A/N: Alright, all! A new chapter awaits your viewing. I'm probably going to switch gears and focus on my original Walking Dead story after posting this. That one needs a little love, too. This one's been on a roll lately, so I hope you all don't mind!
NSFW Warning: Teeny tiny bit of smuttish tendencies, very very light breath play and hair pulling kinks. Veeery light. Blink-and-you-miss-it light.
Update as of 5/19/19: FINALLY! Welcome to the New World's facelift is DONE! Time to get back to writing new content for this bad boy!
"Do you think she told anyone at the table?"
"Nah. Knowing her she fixed herself some eel and went back to her room. She isolates herself when she needs to think."
"Good." I sigh. "I'm sorry, I just-I'm not sure if I want people to know just yet."
"It's okay." Nick says. He runs a hand through his mostly dried hair before looking down to me. "Ready?"
"No." I mumble. My hair is soaked, my clothes are sticking to me, and Nick looks pretty much the same. Granted, his hair is loads shorter than mine so it's closer to dry, but it doesn't take a rocket scientist to connect the dots. I should've just gone upstairs. Bloody hell.
"C'mon, T." He smiles reassuringly, grabbing my hand and giving it a soft squeeze. "It'll be fine."
I huff, recharging my thoughts. "Fine. You go first."
And he does after dropping my hand. With ease he opens the door and strolls through. I follow, up the stairs and to the dining hall, where the rest of the group, sans Strand and Madison (thank god,) is waiting.
They're already chowing on two cooked eels and some corn on the table, barely bothering to look up when Nick and I take seats on opposite sides of the wood. I take a spot by Ophelia and gently toss some corn onto my plate and fill up a small glass with water from the plastic jug on the table, mostly quiet while I thoughtlessly listen to the chatter.
"-Right, Tina?" I hear a voice ask through the noise.
"What?" I ask, shaking my head awake. "Sorry, not listening. What'd you say?"
"Your medical book." Travis says, looking to me. "You must've read that thing a dozen times this past week."
"Oh, yeah." I answer, taking a small bite of eel. "I've studied so much of the human anatomy these past couple of days." Ha. I purposefully keep my eyes away from Nick's across the table. "Next time we head to shore I want to grab another book or two. Maybe something on trauma and emergency room procedures."
"Definitely. That, and some more medical supplies."
"And more food." Alycia adds, her fork flicking corn across her plate. "We're running low."
"We're running low on everything." Strand announces as he hops down the stairs with an empty plate. "But my home in Baja will provide us with everything we need."
We regard him coldly as he leans over to grab some more food from the table. While we've accepted that the pair are gone, we still aren't happy with him cutting the rope on the strangers in the raft.
"How long?" I ask him, voice quiet. "'Till we get there?"
"A few more days." He replies coolly, taking a generous bite of eel from his plate. "We're close to crossing the border. Shouldn't be much longer."
"Good." Travis says, standing from his spot with his empty plate and glass to clean up. "The quicker we get there, the safer we'll be."
Daniel mutters something under his breath as he stands with his dishes, but I can't make out his words. It's so quiet that they jumble in my ear. That, and when he makes a sly comment he tends to say it in Spanish, so I'm fucked either way.
The two men head over to the counter, tossing the items in the sink before dispersing in different directions. Strand takes another bite of eel, savoring its disgusting flavor as he leans on the spiral stairs that lead up to his personal quarters.
I pick slowly at my food. I hate the taste of eel, and I never really found corn to be filling. But, that's what a girl gets tonight. Eat up, buttercup.
The sound of a door opening enters my ears, and I cautiously look up to the sound. Madison heads in, her plate and glass empty. Her eyes meet with mine, still seething and angry, before she pulls away and heads to the sink. Alycia gazes over to her mom and frowns at the cold shoulder.
Nick and I share a look. Should we say anything? Doesn't exactly look like she wants to talk. Still, he tries as she sets her dirty dishes in the sink. "Mom—"
"Nope!" She interrupts, waving dismissively over her shoulder. "No."
"Madison." I say cautiously. I should not have.
Her feet stomp heavily as she treks back to the door with vigor. "I said no."
Thankfully she doesn't slam the door behind her, but the air in the room drops a few degrees with her cold demeanor. I bite at my bottom lip in worry. Bloody hell. I did not expect her to be so mad.
