Victim

"Hey..."

Ellis' familiar voice rang clear in Nick's ears. He was standing in a strange hallway, lit only by the light coming from a bedroom at the end of it.

"This is different..."

Nick could hear the happiness in Ellis' soft voice as he took a step towards the door. Slowly, he approached the passageway. He pushed the door out of his way and stepped inside the room. It was empty.

Nick looked around in his pyjamas, feeling a draft blow over his bare chest. Where was Ellis? Wasn't he supposed to be in quadrant B? What was Nick doing there in the first place?

Nick looked over his shoulder to peek back down the hallway. It was gone, a wall blocking his vision. He blinked.

"What the – wasn't the door...?"

Nick grazed his fingers over the wall where the door used to be.

"You like that?"

Nick whirled around at the sound of his lover behind him. A bed materialized in front of him, Ellis standing beside it, wearing nothing. He stepped back as Ellis looked him over, licking his lips. Nick exhaled. He did love his fantasy-filled dreams, nowadays.

"Yeah, I do," replied a voice.

Nick spun around again. A woman was directly behind him, staring at Ellis through Nick as if he weren't there. She wore only a white bra and matching panties on her skinny, pale body. She had thin lips and black-brown hair with stunning green eyes.

"Nicole..." Ellis purred.

"I told you to call me Nicki." The woman licked her lips and flashed a half-grin. Nick squinted at the sight of Nicki. She looked extremely familiar...

"Ellis?" Nick asked. Ellis ignored him. He walked up to Nicki, stepping through Nick as if he were a cob web. Ellis grabbed her hand and pulled her through Nick towards the bed.

"Ellis! Kid!" Nick yelled. He tried to step forward, but his legs were frozen. "What the fuck?" he exclaimed. Ellis didn't even blink. He sat Nicki on the bed with him and kissed her passionately. He grabbed her face, breathing deeply.

Ellis' hand slowly slid from her cheek to her shoulder. He grabbed onto her bra strap and slipped it over her fair skin. She moaned with pleasure as the other strap fell. The bra slipped from her breasts, exposing them to the kid's exploring hands.

Nick tried to shut his eyes. He couldn't. "Oh, shit," he murmured, staring at Ellis and the strange woman. Was this still a dream? Was this now a nightmare? Nick tried to open his eyes from his sleep, but it was as if his eyes were glued shut, forcing him to endure whatever would happen next.

"Ellis!" he yelled. Ellis continued to drag his hands over Nicki's body, pushing her down onto the bed and climbing on top of her. He ripped her underwear down to her knees. She moaned even louder as Ellis made contact with her with his fingers. She split her legs apart further as Ellis shimmied over to her, hands firm on her hips, ready to take the plunge.

"ELLIS!"

Nick gasped and his eyes snapped open at the sound of someone pounding on the door. He was drenched in a cold sweat and his legs were shaking.

"Shit," he choked as he wiped his eyes. He rolled over towards the bed table to look at the alarm clock. 4:37 am.

"C'mon," he snarled. He threw the covers off him and left the bed to answer the door. He opened the door. A gust of wind flew into the room, biting and cold. Nick shivered, trying to make out the figure in front of him.

"H-Hey."

Nick gasped as Ellis fell into Nick's warm arms, stiff with cold.

"Ellis? Shit, kid, you're freezing!" Nick helped the hick into the house and slammed the door shut while keeping Ellis upright. Nick flicked on a light.

Ellis was a mess. His eyes were red and his skin was pale. He had Nick's old shirt draped over his shoulders. His shoulder and neck were wrapped in gauze.

"What happened, kid? Come on too strong or something?"

"A-A-Actually, it-t-t was the other w-way around-d."

Nick didn't bother asking until Ellis regained a normal body temperature. He sat with his lover on the couch, holding his shivering body in a blanket as Ellis sipped at some hot water.

"You okay?" he asked after a sip. "You don' look too good yourself."

"Bad dream."

"Can I know what happened?"

"Well, you were having sex with me."

