A/N: Okay I had some hesitations on posting this chapter, so thank you so much DigitalGirl562 for the encouragement. Lol. I just needed to know that this wasn't as bad as I thought. Well anywho, here it is! Ch.7 of Vengeance! Hope ya like.
Rating: Oh yeah, this gets an R rating. (violence, language, attempted rape) *shudders* Please pacify my tormented writer's soul by reviewing and letting me know that this isn't as bad as I think. ^_~
A lump had begun to form in Matt's throat, as they proceeded down the hallway. T.K. watched his brother warily as they came to the end of the long corridor. It was in the formation of a T. The younger boy glanced down one way, which was shrouded in darkness. The opposite direction, he discovered, was also void of light.
"End of the line." Mac uttered as he shoved T.K. towards the right.
"Matt!" he cried out to the older boy. T.K. felt rather strongly against being separated from his brother at this point in time. His prime concern and worst fear was that he would never see his brother again.
"It'll be okay," his brother tried to assure him, though he was skeptical regarding the whole situation himself.
Both brothers watched helplessly as they were led off in opposite directions. Matt cringed at the thought of entering the darker part of the warehouse with Vanni so close behind. His entire body tensed up in surprise, as he felt a rough fingertip slowly trace its way from the nape of his neck to his shoulder.
"Don't be so tense." Vanni whispered in his ear.
Matt's breathing began to come out in small panicked gasps as Vanni gently caressed the side of his arm. Dammit! He thought, of all the worst-case scenarios, he had to get stuck with some sort of sick-minded child molester. The blonde could only be thankful that it wasn't T.K. in his place. He tried to maneuver away from the slimy pervert, but every time he swerved over to one side, Vanni always seemed to counteract his movements.
Vanni edged the teenager on a little bit further, before they stopped outside a large metal door. Matt could barely make out the doorknob in the dimly lit hall; it was eerily quiet except for the sound of a set of keys the dark-haired man had been fumbling with. Another close encounter with Vanni made the teenage boy shudder, as the taller man snaked his hand around to open the door, his arm brushing up against Matt's injured arm.
Upon opening the door, he pushed Matt inside. The youth stumbled forward, as he cradled his broken wrist. Before he knew what was happening, or had a chance to react, Vanni had him pinned up against the wall.
"What the hell are you doing!?" Matt screamed, as he felt Vanni's lips press up against his. The blonde tried to wrench his good hand free, but Vanni held it firmly against the wall. Then he did the only thing he could think of to do, and sharply brought one of his knees up. Vanni ceased his attack abruptly and curled up into a tight ball, as tears began to stream down his face.
"Y-You little shit!" he squeaked, rolling on the floor in pain. Matt glared down at him in disgust.
"You're the shit, you sicko!" Matt yelled at him, wiping the foreign saliva from his mouth with contempt. He was inclined to kick the pervert in the ribs, but his conscience advised against it. There had been plenty of justification to warrant such an attack, but Matt was more interested in finding T.K. and escaping than seeking revenge. He had to think quickly before Vanni had enough time to recover. Matt ran his hand along the wall, searching for a light switch. His fingers made contact with a smooth protruding object, and he flipped it on.
A single fluorescent shop light engulfed the room in a brilliant glow. Matt eagerly glanced around the room to see what he had to work with. This room was different from the one he and T.K. had been forced to sleep in the first night. It appeared to be a tool room. He dashed over to one of the countertops and began to rummage through the toolboxes and drawers. He needed something to restrain Vanni with. Matt opened one drawer to find a large crescent wrench; he pulled it out of the drawer and placed it on the counter, as he searched through the rest of the drawer for some sort of rope.
Out of the corner of his eye, Matt could see Vanni slowly rising to his feet. There was no time for a plan now, he thought, as he firmly clutched the crescent wrench in his good hand. The blonde stealthily walked up behind Vanni and raised the wrench above his head menacingly. As the grimy-looking man began to turn around, Matt brought the tool down with enough force to knock Vanni unconscious. His still body crumpled to the floor at the same time Matt dropped the weapon in unexpected shock. He watched as a large welt began to form on the man' s forehead.
Matt shook his head, and took in a deep breath. It had to be
done, he assured himself, though his hands slightly began to tremble.
Matt poked his head out of the doorway and did his usual check to ensure that the hall was clear. By this time, it had become routine. He quietly shut the door and locked it from the outside. Then an arrogant smirk crossed his lips as he tossed the keys up into the air and swiftly caught them, placing them into his jeans pocket. Now it was off to find T.K.
