Andre POV (The Next Day)
Zero. Nought. Zilch. Nothing. That's the amount of a reaction we've had from Cat since she fell unconscious. She hasn't opened her eyes. She hasn't talked. She hasn't even moved, apart from the rhythmic rise and fall of her chest as she takes each breath. That's what I'm focusing on. In any other situation, watching a girl's chest would be beyond creepy, it probably is now, but I don't care, I just need proof that she's still alive. She's lying in front of me in the corner of the room, and for some reason I can't seem to leave her side.
Since she was knocked out we've tried to work out all the damage those bastards did to her. There were a few obvious things such as: a punch to the jaw where there was now a very dark blue/purple bruise forming, matching the dark purple bruise lining her neck; a very obvious broken arm where the bone was practically sticking out through the skin, I gag just thinking about it; and purple welts are scattered across her abdomen like a disease, signalling broken ribs. The injuries under the surface are harder to spot: there has to be some internal bleeding, as her mouth was filled with blood when she first go back in here, but without medical help there's nothing we can do, and we can only hope it's sorted itself out; next is her lungs, with that many broken ribs, one may have punched a lung. All I can do is pray that she's okay.
I moved my eyes around her frail frame. Her lips were slightly perched open, but nothing but a small noise came out periodically. The sound they made was a relief, but nothing more than a relief. It would be foolish to call it comfort. She spoke nothing. She was becoming nothing. Her head was laid against a a small pile of our jumpers and her mind must of been blank. Either that or completely ravaged by thoughts that tore at the very synapses of her brain, leaving her unresponsive in my presence.
"Andre?" I heard Jade call out my name from across the room, she was sat against the wall with Tori's sleeping state using her legs as a pillow. It was still strange to see the girls caring for each other, but deep down Jade has always had a maternal-like insist, normally with Cat, but with Tori in a weakened state I guess she'd turned her focus. I think Cat's personality change has come as a shock to Jade, she no longer has our Lil'Red to protect, and I think Tori's slowly taking her place. "How's Cat doing?" She asked, I could see the conflict in her eyes, between wanting to help Tori and Cat at the same time.
"No change." I sighed. "How's Tori?"
"Still asleep." Jade told me. "She really needs food."
"Give her mine." Beck spoke up, motioning the the spare slice of bread from today's feeding.
"You need that." Robbie interrupted. "I think... we should... she could..."
"Take from Cat's pile?" I finished for him.
His eyes suddenly dulled as he slowly nodded. I knew it was hurting him to even suggest it, but he was right. There were 3 days worth of bread piled up in a bread-bag, and the first day's worth was starting to get slightly stale. "Wake Tori up." I told Jade. "Cat can't eat it, so we can share out the 3 stalest pieces between us, Tori can have one to herself and we can have half each."
"I feel kinda bad about doing that." Beck sighed. "Cat's going to need it when she wakes up, she hasn't eaten in days."
"She might not wake up for days." I replied honestly, running a hand through my Dreadlocks. "Right now, we need it more than her." Jade slowly woke up Tori and handed her a slice of the bread. Robbie and I had half each of another, and Jade and Beck shared the third slice. Half a slice of bread really isn't much to go on, but when you're trapped in a room with nothing, it's worth the world. As I sunk my teeth into the gluten-filled food, my brain started to wander. Was that really what my life had come to? Half a slice of bread being a luxury, whist one of my bed friends was laying unconscious a few feet away, tortured from an inch of her life. "We really need to get out of here." I spoke up.
"Nah, really?" Jade said in her usual sarcastic tone. I guess that's one thing that hasn't changed throughout all this, Jade's ability to be bitchy.
I jumped to me feet and looked around the room for the hundredth time, searching for something, anything, a crevice, a seal, but the walls are a shiny surface with no clues as to where I could even start to plan an escape. All that's in here is us, a small toilet and sink, a pile of toilet paper, a bed frame (which is now in pieces due to me making the wood into unsuccessful weapons) and the small pile of food and water for Cat once she awakens. I tried to keep my breathing steady, my mind still focused. There had to be a way out, it's just a matter of thinking clearly until I find it. Maybe all I needed to do was ate enough weakness in the walls and then they would crumble under their own weight. Realising very quickly that I could never break the concrete walls, and even if I could we were underground so that would never work. I turned my head to the only thing that could even remotely work as an escape, I tried to open the door, my bare hands pushing against the rough surface of the door. It was all in vain. The door stood stubbornly in its place.
