Out of Time
Disclaimer: Don't own Victorious
A/N:
Chapter 15 (The Madwoman)
In the heart of Los Angeles, deep underground, a woman sat alone in a cell sectioned off from a group of toddlers and babies. She had a scarred face, lines hugged the corners of her mouth, her nose and eyes. Her once brown hair was thin and gray, her muscles had atrophied a great deal and she could barely move.
The light had long since faded from her eyes, which she raised upon hearing the sound of the elevator chiming nearby. A woman made her approach, sneering upon seeing her. "Why are you not with the children?"
"Holly." Her voice was weak, she strained to let herself speak. "Let me die. Why keep me alive?" Holly's eyes narrowed and she crouched before the woman.
"Because I can, Sasha." Sasha closed her eyes, wincing as Holly's hot breath wafted around her like smoke. "I let you take care of some of the children we take, in exchange you live." Sasha dropped her head. "That is until your daughter can replace you, then we'll let you die."
"I don't understand, I don't understand why…" It was torture by a madwoman. She'd been used for a variety of things, drugged repeatedly for at least the first ten years of her captivity. She'd been forced to watch her daughter raised by her captors, made to watch the girl look happy as though she were going to live whatever dreams she had only with the realization that the captors were going to do the same thing to her.
Now they forced her to look after some of the children waiting to be sold off to the highest bidder, another method of torture. Whatever hope of rescue, whatever prayer of life had gone unanswered, dashed; and now they seemed to force her to live just out of maliciousness and torture.
Tears no longer came, she was just a shell of her former self. "Please." She slid her body forward, her scarred hands scraping against the concrete floor. "Eighteen years is long enough, I want to die."
Holly cupped Sasha's chin, digging her thumb and forefinger deep into the girl's cheeks. Her hand jerked Sasha's head upright, the woman's teeth were clenched and a bitter rage burned in her eyes.
"Because I want you to suffer. I want you to suffer like your parents suffered." Holly cocked a smirk and pushed Sasha back, causing the woman to slam against the nearby wall. Her shadow fell over Sasha, who looked up with a pained whimper. "Did you know just before your mother perished, we had our man show her a picture of you? Just to let her know what was going to happen to her daughter just before she died."
Sasha's hand trembled and moved along the floor until it came to rest beneath her throbbing head. "You should never have existed." Holly crouched over her, grabbing Sasha's head within her hand. She cried out as the woman clenched her hand around her hair and yanked her head back. "Did you know that? My sister was promised to your father."
Sasha opened her eyes and screamed as Holly threw her to the side. Her body rolled like a ragdoll into another wall. "That slut of a woman seduced him, drew him away from my sister." Sasha's body began to tremble as she looked up to watch her captor make another slow approach.
Holly kicked her hard in the stomach, causing her to jolt upwards. Her arms flew around her stomach and she rolled onto her back, clenching her eyes shut. "My sister watched until her dying days that man and that woman, raising you. You, a blight!" Holly stomped on Sasha's leg, she screamed as pain surged through her body. "You thought you were a random kidnapping? The minute I saw you walk into that hospital…"
Holly proceeded to laugh as Sasha turned on her side, facing the wall and curling her knees towards her chest. "I knew I was going to make you suffer, you would know the same pain my sister knew." Sasha screamed out, leaning her head back.
"Why? I did nothing."
"Wrong! You exist." The girl rocked onto her other side, moaning as blood dripped from her mouth.
"My only crime was being born?"
"Yes." Holly crouched low over her, saliva spewed from her mouth and onto Sasha's face. "And when your daughter turns eighteen, she's next you little bitch. Then, and only then, I might consider granting you that death you long for so badly."
Just then the elevator chimed and Holly pulled away from Sasha. Sasha cried out, practically begging Holly to keep beating her, to finish the job. Her body, coated with sweat, trembled ferociously. The sound of the children in the nearby cell filled her ears with her cries.
"We have a problem." David's voice echoed in her ears and she slowly raised her eyes to see Holly turning to the man. His fists were clenched tight and his muscles tense, he walked with narrow eyes and a scowl on his expression. "Multiple problems. I know you've been busy with everything for the last few days and didn't want any interruptions, but you need to know what's going on."
"What is it?"
"Tori's gone." Sasha's heart stopped, she wanted to react and to move but she couldn't. Holly sounded out an alarmed shout and threw her hands up, demanding him to explain. "Her car's in the ocean of the Santa Monica Pier. We don't know where she is…"
"Fuck. Well find her for god sake! You know how to bend the LAPD to your will, so do it."
David folded his arms across his chest and narrowed his eyes further. "That's the other problem. See, Thomas has sworn over and over all these years that the girl's boyfriend died in that house. Despite police reports and evidence suggesting someone saw him…We've ignored it right, not important and even if he was alive no one was identified."
"Okay…"
"Turns out when I paid him for the hit, someone saw me." David dropped his arms. "Could've been anybody. A neighbor, someone driving by, you didn't give a shit because at the time I was a 'nobody'. Apparently the witness came forward, seeing me somewhere, I've been identified at that scene."
"Are you fucking kidding me?"
"No, I think it was that boyfriend to be honest. Pretty sure he's alive and somehow he fingered me after all these years." David started to growl. "I'm under investigation by the goddamn FBI, I've been suspended during this process."