After roughly being escorted to his next area of confinement, T.K. was thrown into his cell. The young boy fell to his knees, and waited silently for the door to be slammed. He was presently surprised when nothing happened. He slowly craned his head to glance over his shoulder. Mac stood towering above him, and taking up much of the doorway itself. T.K. swallowed hard, wondering why Mac hadn't shut the door. The large man stood with his arms folded nonchalantly. T.K. rose to his feet and eyed the bulky man with suspicion.
"I told you I'd make you pay for doing this." Mac sneered, as he reached into his topcoat pocket, producing a bloodstained tooth.
T.K.'s mouth gaped open in fear, and he gradually began to back away from the disgruntled gangster.
Mac began to crack his knuckles as he menacingly approached
the blonde teenager. T.K. ducked behind one of the filing cabinets in the room,
as one of Mac's massive fists came crashing down.
"Whoa!" T.K. mouthed, his feet mechanically guiding him backwards. Mac struggled briefly to free his hand from the surrounding drywall, giving T.K. sufficient time to formulate a plan. He quickly dove under Mac's outstretched arm and tore out of the room and straight into his brother.
"Matt?!" he cried in disbelief, as he helped the older boy steady himself. "How'd you escape?!" he said, his hands on his brother's shoulders.
"Look out T.K.!!" Matt yelled, as he shoved his brother to the side and slammed the door shut just as Mac was barreling toward it. The older blonde braced himself against the door with all of his weight.
"Get the keys!" he shouted to T.K. "They're in my pocket!"
After the realization that his brother only had the use of one arm, he quickly reached into Matt's jeans and pulled out the set of keys.
"Which one??" T.K. inquired, as Mac lunged at the door. Matt was knocked forward and with his brother's help, the two slammed back against the door. With their added weight they held it shut.
"Try them all!" he replied.
T.K. frantically began to search through the set of keys and discovered that they were numbered. He immediately glanced up at the door to find its corresponding number.
"Got it!!" he exclaimed as he jammed the key into the lock and twisted it.
Matt sighed in relief and backed away from the door. Both boys stared at it tentatively as Mac continuously began to pound it from the other side.
"Sounds like a wild animal." Matt commented.
"Or a hot-tempered digimon." T.K. grinned.
"Come on," his brother urged, "with all this commotion, someone's bound to come and check." T.K. nodded as the two made their way down the long dark corridor.
"What are we going to do now Matt?" his brother asked, as Matt suddenly stopped in the hallway. T.K. noticed his brother looking at a door with a sign over it indicating a flight of stairs.
"Come on." Matt said, pulling open the door with his good hand. T.K. led the way up the stairs as Matt trailed behind. Every step he took seemed to inflame his injury further, impeding their progress.
"You okay Matt?" his brother asked with concern, as he glanced back at his brother, who seemed to be focusing all his energy on his broken wrist.
"I'll be fine T.K., just keep going." He said, waving his brother on. T.K. only shrugged and continued up the flight of steps. He halted abruptly at the top of the stairs, which led them to another door. T.K. slowly pulled the door open a bit and peered out through the small crack. In either direction he saw a long platform with railing.
"It's a catwalk." He explained to Matt, who had just caught up with the younger blonde.
"Maybe it leads to the roof." Matt suggested, giving T.K. a hopeful half smile of encouragement.
"Let's find out." He said, as he fully swung the door open and the two stepped out onto the elevated platform. Matt wandered over to the edge and rested his arm on the railing as he gazed down at the vacant warehouse floor below. T.K. glanced at his brother momentarily. He knew their previous excursion combined with this one was putting added stress on his brother's injury. He could tell by the way Matt took extra precaution with his arm, and how he had slowed down in the stairwell.
"Hey Matt, why don't you stay here for a few minutes, while I go see where this catwalk takes us?" T.K. suggested, hoping he didn't sound too patronizing. As expected, Matt took his generosity with the utmost resentment.
"Look T.K. I'm fine!" he spat. Matt hated pity, especially from his brother. T.K. was younger than him, and he was supposed to set a good example. Besides that, he hadn't wanted to lose his little brother's respect. I will show him, he thought, I can do this. I don't need any help, and I don't need any sympathy!
"I know you're in pain Matt. I can see it in your face. All I'm asking is for you to give yourself a break." T.K. said, his eyes pleading with Matt's. "Please."
Matt swallowed hard before answering. "I understand your concern squirt, but…I'll be fine." He pressed.
T.K. let out a defeated sigh. He knew when it came down to it; his brother was one of the most stubbornness people he knew.
"At least take it easy." He mumbled, turning away from his brother.
Matt acknowledged his brother's last statement with a nod, and followed him down the catwalk.
Murphy glanced down at the watch on his wrist. It had been well over fifteen minutes since he had sent Mac and Vanni to escort the two boys to their new cells.