"What was that all about?" Chris asks the silent room. I sink deeper into my chair, wanting to hide for the rest of eternity.
"Nothing." Nick answers quickly. "She's just mad at me. She'll deal."
A quiet snicker rings in my ear, and my head shoots up to the sound. Alycia pats at her mouth with a napkin, trying to hide her ever-growing smirk.
"Alycia—" Nick warns. Her hand grasps at the napkin tighter as her laugh becomes louder.
"Did she-" She starts, dropping the white cloth and laughing again. "Did she-"
"Please don't-" I add, glaring to her in desperation. Shit. I don't need to say anything; the blush on my face gives it away.
"She DID!"
"Oh, my." Ophelia grins down to her plate, chuckling quietly to herself. No. Don't you dare. Nick sighs in defeat, looking over to me. His eyes read, "I tried," and I let my head fall to my hands, fingers covering my eyes from the unfolding mess.
"What-what?" Chris looks over the four of us. "I don't get it, what happened?"
"Mom found these two," Alycia points between me and Nick with a shit-eating grin. I peak through my fingers to glare at her for explaining. "TOGETHER!"
"Huh?" Chris asks, and I get to enjoy the horrifying moment where the meaning sinks in. "Oh!"
"I'm going to KILL you, Alycia!" I groan into my palms.
Alycia bursts out laughing raucously, her fist banging on the table when she can't breathe enough to continue her overzealous squeals. Ophelia can't hold back either, but she's doing a better job than Alycia. Ophelia merely chuckles whole-heartedly, snickering loudly while I groan in embarrassment. Chris stares between me and Nick, eyes wide and looking like he'd much rather be anywhere else. I stare at Nick in defeat. Dammit.
If things couldn't get any worse, a deep chuckle reaches my ears among the kids. Fuck, Strand is still here!
A heavy pat rests on my shoulder, and with defeat I uncover my face to look up at him. The triumphant grin is extremely noticeable. "And you said he wasn't your boyfriend."
"Piss off, Strand."
This is not how I wanted dinner to go tonight. Bloody hell, now everyone knows!
I stand from my chair and hurriedly shove my dishes into the sink.
"If any of you need me," I announce, "I will be hiding. Alone. Maybe I'll jump overboard, I haven't decided yet."
More laughter ensues from the group, sans Nick, who isn't blushing as much as me, but his cheeks have definitely tinted red from the lovely dinner conversation. I nearly run to the door that takes me a level down to get to my bedroom. I speed down the steps, blush still prominent.
I swear to god, throwing myself overboard sounds pretty damn good.
When I shut the door behind me, I lean my back heavily against it and sigh loudly. My head beats against it, letting out some tension.
"Wonderful." I say to the air. "Bloody wonderful."
KNOCK KNOCK
I flick my knife open and closed on my bed to a quick mental count when the sound startles me. My eyes gleam to the wood, flicking the knife shut as I answer, "If your name starts with, 'A,' and ends in, 'worst best friend ever,' then please note that you have been evicted from this room."
"Ha ha, very funny." Nick's muffled voice answers. "Can I come in, please?"
"I guess I'll allow it." He opens the door as I tuck my knife back into my pocket, and I give a half-hearted wave. My legs are tucked under me, my hands intertwining on bent knees as I ask, "How do you feel about dating a killer? I might just throw your sister overboard, I need to know if that's a deal-breaker."
"A little bit." He chuckles, settling in at the edge of my bed. "C'mon, they were gonna find out eventually."
"It's only been four days, yank." I shuffle to him, resting my head in the crook of his neck. "I just, I dunno, thought we could be private about it for a week, at least."
"Shit doesn't go to plan, sometimes." He muses, resting his head atop mine. With ease he snakes his arm around my waist, pulling me closer. "It happens."
"We'll have to deal with Alycia's teasing now," I think, a small grin escaping me.
"Oh, yeah."
"And I'm sure your mom and Travis will make us sit on opposite sides of the boat for eternity."
"Probably." He chuckles.
I pull my head away from him, turning so I can look up to him curiously. "You don't seem to mind it."
Nick shrugs, eyes gazing to mine. "I don't, not really. When I hide shit, it usually involves needles and some pharmaceutical. Considering this big secret of mine this time is that I have a girlfriend? I think my mom should be relieved." The little jab makes me chuckle, and his arm around me squeezes in reassurance. "So, no, I don't think it should be hidden; I don't want it hidden. I can deal with the teasing and the overprotective mom. I've been dealing with them all my life."