Sasha's heart skipped a beat and she started to turn, groaning as the pain shooting through her body started to grow intense. David motioned to the girl. "Want to do anything with her?"
"Not just yet. We'll drug her if we need to. If we don't have Tori for a bargaining chip, we may use her."
"She's barely even alive at this point." The couple froze, it was Trina's voice answering now. Trina walked from the other cell, having been checking on the children. Sasha had seen her earlier, but forgot she was still there. The girl placed her hands at her waist, curling her fingers around her hips. "That's why you're keeping the woman alive? Some old grudge?"
Holly turned to the girl. "How long have you been here, Trina?"
"I mean, you wanted me to check on the kids earlier." Trina motioned to Sasha. "She was barely even coherent when I got here, so I just held on." Trina cocked her head to the right, narrowing her eyes. "You want me to take over the organization for you, I may as well act like it, right?"
"Of course." Holly waved a hand in front of her face and sighed. "I can't focus right now. What's the problem you're having? You sound irritated."
Trina scoffed. "I mean shit, what the fuck's the point of keeping this woman alive this long? Seems like a waste." Trina raised her shoulders and looked down to Sasha. "Putting a bullet in her skull would almost be a damn mercy."
"You're questioning me?"
"No, I'm just trying to rationalize here. She's by far worn out her use, right?" Trina folded her arms across her chest. "She can't bear children anymore, so she can't produce any children for you to sell off to a fucking auction. She's nothing more than a wrinkled bag, so you can't force her back into that prostitution ring. She's barely mobile, so you can't force her into the slavery ring…She can barely look after these kids. Shit, if I knew your whole purpose of keeping her alive was because of some old ass grudge, I'd have put a bullet in her a long time ago."
Holly tensed, whisking her hand up and poking a finger in Trina's face. "You will do nothing to this woman." Trina rolled her eyes and turned her head away.
"Whatever, mother." Trina dropped her hands to her sides and started for the elevator. "I've got stuff to do."
Trina rode the elevator to first level of the building and exited, shaking her head at what she'd learned. As she proceeded across the parking lot to her car, she saw Mr. Sikowitz's nephew waiting for her. She smiled gently at him, her gaze drifting towards the small infant in his arms.
"Jason, didn't I tell you to stay away from this place?"
Jason nodded, looking down at the baby looking up with bright eyes. "Yeah, but she wanted her mother." Trina took the baby into her arms, rocking it gently while kissing it on the forehead.
"Little Rachel, it's a shame mommy has to hide you." She raised her gaze to Jason and a heavy sigh drifted from her lips. "My mother fucking insane. Tori's gone missing, and now it sounds like the FBI is investigating. I'm thinking the organization might be in trouble, mom cares more about a stupid old grudge."
"I never understood why you or my uncle are involved in this."
Trina shrugged. "Sikowitz is easy to control with his drug habit, and I'm expected to take over." She extended Rachel back to Jason, who slowly took the baby. "I'm glad I was able to hide my pregnancy, but I don't know that I can hide a baby." Tears welled up in her eyes and she clenched her teeth as her pain started to surge into her heart. "I love you, and I love Rachel; but I need you to take her and run…"
Jason's eyebrows shot up and his eyes started to widen. "Trina, what-"
"That woman is mad, I don't know what she would do if she knew I had a baby of my own or that I hid a pregnancy." Trina sidled up beside him and reached up, caressing his face. "Just until all this is over, Jason."
"Come with us?"
"You know that's impossible. Especially seeing my mother like this." Her hand trembled as she looked towards her daughter and gently tucked her fingers beneath the child's head. "If I ran now, they'd look for us. They'd kill you, they'd kill Rachel. I don't know what they'd do to me." Tears slid down her cheeks like streaks of fire. "I can't risk that." She closed her eyes. "Besides, I'll probably end up in prison myself, I don't want my daughter to see that."
"Trina."
"Please." She leaned into him, quickly kissing his lips. "Be it my last request for now." He furrowed his brow and stammered. "Take our daughter and go. Run. Run like hell, don't look back. Do you understand me?"
"I love you, I would fight for you."
"I know you would." Her hand slid down onto his chest and she bowed her head, leaning her forehead against his chin. "I love you, Jason. I love Rachel too. If you fight for anyone, fight for our daughter…"
His trembling lips kissed the top of her head and she turned her head to the right. "I'll do what I can, Trina. We'll wait for you." She sniffed and took a step back away from him.
Painful as it was, she watched as he made his way into his car after placing Rachel in the child's seat in the back. The baby gazed out the window, waving her arms in the air.
Trina choked out a sob and raised a hand over her mouth, watching as Jason slowly drove off. "Goodbye my love, Goodbye my daughter…" She turned around slowly and looked towards the facility with a heavy breath, thinking of Holly's vendetta. "All for a grudge you can't get past? You'll be the end of the entire organization." She hugged her waist and looked over her shoulder, crying out when she could no longer see Jason's car.
Okay, maybe I'm a little biased after years of writing my character and thinking for the first time I'd make her truly evil...nope. Anyway, we've seen a lot in this chapter, the depths of Holly's madness seems to know no bounds, and we've just seen Sasha for the first time since, well, the introduction. What are your thoughts here?