Ellis looked down, slightly offended, with a chuckle. "Gee, thanks."

"I was a woman."

Ellis choked on his water.

"I was watching, too. But I was only watching. The woman just had similar attributes to me... I dunno, it was creepy at the time."

Ellis didn't respond, clutching his mug.

"So what happened to you?"

Ellis bit his top lip and looked into his water. His eyes went vacant.

"The woman I was paired with...had too much to drink...well, she jus' decided to throw a candle at me."

"Just decided to?"

Ellis hesitated. "Yeah."

Nick glared at Ellis inquisitively. What was the kid leaving out?

"Anyway, CEDA'll give me a new match in the mornin'. The other woman's been pulled from the project. I walked here from the clinic. They managed to peel off the wax, but they had'tuh take some skin with it."

"Gross," Nick said. He looked at Ellis. Ellis didn't look up. He just kept staring into that mug...no smile, no chuckle, no nothing. "Hey, didn't something similar happen to Keith?"

Nothing. Ellis inhaled deeply and stood up.

"Do we have any painkillers?"

Nick sighed angrily. "Bathroom," he muttered.

Nick watched Ellis walk into the bathroom, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Nice shirt!" he said bitterly.

"Thanks, Nick." Nick winced at the sound of his voice. It was so... depressing and snarky. It was different.

Nick bit his tongue. There was something that kid wasn't telling him. And he was going to find out what.

It took CEDA six days to get their shit together and send someone with a new match for Ellis. The anonymous soldier shoved the paper into Nick's hand as Ellis put away his clothes.

"Sorry about the delay; it seems we misplaced your paper," the soldier stated.

"Uh-huh." Nick didn't look at it and placed it face-down on the table after shutting the door.

"Ellis, you got mail," he murmured. Ellis' reply was silent as he walked from the bedroom to pick up the paper. Nick gritted his teeth.

"You're welcome."

Ellis nodded slowly and looked at the note warily. Nick walked into the kitchen to have a glass of water.

Ellis had said close to nothing since he came home. He was always in pain because of his burns, so contact between the two of them was minimal. Even in their sleep, Ellis distanced himself from Nick as much as possible, no matter how cold the bedroom was.

Nick finished gulping his water down.

"What day is it today?"

"Saturday," Ellis mumbled. "You're leaving today."

Great. That was the longest sentence he'd said in days.

"I know. I packed last night, remember?" Ellis didn't answer. He nodded. "When are you shipping out?"

"Tomorrow."

Nick looked into Ellis' eyes, unmoving.

"What?" Ellis asked, avoiding his gaze.

"You know what," snapped Nick.

Ellis shook his head and stepped back towards the bedroom. Nick stepped towards him, frustrated.

"Ellis, you haven't said more than ten words a day this past week. You don't touch your food. You don't even sleep right. When Mac came into the house, at least you talked after. But now, I have no fuckin' idea on what is going on."

"Maybe I don' wanna talk 'bout it?"

"What the hell? Don't give me that excuse!"

"You're mad at me? Why? What do you wan' me to say, Nick? What can I say that'll make you satisfied?"

"Anything more than 'please' and 'thank you'!" Nick retorted.

"Well, there yah go."

Ellis turned and disappeared into the bedroom.

"You know what, Ellis, fine! I tried! If you don't need my help right now, I'm leaving."

So when Nick didn't hear a response, he grabbed his suitcase and stormed out. Little did he know that Ellis was on his knees in the bedroom, biting his fist to prevent himself from screaming.

Rebecca Kiltswater – yet another unimportant name on another seemingly unimportant piece of paper; and that piece of paper was clenched in Ellis' hand as he made his way back to quadrant B. He fought off his sleepiness as he tried to find the right house, numb from exhaustion and the early morning chill.