"Well, lucky you." I muse. "I've never had a sibling to tease. And I've never had a relationship that my parents would be protective about. It's... Different, I guess."
He looks down to me, smiling. "Different can be good."
"Different can be great, once I get used to it."
"Exactly." Nick nods, leaning down to plant a soft kiss on my lips. I respond happily, shifting from my spot to meet him comfortably. His arm tightens around my waist, pulling me closer.
I shift in my spot to face him, pulling away gently as I let out a breath. If Nick Clarke can do one amazing thing, it's leaving me breathless. I sit up on my knees as I lick my lips, grinning down to Nick. My fingers gingerly rest themselves on his cheeks as I lean down to kiss him again, open-mouthed and lazy as I dip my tongue in his mouth.
One of his hands pushes my messy hair out of my face, grasping the unruly strands in a fist. He tugs at it as his other hand grasps at my thigh, swinging it over his lap so I sit on him. I gasp into his mouth as he grinds onto me.
"Oh, that's how this is gonna go?" I lightly tease as he grinds up to me again, rougher in his ministrations. I circle my hips back in a figure eight, and a soft moan escapes Nick. Ha.
"I'm not hearing you say no." Nick notes, mouth ghosting over my own in a smirk.
"Like I'd ever-" I stop as he yanks my hair back, the sound replaced by a surprised yelp. His hand tugs tightly at my hair again—something we've discovered I enjoy very much—and he peppers my exposed neck in soft nibbles.
We set a gentle pace, rocking back and forth, circling our hips until the both of us are panting messes and I can feel his hardened length through our jeans. With another harsh rut onto him and my mouth nipping at his bottom lip, Nick's hands guide me down to the mattress underneath, letting my back fall to it easily.
As I settle myself comfortably underneath him and he situates himself above me, giving one last harsh grind of our hips, he plants chaste kisses on my lips. These are kisses I enjoy too much; ones where we're both grinning, yearning for each other, dying for contact and fumbling just to get closer. One of his hand sets itself on the mattress to prop himself up, the other around my neck, squeezing just lightly. Another thing we've discovered I enjoy in our adventures.
"Nick." I pant into his mouth as he tightens his grip on my neck a smidge. My hand finds its way up to his, covering it in a soft grip. He's grinning to me. Something I've discovered that Nick enjoys; begging. He loves to hear me whine out his name, to hear me plead for more. I hum underneath his touch. "Please."
"As you wish." He whispers into my open mouth, and tightens his grip. I gasp, a hazy cloud spreading over me as I close my eyes and get lost in the feeling. He waits a beat before letting go, kissing me gently to ease my senses. His hand guides itself down my form, stopping above my jeans so it can fumble with the button.
The mood is completely ruined as the door to the room flies open, Alycia ready to walk in before her eyes settle on the two of us in bed.
"OH MY GOD-"
Nick pulls away from me as Alycia immediately slams the door shut in front of her eyes. I squeak in embarrassment, my mind replaying the last three seconds as I push myself as far up my bed as possible, giving a wide berth between me and Nick. My ears fill with Alycia's muffled, unintelligible noises on the other side of the door.
Nick groans, irritated, as he quickly shoves his hair out of his face. I readjust my shirt as I squeak out, "You didn't lock the door?!"
"I wasn't expecting to screw around with you when I came in here! I just wanted to make sure you were okay!"
"OH. MY. GOD!" Alycia screams on the other end. I pray no one else is around to hear her.
I hiss out to Nick, "I'm fine, thanks for asking! Bloody hell, yank, you know how you get when-"
"JESUS CHRIST, GUYS, IDON'TWANTTOHEARIT!"
I roll my eyes at Alycia's over-dramatic screeching. "YOU CAN COME IN, ALYCIA!"
Nick heads to the door, opening it for her as he adds, "We're not doing anything X-rated. Now."
Alycia stays by the door as she remarks, "Well, next time, lock the damn door! Or at least screw in your room, Nick."
"Hey, this is my room, too, 'Lych." I comment.
"Either way, I'm scarred for life, thanks, guys."
