-walks in- Um, hey? Yeah... Haha... Told you it wasn't over...
Yes, I know this chapter was short, but this was supposed to be the last one, only it go so long, I had to cut it in half. Hehe.
Disclaimer: I own nothing. You don't sue. Kapeesh?
Bakura groaned, and slowly, groggily opened his eyes. Oh man… Weakly, the yami managed to pull himself into a sitting position, gasping in agony and clutching his stomach. Ryou... Bakura thought foggily. The yami swore, and stared at the black car as his drove away with a squeal of the tyres. Ryou! Bakura gritted his teeth, staring at the car fading into the darkness. No! He can't... No no no… The spirit started to crawl weakly towards the car, but he stopped, clutching at his stomach in pain. I have to get help. He groaned, staring at the blood dripping between his fingers. Shit. Bakura started to drag himself towards a nearby phone box, his breathing harsh and ragged. He was starting to feel dizzy, and the feeling only increased as he weakly pulled himself up, leaning heavily against the glass box. His shaking fingers coated in blood, Bakura heaved the heavy glass door open. He stumbled inside, his stomach feeling as though it was on fire. Extremely relieved that emergency services are free, Bakura began to dial, smearing blood across the silver buttons.
"Hello?" A cool female voice resounded from the black earpiece. Bakura bit his lip, clutching his stomach in agony.
"I-I need an ambulance." The yami rasped weakly to the operator, his knees trembling. "I've just been shot…"
Ryou whimpered, his teeth chattering in the early morning air. His breath fogged in front of him, and his fingers were numb. Kiyoshi had left him almost half an hour ago with a murmur of 'being right back.' Ryou ignored him. He felt betrayed. How could this happen to him? He thought Kiyoshi was his friend, he defended him. Now I get it. It was all a lie. Kiyoshi only pretended to be my friend to lure me into a false sense of security, and I was stupid enough to believe him. I was so naïve. And now... Ryou started to sob. I'm going to God knows where, and they're going to... to... the teenager didn't even want to think about it.
A soft patter of footsteps broke Ryou from his terrified thoughts. The whitenette froze, his breath dying in his throat as the hallway that lead to his stone prison began to echo with footsteps. They grew closer, and Ryou whimpered, burying his head in his hands. Go away. Please, go away…
"Ryou." Kiyoshi whispered as he closed the metal door behind him. Ryou lifted his head, and gave a hiccupping sob. "Here…" He held up his arms. "I got you some food and blankets." Ryou whimpered, and looked away, trembling. Kiyoshi sighed, and sat down on the bed beside the teenager. He gently unfolded a warm woolen blanket, and wrapped it around the boys' shoulders. Ryou tucked his legs beneath him, and whimpered, still shivering. Kiyoshi added the second blanket, gently rubbing the boys' back. Ryou swallowed, and closed his eyes. "You hungry?" Kiyoshi asked softly. "I bought you a cheeseburger." The teenager nodded silently. The brunette unwrapped the paper from the burger, and handed it to Ryou. The whitenette swallowed, and took it in his bound hands, lifting it to his mouth. There was no way around it, the boy was starving. Ryou crammed the food into his mouth, barely bothering to chew. The warm feeling slid down his throat and into his stomach. All too soon, it seemed, the warm food was gone. Ryou swallowed his last mouthful of bread, meat, and cheese, and sniffed. "Do you want another one?" Kiyoshi asked softly, gently rubbing Ryou's back. The light nodded eagerly, and Kiyoshi sighed, handing Ryou another burger. The teenager ate slower this time, managing to savour the taste. "Feel better?" Ryou shook his head, and buried his head in his hands, starting to cry again.
"G-Get me out of here." The boy whispered tearfully. "Please… Kiyoshi, please…" The brunette swallowed, and looked away. "Please…"
"Ryou, I can't." Kiyoshi whispered, looking down at his hands. "Sadahiro… He's left town for a while. The cops are onto him. He's going to come back in a few days with a fake I.D and a disguise, and then you'll…" Ryou shook his head, chocolate eyes wild in his fear.