"What's taking them so long?" he grumbled. "You two!" he said, pointing to a couple more of his thugs, "Go see what the hold up is, we have to leave here shortly."
The two men scurried off to find their comrades, as Murphy cracked his knuckles in frustration.
Matt and T.K. hurried along the catwalk, until it brought them to a door, which looked to be facing the outside of the building.
"It's locked." T.K. said, yanking on the door handle. "Now what?" he gave his brother a quizzical look.
"Let's check down the other direction." He offered, pointing towards the opposite end of the catwalk. Shortly the two boys came upon another door, this one leading into the warehouse. T.K. shoved it open to find a small corridor with an elevator at the end.
"We want out of this place, not further in it." he said eyeing the elevator doors.
Matt allowed himself to lean back up against the wall, as he clutched his wrist. The painkillers had subsided hours ago.
"Wait a minute?" T.K. said, a revelation coming to him. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the set of keys he had gotten from Matt earlier. "Stay here," he instructed his brother. Matt merely nodded; he was in no condition to argue with T.K. He waited until T.K. rounded the corner before dropping to his knees. He squeezed his eyes shut and clenched his teeth, in an attempt to suppress the pain surging up and down his arm. Matt inhaled deeply a few times and tried to compose himself before his brother returned when he heard some muffled voices. The older blonde rose to his feet and cautiously crept out of the corridor onto the catwalk. He edged closer to the railing and crouched down, peering at the once empty warehouse floor.
"The boss ain't gonna like this you guys." One of the men said to Mac.
"Shut up man!" Vanni sneered, holding the side of his head that Matt had hit.
"When I get my hands on those little…" Mac began.
"Well, you better find 'em fast before Murphy gets wise." The same man advised.
"Hey Matt!" T.K. shouted, startling the older boy.
Matt began to shake his head violently. He waved one hand in the air to try and quiet his brother.
"What's wrong Matt?" T.K. asked coming closer.
"Shhhhh!!" his brother hissed, bringing his index finger to his lips.
"UP THERE!!" T.K. heard someone shout.
"Uh oh." He squeaked, freezing in place momentarily. Matt leapt up from his previous position and rushed towards his brother.
"I got it open!" T.K. hollered, as the two bolted for the door. T.K. could hear the men clanking up the metal steps leading up to the catwalk, and this only gave him incentive to run faster.
He pulled the door open and let Matt fly by him out onto the roof. He slammed the door shut and locked it from the outside, then quickly turned around to see his brother surveying the area.
"How do we get down from here?" Matt wondered out loud. The complex had not been very tall, maybe about two stories, he guessed, but still…that was a long way down.
"Matt! Over here!" T.K. called, as his brother came jogging up to him.
"What is it?" Matt asked.
"We can get down over here." He said, pointing to a line of big rigs lined up near the back wall of the building.
"You want me to what?!" Matt cried, glancing down at the row of semis, knowing all too well what his brother had in mind.
"I know it's dangerous…" he began.
Matt looked down at his injured wrist.
"Oh…" T.K. mumbled, now realizing the cause of his brother's concern.
Matt caught the look in T.K.'s eye, the look that pitied him, and he became very angry.
"Alright, let's do this!" he shouted, tucking his wrist into his midsection.
"A-Are you sure you want to do this?" T.K. asked, a tinge of guilt rushing over him.
"Of course, how else are we gonna escape!?" Matt shouted back with his usual line of bravado.
"Okay, but I'm going first." T.K. announced, thinking that if he went first he'd be able to help Matt with his landing, or at least break his fall. The younger blonde walked over to the edge of the building and gazed down at the line of rigs, parked perpendicular to the warehouse. He estimated the distance from the building to the back of the closest rig, and then slowly began to step backwards. T.K. glanced over his shoulder when he bumped into Matt.
"We're doing this together." Matt stated solemnly, giving his little brother a look that said he would not take no for an answer.
They caught each other's gaze for a split second before mentally preparing themselves for what they were about to do next.
(TK's POV)
This is crazy! What are you thinking Matt? This wasn't a
good idea, maybe I should have suggested something else…but what…? This was our
only choice…Please don't get hurt Matt, I'll never forgive myself, all of
this…is my fault!!
(Matt's POV)
Come on man, you can do this! Don't chicken out now, not
in front of T.K. Oh, this is gonna hurt!! But you have to do this! You have to
prove to T.K… Matt blinked and stared at his little brother…What do you
have to prove to him? You're his brother and you've always been there for him,
or at least you tried to be…isn't that enough?? No, it's not! It's not!!
Both boys turned at the sound of pounding coming from the door.
