Febuwhump Day 9: Kidnapped
Word Count: 3470
Author: aquietwritingcorner/realitybreakgirl
Rating: M
Characters: Denny Brosh, Denny's siblings
Warning: implied trafficking and such that goes with it. (don't worry, nothing actually happens to them)
Summary: Denny's two oldest siblings are kidnapped. Barb isn't stupid. She knows what can happen. So does Denny. Both hope that rescue will come in time. (Done from both Barb and Denny's perspectives. See notes at end of chapter for further explanation.)
Notes: Quick headcanons: Denny's mom died when he was young. Later, his dad remarried, and Denny's siblings came about. When the youngest was a baby, his dad and stepmom passed away in an accident and Denny assumed responsibility for the family. His siblings are as follows: Barbara (Barb), 15; Caitlyn, 12; Benjamin (Benji) and Ainsley, 6; Frederick (Freddy), 2.
Kidnapped
Barbara Brosh had, for a couple of years now, considered herself a fairly tough girl. Her parents had died, she helped care for her younger siblings, she was studying hard to go to medical school one day, she knew how to run a household and tell the overbearing boys off. She could make it through life just fine. She was a hard worker.
But although she had a clue about what was out there, due to her brother working in investigations, she hadn't realized just how tough life could be—or how terrifying.
Barbara, Caitlyn, and a couple dozen other girls who looked to be anywhere from younger than Ainsley to around her own age were all locked in this small, dark room. It wasn't even as big as classroom, had no windows, one door, and it was locked from the outside. They had been here for a couple of days now, or at least that was a near as Barbara could tell. They'd been stripped of personal items before being shoved in here roughly. They hadn't been out of the room, food and water delivered to them once a day, and a couple of buckets for the bathroom.
The only time any of the girls had been out of the room was when the men came in and grabbed one of them, forcing them out. Barb had hidden Caitlyn behind her the best she could during those times. She wanted to protect all of the girls in here, especially the little ones, but Caitlyn was the best she could manage at the moment, even she knew that it wouldn't last forever. They'd come for Caitlyn, and Barb would do her best to take her place. But then they'd come for Caitlyn again, and there would be nothing Barb could do to stop it.
It made her sick to her stomach just thinking about it. And although the girls that had come back had told stories about being measured and examined and looked over like animals, but nothing further, Barb wasn't stupid. She knew what it was preparation for, and it terrified her.
The door opened, and everyone tensed as the men came in. They looked even more menacing today, angry, and Barb was positive that it didn't bode well for them. The leader's gaze swept the room, and he said something in a different language, pointing to her and Caitlyn. Barb's heart seized in her chest, and she put herself more in front of Caitlyn.
"No!" she said. "No, leave her alone!"
"Move," one of the men said.
"No! I'll go but leave her alone!"
"Barb!"
"Don't you touch her!"
"Take them both," the leader said. "We run short on time."
This had not been something that Barb had anticipated, and she reacted instinctively. One of the men tried to reach for Caitlyn, and she fought to protect her sister. She kicked, clawed, bit, twisted, and everything else she could think of. She could hear Caitlyn doing the same. It took multiple men to subdue them, but they were eventually carried out of the small room, and into a hallway. The door closed and locked behind them. Barb's heart pounded in her chest, and she could hear Caitlyn crying.
The hallway wasn't dark, but there weren't any windows here either. No windows, just a few doors that were locked, and naked lightbulbs overhead. Barb fought not to let her terror overtake her.
Suddenly, they were separated, and Barb fought again, trying to get to her sister. She could see the fear in Caitlyn's eyes as she took what she hoped wasn't the last glimpse she'd get of her sister before she was whisked away into a room.
In her room were a few men. One had a clipboard and a pen, another measuring tapes, and yet another was just standing there, staring. A couple of men stood guard. The door shut behind her, and she was released, nearly stumbling to the ground.
"Strip," the staring man said.
"No," was her automatic response.
He looked mildly surprised, and then irritated. "I said, strip," he repeated.
Barb felt like she was about to throw up due to fear. "No!" she repeated, even more firmly.
The man growled. "We don't have time for this." He jerked his head at the guards. "Strip her."