"AH!" I yelled in defeat, slamming my fist into the door. "Crap!" I swore, pulling my hand back, pain suddenly coursing through it.
"Andre!" Tori called out to me. She stumbled to her feet and walked over to me. I could see the hollowness in her face as she got closer, eventually holding my sore hand in her two smaller ones. "Why would you do that?"
"We need to get out of here." I repeated myself.
"And punching a door would help that would it?" She raised at eyebrow at me.
"You and Jade are spending too much time together." I joked lightly, referring to their very Jade-like response.
"And once we're out of here, no one mention that." Jade joked also.
"You know what we should do-" Tori suggested, leading me back towards the others. "-sing. When we last did it, it was kinda fun."
"Without Cat?" Robbie spoke up nervously.
"Let's just do it." Beck encouraged him, trying to forget the situation our red-headed friend was in.
The five of us sat in a pentagon-shape in the middle of the room, facing each other. I hadn't directly looked at anyone that long since we'd gotten thrown in there. We all looked tired, malnourished and dirty. That small sink in the corner wasn't giving us much in the way of cleaning products, just a stream of water, so all our hair was greasy and we didn't really smell the best, though that really was the least of our worries.
Tori suddenly opened her mouth and started belting out notes. From her voice you would never guess that she was in a weakened state. (Song: Skyscraper by Demi Lovato) (T=Tori J=Jade B=Beck e.g)
T: Skies are crying, I am watching
Catching teardrops in my hands
Only silence, as it's ending
Like we never had a chance
Do you have to make me feel like
There's nothing left of me?
J: You can take everything I have
You can break everything I am
Like I'm made of glass
Like I'm made of paper
Go on and try to tear me down
I will be rising from the ground
Like a skyscraper, like a skyscraper
A: As the smoke clears, I awaken
And untangle you from me
Would it make you, feel better
To watch me while I bleed?
All my windows still are broken
But I'm standing on my feet
T,J: You can take everything I have
You can break everything I am
Like I'm made of glass
Like I'm made of paper
Go on and try to tear me down
I will be rising from the ground
Like a skyscraper, like a skyscraper
R,B: Go run, run, run
I'm gonna stay right here,
Watch you disappear
Yeah-oh, go run, run, run
Yeah, it's a long way down
But I am closer to the clouds up here
All: You can take everything I have
You can break everything I am
Like I'm made of glass
Like I'm made of paper, oh-oh
Tori: Go on and try to tear me down
I will be rising from the ground
Like a skyscraper, like a skyscraper
(Like a skyscraper)
Like a skyscraper, like a skyscraper
Like all good things, our singing had to end, and unfortunately it ended badly. The large metal door swung open and Michael and another man were stood there, a harsh scent of alcohol wafting from them. The unknown man was roughly the same age as Michael, he isn't much bigger than the average fourteen year old, but there is no doubting his years. He was all muscle on that small frame. A grin spread over his face, wide and open, showing his teeth. In that moment his motives were laid bare; he was a man who enjoyed whatever torment he could inflict on others.
"Who... wh...who was that?" Michael slurred out, stumbling into the room.
"Who was what?" I spoke up, standing to my feet at the same time as Beck.
"You know what!" The nameless man yelled suddenly, his uncoordinated anger a clear sign of a drunkard, and the strong stench of drink adding to it, though he did seem more coordinated then Michael.
"Max, n..n..no need to yell." Michael said to the man, placing a hand on his friend's shoulder, in either a friendly way or to support his stumbling form. "We-hiccup-We came down here to-hiccup-do something, can't remember what, and we-hiccup-heard a girl singing."
We all quickly exchanged looks with each other, they must have heard the end of our song, when Tori was singing alone. "You shouldn't be having fun while being kidnapped." Max growled. "So who was it then?!"
"Me." Jade lied, standing to her feet.
"Jade no-" Tori gasped out.
"Come here... then." Michael said, motioning for her to come towards them.
Beck insensitively flinched forward and it caught Max's eye, so he pulled out a gun. "He meant alone." He spat. Beck stopped in his place, I could see the pain in his eyes as Jade slowly walked towards the men. Each step echoed around the otherwise empty room, until she stopped a metre away from them. "She's pretty."
"Yea..h very." Michael said, wiping his mouth on his sleeve and then suddenly snapping his fist out in front of him and into Jade's face. The punch was all but uncoordinated, planting straight into her nose, there was a blunt crack and Jade stumbled backwards in shock. Beck jumped forward and caught her as she fell, crimson leaked from both her nostrils and her nose was twisted right slightly.