"Now or never!" Matt shouted, as the two sprinted towards the edge of the roof. T.K.'s heart pounded in his chest, as the last sounds he heard before jumping were those of gunfire reports. Matt reached the edge of the roof first and leapt up onto the block of concrete that bordered it, using it as a springboard, he pushed off of it with all the strength he had left in his legs. T.K. was right behind his brother, he watched as Matt landed on the top of the semi, quickly recovering and rising to his feet. He braced himself for impact by bending his knees slightly and tucking his arms in with his palms facing out, almost like a cat would land.
Matt hit the top of the semi with a loud thud, and was surprised to find he had landed squarely on both feet, but the added momentum of the jump sent him sprawling forward and he flopped over onto his back and rolled for a brief instant before regaining control. Using his good arm, he pushed himself up back into a standing position and glanced up to see his brother sailing through the air after him. All the tumbling about had sent tremors of pain shooting up and down his arm, but he gritted his teeth and convinced himself that he could handle it.
"T.K.!!" Matt cried out in panic, as his brother landed on top of the rig and came careening towards him. T.K. thought he had landed on his feet, but soon realized that he was rolling straight towards Matt. The collision knocked Matt off his feet and he landed hard on his stomach, pinning his broken wrist beneath it. The teenager yelped in pain and watched in horror as his brother ricocheted off him and slid towards the edge of the rig's topside.
"NO!" Matt screamed, whipping his hand out and grasping T.K.'s as the younger boy dangled over the side of the massive truck.
The older blonde gripped T.K.'s wrist tightly, not only for fear of letting him drop; it was a good fourteen feet from the ground, but this minute act of bravery sent a throbbing sensation into his wrist, which was currently pinned underneath his upper body. That and the added weight from T.K. was enough to crush the injured arm. Beads of sweat began to trickle down Matt's face has he strained to hold back an agonizing scream.
"Matt!" T.K. cried, glancing down at the ground, which seemed so very far away.
"I'm not letting you go!" he said through clenched teeth as he struggled to hold on.
T.K. reached up and grabbed the side of the trailer with his other hand. "Alright…I'm going to pull you up, but you have to help me." Matt explained.
T.K. nodded, clutching the smooth surface of the semi's roof.
"Ready?" Matt queried, as he rolled onto his side, still clinging to T.K.'s wrist, and slid his wounded arm from underneath his chest. He painfully propped it up, so that his elbow was making a 90-degree angle. Matt intended to use it as leverage.
"Ready." T.K. confirmed, watching with a complete sense of guilt as his brother struggled with his more than mild discomfort.
"Pull!" Matt yelled straining backwards, the adrenaline surging through his body helped to numb the pain in his arm as he applied the extra weight to it, and with the help of the splint his brother had put it in earlier, he was able to prevent any further injury. With T.K.'s assistance they successfully managed to pull him up onto the big rig's roof.
As soon as T.K. was safely back on the roof, Matt rolled onto his back and let out a long, anguished scream. Tears streaked down his already glowing red face. T.K. watched fearfully as his brother's chest heaved up and down, and short labored gasps escaped his lips. After a few moments his breathing began to calm and T.K. helped his brother into a sitting position.
"You okay?" he asked tentatively, shifting himself closer to his brother.
Matt closed his eyes, whether he was thinking about the answer or not, T.K. was unsure.
"I'm alright, nothing I can't handle." He lied, he didn't want T.K. feeling anymore pity or guilt because of him.
"Matt." Came the soft reply, the older boy hadn't even turned to face him. He was slightly taken aback when he felt T.K.'s arms wrap around his midsection.
"Huh?" he said glancing down to see the top of his brother's white cap with a few tufts of blond hair poking out from underneath it.
"Thank you Matt, you saved my life." T.K. murmured as he embraced his brother.
The older boy reached up and caressed T.K.'s back gently.
"I'd hardly call it saving your life…more like preventing a broken leg." Matt slightly chuckled. This kind of reminded him of when they were younger, back in the digital world. T.K. used to always run up and hug him. But that was when he was what…nine? And somewhere in the back of his mind, maybe…Matt mused…just maybe T.K. did still need him.
"They're down there!!" a familiar voice shouted, and the two boys glanced back up at the top of the warehouse.
"Go!" Matt yelled, as T.K. and him scrambled up and headed toward the cab of the semi, as gunshots echoed in the distance.
Muwhahahahahaaa! And that is where I shall leave it! What did ya think? Not too bad. *shrugs* Well, I thought I'd have more time to write another chapter, but don't expect any updates too soon. *sighs* I am very very busy right now, and hardly get a chance to sit down and type. I apologize in advance, but no worries, I won't leave ya hanging too long. *grins*