"No!" He gasped. "Kiyoshi, please! Why can't you let me go? Three days is plenty of time to run away, and I swear, I'll be hidden by then…" But as Kiyoshi shook his head, Ryou knew it was hopeless. "Please…"
"He will kill me." Kiyoshi whispered. "Ryou, he will honestly kill me. I've gone through this again and again, and the answer is always no… Don't make be go through this again Ryou, please…"
"What do you mean?" Ryou managed to wrap the blankets tighter around himself, his slim frame finally beginning to warm up. "Kiyoshi…" He narrowed his eyes. "How many people have Sadahiro done this to?" The brunette swallowed, looking away.
"U-Umm…" The boy swallowed. "I-In the past five years that I've been living with him, there's been twenty." Ryou gave a soft cry. "I know it's sick and wrong, but I can't do anything about it Ryou… You have to try and understand…"
"All this time." Ryou whispered, his voice dull and hollow. "I trusted you. And you… You knew exactly what was going to happen to me. You could have told me to leave, and I would have… You could have warned me, but you just let me fall into this trap, like nineteen other people. You sent them, you're sending me to hell, just to save your own skin…" He let out a choked sob. "How the hell can you live with yourself!" Ryou screamed, tears coursing down pale cheeks. Kiyoshi swallowed. "I-I think you should go." The teenager whispered, sobbing brokenly into the blanket. The brunette swallowed, and sighed sadly. He squeezed Ryou's shoulders before he left the room, locking it behind him.
"Oh shit, Bakura!" Malik yelped as he stood on the threshold of the yami's hospital room. Bakura lay on a white hospital, his eyes closed, and skin deathly pale. Malik ran to the pale spirits' side, while Marik trailed behind, frowning slightly. "Oh Gods… Oh…" The Egyptian blinked back tears. "Bakura…"
"Why do you care?" Marik snorted, folding his arms and surveying his host. Malik sniffed. "He never cared about you." The teenager bit his lip, and looked down at Bakura's sleeping form, He ran a hand over the covers, and sat down in the chair beside the bed.
"H-He did." Malik swallowed. "I-I think he did." The lilac-eyes teenager rubbed at his watery orbs. "Wh-When he asked me to come over last night Marik, he didn't want to sleep with me." The Egyptian swallowed. "He just wanted to talk. He's not some sex-crazed nympho like you are Marik." The yami snorted, and rolled his eyes.
"Whatever." Marik turned away. Malik opened his mouth, and made to retort, when a soft groan broke the silence between them. Bakura was waking up…
"Bakura!" Malik bent over the awakening yami, bleary dark eyes fluttering open. "Are you all right?" Bakura groaned, and raised a shaking hand to rub at his eyes. "Bakura?" The yami yawned, and after a moment, his eyes snapped open, and he sat up like a poker in bed. "Bakura!" Malik's eyes widened. "You… You need to rest!" He stammered. Bakura hissed, and clutched at his stomach, clenching his eyes and gritting his teeth in pain. "Bakura, you're going to break your stitches. Please, get back into bed…"
"C-Cant…" Bakura gasped, shaking his head. "R-Ryou…" Without bothering to explain, He swung his legs over the side of the bed, and planted his feet on the floor. One shaking hand went to the TV tube in his left arm, and Bakura tore it out, barely flinching. Malik's eyes widened, and he stood up, running over the other side of the bed.
"Bakura, please sit down." The Egyptian pleaded. Marik stood nonchalant near the doorway. "What's wrong with Ryou?" Bakura swallowed, and bowed his head. The yami swallowed, and his breathing quickened. "Bakura?"
"W-Went to see him." Bakura managed to stammer. "We-we were about to leave when…" Malik swallowed, his lavender eyes wider than ever. "He's gone…"
"Gone where?" The Egyptian was vaguely aware that his insides felt like they were drowning in ice. "Bakura? Where is he?"
"D-Don't know." Bakura said thickly, standing up on wavering feet. "Have to find him… Bring him home…" Malik gulped.
"Bakura… What happened to him? What happened to you?" The yami leaned heavily on a side table, still clutching his stomach. "Bakura?"
