(Nine)

The next day, Victor Creed woke from a most marvelous sleep. It was well into the afternoon, late for him, but this was a not a working day. He could have cared less. The bed beside him was empty, yet he wasn't concerned. He knew Kimble was a light sleeper and restless. He scratched his belly, content. It had been a good decision coming here. It had been a while since he'd been here and was ready to enjoy a few days of peace and quiet. He rose and dressed in a loose pair of jeans before shuffling out into the kitchen.

Mary was there sitting at the table, drinking coffee and reading the newspaper. She had always been an early riser and she had showered and dressed already. In fact, he could see she had gone into town to buy some bagels and muffins. The coffee was fresh, just made and smelled wonderful.

Victor looked around him and scowled when Kimble was nowhere in sight. The cabin wasn't so large it had places to hide. "Where's Kim?"

"Outside playing in the snow," Mary replied without looking up from her paper. It was a mistake.

Creed grabbed her hair, roughly hauling her to her feet and gave her a brutal slap to the face. "What kind of moron are you? You can't let him out of your sight!"

Creed was still paranoid about Jael tracking them, there were no guarantees of their safety even in this remote place. Jael was powerful, he had spies everywhere. On top of that, he still had some lingering concerns about Kimble's loyalties. He didn't really know if Kimble would run away or not now that Leon was no longer a hostage. Sabretooth had reacted without thinking, his anger robbing him of his senses. He needed the backwash, was indeed quite addicted, and wasn't about to let his supplier go wandering off into the snowy woods.

Mary reeled and slumped in her chair when Victor rudely dumped her back into her seat. "What's the big deal? You know he won't go anywhere!" she gasped, shocked that he had actually struck her. He hadn't done that before outside of having sex.

He slapped at her again. "Jael's still out there, girlie! Tell me you ain't that stupid!"

Mary gasped and sobbed, she couldn't help it. The blows had been painful and unexpected. She hadn't anticipated there would be any trouble over this, Kimble appeared to be well trained and didn't seem the wandering type. It had never occurred to her that Jael would come looking, certainly not to this far away place.

Creed didn't wait for her answer. He looked through the window, but all he could see was trampled snow from this viewpoint. Kimble had been having quite the little romp outside but there was no sign of him anywhere now. He snarled and grabbed his coat. He shoved his bare feet into some boots and slammed the door on his way out.

Kimble hadn't gone far at all, it was just that he couldn't be seen from the window. He had bundled up in one of Creed's large coats and had been having himself a grand time. He had started out romping and running about, bunny hopping in the deeper drifts of snow. It was cold and made him shiver, but he had never been more thrilled. It brought back such memories of father, Lakotashay was beside herself with glee.

Kimble had some of his memories restored, but he didn't remember everything that had happened to him since he had been created, not by far. However, he did recall most of the glorious adventure he'd had when his creator, Sheyman, had squirreled him out of the Siskan castle and taken him on a day trip up to the mountains. It was the one and only other time Kimble had experienced snow like this. What an amazing day of fun that had been. Like today, he had tromped through the deep snow, wallowing in it and having snowball fights with Sheyman. Everything with Kimble was about playtime and having fun, he'd known no greater bliss than that day of joy.

When up on the mountain, he and Sheyman had built a magnificent castle from snow. The memory of that enjoyable task inspired him to do it again. He had gone back into the house and taken a blanket to spread out so he wasn't sitting in the snow itself while he played. He was having a grand time, he had used his artistic and telekinetic ability to construct another elaborate castle out of snow. This one was much nicer than the one he and his Father had built, he hadn't possessed any telekinetic ability at the time he'd lived with Sheyman. It made him a little sad to think that he was so different now. Would Sheyman even know him now? Would he still be able to love them anymore? He didn't quite think so.

Creed was only a few paces away, paused in wonder at the beautiful thing his servant had made. Kimble wasn't waiting for his praise, he had no idea his Master was near. No, he was muttering away to himself, having a nice three way conversation all alone.

"This castle come out good, Kim," Zander was saying. It was odd for him to praise Kimble for anything, but this creation was magnificent. It had towers and walkways and even some banner flags he had made from leaves. No ordinary human could build such a thing without hours of trial and effort, but Kimble had made it in less than an hour.

Kimble giggled like a little kid, easily pleased by the compliment. He was thrilled it had come out so well. Perhaps the Master would be impressed. "I likes it all right."

"It looks like where we used to live with father," Lakotashay commented, popping out.

Kimble's shoulders slumped a little. "I miss father."