"You're welcome." Nick says, pushing by her through the open door. He looks back to me, saying, "G'night, T." Then he turns to Alycia, a shit-eating grin on his face as he tells her the same thing.
"Yeah, yeah, good night!" She shoves past him and through the bedroom door, quickly closing it behind her before she stares at me with wide eyes. "Really?"
I can't help but grin. "And so it begins."
"So what begins?" She asks, raising an eyebrow.
"The part in our relationship where every time we want a minute alone, we're interrupted by some other-worldly forces, like his sister and mom. Wonderful."
"I think I might vomit."
"I think I don't care." I stick my tongue out at her, laughing. "At least we didn't screw in your bed. Ooh, that would be wonderful revenge for tonight's dinner chat."
"Please don't. I'll have to burn the sheets." She sets herself into her covers, pulling them close to herself. Her eyes gaze over to me. "I really like them. Please don't do that."
"No promises, love." I respond cheekily.
"You are awful, Tina."
"Damn right." I pull my covers up, covering myself and sinking into my mattress comfortably as I say, "Wanna get the light?"
"Should I shoot them?! Dad?!"
"Please, PLEASE HELP! She's in distress!"
"Madison, Travis!"
"Something's wrong! Something's wrong with my baby!"
"Please, help her!"
I hear the screams through my sleep, interrupting my dream. Through my sleepy haze, my eyes curiously check the clock. It's not even morning. What the hell is going on?
"Tina?" Alycia calls into the darkness. "Can you hear that?"
I throw the blankets off haphazardly, shoving my knife into my pocket. My blood runs cold, a spark of fear igniting my veins. "The voices that aren't our group? Yeah. Something's wrong."
My hand goes to her backpack, shaking as I try to open the front flap. When I find the pepper spray I tuck it into my sleeves, keeping it in my palm but hidden from prying eyes.
"What happened?" She asks, standing from her bed.
"I don't know." I answer, keeping my voice calm. "But we're gonna find out. You have any weapons?"
"What? No—no, I don't have anything."
"Take the pepper spray." I shove my hand to her, jutting it out.
She shakes her head. "Tina, no, we don't know if they're dangerous."
"Please, Alycia, take it." My voice shakes as I press it closer to her. "If anything happened to you, I-"
"Nothing's gonna happen, Tina. Keep it."
I know her. When she makes a decision, she sticks to it. No matter how hard anyone tries to talk her out of it; even me. "Fine." I resolve. "But I go out first."
"Sure, okay."
I tuck the spray back into my palm as I open the door, keeping myself in front of her. The pair of us immediately hear groans of pain from a woman shakily waddling down the hall, Madison helping to keep her steady. I take in the newcomer's chopped, messy brown locks from the back, along with a watermelon-sized, hard stomach, and the blood running down her legs. Shit. I hope the baby's okay.
"Mom, what's going on?" Alycia asks cautiously, her ears trained on the pregnant woman's gasps of pain.
"The baby's in distress." Madison looks back to us, chocolate brown eyes full of caution and warmth as she desperately tries to help the woman.
"Who's that?" I ask.
"Just stay in the room, okay?" Madison avoids the question. "Both of you, please. We'll handle this."
Alycia and I jerk confused nods as the pair limply walk away, heading to the bathroom across the hall. Madison reassuringly murmurs, "Almost there. We're almost there."
As the pair pass the corner, I quickly take generous steps to the next door over, rapping my knuckles against the wood. "Nick?"
No response. I try again, my knuckles clicking quicker against the material. "Nick. Something's wrong."
When I receive no response a second time I grab the doorknob and open the room a crack, sticking my head in and searching his bed. The sheets are neatly made. He hasn't slept in them.
"What's wrong?" Alycia tries to peek through the opening. "Is he still sleeping?"
"He's not in there." My breath hitches in my throat as I pull away and shut the door as softly as possible. My heartbeat races unconsciously in worry. Where could he have gone? Is he with the others? "He's not-"
"I'm sure he's fine, Tina." Alycia says, though it sounds like she's speaking more to herself than me. "C'mon, let's see if the others are okay." Then her eyes widen, and she cocks her head to the stairs.
I go to step in front of her, like I told her I would in the room, but she takes the first steps through the hallway and up the stairs. My eyes search hers curiously. It's like she's in a trance.