"Ryou… Kidnapped by Sadahiro…" Bakura hissed in pain. "Bastard shot me." Malik gasped in fright, and raised a hand to his mouth.
"Oh Bakura…" Malik sat down. "Oh God…"
Ryou wasn't aware of just how much time had passed. He lay there on his bed with his arms fixed above his head, curled under the woolen blankets. Although he wasn't cold, Ryou couldn't stop shivering. The fact that in a few days he was going to be smuggled into another country as somebody's sex slave was impossible to comprehend, yet Ryou spent nearly every moment thinking about it. It just couldn't leave his mind. The fear, the shock left the thought imprinted on his mind. What's going to happen? How are they going to get me out? Ryou didn't know anything outside of his small stone cell with the bleary yellow lighting and broken table, and it scared him. I am not going to make this easy for any of them. The boy sniffed, burying his face into the mattress. How can anyone bring themselves to do this, to kidnap innocent kids? It's sick. Sick and wrong. It doesn't matter how much money they get, it shouldn't be done... Oh God. Ryou swallowed, a fresh surge of fear surging through his heart. I don't want to turn into someone's slave like that, or raped on camera... Or anything. I'd rather be dead than lower myself to that extent. Ryou winced, tugging the thick ropes around his wrists. This is so uncomfortable...
Giving up, the teenager flopped weakly onto the mattress, tears forming in his eyes. Someone has to get me out of here... Please, someone, something... I don't care, just please, someone get me out of this mess. Bakura's right, I am naïve. I must have been, to not understand what Sadahiro was doing. Come to think about it... One of the guys did go missing. He was good looking too. They didn't… Ryou buried his face in the mattress, starting to cry again. And I'm the latest victim. But not the last, I'll bet… Ryou swallowed, and sat up. I can't, I won't go through this hell. Ryou bit his lip, staring at the rope around his wrists.
I know what I have to do.
"This is sick." Malik paced the apartment. Bakura sighed, stretched out along the maroon couch, holding his stomach. "This is… How the hell can someone do this?" His eyes sparkled with tears.
"Maybe it's not what we think." Marik muttered from the arm chair. "Just because Sadahiro was convicted of it ten years ago or whenever, doesn't mean he'll do it again." The light swallowed, and brushed at his eyes. "Calm down."
"I can't!" Malik turned on his heel to stare at his darkness. "For all we know, Ryou could be in Taiwan or Korea or something right now, being…" He let out a choked sob. "This can't be happening." Malik sank into a dining chair, his hands shaking. "I-It can't…" Bakura said nothing. Ever since they had attended the police station, and gotten the news about Sadahiro's criminal record, he hadn't spoken a word. Maliks' heart ached for the poor yami. Did he even get to say he loved him?
"The police are combing every inch of the city." Marik was unusually quiet. "If Ryou's still in Domino, they'll find him. Especially if he's by the docks. They'll find him Bakura." He looked over at the yami, who looked up at the ceiling with flat, vacant eyes. "Bakura?" Marik sighed, and leaned back in his chair. He stared at Malik, who was sobbing silently into his hands, and Bakura, motionless and unresponsive. "Fuck it." He stood up, grabbing Bakura's cigarettes and shoving them into his coat pocket. "I'm going." The Egyptian slid the lighter into his pocket also, and scuffed his shoes back onto his feet. Malik looked up.
"Wh-where?" He asked softly, his voice cracking with tears.
"Where do you think?" Marik opened the door. "Find Ryou. Or at least, Kiyoshi and Sadahiro. There's places the cops don't know about." Malik nodded, trying to his sobs. "Malik…" The yami sighed. "It's going to be okay. Okay?" Malik nodded shakily, sniffing.