"No!" Barb yelled and tried to back away from them. They lunged towards her, and she jumped out of the way. Another made a grab for her, and she stumbled back from him as well. One of them grabbed her foot, and desperately, she kicked at him. She fought, but eventually they pinned her down, and one drew a knife. Barb's eyes grew wide, and for the first time, her terror overwhelmed her control completely. She broke down into tears, knowing she had no way of stopping what was coming.
Then, suddenly, the door banged open, heads turned to look, and before they could even finish turning, a gunshot rang out. It was quickly followed by more, and the men holding her dropped. She stared in shock, and then, not really processing yet what happened, tried to scramble away. The man who had been staring at her lept at her, grabbing her up and holding her with an arm around her neck.
"Shoot me and she dies," he said, pulling a knife out.
Barb finally looked up to see the person with the gun—and felt her knees go weak with relief. It was Denny! But she had never seen a look like that one on his face before. He was thunderously angry, not an emotion that he normally had, and it was enough to even frighten her.
"You were dead the moment you took my sisters," He growled out in a low voice.
"Brosh!"
Barb recognized that voice. It was Maria Ross, her brother's partner. She came skittering around the corner, pausing in the doorway.
"Brosh…" this time, she said his name warningly.
"He has my sister," Denny said, anger coating his voice. Barb noticed that his hands were shaking as he held the gun. "He was going to—"
"I know," she said, keeping her voice calm. "But we'll make a better case if have him."
"He doesn't deserve to live!" Denny spat out.
"I understand that" Maria said. "But to get justice for all the girls he's harmed, we need him alive."
Denny grit his teeth and tightened his hold on his gun, smoothing out the shaking. He looked unnaturally focused, the anger burning fiercely in him. "I have a shot, Ross," he said, and Barb figured he had to be really angry to call her without her rank. "I'm going to take it."
Ross switched her attention to the man that was holding Barb. "I suggest you let the girl go. He's going to shoot you if you don't. It's your only chance for survival."
For a second, the man did nothing. And then, slowly, he loosened his grip. He let go of Barb, and she slid from his grasp, quickly running toward her brother and Maria Ross. Maria beckoned her towards herself, and Barb complied. She was almost there when she saw Maria's attention shift.
"Brosh, no!"
There was a gunshot, and Barb turned back to look. The man who had her was on the ground.
Maria grabbed her and then in one fluid motion spun around and forced Denny's gun down. "Sergeant!" she yelled in his face. "I told you not to fire!"
"He's still alive," Denny said, his voice still tight with anger. "Just injured."
Maria made some sort of noise in the back of her throat, but neither Barb or Denny paid it any heed. Barb was sobbing and fell headlong into Denny's waiting arms.
"I've got you," he said, and his voice was the warm, comforting tone of her big brother, of her protector. "I've got you, Barbie, and I'm never letting you go!"
"C-Caitlyn!" Barb cried out. "She—they took her to another room! They—"
"We've already got her," Maria said. "She was still fighting like a wildcat when we got to that room. No one had a chance to touch her." Maria glanced at Denny. "Why don't you take her outside and go find Caitlyn. We can handle the rest from here."
Denny nodded, put a fresh clip in his gun, and then, with his arm around Barb, escorted her outside. Barb moved like she was in a dream, or maybe like she was waking up from one. Through the building, past the incoming soldiers, and to a cordoned off area. It only really seemed to break when she heard Caitlyn's cry, and the younger girl came to them, the three of them sinking down on the grass in pile. Denny had his arms around both of them, and Caitlyn was crying, and Barbara was crying, and Denny was crying too and promising them that he would never let anything like this happen to them again and asking over and over again if they were alright and apologizing to them.
Barb couldn't seem to find the words to do more than then say "I'm fine! I'm fine!" and repeat her brother's name over and over again. But it was okay. Denny hugged them both fiercely even as he buried her head in him.
She was safe now. Her big brother had her. And he would keep her safe.
Denny clenched his fists, trying to stop the tremble that was going through them. It had come off and on the past three days as his anger grew. Denny wasn't usually an angry man. He was laid back, easy going, and friendly. Sure, he could get serious when needed, and he was good at his job, but on the whole his personality wasn't one that lent itself to anger easily. He was more likely to feel sad or despondent or worried than he was angry.