One of the newcomers is speaking to Travis, Ophelia, Chris, and Daniel, seemingly trying to explain their story. I note that Daniel and Chris are the only ones armed, both cautiously holding guns—Chris, a handgun, and Daniel his trusty shotgun—while they look to the stranger speaking.
His hair is shaggy and jet black, and he has a square jaw. He dons multiple layers and jeans that are far too big for him. The other stranger's hair is dark brown, messy and unkempt. His face is rounded, eyes strikingly dark. Like the other, he wears multiple layers, but he has a visible handgun tucked into his jeans and what seems to be an empty backpack slung on his shoulders. He watches his friend tell their tale animatedly.
Alycia stares blankly at the pair, shuffling forward slowly. What the hell is wrong with you?
"Our hull got dinged when we were leaving the marina in Long Beach." The dark-haired stranger says. "We—we panicked. We thought we patched it up good, but we rushed it. Then we started taking on water and the engine flooded."
And a flash of realization flows through Alycia. "Jack?"
Fuck. No. My grip tightens on the pepper spray. We were caught. We're being taken over. Not friendly's; our stalkers.
Daniel looks over to her, his voice soft but eyes full of fear. "What did you do?"
"Madison." Travis gasps. She's all alone with the pregnant lady. But, she's pregnant, she couldn't do much harm, right?
The stranger with short hair yanks the pistol out of his waistband, immediately whipping Travis in the face with it. Travis falls to the ground heavily, groaning. In the second after the same stranger manages to knock the shotgun out of Daniel's hands and slides it over the deck, far away from us. Jack un-arms Chris quickly in the same beat. The two then point their guns out to the rest of us menacingly.
"Try anything, well," the brown-haired stranger gives a heartless laugh, "don't think we need to finish that sentence, do we?"
With ease, he bends and gets behind Travis, shrugging off his backpack as he does. He only opens the front flap, grabbing some wires to bind Travis' hands together.
"So, this is the Alycia you spoke to." The stranger asks. He wears a sickening grin as he pulls the ties tightly together. He enjoys this too much.
"Looks like it." Jack answers, eyes trained solely on Alycia as he points his gun out to the rest of us. Creep.
"And who's her friend?" The stranger asks, grabbing at Ophelia's hands.
Then he takes a second, pulling away. "Actually, I think you can handle this one. Ophelia, I'm guessing?" He asks as Jack tucks his gun away and situates himself in front of her. The latter pulls the wires around her wrists softer than the former, more delicate. With wide, terrified, surprised eyes, she nods.
Then the stranger stalks over to me and Alycia. My heartbeat pounds in my chest, adrenaline pumping through my veins like it's the only bloody thing keeping me alive.
"And if you're Jack's princess," he points to Alycia with his gun, then points to me with a wide, ugly grin. "You must be Tina. Pleasure."
He brings a hand to my face, fingers going to brush away a few escaped blonde strands covering my cheek. "Don't touch me," I seethe, jerking away from him.
He pulls away, entertained. "Well, someone's gonna have to tie you up. Might as well get to know each other before then, don't you think? I'm Reed."
I'm gonna kick you in the nuts.
Jack moves onto Chris' hands in my peripheral, swinging the wire over the poor kid's wrists. My eyes burn as I look back to Reed's face. "I know enough. I'm not impressed." I bring my hand to his face, pressing down the button on the pepper spray as deeply as I can. Reed screams at the intrusive chemicals, and inwardly I grin.
"Mother FUCKER!" He howls, a single hand going to face and furiously rubbing at his newly blinded and teary eyes. The other still holds the gun, making my victory short lived.
Blindly he smacks at my face with the pistol, the metal connecting to my cheekbone with a heavy THWACK! I groan in pain as I fall to the floor, the pepper spray flying from my hand and spinning on the floor away from me. Fuck, that hurt. The bruise left behind is going to be huge.
"Don't!" Alycia cries out, ready to pounce at any second to help me. "Please!"
Reed rubs at his eyes, barely able to open one. Still, he sees the nerves run through her, her hands flying out as if to shield me from more inflicted pain. He points the gun at her harshly. "Don't. She did this to herself." And he turns back to me.
"You stupid fucker!" Reed's leg connects with my stomach as he kicks harshly, the wind flying out of my lungs. "What did you think that would do?!"
He kicks again, the pain coursing through my ribs as it's harder than the first. But still, I grin. With heavy breaths, I manage, "Threw you off your game."
