Over and over like a fucked up mantra, Liv repeated the words Vaas had spoken to her, doing her best to figure out what he intended to do. She had no idea what he meant when he declared that he was going to fix her.

For days – three she reckoned – Vaas kept her in the trailer under the care of Yada and a pirate she had never met before; she wasn't much concerned with his name but he seemed to enjoy American-made muscle cars, so Liv called him Chevy. He was decent enough to talk to despite his English being broken, however, her nerves were a wreck the majority of the time, waiting on Vaas to do as he swore he would.

Perhaps the pirate was yanking her chain; he seemed to like making a mess of her. Liv was almost certain she was nothing more than a side project, one for Vaas to entertain himself with until the moment she was sold. And strangely she didn't mind his attention so long as he was civil with her.

And so far he was.

Day after day, it was the same nonsense. Vaas would walk in and talk to her a bit then give her something to eat and drink; food that she didn't have to pay for – she tried numerous times so as not to owe him, but he turned her down.

"Didn't your madre (mother) ever teach you not to look a gift horse in the mouth? It's fucking rude," he had once asked her.

Yes, but Vaas never shared his gifts without reason.

Liv learned not to question him, taking whatever he gave her. Sooner or later, she figured that he'd stop. And even though she liked having food in her stomach and enough water to last her the night, she wished he'd go back to being Vaas the murderer. It was easier to deal with him that way. Something was unnatural about Vaas the fixer; she didn't like it.

Was this a part of his process? Liv was familiar with the term fixer; a person who is attracted to people they can fix, but she doubted that Vaas honestly wanted to help her or that she needed to be mended. Her past was not happy but her demons were chained so there was no reason to want to drag them out. She learned to live with them. But perhaps Vaas wanted something from her, or perhaps this was meant to be her torture. She reckoned in a way it was. Her body was in fear of the unknown and her mind was a labyrinth.

He made her a paranoid mess, strung up so tight she was on the verge of another breakdown. She had no idea what lay in store for her, but one thing was for certain, her day was coming.

In the afternoon on the fourth day, Liv was on the couch with her knees pulled against her chest, listening to Yada and Chevy argue with one another about something she had no interest in when Vaas walked in. Both the men quietened down and waited for him to bark commands, returning to their duties as the said man sent them away. He dropped down onto the couch next to her almost in her seat and offered her a mango with one hand; in the other, he carried the camera.

Liv sat her legs on the couch next to her and took the mango, raising a curious brow. What was the camera for?

"I have a surprise for you, querida (darling)," Vaas mentioned.

"What sort of surprise is it?" Liv asked. She took a bite of the mango and hummed. Normally she'd find it rude to ask but the pirate was big on praise. The worst he could do is tell her to wait.

Don't spoil the surprise, querida (darling). Whatever the hell that means.

She honestly wanted to ask him to translate some of the more common words he used. It was like listening to her friends speak Spanish in high school when she took French instead; she was lost most of the time and guessing was not cutting it.

Vaas grinned and tapped her knee much to her displeasure.

"It's your big day; your face is almost healed. We're gonna film your ransom video, but after we visit Christopher. I have something he is gonna want to hear."

Liv hoped that whatever news he had was good for the actor. Perhaps Chris was being taken from the hole; this alone boosted her mood. A small grin spread across her face, but she did not comment on it. She sat in silence and ate her mango as Vaas tinkered with the camera.

It concerned her a bit that he was insistent about making a video for her though. He knew that Liv didn't have anyone besides her aunt to pay her ransom, she told him about this before, so the idea of making a video was unnecessary to her. But at least the bruises were almost gone; she'd be someone else's problem soon. Staring at him a moment, she ran her tongue across her bottom lip and offered the mango to him.

Vaas averted his eyes then leaned over and took a bite; the juice dripped onto her skin making her narrow her eyes in annoyance. She meant for him to take it, not eat it from her hand.

"What am I supposed to do during this video anyway?" Liv asked. She wiped her hand on the camo-printed pants - a set of interlinked cable ties kept them around her waist.

"Just sit and look pretty. Most people cry and beg though," Vaas answered simply.

How reassuring. But that's what I get for asking.

Liv almost turned up her eyes, but instead, she quickly ate her mango in an attempt to push their agenda forward, then followed Vaas from the trailer on his command to the front gate where the Scavenger was parked. Carlos and the others - Yada and Chevy - were there waiting. She took an uneasy breath and crawled into the backseat with Vaas, using her time to tinker with the camera and its finger fucked lens as it was tossed in her lap.

Here we go again.