"O-Okay…" He swallowed as the door slammed shut. He looked over at Bakura, who stared blankly at the ceiling. "B-Bakura?" The Egyptian wiped at his eyes and stood up. He crouched beside him, resting his chin on his arms, and his arms on the seat of the couch. "A-Are you feeling a little better?" Bakura was unresponsive for a long moment, but then shook his head. "Do you think it would help to talk about it?" Malik tried, lifting his head slightly. Bakura swallowed, and rolled over, away from the tanned blonde. Malik blinked, and sat up further. "Bakura…" He breathed sympathetically. He could only imagine what kind of hell the yami must have been going through. Losing Ryou like this was nothing short of cruel. Malik sighed as Bakura buried his head into a couch cushion, and his shoulders started to shake. The Egyptians heart welled up with pity when he realized Bakura was crying.
"Hey…" Malik sighed, and began to gently rub Bakura's back, just the way the yami had done to him three weeks ago. "They're going to find him Bakura. They're got half of the police in the city out there looking for him. He's going to be okay." Bakura shook his head, still sobbing into the cushion. "Come here…" Malik sat himself on the couch, and stretched out his arms. He took the yami in his hands, and lifted him into a sitting position. Bakura leaned against the boys' chest, gasping for air as he cried. Malik continued to gently massage Bakura's back, waiting for Bakura to calm down so he could say something.
"I-It's Ryou." Bakura whispered hoarsely, minutes later. Malik sighed, embracing the distraught yami softly.
"I know Bakura…" He said gently, soothingly. Bakura sobbed harder.
"I-It's Ryou…" He repeated tearfully. "H-He's… This can't be happening." Please tell me this is all one scary nightmare. He's my baby. How can anyone do this to an innocent kid? You read about it, and hear it in the news, but you never think it's going to happen to you… I just want Ryou back. I want to be able to hold him and kiss him again. How can this happen? I just want him to come home. I'd give anything to have him home again...
Please Ryou, for the love of God, please come home…
Just yank your hands.
Go. Do it. Just pull. Pull your hands and then you'll never have to go through that hell. Just do it! Ryou was sobbing, his back pressed against the cold heater. After a bit of manipulating himself, the whitenette had managed to wrap the thick rope around his neck. The final length between his throat and hands were slack. Ryou knew that if he jerked his hands hard enough, the rope would tighten and then the boy would have his air supply cut off. All in all, Ryou reckoned it would take three, maybe for minutes before he died of asphyxiation. Just do it. Do it now before you have to go through with any of that. You'll wish you were dead by then anyway. Ryou was sobbing, staring at his hands. For almost ten minutes, the teenager stared at that small bit of rope. Death is so close…
I can't do it. Ryou blinked, and then buried his face in his hands. I can't. I-I'm too weak. I can't do it... Sobs wracked his frail frame. I'm so weak... He swallowed, feeling the coarse rope bite into the soft skin around his throat. I'm hopeless. I'm so scared to kill myself that I'll be forced to endure that. Shaking, Ryou managed to unwind the rope from around his neck. With some difficulty, he managed to pull the blankets up to his chin, and then flung himself into the mattress, sobbing heartbrokenly. He'd already gone through being taken roughly, buy a total stranger, and that was hell. No amount of struggling could deter that sick freak, and it still gave the boy nightmares. Ryou honestly thought that he would never be able to stop dreaming about that. And now… Now…
Ryou buried his snowy head under the blankets. Although it was a pathetic barrier, the boy couldn't help but feel just a little bit safer.
For now.
Marik pulled the motorcycle to a stop as he approached the docks. If Ryou was still in domino, this would be the place where he'd be. The yami narrowed his amethyst eyes and hopped off of his bike. He dragged it into the shadows behind a warehouse, so it wouldn't be easily seen. Marik slowly, and silently walked along the long wooden dock, staring out at the sea, and the setting sun that crowned it. The Egyptian couldn't help but feel sorry for Ryou as he stalked along the docks, heading for where he knew was a block of warehouses, abandoned because of asbestos in the walls. I'd never wish that on anyone. Well... Maybe the Pharaoh and his runty bitch...
Wait a second. Footsteps. Marik froze, and tried to tune his ears in the direction of the sound. They were coming from his left… The Egyptian silently bent down, and tugged off his shoes. Marik walked down the dock as silent as a phantom, following the person step for step. Who would be down here at seven o'clock on a Sunday? He gritted his teeth, tiptoeing down the wooden dock with his shoes in one hand. He bit his lip, trailing one hand along the concrete wall of a warehouse. A gap. Finally! Marik slunk into the small alleyway, almost running to the other side. Cautiously, the blonde stuck his head out of the alleyway, staring at the figure who walked down the concrete path.