He bends down, fisting the fabric of my shirt in one hand as he pulls my form up to look at him. His grin is malicious. "You haven't done shit but put yourself through unnecessary pain."
The pistol connects with my cheek again, this time leaving a decently sized gash on the length of my cheekbone. The skin burns in protest. I can hear Alycia, Ophelia, and Travis call out to him, asking—no, begging, him to stop, but Reed seems too engrossed with my pain. Like I said, he enjoys his job far too much.
My head pounds with the echo of the gun connecting to my face. The ringing is dizzying. "That pretty face a yours isn't so pretty now."
"Please, leave her alone! She's just a kid." Travis calls out. "Please, please!"
Jack pipes up, tone even as he says, "We still have to find the others, Reed. I think she gets the idea. Let's just tie her up and leave her to deal."
Reed tosses the fabric bundled in his hands, pushing me back with the motion. He stands from his spot, staring at me. "Fine. You tie her up. Careful, she bites."
Jack does as he's told, walking to me with wires in hand. He pulls my arms behind my back and gently begins to set the wire, wrapping it around me with practiced ease. I don't want to think about how many times he's done this. We can't be the first group they've dealt with.
"Jack." Alycia pleads. "Jack, don't. Please."
"He's doing his job." Reed sounds bored as he picks up Daniel's shotgun, setting it in his hands comfortably. "Kip, keep tying her."
Jack nods and finishes off the ropes with a harsh knot. He tugs it to make sure it's completely secure. Damn. He does a good job. I can barely wiggle my fingers, nevertheless move my hands. He helps me up from the ground, my head still dizzy, and shows me to the couch beside Ophelia. It's almost kind.
"Why are you doing this?" Alycia asks.
"You can circumnavigate the world from this ship." Reed answers. "She's a prize."
"You're making a mistake." Travis says.
"No, I think your son made the mistake." Reed jerks his neck to Chris, who stares up at the stranger with pure hatred. "'Should I shoot 'em?' Piece of advice, if you have to ask the question, somebody should already be dead." He juts the shotgun over to Daniel on the floor in front of Ophelia. "Daniel's next. Your girl can help you."
"I'm not doing shit." Alycia immediately responds.
Reed sets the barrel of the gun to point to Daniel with ease. "We can bind them; we can shoot them. No skin off my nose."
Alycia glares at him, but knows that she has no choice. With glassy eyes she stalks over to Daniel, bending on her knees so Jack can bind Daniel's wrists together behind his back.
As Jack begins to spin the wire on Daniel's wrists, Reed orders, "Kip, when you're done check the rest of the boat. Look for the captain and Nick."
I mentally sigh in relief. They haven't found Nick. They couldn't have hurt him. Yet. But still, where the fuck did he go?
"How do they know our names?" Daniel asks Alycia quietly as she tightens the binding.
"I don't know, Daniel." She responds softly. "I didn't tell them about that."
As Alycia and Jack pull away from Daniel, a soft splashing reaches my ears from outside. Huh? Is it a raft? Maybe an emergency one? When I hear no engine purring I come to the conclusion it's an emergency blow-up raft, but then comes my next question. Who's on it?
Reed and Jack sprint out the door and onto the deck, Jack pulling Alycia with him. Fear sparks through my chest. Who's on it? Our capturers are too far away for me to hear what they're saying, but the two gunshots clearly ring through the heavy air of my group. Fuck, fuck. Reed comes back happy, a stoic Jack and terrified Alycia in tow.
"Kip, go search for the other one." Reed orders. Jack nods, leaving us. "Hands out, princess."
Silently, as if in shock, she holds her hands out in front of her. He shakes his head, setting himself behind her, and pulls her wrists backwards. He's harsher in his ministrations as he tightens them, keeping the knot small and leaving hardly any wiggle room for her wrists.
"Who's on the raft?" I ask immediately as Reed's done with her, straightening up in my seat. I ignore the pounding in my head. Thankfully, it's lessened.
"Our captain." Alycia responds.
"Just him?"
"Yes."
I relax in my spot, slouching my shoulders as I release a huff. Thank god it's not Nick, I think, but we still need Strand. Our situation keeps getting worse as the sun lightly begins to shine through the glass walls. Madison's alone, Nick's MIA, and Strand's on a raft, possibly dying. And we're bound.