Nick never came back the previous day, leaving Ellis to pick up his own pieces. Nick was right, and it took every ounce of Ellis to keep his mouth shut to tell him so. Sure, he could tell him everything, but he wouldn't take him seriously. How many women try to rape men every day? Not many. And to make matters worse, he had to go try again with another woman while Nick was in the same vicinity. At this time of day, Nick would still be sleeping, but on this particular day, he'd be sleeping in a different bed. With a woman. The thought set Ellis on edge until he found house 5F – his new temporary home close to the edge of the settlement.

He stepped onto the porch, slinging his packed clothes over his good shoulder. He placed a firm hand on the doorknob and shoved the door open. Hell, this early in the morning, Rebecca shouldn't even be awake.

Ellis tossed his bag noisily on the floor and looked around the house. It was simple enough; a living room with a kitchen to the side and a hallway with a bathroom to the left and a bedroom to the right. But something stood out to him.

A picture frame glinted in the light from the morning sun peeping through the windows. It sat upright on the counter next to a lit candle and a rosary. Ellis kicked off his shoes and proceeded to the kitchen where the picture was located.

A man holding a baby stared back at him as Ellis took the picture in his hands. He stroked the wood around it, feeling the smooth texture. There was a date in the bottom right corner. The picture was taken a year and a half ago. Ellis looked to the lit candle. There was very little melted wax on the top. It was new.

Ellis heard a shuffle around the corner in the hallway behind him. He whirled around, almost dropping the picture.

WHACK!

Ellis stumbled into the counter at the sting of a stick smacking into his shoulder.

"Ah!" Ellis exclaimed. He felt the searing pain of his burn come back at full force. He grabbed his arm, wincing. "Shit!"

"GET OUT!" screamed a woman. She raised the broom once again to hit him a second time.

"What the –" Ellis blocked the second swing with a firm hand. The woman blinked.

"Who are you?"

"Ellis!" he yelled.

"Liar!" she shrieked. She tried to wrench the broom from his grip.

"No I ain't! I have the paper! See?" Ellis placed the picture down and forced his hand into his pocket. He shoved the paper in her face. Her eyes widened. She dropped the broom and scampered back. Ellis stared at her.

Her paper said she was twenty-two. She had an extremely small figure with straight shoulder-length brown hair. Her hazel eyes were wide with terror. She held her petite hands to her mouth, covering half her face.

"Then – who was – you," she stuttered. She moved her hands from her face, revealing a large bruise on her cheek.

"Ow," Ellis groaned. He sucked in a deep breath and groped his shoulder. "That...hurt."

"You shouldn't be here," she hissed. She ran up to the counter and swiped the picture frame back. She placed it where Ellis found it.

"I am if you're Rebecca Kiltswater, an' I know you are for a fact." He recalled the picture that came with her paper. He sucked a breath in through his nose, trying to numb the pain spreading to his arm.

"No, no, Ellis was already here. He was here five days ago."

"No, I wasn't. I was at home with this here injury."

Rebecca pointed a hand at him, lips trembling. "You're Ellis? Born in Savannah? Living in quadrant G?"

"That's what I'm tryin' to say!"

Rebecca broke into a pace, speaking in a hoarse voice. "I-I don't understand, if you're Ellis, then who –"

"What's wrong?" Ellis asked. He reached out to place a hand on her shoulder.

"Don't!" she yelled. "Don't touch me!"

Ellis snapped his hand back, the pain in his shoulder receding. "Okay, calm down."

Rebecca ignored Ellis and kept pacing, breathing dangerously fast, face red and strained, tears springing up to her eyes. Soon, she wasn't getting any air into her rapidly flexing lungs.

"Breathe." Ellis stepped towards the panicking woman, worried she was about to collapse. "Look at me! Breathe!"

Rebecca's eyes wavered and her knees gave out. Ellis grabbed her frail body and threw her arm over her shoulder.

"Get off!" she wheezed.

"Look, I ain't gonna hurt you. I'm jus' gonna put yah on the couch."

Rebecca relaxed a little, allowing Ellis to pick her up and gently set her on the couch. He pulled off the blanket draped over the end of the seat and placed it over her legs. She flinched every time he moved, gasping and squeaking, tears flowing over her skin. He stepped back, Rebecca's wide eyes following his every motion. She clutched her chest, sucking in deep breaths.

