth. The pair then carried me down the stairs to a basement fit only for the craziest of serial killers. Shit. Shit. Shit. Was the only thing going through my mind along with the extreme terror.

"On the hook," Was Abruzzi only instruction and I thought my heart stopped beating for at least a few seconds. Clinton held me while the Bag tied my wrists together with thick, scratchy rope and pulled my arms over my head and lifted the rope between my wrists onto a large hook hanging from the ceiling. I looked around and saw all the most horrifying pieces of equipment in a hardware store and an adult shop. Shit. Shit. Shit .Shit. Shit.

I found myself fighting back tears, which only made me angry as I watched Abruzzi walked around me with a look of deep contemplation. What was the sick bastard doing?

Abruzzi nodded at Clinton who stood behind me. I gasped in surprise when I felt him ripped my shirt off. "Hey!" I tried to yell, struggling against the rope, but my mouth was still constricted by the tape.

Abruzzi grabbed my chin in his hands, squeezing my jaw so hard I thought he was going to break it. "You were warned, you little bitch." He let go as Clinton ripped off my pants. Oh god, this is the end. For the first time in my life I was praying I'd die before anything else happened.

Abruzzi walked behind me as Clinton and Bag move to in front of me, leering revolting at my chest. "There are always prisoners of war," Abruzzi commented calmly. I felt something poke into my spine at my neck and get run down my spine as he continued. "And it never ends too well for the prisoners."

I could felt a cold sweat form on my skin and I hoped my shudder would be taken as a sign of the cold. I cried out against the duct tape as I felt something hit my back hard, it felt like a crop or a whip, some kind of rubber that felt like thick needles stabbing my back. He kept hitting me, I felt tears escape and roll down my cheeks.

"Talk," he hissed venomously as he moved to hit my legs. Despite the fact I couldn't fucking talk, I didn't know what to say. I tried to communicate this through the tape and he stopped, pulling on my hair and breathing on my neck. "You got something to say?" I wasn't sure what the hell to say to make him stop, if I nodded he'd only stop long enough to realise I'd tricked him and pissed him off.

So I said nothing and prayed he'd just kill me instead. I blacked in and out as they tried to get information from me, hitting over and over with the crop. They paused and I managed to catch my breath.

"This isn't working," Abruzzi growled. "I haven't got time for this?" I screamed through the tape when a hot poker my contact with my stomach and the smell of burning flesh filled my nostrils.

Next thing I remember is being slapped conscious by Abruzzi. "I have something else to take care of," he said angrily. "But I'll leave my associates to keep you company."

He turned to Clinton and the Bag, "Do what you want with her, just don't kill her." He paused and added, "And I want her able to talk, if she tells you anything call me immediately."

Oh Shit, I thought as I watched Abruzzi leave the room. I wasn't sure what was worse. But when I looked back and saw the expression on dumb and dumber's faces I knew I was in a look of trouble.

They were looking me up and down with a sick, lustful stare which made me swallow. "So what should we do first?" Clinton asked, walking around and standing behind me. He slapped my ass and I felt tears rush to my eyes.

The Bag walked up to me and stared at my breasts. "Well I'd like to use her mouth for something but don't think she'd be cooperative."

"Yeah," Clinton agreed. "And I'm not sure how well she'd be able to talk if she didn't have teeth."

Clinton then grabbed me breasts and pressed against me, that's when I struggled. I tried to break free of his grasp and kick the Bag who walked forward. I managed to get Bag in the shin and he hit me in the cheek, the kind of slap that makes your feel like its going to explode. Clinton pulled me right against him and squeezed my breasts really hard.

One of Clinton's hand went to my throat and squeezed till I couldn't breathe as Bag unzipped. "You're gonna love this, whore," Clinton spat in my ear.

There was a gun shot followed by the door to the cellar crashing down. Several men shouting police and charged into the room. Bag flicked out a knife but was shot by someone behind me. Then Clinton was pulled off me shouting and swearing. Joe appeared through the cops, holding his gun and walking over to the Bag, kicking the knife away from his hand. A couple of other cops walked over to him and someone radioed for an ambulance.

Joe turned around and our eyes met, and tears rolled down my face. He had his hard cop face on but I didn't care, he was here and I knew I was okay. As he walked towards me and slowly pulled the duct tape off, I wished I would faint and just black out. I didn't want to remember or feel anything. But of course I wasn't that lucky. I could feel everything. It felt like there wasn't a piece of skin that they hadn't hurt in some way and I knew as I was free to breathe through my mouth I was getting hysterical. My breathing was erratic, I was crying and my nose was run.

Joe lifted me up and pulled me off the hook, but as my weight returned to my legs I couldn't take it and my knees buckled. Joe caught me as I fell and lifted me into his arms, calling out to one of the cops for their jacket. As a jacket was used to cover me up someone else cut the rope and I looked down at how raw and ugly they were. It made me cry some more and I hid my face on Joe's shoulder.

Morelli carried me up the stairs, through the house and to his car, where he managed to open the door and put me in the passenger seat. I watched him pulled away and kneel next to me, the cop face gone. He looked in more pain than I felt so I put my hand on his cheek.

"I'm so sorry, Stephanie," he said softly, still aware of the cops everywhere.

"Wasn't your fault Joe," I replied, trying not to sound too terrible.

Morelli shut my door, spoke to a nearby cop and then walked to the driver's side of his car. I tried not to move as he started driving. "Well be at the hospital soon," he said after a few minutes silence.

"I just wanna be home with you," I said quietly and he put his hand on my knee.

"I know Cupcake," he said affectionately, although I could see he was struggling to stay composed. I closed my eyes and hoped when I opened them it would all have been a dream.