As we were taking in the shock of the punch, Michael and Max were laughing sadistically to each other. Under the influence of alcohol, everything seems like fun, but hurting someone? No, that wasn't the drink, it was their psychopathic mindsets. "Learnt your lesson?"
"Mhm." Jade nodded, eyes clamped shut and hands covering her nose to catch the blood. Beck lowered her to the ground and crouched beside her, using the cuff of his sweater to clear up the blood. Taking that punch for Tori was brave and she didn't deserve the pain.
"So..." Michael slurred. "Wha...What was that thing... we... we wanted to do Max?"
"You've done enough." I said, standing my ground suddenly.
"I don't think so boy." Max spat, aiming his gun at me. The bullet galloped through the air and I braced for impact, the last 17 years of my life flashing quickly before my eyes... and then fading as the bullet raced past my head and into the concrete wall on the other side of the room. "Don't talk back to us." He was trying to play it off like he meant to miss, but I know he didn't. And that's what scared me. "We wanted to talk to Valentine."
"She's unconscious still." Robbie said nervously.
"Are -hiccup- you lying to us?" Michael threatened.
"N...no." Robbie stuttered, motioning to where Cat was laying in the corner of the room. He was trying so hard to be brave but it was obvious he was scared.
We carefully watched the men as they stumbled towards Cat, swaying as if the ground was the deck of a storm-tossed boat. "None of you better try anything while our backs are turned." Max spoke up, as if reading my mind.
"Yeah-hiccup- remember who brings your food -hiccup- 'cause that could quickly stop." Michael added.
After exchanging a quick look of worry, the 5 of us teens sighed and kept ourselves still in our places, watching the two men from a distance. Personally, my teeth were clenched and I was nervously fiddling with the zip of my jumper, trying to stop myself from lashing out as they approached Cat.
"The boy was right." Max nodded, looking down at Cat's unconscious body. He filched his foot out and I felt myself lurch forward, but Tori grabbed my hand, keeping me put. Turns out, Mad wasn't about to kick her, but instead used his foot to push her head to the side slightly, as if she were some sort of object that needed to me moved, rather than a human being. "She's out cold. Unfortunate, I was looking forward to bragging about how well our attack went, and how the Gambinos are in ruins."
I felt my blood run cold, that was Cat's family, and they were 'in ruins'... what? No! They were our only hope they-
"What?" Michael slurred dumbly. "We didn't 'ruin' them, they fought w-"
"Shut up you idiot." Max spat. "They don't know what happened, I was lying." He spoke in that way drunkard do when they think they're whispering, yelling but in a slightly stuttered and croaked tone.
I sighed in relief, the Gambinos were still out there, and strong. And now they know who has us, there's still hope.
"Oh yeah." Michael chuckled tipsily. "We destroyed them." He lied.
"So what's wrong with her then?" Max changed the subject quickly, sober enough to realise their mistake but too drink to notice it was too late.
"B...broken arm, ribs, bruising to the neck, jaw and internal bleeding." I listed bluntly, knowing that saying anything else could be possibly bad.
"Broken arm and ribs?" Max asked, before patting Michael on the back. "Good job." I felt the bile rise in my in my throat as he congratulated something so evil. "I think our job here is done." I said randomly.
"Back to the drinks!" Michael announced, stumbling back across the room and out of the door which Max. As soon as the sound of it locking echoed around the room, we all rushed towards Jade, checking to see if she was okay.
Jade POV
"I'b FINE!" I yelled, my 'm' coming out as more of a 'b' noise, due to my broken nose.
"You really aren't." Beck counted, still trying to dab away the rest of my blood.
"I'll survive." I sighed, pushing him away and using my sleeve to catch the rest of the blood.
"I can't believe you got hurt. Again." Beck said to himself, his hands on either side of his head.
"There was nothing you could do." Andre tried to comfort. "They had a gun, and even if you did do something, they're right, they control our food and they could just stop giving it to us and watch us starve."
"I hate this." Beck breathed out. "I mean, I've always hated this but... ARGH We need to get out of here!" He yelled suddenly, anger coursing through his veins.
"Hey Babe, calb(m) down." I said, pulling him around and putting my hands on his shoulder's to calm him. "The Gab(m)binos are still going strong," I reminded "which b(m)eans there's a big chance they're looking for Cat, and therefore, us."
