Chapter Two-Hundred and Forty

Phoebe bit her lip when John's shaking didn't stop or slow, knowing that he would hate her decision. She pulled her t-shirt over her head, pressing the skin of her little belly below her training bra to his body, praying that the heat would pass from her to him and keep him comfortable. "I love you brother…" She whispered, yelping when harsh hands gripped her arms and pulled her away from her brother. "Let me go!" She shrieked, grinning as John's body moved in a blur, one moment he'd been curled on the ground, and the next his strong hands were wrapped around the man's neck.

"Drop her, Ben." He growled, pushing his sister behind him and shoving Ben back into the wall until he's close enough to cause real pain. He bared his teeth, showing off the sharpness of his canine's and growling like a wolf. "I don't give a fuck what you do to me, but if you touch my sister again, you'll find yourself with the worlds shortest dick." He brought his knee up between Ben's legs, making the older man cry out in pain, before he pushed Phoebe to go back to her place.

Jacob was in the room in seconds, a length of rope in his hands. "You son of a bitch." He sighed, gripping John's wrists as two other thugs force the teen to the ground. He pulled the ropes tight around John's arms, making sure it won't come loose anytime soon before he rigged the hemp to a hook in the ceiling and pulled John's feet from the ground. "Try to cause fuckery like that." He ran his hand over the lettering burned into his son's side, an evil grin sliding over his face at the way the muscles in his sides tensed. He pulled his hand away, slapping the palm of his hand onto his skin eliciting a small cry from the boy. "Remember what I told you? You belong to me, and nothing you do can change that."

Claire pulled at the sleeves of John's hoodie, tucking her nose into the collar and breathing his scent that was nearly washed out of the garment.

Toby and a few of she and John's mutual friends walked with her, attempting to grant her some kind of comfort. "How are you?" Toby asked, not daring to touch her in anyway out of respect for John.

"I just want to know where he is…" She choked, burying her face into his chest to seek any comfort she could. "Or at least know that he's still alive…"

Dominic screamed, letting his fists fly into the wall with frustration. He crouched on the carpeting, cupping his head in his bloody hands as he sobbed. "Come back to me, you little shit…"

John groaned as the ropes started to cut into his arms, stretching his toes toward the floor in hopes to somehow relieve the pressure on his arms and wrists. Blood ran down his body, the red liquid sticky against his ribs. He let silent tears flow down his cheeks, trying to move as little as possible to avoid pain. He was reminded of the night he'd been raped, how he'd been forced to not move in fear that his balls would be squeezed until they popped like balloons.

His head snapped up as the doorknob giggled, squinting as the light was flipped on to show that it was Jacob and a blond who he didn't remember the name to. "Please… please, Sir. Let me down now…" He hated the words that left his mouth, but he hated the slow, burning cuts worse.

Jacob ran his hand over John's waist, tenderly kissing his ribs and abs before he sliced the rope. "I want him ready to fight by morning." He snapped, placing his boot over John's head and pushing his face into the dirt floor.

The blond nodded, waiting until Jacob was out of the room in fear that the sounds of pain from John would make his temper flare up even more. "I'm Hans." He smiled, helping the teen sit up so that he could examine the wounds in his skin. "I'm… I was… a medic, before…"

John blinked the dirt from his eyes, letting Hans disinfect the cuts in his skin. "John…" He sighed, wincing as the disinfectant burned.