I guess my relief shows more than I think, seeing that Reed gives another malicious grin. He swings the strap of the shotgun over his shoulder, striding to me. "Looking for someone, sweetheart?"
He takes slow steps forward, taking his handgun out of his waistband. I keep my tone level and un-afflicted as I say, "I just want to know where my team is."
"More specifically your boy toy, right?" Reed corrects. I say nothing, glaring to him. "Oh yeah, he's definitely your boy toy. I'm guessing you have other... Bruises, before this," he shakes his gun to me, "right?"
"Leave her alone." Alycia argues. "It's none of your business!"
"Hey, hey." Reed looks back to her, swinging his gun aimlessly. "I'm just makin' conversation 'till Kip comes back. So, am I right?"
He uses the barrel of the gun to push my hair away from my neck, revealing small, purple hickies peppered on my skin from my previous endeavors with Nick. I pull away from Reed, but the damage is already done. "Oh, yeah, you do! No wonder you didn't want to be tied up. Is that somethin' the two of you do? Huh?" Satisfied, he puts the gun back into his waistband.
"Is this really necessary?" Travis interjects. "C'mon, just leave her alone."
"Don't be such prudes, guys! Love-making is a wonderful thing. How do you think Vida is the way she is, huh? And it's not like any a you are trying to make conversation."
"Piss. Off." I growl at him. "You sadistic, perverted wanker."
"Harsh words, miss Waters."
I'm overly thankful when Jack returns, pulling Reed's attention away from me. No Nick in tow, though. What the hell, yank? Where are you?
Reed looks over to Jack, confused. "No Nick?"
"No one else on the boat." Jack confirms.
Reed looks back down to me. "Sorry, sweetheart, looks like your loverboy musta jumped ship."
"He's bloody smart, that's for sure." I hiss. "Smarter than you, anyway."
He's safe, wherever he is. Safer than here, at least.
"Well, we don't need 'im. The less people, the better." Reed shrugs, sauntering past me to look to Ophelia. "That a gunshot wound?"
Ophelia let's out a pained moan as he digs his thumb onto the front of it, pushing harshly. Daniel straightens in his spot at the sight of his daughter in pain. Thankfully, he keeps silent. He knows how people like our capturer think. Jack winces at Ophelia's whine. C'mon, you can take over a whole bloody ship but can't handle the violence of it?
As Reed happily walks away, satisfied with Ophelia's pain, he snaps, "Who has the key to the boat?"
None of us answer. The one who has the bloody key is probably dead in the ocean. You're fucked, bloke.
When he doesn't hear a response, Reed stares solely to Alycia. She answers, fibbing. "I don't know."
Unsatisfied, Reed sneers, "You're gonna start lying now?"
"You leave her alone." Chris seethes, eyes burning with hatred. Reed stares at him with a smirk, entertained with the kid's anger.
"Hey," Ophelia pulls his gaze away from Chris. "That guy you shot, genius? We aren't lying. That's the captain; he has the key."
Reed looks back to Chris for confirmation. "That true?"
When Chris doesn't answer, Reed flings his hand out, his pistol connecting with Chris' face. Travis immediately straightens in his spot, all but seeing red. "Hey, keep your GODDAMN HANDS OFF-"
Reed aims the pistol at Chris's forehead, immediately shutting Travis up. Both Manawas go wide-eyed, terrified at the gun pressed against Chris. Travis tries to plead with the attacker, all bite in his tone gone. "Don't—don't hurt him."
"I'm going to give you to the count of five to tell me where the key to the boat is." Reed responds simply. "One."
"He doesn't have it!" Travis gestures to Chris with his tied hands.
"Who does? Two."
"Please, just stop, okay? Come on, man."
Reed clicks the safety off the gun. "Three."
Travis breathes heavily, looking at Chris. "Strand. Like she said, Strand, our captain, he has the keys."
Reed is obviously unsatisfied with the answer. I'm ready to scream when he pushes Chris down, his hand settling on Chris's chest with his gun's barrel squared between his victim's eyes. "Four!"
"Dad?! Dad!" Chris yells out to his father. He tries to wiggle underneath Reed, but there's nowhere to go. Don't you dare. Don't you dare hurt him!
"You just—you don't need the keys, okay?" Travis huffs in fear. "I can—I can start the boat without the keys. I can wire the boat. Just let my son go."