"Sorry." He sighed, kissing my forehead lovingly. "You're right. I lost control, I-"
"It's okay." I smiled weakly. "Cob(m)e on." I lead him to the corner of the room, opposite to where Cat was laying. We sat against the wall and I rested my head onto his shoulder. We hadn't really 'cuddled' since we got here, and I think we both needed it. I felt Beck's hand snake around my waist as we sat beside each other, pulling me closer. Relaxing in the moment, I closed my eyes.
And that's how we stayed. Sat in each other's arms. Together. Until, about 15 minutes later, the door opened again. At first I refused to open my eyes, not allowing this intruder to interrupt this blissful moment, but once I noticed the rhythmic clicking of high heeled shoes, I was curious.
Slowly, I opened my eyes to see the woman that walked into the room. She was stunning, could have graced any billboard or magazine cover, but she was better than those two dimensional photo shopped models. Somehow her imperfections made her perfect. My first thought was questioning why she was here of all places, she did not seem like the type of person so get their hands dirty with Mafia work, but then again, nor did Cat. There was a shyness to the woman, hesitation in her body movements as she stopped in the middle of the room.
"W..who are you?" I heard Tori speak up.
"My name isn't important." The lady shook her head and looked at the ground, avoiding eye contact with all of us.
"Why are you here?" I spoke up.
"I'm sorry, but I have to be quick." She reached into her pocket and pulled something out. At first I thought it was a weapon of some sort, but I was quickly disproved, as she revealed a small roll of elastic bandage. Carefully, she placed in on the floor in front of her, moving slowly as if to not scare us. "My husband, he is the heir to this Crime Family-" she started to explain. "-of course I didn't know until we married, but then it was too late. Anyway, I've only come to his place of work once or twice, typically to drive him home when he's had a drink. I came today, and heard him brag about something despicable he had just done, broken a girl's ribs and that she and her friends were locked in the basement." She shuddered as she spoke, and it all suddenly clicked into place in my head, she was on our side. "I knew they had a first aid box here, in case they got injured, and I just had to bring this down. I'm so sorry that you're stuck in here, and I wish I could do more, but I can't." She shot me a sympathetic look, noticing the dried blood on my face. "Here." She said, removing a small box from her other pocket and throwing it to me. "Pain relief." She explained quickly, turning on here heal and walking towards the door.
"Thank you." I said as she left.
We sat in silence for a few moments after the door closed taking in what had just happened. Empathy and compassion was something we had yet to discover during our time there, and we'd just been hit by a truck load of it. That woman, whoever she was, had just done us the world of good, and I hope she knows it. She seemed like a genuine person, a bit maybe a bit of a gold-digger who'd fallen for a man with money, because obviously Michael's personality was nothing to want so there had to be something else. But either way, she was here and she helped us.
I fumbled with the cardboard box in my hand, opening the top and pulling out the tablet tray. The pain in my nose was excruciating, so I popped out 2 of the small white tablets and placed them into my mouth, quickly swallowing them. I counted the remaining 6 tablets and left them inside the box for Cat to take once she woke up. Which reminded me about the bandage left for her. I looked up to see Tori and Andre sat, unraveling it between them.
They stood up together and carried the bandage over to Cat's unconscious frame, the rest of us following behind. As we reached her, Tori and I sat either side of Cat's body and started to lift her shirt. The boys very quickly turned away at this point, I could see Robbie's ears go red as he blushed. I laughed to myself as Tori and I carefully rolled the bottom of her shirt up to her bra. And then it suddenly felt like laughing was the last thing I wanted to do.
I knew Cat hadn't had any food for a few days, but I wasn't expecting this. She wasn't just thin, she was scarily thin. It was so clear just looking at her stuck cheekbones and the skinniness of her limbs, that this girl was malnourished, but lifting her shirt told a whole new chapter of the story. Her ribs stuck out like a sore thumb, not just because of the purple welts on them, but because they were barely covered by the thin layer of flesh that stretched over the bones. They were so stuck out, you could practically see where the break lines were, and nearly the organs that laid beneath her dangerously sunk down stomach. Before arriving here, Cat was in no way fat but not extremely skinny either, she was a very healthy weight, but now... now I couldn't help but wondered how far she was from organ failure.
Wanting to get this over with quickly, Tori and I got to work, carefully wrapping the bandage around her torso to help splint and immobilize the area. It wasn't much, but it would help to keep her ribs in place so they wouldn't heal strangely and hopefully stop some of the pain.
Until she woke up, it was all we could do. That and pray it was enough.