An air of nervousness surrounded Liv as she rested on her knees in the sand having set the camera up on the tripod beside her. Her stormy blue eyes were focused on Chris as he lay unconscious. Every time she saw him like this her stomach churned. It was nauseating.

But he was OK. He had to be. Vaas had news for him.

The man in question sat down cross-legged in the frame with his back to Chris and filled his hand with white, then gestured with his head for Liv to start. With a nod in reply, she too was ready, eager to hear what Vaas had to say.

"Just when I thought I lost complete faith in society, something beautiful like this comes along," he remarked as he looked up at the camera. "The human spirit is... So full of mystery."

What was he getting at?

Vaas tossed the sand back down and grinned.

"You guys voted for the life of Chris and I'm gonna keep my word."

Liv was ecstatic. A wide smile pulled at her lips as she watched Vaas stand and turn to the actor, calling out his name.

"These fuckers, they want you to live. Which means..." The pirate sat down beside him with a grunt. "You're gonna be in here for another two or three weeks."

Why so long?

Despite feeling let down by this bit of news, Liv was still relieved that Chris was going to be OK. She locked eyes with Vaas and bowed her head in gratitude. In her heart, she knew that society would save him.

"He did the same joke about three times already," Vaas mentioned with a laugh as he pointed at the actor. "I don't think it's funny anymore Chris, so wake the fuck up. Say something nice to the people around the world on the internet."

A moment of silence passed, but Chris did not wake up or reply. The smile on her face slowly sunk into a frown. Why was he not responding?

Vaas called his name again and sprinkled sand on his head.

"Chris... Amigo (friend)."

He checked the actor's pulse and then suddenly leaned up on his knees in a panic. Liv wasn't sure if Vaas was acting or not but her heart was pounding in fear. He should have responded by now.

"Please wake the fuck up! Hey! Chris!" Vaas shouted as he shook him. He leaned down and tried to resuscitate him using mouth-to-mouth, but Chris didn't respond. He lay there lifeless.

By the second attempt, Liv knew that it was not an act. Tears blurred her eyes. This was not happening, not now. He was meant to live. She watched in horror as Vaas rested his head against the actors. He wasn't dead; he couldn't be.

Why wasn't Vaas trying harder?

Chevy suddenly ruined the moment, shouting the pirate's name as he ran down the beach toward them, standing in the corner of the frame.

"Shut the FUCK UP!" Vaas shouted at him, giving the pirate a heated look.

"Six skydiver just land on the island," Chevy mentioned in broken English.

Vaas widened his eyes in disbelief.

"Really?" A laugh escaped his throat. "On this fucking island?"

Chevy agreed then turned and ran past her, sparing her no look. Not like it mattered, she was in shock.

What did it matter if more people showed up? Liv narrowed her eyes at him. Chris was right fucking there. He needed help.

"You hear that Chris?" Vaas asked with another laugh. His attention turned to the camera. "Why the fuck do you people keep coming here? Hmm? I mean you know I'm fucking here."

He stood and ran past Liv towards the jungle leaving her alone. She honestly didn't care; she didn't even make a move to run. Staring at Chris through blurred eyes, she barely heard Vaas return until he was standing next to the actor again with a shovel in his hand.

"I um... I forgot to clean up my mess," he stated as he leaned down. "You know boys and girls always clean your room and listen to your parents."

Grabbing the shovel with the other hand he began to toss sand over Chris' head. Liv stared at him in confusion. She knew that Chris was dead, but something in her mind wasn't processing the information well.

"What... What are you doing?" She asked.

Vaas ignored her question and continued with his task.

"Sorry, Chris. This is not gonna be too long. Almost done amigo (friend)."

Once he was done, he leaned down into the frame again.

"I don't think anybody's gonna find him now."

Vaas grinned and blew a kiss at the camera then ran off-screen. He past Liv, but then backpedaled.

"Almost forgot about you."

Liv shook her head.

"H-he can't be. They voted for him to live."

Vaas snorted.

"Someone is loca (crazy). Come on. We have to go, querida (darling)."

She stood, but instead of following him, she rushed over to Chris and brushed the sand from the top of his head. His skin was cold to the touch. Tears poured down her face.

"Please don't leave me. You were supposed to live."

"Mourn later, querida (darling)," Vaas ordered.

He walked to her side, carrying the camera in one hand. With the other, he reached down and touched her arm, but she jerked away from him.

"Leave me alone!"

To her horror Vaas reached down and easily picked her up, tossing her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

"Don't be fucking rude when we have guests waiting."

Like she cared. Liv stared at Chris as he slipped further and further from view. He was gone and now she was alone with an unpredictable sociopath. She was doomed. Tears slipped down her face as she sobbed in grief.

I don't want to be alone.