Reed waits a beat before pulling the gun away from Chris, giving a hearty tap on the boy's cheek before pulling fully away from him. Chris lets out a shaky breath, yanking himself to a seating position. Thank god.
Two more people enter my sight, pushing through the door that leads to the bedroom and washroom hallway. Madison, with her hands tied and blood in her hair from a blunt force wound. The pregnant lady—Vida, if I remember the name Reed said correctly—has cleaned up, obviously in control of the situation. The blood adorning her visible legs is completely gone. My eyes burn in anger; it was all a bloody ruse. A damn good one, at that. She pulls Madison harshly from her tied hands, a gun pointed at Madison's head.
"Everything under control?" Vida asks Reed through grinding teeth.
"Mom!" Alycia gasps. Madison does not look good. Her eyes are glossed over, as if in a daze. She was probably unconscious.
"Maddy?!" Travis cries out as the pregnant lady throws Madison onto the couch beside me.
She groans in pain, but manages, "I'm okay, Travis." She looks over the group, counting the heads. "Where's Nick?"
"He wasn't in his room when we woke up." I quickly explain.
"I heard gunshots."
"Strand abandoned the ship." Daniel says. "They shot at him."
"Was he hit?"
"We don't know." I say. I hiss to her quietly. "We're in the dark. They aren't saying shit."
Jack pipes to his group, speaking for the first time in a while. "Strand yanked out the wheelhouse radio. We need the portable."
"And Travis here just bet his son's life he can start the boat without a key." Reed adds, grinning to his henchmen. He points to us, speaking directly to Vida. "So, watch them." Then he points to Jack. "Find the spare radio. Reach out to Connor. And take your princess with you."
"No! She stays!" I immediately disagree. Don't take her.
"Damn right, she stays! She stays!" Madison pulls in front of Jack, blocking Alycia from his view.
"Mom, don't." Alycia stands from her spot, hurriedly walking over to Madison. "It's okay. It's okay."
"It's not okay! You stay with us." I argue. I can't let you leave. I promised I'd keep you safe.
"No, Tina, I don't." She looks down to me, her soft hazel eyes gazing to my green softly. Dammit, I think. If she wants to go, I can't stop her. Never could. I resign, unhappy but understanding, and lean back in my spot.
Alycia looks back to her angry mother, softly adding, "I'm okay. I brought this on us. I can make it better." When Madison's stance is unyielding, Alycia whispers, "I trust him."
You shouldn't. He baited you, lied to you, and now he's taken over your boat. I'd slice his throat if I could. I just might, if I get the chance.
"All right, c'mon. Let's go." Jack's hand pulls at Alycia's shoulder, taking her away from the rest of us, soft steps padding out of the room and onto the deck. My heart pounds in worry, stomach knotting uncomfortably. And there's not a bloody thing I can do.
"C'mon, Trav, looks like you're gonna show me how to wire this pretty thing." Reed yanks Travis unceremoniously from his spot on the ground, like he's just a heavy object needed. With ease (and a gun pointed to Travis's head,) the pair head down to the engine room of the Abigail.
The feeling of hopelessness gurgles in my chest. I'm weaponless, without three people I greatly care about, under watch by a women who I'm certain wouldn't hesitate to kill me if she had the chance to. I slouch in my spot, my frown hardening. We're fucked. We're absolutely, horribly fucked.
My eyes latch onto Madison's, praying the cogs in her head have formed a plan to get us out of this mess. If anyone can salvage this mess, it's her. But all she can do is stare back, as lost as me. Dammit.
I shift on the couch, attempting to stretch my legs without moving too much, and feel something digging into my back. I frown. Huh?
Wait a minute…
Curiously, I shift to my right, the object pointing into my flesh from my back pocket. And it clicks in my brain with a zing of energy.
My knife! These wankers never checked me for weapons after the pepper spray. And suddenly, the pressure of the situation lessens. I'm not weaponless. I have more power than I thought.
I can get us out of this. I will get us out of this.
You will get off my bloody boat; whether you're dead or alive after doesn't matter to me. Time to take back the Abigail.
A/N: Woop woop! Little bit a smut, little bit a plot, and this is what you get. Fun stuff, huh? If you liked it, please feel free to leave a review or PM me about it! They really make my day!