But not this time. This time he was a ticking time bomb, and the only reason he hadn't gone off yet, was because he knew if he did, he'd be denied this mission.
Technically, he probably should have been. Both Ross and Armstrong had tried to order him away from it. But he had looked them in the eyes and said that if they did, then he'd show up anyway. They had, apparently, believed him, which was good, because it was true. He was being allowed on the mission but was strictly assigned to their side.
They were probably afraid of what he'd do on his own. That was okay. He was too.
For three days his sisters Barbara and Caitlyn had been missing. They had, apparently, not come home that afternoon. He had been at work, helping with the newest case, one of the types that gave him nightmares, about a trafficking ring that targeted girls and young women. Apparently, Benji and Ainsley had taken it upon themselves to call him at work and, although it took them a little bit to get through to him, they did, telling him that Barb and Caitlyn hadn't come from school.
Denny had immediately taken action, and his worst fears had been confirmed—it looked like the work of the ring they had been tracking down.
Denny had immediately asked their neighbor to watch the kids, told her it would be a few days, and set out. He had returned home once, for a clean uniform, and the kids had come out to ask him what was going on. The hardest part of that had been when Benji asked if Barb and Caitlyn were going to be okay, and Denny had to look him in the eyes and tell all of them that he didn't know, but he was going to bring them home one way or another.
Now, finally, after three days, they were ready to move on the ring. Denny's mind had been filled with nightmare images about what might have happened to his sisters in those three days. It had killed his appetite and woken him from the little sleep he managed to get. He could only pray that his worst fears weren't coming true with every moment they delayed. They had to wait for everyone to get into position, for the building that these monsters were using to be surrounded. They didn't want a single one to escape. Denny waited for the order with a barely restrained need to take action.
Finally, the sign was given, and they moved in. While they weren't being completely stealthy, they also weren't trying to attract attention, and Denny did his best to maintain his control despite wanting nothing more then to run in there and rescue his sisters. They busted the lock on the door, which should have brought them attention except the sound was being blocked by—
Denny took off like a shot. That was Caitlyn, she was screaming, and he moved.
He burst into the room the screams were coming from, his gun up and ready, Ross and Armstrong and others right behind him. Caitlyn was whole, her shirt was slightly askew, and she was screaming and fighting as three men attempted to catch her. She had managed to climb some cabinets that were in the room and had what looked like a clip board she was trying to beat a man's hand off of her with.
Behind him, Ross yelled "Freeze! Amestris Military!" but Denny didn't offer them that curtesy. Instead, he fired a shot at the one who had his hand on Caitlyn's leg, and the man went down with a howl. Another man started to pull a gun, but suddenly earthen statues rose up and captured him. Caitlyn, having seen him, jumped down from the cabinets she was on, and ran into his arms, crying and frightened.
"Denny!"
"Catie!" He brought her into his embrace, holding her tightly, feeling relief that she seemed to be unharmed.
Caitlyn turned her head up to him, panic in her eyes. "They took Barb! She's in another room! They—You've got to save her! They—they were gonna-!" She shuddered and a hand came up to her shirt.
Fear and anger flooded Denny. He pushed Caitlyn towards Ross. "Take care of her!" he yelled, and then before anything else could be said, he was out the door.
He raced down the corridor, leaving the others behind. There weren't many rooms hear, and there was one that he could hear a commotion coming from—a commotion that included Barb's voice.
He didn't hesitate. He broke the door down, took a step in, and saw red. Three men had his sister pinned to the ground, one with his hand on her shirt. Three men, who were still in the process of turning to look at him, and three shots that he fired without a moment's hesitation. They went down, and he didn't particularly care if they were dead or not, beyond the thought of if they could be a threat. He swept the room, two men—one with a measuring tape, one with a clipboard—throwing up their hands in surrender and laying flat on the ground without him having to say a word.
The only other man in the room, though, he grabbed Barb, who had been trying to escape and held her with an arm around her throat, threatening her with a knife.
"Shoot me and she dies," the man said, an accent coloring his voice.