"Listen to me, 'kay?" Ellis said. "I need you to trus' me. I'm gonna leave you here and I'm gonna go into the bathroom to change my bandages. I won' keep yah here, jus' relax."

Rebecca nodded after a few moments of pondering. Ellis exhaled and left to go to the bathroom, giving Rebecca the breathing space she needed.

"I'm sorry about this morning."

Ellis stopped peeling an apple at the sound of Rebecca's voice. It was close to dinner time, but Ellis was peeling an apple. He didn't know why, but he didn't stop for long. It had been hours since Rebecca talked.

"It's alright. I should'a knocked."

Rebecca wrung her hands together and bit her lip. "Can I be straight with you?"

Ellis turned to Rebecca, who was still seated on the couch, wrapped in the blanket. Her eyes were puffy and red, and the bruise on her face was darkening. "Yeah, what's up?"

"How do I know I can trust you?"

Ellis held his breath, processing. "What?"

"I need... to know that I can trust you that you won't...do...hurt..." Rebecca trailed off, frustrated and scared. She touched the bruise on her face.

"Someone hurt you, didn't they?" Ellis murmured. Rebecca's back straightened and she held her breath. "An' you have a hard time trustin' people."

Rebecca's shoulders shuddered. She nodded, swallowing a lump in her throat.

"Well, yah can trust me. I won' hurt you."

"It's more severe than you –"

"I won' take advantage of you if that's what you're gettin' at."

Rebecca blinked. "How did - really?"

Ellis put the apple down and dried his hands on his pants. Rebecca tilted her head.

"I'm confused..."

"Don't be," Ellis replied. "I'm not into your type. I have someone."

Rebecca relaxed, burying her face in her hands, relieved.

"I owe you an explanation for my behaviour earlier."

Ellis walked over to the couch and sat beside her. "You don' have'ta tell me anythin' if you don' want to."

"I want to. If you want to listen to me. I...I need your help."

"...Okay."

Rebecca took a deep breath and crossed her legs on the couch, sweeping her messy hair behind her ear.

"About two years ago, I got pregnant with my first child. I was married to my high-school sweetheart, Zack. And a few months later, I gave birth to Emma. Emma and Zack are the ones in that picture you found this morning. And the infection hit... we made it to an evac station, Zack had Emma and went on one chopper. I managed to get on another, but it took me here instead of with them. So I haven't heard from them in about sixteen months."

Rebecca took a shuddering gulp of air, blinking out tears of misery onto her skin. Ellis couldn't find words to comfort her before she continued.

"Five days ago, my cycle started. I was told to come here. I was matched with you; your name was on the paper, but the picture was too blurry to properly make out. Someone came here, though, saying they were you. I should have asked for their paper or ID. I didn't. The man locked the door and didn't talk much. He was pretty aroused already. I tried to tell him I wasn't interested. He hit me."

Ellis tensed at the thought. Rebecca kept going, sobbing slightly.

"I don't remember what happened right after. It was all in chunks. I passed out more than once... I remember him leaving last night. He told me if I left the house, he'd know. He said he'd find me and do it again. He said he'd come back. Tonight." Rebecca wiped her eyes and mouth, sniffing and choking.

Ellis swallowed to keep his bile at bay.

"I remember the feeling I got at one point. When he...released once, I just knew. I don't need a test to tell me I'm... I'm... I got the same feeling with Emma."

Ellis brought his hands to his face, gulping. Shit, this wasn't real.

"I'm sorry," she sobbed. "I had to tell someone. And if he finds out, I'm dead! And I can't abort or leave the camp or anything. I just want to see my family. And he's going to be here in a few hours; I need your help!"

"It's okay. I'm here now an' I won' let that son of a bitch touch you ever again. You have my word."

"I don't know what to do..."

Ellis wrapped his arm around Rebecca and pulled her close, feeling her tears through his shirt.

"Don't worry. I do."