Author's Note: Thanks again for all the comments! I'm glad everyone seems to be enjoying this story. I wanted to put a blanket trigger warning to cover the rest of the story. It will cover everything I mentioned before and continue along those lines, so if any of that bothers you, you might want to skip this story.
Carly left the room a few minutes after that revelation, so Deeks took the opportunity to look at his surroundings while he was alone. He had to stop thinking like a victim and start looking at this from the perspective of a detective. He'd gotten himself out of tighter spots while undercover and he could do it again. And on the plus side, he wasn't really injured. There was the headache, but nothing he couldn't deal with. And the drugs didn't seem to be so strong in his system anymore.
The bedframe was metal, so no using the cuffs to saw through the material. The handcuffs looked real and sturdy, so no slipping those off. He had a key in his pocket, but obviously it was out of reach. Deeks still had all of his clothes on, which was a relief, except for his shoes. God forbid your kidnapping victim gets dirt on your bedspread.
The room was pretty small, with just enough room for the bed, which looked like a queen, two nightstands, and a dresser along one wall. There was one window a little high up, but Deeks was sure he'd be able to get out through it if the opportunity presented itself. He just had to figure out a way to give himself a chance.
His best bet was to try to gain Carly's trust. She didn't seem like she particularly wanted to hurt him, unlike Russ. If he could convince her that he was starting to develop feelings for her, maybe she would be willing to unlock him. But what would that take? And how long? What was Deeks willing to do to gain his freedom?
"I'm back," Carly sing-songed while gliding into the room. Deeks let a relieved and slightly bashful smile flash across his face. Nothing too obvious at first. "It's so close to dinnertime and I have absolutely nothing prepared. I hope you don't hold it against me too much, I just wasn't expecting company. Usually I have dinner on the table at 6pm on the dot, but I can shift that depending on what time you prefer."
"You know, I wouldn't mind that meatloaf you were talking about earlier," Deeks said softly, licking his lips a little.
"Really?" Carly asked brightly. "I would love to make it for you and it would be perfect for our first dinner together! But I don't think I have all the ingredients for it. There is a little grocery store not too far from here, but I'm not sure I should go. You might get lonely here."
"I'll be fine," Deeks insisted, hoping she'd take the bait and leave him alone for an extended amount of time. "I'll probably just sleep while you're gone. I'm still a bit tired."
"You've already slept so much. Are you feeling okay?" Carly asked worriedly, feeling his forehead for fever. Deeks kept still, resisting the urge to shake her hand away. And it wasn't like he could tell her that being drugged and knocked unconscious wasn't really conducive to getting good rest.
"You don't have to worry about me. I'm not going anywhere," Deeks joked, feeling sick to his stomach by the truth in that statement.
"I guess it's not a terrible idea. I wouldn't be gone too long and Russ is right down the hall if you need anything," Carly mumbled, biting her lip in contemplation. "Are you sure you'll be okay while I'm gone?"
"This bed is so comfortable, I'm sure I'll fall asleep before you even leave the house," Deeks said, adding a yawn in for good measure.
"Okay, I'll go," Carly sighed, rolling her eyes. "Next time, you'll have to tell me some of your favorites so I can get you some goodies."
"Very thoughtful," Deeks said, keeping his breaths even as he waited for her to leave. He could get a lot done during even the quickest shopping trip.
"Miss you," Carly whispered, standing up and leaning forward over him. Deeks made himself stay perfectly still, letting her do what she wanted without upsetting her. She bent down and Deeks braced himself, only for her to shift at the last second and place a kiss on his cheek. It didn't really make a difference, since it was still completely unwanted, but at least there wasn't the facade of him reciprocating. "I'll be right back." Carly scampered out of the room, closing the door behind her.
Deeks closed his eyes, clenching his jaw as he waited to hear sounds of Carly leaving the house. He didn't need to think about what just happened, since nothing had. He was going to get out of this then move on. The team would tease him a little, but Deeks would just brush it off and say something about how he was irresistible. Then he'd go on with his life, leaving this ordeal to just be one of the many cases he dealt with. No big deal.
Deeks started twisting his left wrist in the cuff, trying to work it through the small opening. He couldn't do anything louder and risk alerting Russ. The cuffs weren't on too tight, so if he worked up enough sweat, he might be able to slide his hand right out. Deeks hissed when he felt the metal dig into his skin, but he couldn't stop now. The pain would be worth the freedom.
"I forgot my wallet," Carly giggled, suddenly walking back into the room. Deeks froze when he saw her, so enthralled in his mission that he hadn't heard her approach. "What are you doing?"
"Nothing," Deeks said calmly, even though his heart was pounding enough to fly out of his chest. Carly frowned, stomping over to the side of the bed and jamming her nails into his wrist as she grabbed it.
"And what do you call this?" she snapped, turning his arm to reveal a small trickle of blood from his earlier manipulation.
"I can explain," Deeks insisted, wincing as she dug her nails in further.
"Why would you lie to me? You said you would be fine while I left," Carly hissed, staring down at him in anger.