"Me, too," 'Shay replied. "We could go see him again, Kim. It would be so easy."

Kimble looked in dull amazement as a spike formed in his hand, long and jagged. He said nothing, but just looked at it blankly.

"Father's in the light," Lakotashay continued to coax. "He said he would be waitin' fer us."

"We cain't go back ta see him no more," Kimble said sadly, his shoulders slumping even more. "We ain't good enough fer him. Not him, not nobody. We're broken, ruined. No good fer nuthin'. We broke all the rules. He wouldn't want us no more."

"That's not true. Father always loves us."

Kimble shook his head. "We kill, we rape, we use the phone...we hurt evrabody what ever loved us. If we gos back.. we'll hurts him, too. It jus' keeps happ'nin."

We done a bad thing... the tiny pilot child confessed from within, a small haunting voice.

Kimble shuddered and a tear fell. His good mood had evaporated under the spell of the Quitter and she was filling him up with her gloom, making him feel sad and depressed.

Creed stood still listening to this, not quite sure what to do. He thought perhaps he should interrupt, haul Kimble's ass back inside the house, but he was curious about who this mysterious father was. Kimble had never mentioned him before.

"It won't happen, Kim," 'Shay promised, pressing on. "See this castle, I jus' bet father's gots one jus' like it in the light. It wuz so nice there. C'mon, Kim, do it. Set us free."

"I cain't..." Kimble said, starting to cry now.

Lakotashay felt his indecision and was all over it. "C'mon, Lover. Just do it, no one will know. Set us free. Do it! Do it now!"

"NO!" Kimble shouted and struck out violently at the castle he had made. He stabbed at it with the spike, killing it. So stupid of him to have made it. "It's all gone! Father is gone! Siska is gone! Remy is gone! Seth is gone! Fallen, too! We ain't nuthin' no more! Fuckin' garbage! Fuckin' Siskan filth no good fer nuthin' is what we are! No Master will ever want us again, we're so evil an' broken! Junta bay! Junta bay!" Kimble shouted, stabbing at the castle with each and every word. He believed most of it. Life was good with the Master, but they were too far gone to live with anyone else. Just the fact that Lakotashay had cum so hard after being beaten by the belt was enough to convict them all.

"Than jus' end it, Kim! Finish this!" the Quitter demanded.

Sabretooth took one step forward, certain Kimble was going to give in to her, it was in the outpouring of grief and self loathing that had come from Kimble's mouth. He disliked hearing Kimble speak about himself this way. Now more than ever it was imperative that Kimble not be left alone. He paused when Zander came out in a huff, silencing everyone.

"Quit yer fuckin' shit!" Zander said, finalizing the matter by creating a large clump of spikes and sending them down in a group to obliterate what was left of the castle. Kimble jumped back in surprise, barely dodging them. The spike he held in his hand went flying, no longer a threat. "Both of yous jus' shut up! The only thing we gots ta do is git our ass outta here! There's four of us now thanks ta 'Shay and the Master's belt! The new guy ain't so strong just yet, but just wait! Jus' wait! How many more of us does there gots ta be 'fore we shatter so hard there ain't nuthin' left of us!"

Kimble doubled over in pain and sobbed. He clutched his belly and rocked, so sorry he had come out here. He should have stayed in bed where he was warm and happy with his Master's body beside him.

"We have to go, Kim. There's help out there. We gots to get to a phone," Zander said, lowering his voice to a more convincing tone.

Kimble jumped back in terror, forcing Creed to retreat to maintain his surveillance without being noticed. Kimble began to hyperventilate hysterically and sputter, "No phone! No phone! Cain't! Cain't! No phone!"

Sabretooth had heard enough. He stomped over and grabbed his servant, shaking him roughly. He wanted to hear no more plans for escape, for running away. He yanked Kimble's head back. "Who gave ya permission to go outside, Kim!"

"M-Mary!" Kimble blurted out in terror and surprise, responding immediately to the question even though he was shocked by Creed's sudden appearance. He was so busted. He hadn't done anything wrong that he knew of exactly, but here was the Master all pissed off at him again. He began to shake so hard it was hard for Creed to keep his grip.

"Is she yer Master or me?" There was no mistaking the threat in his voice. One hand strayed to the buckle of his belt.

Kimble didn't answer, his eyes rolled back and he fainted. The terror was more than he could handle, the belt lashing looming as a certainty. Sabretooth looked down at the limp body in his grip in surprise. That he had not expected. He growled with impatience and scooped up the pilot into his arms, carrying him back into the house. He entered and tossed the unconscious pilot down on the couch.