Anger so hot it felt like ice flowed through Denny, especially as Barb looked up at him, fear, terror and desperation on her tear-stained face. "You were dead the moment you took my sisters," He growled out, all trace of forgiveness gone from his voice.
"Brosh!"
Ross had caught up with him, and Denny heard her enter the room and pause as she took in the scene.
"Brosh…" this time, there was warning in her voice.
"He has my sister," Denny said, feeling his anger coat his voice, flow down him, causing his hands to shake from the sheer fury he was feeling.
"I know," Ross said. Her voice was even, placating. "But we'll make a better case if have him."
Denny wasn't having it. "He doesn't deserve to live!" he spat out.
"I understand that," Maria said, coming closer to him, around to his side. He could tell she was keeping an eye on the other two men, but her focus was mainly on him. "But to get justice for all the girls he's harmed, we need him alive."
Denny grit his teeth and tightened his hold on his gun. His anger coalesced, crystalized, and it smoothed out the shaking in his hands. An unnatural focus came over him, the anger burning fiercely fueling it. "I have a shot, Ross," not bothering with rank. "I'm going to take it."
He felt more than saw Ross's attention switch to the man that was holding Barb. "I suggest you let the girl go," she said to him. "He's going to shoot you if you don't. It's your only chance for survival."
For a second, the man did nothing. Denny's finger moved more towards the trigger. And then, slowly, the man loosened his grip. He let go of Barb, and she slid from his grasp, quickly running toward him and Ross. Denny didn't lower his gun, so Maria beckoned Barb towards herself, and Barb complied. She was almost there, and safely out of range when Denny squeezed the trigger.
"Brosh, no!"
The shot rang out, and Denny watched with a twisted satisfaction as the man stumbled back and fell to the ground
Suddenly Ross's hand was shoving his arms down and she was in his face. "Sergeant!" she yelled, inches from him. "I told you not to fire!"
"He's still alive," Denny said, his voice still tight with anger. "Just injured."
Maria made some sort of noise in the back of her throat, but Denny didn't pay any attention to it. Instead, he held out his arms to Barb. She fell headlong into them sobbing.
"I've got you," he said, and his anger faded from his voice. "I've got you, Barbie, and I'm never letting you go!" He closed his arms around her tightly, hugging her to him.
"C-Caitlyn!" Barb cried out. "She—they took her to another room! They—"
"We've already got her," Ross said. "She was still fighting like a wildcat when we got to that room. No one had a chance to touch her." Ross glanced at Denny, and he met her gaze, no regrets in his eyes. "Why don't you take her outside and go find Caitlyn. We can handle the rest from here."
Denny nodded. He had done what he had come here for, and he knew he would be useless from here on out. He put another clip in his gun for safety's sake, and then, with his arm around Barb, escorted her outside. She was shaking like a leaf, her breath coming in sobs, and it was eating away at Denny's anger. Through the building, outside, and to a cordoned off area he led her, scanning the area for Caitlyn. She spotted them first, and with a yell she left behind the soldier who she was with and rushed straight into their arms.
Denny's anger retreated, letting the more important job of caretaker and protector come forward. He caught Caitlyn as she threw herself at them, and all three of them just sat down right there in the grass. Barb was in tears again, burying herself in his uniform jacket and saying his name and "I'm fine" over and over again. Caitlyn was crying loudly too, no real words to it, just an overflow of emotions. Denny couldn't help himself. He clutched them to him, his own tears flowing, apologizing for letting this happen to them, and promising them that he would never let anything like this happen to them again.
Denny knew that he couldn't really promise that. But he would do his best to make sure it never happened again, starting with getting them some more protection. In the background of his emotions, he knew that the anger he had felt was still there, but he would let it stay there, until everyone involved in this horrific thing was in jail or worse.
Because no one kidnapped or hurt his sisters.
Author's note: So, I wrote the version from Barb's POV first, but it was definitely more intense than the things that I usually write. So, I decided to rewrite it from Denny's POV. But it honestly wasn't much better. I liked them both, though, and I couldn't figure out which one to post, so I figured, hey, why not go with an experiment and post both of them. So, you know, there you go. I hope you enjoyed!