"Carly, please," Deeks whispered, watching in a little bit of panic when she suddenly stormed from the room. He'd seen the movie Misery and read the book, so he had a whole host of possibilities running through his head of what she could be planning for him next. She returned a few moments later carrying a bottle, but Deeks couldn't see what it was. He didn't really want to find out either. "Carly, just let me explain."
"How are we supposed to have a healthy relationship when you're lying?" Carly muttered, snapping open the lid of the bottle. Deeks wanted to scream that there was nothing healthy about this and there was no relationship, but he was in enough trouble as it was.
"What is that?" Deeks asked. He got his answer when she poured the contents of the bottle down his wrist and he felt the burn. "Dammit!" The rubbing alcohol was stinging his cuts, the pain made even worse by the cuffs digging in and forcing the liquid in deeper.
"Why did you make me do this?" Carly moaned, sitting down on the bed and petting his head. Deeks curled his toes as he fought to keep the rage off his face. "Why were you trying to leave me?"
"I wasn't, I swear. I just needed to use the bathroom," Deeks mumbled, keeping his eyes downcast as a sign of submission.
"You did? Why didn't you ask me or Russ?" Carly asked.
"I guess I was just embarrassed," Deeks murmured, staring up at her through his eyelashes. He needed to lay it on thick to get back in her good favor. "And I didn't want to bother Russ and make him angrier with me."
"Oh, that was just a misunderstanding before. I'm sure you two will be really close again. I mean, you're practically brothers now, right?" Carly laughed. "Oh boy, I hope I'm not jumping the gun with that one. It just feels like that's where we're headed, doesn't it? We've already overcome so much, I'm sure we could handle anything that comes our way." Deeks felt a chill run down his spine. Not so much from the words Carly was saying, but from how quick she could switch from one extreme to the other. It was hard to plan against someone who was so unpredictable.
"You're probably right," Deeks whispered.
"Just the words every woman loves to hear," Carly giggled, patting his cheek. "Let me just go grab a bowl and I'll be right back."
"A bowl? For what?"
"For you to potty in, of course. It'll be so much easier to do it that way instead of having to unlock you, take you over, then lock you up again."
"But Carly-"
"It's nothing to be ashamed of, really. I took care of my grandma for years and did everything for her. She was bedridden, so I had to do all that stuff. It's just a natural part of life."
"You know, I actually don't think I have to go anymore," Deeks muttered, grinding his teeth. Over his dead body would he willingly piss in a bowl with the help of this woman. He'd let his bladder explode first.
"Are you sure? I really don't mind," Carly offered again. Deeks shook his head, begging in his mind for her to just get up and leave. Every second she was touching him was another second he was tempted to rip the skin off his body. "Okay then, let me know when you change your mind. I don't want to force you to do anything you don't want." Deeks wanted to scream that he didn't want any of this, but it would do no good. She'd convinced herself that what she was doing was okay and no amount of logic would change her mind at this point.
"Carly-"
"How about I go whip us up a quick dinner? Meatloaf isn't an option now unfortunately, but I'm sure I can make something just as good with what I've got," Carly declared, bouncing up and skipping out of the room. As soon as she was gone, Deeks let out the discouraged breath he'd been holding in. After being caught trying to escape already, there was no way she'd leave him alone for long periods of time anymore. He'd have to try again while she was asleep, barring the possibility of her sleeping in the room with him.
Carly came back into the room with a sandwich and glass of water a few minutes later. Deeks wasn't looking forward to being fed like a baby, but he knew there was no chance of getting an arm unlocked for this.
"I'm not that hungry actually. I think I'd rather just go to bed now," Deeks said.
"You can't go to sleep on an empty stomach," Carly chuckled, picking up the sandwich and waving it in front of his face. "It's bologna. No one can resist the bologna."
"Really Carly, I-"
"I took the time to make you dinner and you don't even appreciate it?" Carly snapped, balling the empty fist at her side. "All I've done for you and this is the thanks I get? Do you think you're too good for my food? Is it lower than you're accustomed to?"
"I-"
"You will eat your dinner," Carly commanded, holding the edge of the sandwich to his mouth. Deeks had no choice but to take a bite. His mouth felt so dry as he chewed and swallowing was almost impossible, but he choked it down. "How is it?"
"Good."
"I knew you'd like it!" Carly bragged, setting the food down to do a little clap. Evidently she was happy again. "The secret is to put Miracle Whip on one slice of bread and mayonnaise on the other. I think the flavors really compliment each other. This is just a taste of what you can expect. I'm always coming up with these wild recipes." Deeks didn't respond, but Carly didn't need one. She just kept pushing the food and water on him as she prattled on about nothing. Each swallow was sitting heavy in his stomach and he thought about asking for the bathroom bowl to throw up in, but he held it together through sheer willpower. As soon as he was done, he could pretend to be tired and hopefully Carly would leave him alone.
The problem came when he actually did start feeling tired. It kept getting harder for him to lift his head up to eat and again he realized too late what was going on.
"Carly, what did you do?" Deeks mumbled, rolling his head from side to side.
"I'm sorry, but I didn't have a choice. I wouldn't have been able to rest if I was worried about what you'd do. You want me to be able to rest, right?" Carly asked. Deeks moaned, trying as hard as he could to fight the effects of the drug, but he knew it would be no use. "It's okay, you'll feel better in the morning."