Kiyoshi. Mark's lips formed the name silently. There was no mistaking that long brown ponytail at the base of his neck. Tall and thin, the brunette was walking down the path, glancing furtively around him, a paper bag from a burger joint clutched in one hand. That bastard. Marik almost made to run out and tackle him from behind, when rational thinking made him stop. Maybe Sadahiro's around here. I couldn't take them both on at once. Besides, we don't even know where Ryou is yet. I wanna find out exactly where he is first. Licking his lips, the yami stared at Kiyoshi as he stalked down the concrete, his boots echoing around the empty docks. Idiot. Marik bit his lip as Kiyoshi walked around a corner. His eyes widened, and the yami started to run towards the corner where Kiyoshi had gone. The block of abandoned warehouses. I knew it.
Damnit! Marik cursed as he turned into the path between the buildings. Kiyoshi was gone. Wait... He's in one of the warehouses in this row. And he couldn't have gone further than the third one, so that's... Six. Marik swallowed. Better start looking.
I'm gonna get you, you bastard.
Ryou froze as the deadlock on the heavy steel door was pulled. The door swung open, and the boy burrowed deeper under the blankets. Go away. Please go away. Just leave me alone. Please for the love of God leave me alone…
"Ryou." The whitenette flinched at Kiyoshi's deceptively soft tone, and felt the mattress give under his weight. "I um, I got you some more food." He said softly. Ryou sniffed, but was otherwise silent, curled under the blankets. "Come on…" The brunette whispered, and to Ryou's horror, started to pull the blankets off of the young boy. Unable to move, Ryou buried his head in the mattress, sobbing. "I brought you some more food." The brunette repeated softly, pleadingly.
"G-Go away…" Ryou murmured, tugging uselessly at his arms. "Not hungry…" Kiyoshi sighed, and grabbed at Ryou's waist, forcing the young boy sit up. Ryou was sobbing, his head bowed.
"Come on Ryou." He softly rubbed Ryou's back. "You'll only be here for two more days, tops." Ryou's sobs increased.
"Th-that's supposed to make me feel better?" Ryou lifted his head. "I-I'm going to… To…" Kiyoshi sighed. "Please, let me go… Please…" He whispered. The brunette bit his lip, and made to respond, but just as he opened his mouth, he was disrupted by a noise above him.
"Ryou!" Marik jogged through the dark warehouse. He kicked at a pile of crates and slammed the door to the manager's office, but nothing. "RYOU!" He yelled harder, cupping his hands around his mouth.
"Marik." Ryou whispered, a spark lighting in his brown eyes. He sat up further, and grinned widely. "Marik!" He yelled as loud as he could, staring up above him, where the Egyptian's voice came from. Kiyoshi's eyes widened, and in one swift movement, pinned Ryou to the bed. He clapped a hand over the boys' mouth, Ryou's screams muffled. Although the teenager tried to struggle, he was no match for the older male. Kiyoshi straddled Ryou's waist, his eyes wild in fright.
"Shh!" He whispered. Ryou whimpered and shook his head. "Please Ryou… Sadahiro will kill me." The whitenette was sobbing in desperation, struggling wildly for escape. "Ryou!" Kiyoshi half-yelled, half-whispered, leaning over him. "Stop. Please…" Ryou shook his head, his cheeks streaked with tears. "Please…" The footsteps faded.
Marik kicked the door to the warehouse shut. It seemed as though he had heard a voice, but it was probably just his imagination. There was nowhere Kiyoshi and Ryou could hide at once. His shoulders sagged in defeat. He'd failed. He knew Kiyoshi was in the area, but poor Ryou was nowhere to be found. Marik sighed.
Might as well get home.
-sigh- Dunno when I'll update... Hehehe.
Review me? Please? I know it's childish to beg, but what are ya gonna do? xP