Sabretooth looked up into Mary's eyes, seeing her fear. She just knew she was going to be blamed for whatever must have happened and wanted no more pain. She took a defensive step back and raised her fists, both of them glowing faintly orange.

Creed wasn't afraid. He said, "From now on, he don't get left alone, not for a second. If it happens again, I'll shoot you dead, girlie. Mark my words."

She glared at him, but waited to see if he was going to lash out at her again.

He grunted at her. "I'm cold, I'm fuckin' wet. I'm gonna have a shower. When I get out, I want some food on that table and Kimble cleaned up. You understandin' me?"

Mary trembled, deciding. There was never a better time to make her exit than now, that's what he was really saying. She was about to speak, to give him her official notice and walk out that door when Kimble groaned, interrupting their confrontation. He rolled over and curled up tight, crying. He was upset and it pained Mary to see it. "What happened to him?" Mary asked, her voice still tight with anger.

"He was left alone. It ain't gonna happen no more."

Kimble's sobs ripped through her ice cold heart, finding purchase. "Yes, boss."

The tension evaporated instantly in the room as Creed backed off and went silently to his bathroom, shutting the door behind him. He stepped into the shower, blasting his body with heat. He was so angry...he was furious! He wanted so much to lash out at Kimble for even thinking about deserting him. The only thing staying his hand was what Zander had said, Kimble had broken even further and he'd had a hand in it. If he whipped Kimble again, his toy was sure to collapse. The fainting alone was enough to frighten him a little. Just the threat of that kind of punishment had been too much for the Siskan. How was he going to ensure Kimble wouldn't take off?

His feeble brain began to work. What does Kimble respond to?

Kindness and affection. Those times he had reached out and touched were the ones where he had seen clearly on the pilot's face his joy and rapture. Perhaps his way to enforce Kimble's compliance was not one of violence, but rather gentleness and caring. This was a difficult thing for him, he knew, and wasn't sure he was even capable of it. But the payoff... He needed the backwash. He had to have it. The concept of earning things was not beyond him. Perhaps some effort here might prove fruitful.

He finished and dressed, warm and comfortable again when he finally walked out to join his crew. Mary had put some food out for him and Kimble was now in front of the fire, wrapped in a blanket and hunched over quiet. He jerked when he heard the Master come, but didn't dare look him in the eyes. Creed went to the table and grabbed his plate, giving Mary a nod. Her eye was blackened on one side and her lip was split, but there was enough submission in her eyes to satisfy him. He went over to the fire and stood over his Siskan. "Kim."

Kimble looked up, his eyes begging for mercy and his body trembling once more. "Yes, Master?"

"You don't go nowhere on yer own."

"Yes, Master."

"You even speak about usin' the phone again -" Creed was forced to stop when Kimble's body gave a frightful shudder and the tears streamed from his eyes. Kimble's mouth opened but nothing coherent made it out, he was much too terrified. Creed placed a finger to his lips and the pilot silenced himself immediately, having learned early on what that command was. "You even speak of usin' the phone again and the belt is comin' fer you."

Kimble threw himself down on the floor, covering his head and sobbing quietly into the rug. He expected the blows to fall, the beating to begin in earnest, but the only thing that came down on him was his Master's gentle hand. Creed had set his plate down and crouched down next to him. He tugged on Kimble and the pilot came up to him, falling into his arms, garbling a plea for forgiveness. He squeezed his Master impossibly tight. "It ain't me what wants ta go ...it ain't me...I'm so sorry!"

Creed didn't say anything. He was teetering on the edge of anger. How could he get this creature to submit when there was a fucking committee running around in there? Creed let Kimble squeeze him, feeling his servant's sincere regret, it was coming off of him in a powerful wave. That and his fear, his fear that Creed would leave him. As much as Zander spoke of escape, the Lover wished only to remain.

Sabretooth said nothing more, but eased the pilot's grip on him just enough so he could sit back and eat. Kimble calmed and remained close, happy that he hadn't been beaten. More than that was Creed's conditional forgiveness. If he was good, the Master would be kind. He smiled, happy now as the tears dried up on his cheeks. Maybe his wish would come true, the one where the Master no longer beat him, but spoke to him in kindness and petted him and loved him and kissed him for real. Just this one small victory of not being whipped or abused made his spirits soar.

It did little for Zander. He paced in the circle of light, not so naive as the Lover. The beatings would never stop, not from this guy. No, the Punisher would just have to try harder, find better ways to bend the Lover to his will. They would get out of here, they would get back home.

To be continued in A Cajun Vacation.