Wicked Games

Chapter Four: Enjoy The Silence

10:36pm

"Rhonda." Hank's deep voice reverberated in the dark room.

"What?" She asked. He didn't answer. He pulled back the curtain in response and some pale moonlight trickled in. She stepped forward and peered out the window. A bobbing head of auburn bounced below them on the sidewalk. It disappeared and the faint sound of a heavy door opening echoed somewhere. She glanced at Hank's solemn face. He was staring silently at the floor.

"Well? What are you waiting for?" She hissed. He jumped and lumbered away. Her fingertips flew to the strap on her upper thigh, caressing the handle there.

"It's time to greet our guest." She said lowly and left the room as well.

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The warehouse door was old and heavy and quite creaky. Lila stared into the ongoing darkness. It was definitely a creepy setting. She kind of wished Rhonda wasn't so good at this sort of thing, but she was so she was just going to have to get with it. She crept forward, moving into the building's depths. Even though her eyes were getting used to the dark, it was still hard to get around. The silence was starting to get to her too.

"Hello? Rhonda?" She cried out. "I need some help. Where are you?"

She waited for a moment but no one answered. She frowned. She was starting to get a little annoyed. It wouldn't be below Rhonda to play a practical joke on her now. And quite frankly, after the whole Arnold scolding fiasco, her patience had worn a little thin with the raven-haired girl.

"Alright Rhonda!" She shouted. "I've about had enough! I'm leaving!"

She turned to do so but realized she didn't remember the way she'd come in. The grey forms and black doorways like gaping maws were ominous before her.

"Damnit." She whispered. Feeling her way around, she continued forward.

That's when she started to feel it though, the eyes on the back of her neck. She knew she was just being paranoid but she couldn't help casting glances behind her. No one was there. Just darkness. She knew in her mind that it was probably just Rhonda or Helga trying to scare her but the longer she walked, the less sure that feeling was. It was just watching. Waiting. The longer she waited, the more her anticipation heightened.

"Hello? Anyone there?" Her voice trilled nervously in the darkness. She put out a hand on a doorway and looked out into a long hallway. She paused. The hairs on her arms were raised. She didn't feel alone…

A bright light cut on suddenly behind her. She spun around to face the hulking mass of shadow looming over her. A scream pealed from her throat, deep from the place where they never end, but the figure backhanded her right across the face and that shut her up real quick. The force of it was incredibly blinding, stars popped across one eyes as her lip split open and she flew into the ground. She immediately began to crawl away, trying to pull herself up in the process. Mid-stand, a foot came down on the small of her back and sent her tumbling forward. She cried out, her face was gashed now. There was definitely blood all over her face, warm and sticky and tacky.

"Help!" She cried, reaching out into the void. No one was there though, now that it was convenient, and the figure behind her grabbed the back of her dress and jerked her up. She squeaked, flailing and kicking as he pulled her up. Naturally she was no match for him. His hands closed over her forearms. She couldn't breath, the fear crowding out her thoughts was also constricting her lungs. She was becoming faint, she could feel that. In her mind, her effort to escape would have been great. A fight one imagines putting up when thinking about these scenarios. Perhaps an elbow to the nose, a finger in the eye, a nice stomp on his foot. Unfortunately all these lessons flew right out the window as he shook her violently. This was just her being dominated by a man much bigger and stronger than her.

She squirmed, trying to pull away but he jerked her against his chest and threw her backwards. She fell hard against the floor, her head bouncing painfully. Her vision blacked out for a moment but then she was staring up at him. He was outrageously tall and not at all what she would imagine a raping murderer to look like. He was almost handsome with a round boyish face and a scruffy facial hair. His eyes stared down at her though with a sad sort of miserable stare. There wasn't an inch of hate or violence there. It was odd how…innocent he appeared.

"What do you want?" She whispered. He stared down at her still not responding. He sighed softly instead, so wearily that the sound hurt her heart. His eyes rolled to the side and she looked too. There were some stairs to the side of them and a little beyond the light was the slender frame of a girl.

"Rhonda?"

"Lila." She said darkly and walked towards them. Her heart dropped. There was nothing joking or playful about the way Rhonda was looking at her with slits for eyes.

"What's going on?" She huffed out in a shuddering breath. It was easier to act tough with Rhonda.

"Where were you before you came here?" Rhonda asked quietly, her tone dangerous. Lila's stomach lurched. She knew the answer, she was just asking to see if she would lie about it.

"What does it matter now? Call off your watchdog." She snapped. The man above her didn't respond or react to her reference to him. It was creepy.

"It matters." She said. Lila bit her lip.

"What do you want me to say?" She asked exasperated. This all seemed a little bit unnecessary for some flirting.

"Anything. The truth."

She fell silent, glancing over the boy in front of her. Sweat was beading on her brow.

"I was at Arnold's." She sighed finally.

"That's what I thought." Rhonda turned away then, linking her hands behind her back.

"Round her up then, Hank." She said vaguely.

"Excuse me?" Lila demanded. Hank sprung to life though, lunging forward and grabbing her by the arms.

"Get off of me!" She screamed, fighting viciously this time now that her head was a little more clear.

"Tie her up. Keep her quiet. Helga mustn't hear when she comes." Rhonda said non-challantly.

"What do you think you're doing?" She screeched but Hank had spun her around and forced her wrists together behind her back. He roped them together tightly. He pushed her forward onto the ground. She blushed as her dress flew up, surely revealing her underwear. For a moment, the worst came to mind but Hank grabbed her ankles and tied them together too. He grabbed the hem of her dress suddenly and yanked it down to cover her. She rolled onto her side to look up at them.

"What are you going to do to me?" She whimpered.

Rhonda turned her head slightly.

"Punish you." She said.

She looked away again.

"I want her in the middle of the spotlight now, please Hank. That would be the most dramatic." She said.

He leaned over to pick her up.

"Wait!" She cried. "You don't have to do this! I can tell you're kind in heart. I don't know what she's got on you, but you don't have to do this!"

He paused, hovering over her. His eyes searched her face.

"Hank!" Rhonda snapped. He winced but looked at her.

"Can you handle this or do I have to get someone who will?"

He glanced back at Lila but shook his head very slowly.

"Well alright then. Over. HERE."

She pointed.

"No, please." She moaned.

"And shut her up."

She tried to squirm away but he grabbed her and slapped some duct tape over her lips.

"There. There's fine."

He dragged and dropped her in the middle of the blinding spotlight. She tried to squirm away but Rhonda gripped her by the shoulder tightly.

"Lila." She said shortly, her stare piercing into Lila's eyes.

"Now, do you see Hank over there?" She pointed at him standing nervously by the wall.

Lila didn't answer. She didn't need to.

"Now Hank is a gentle soul. He doesn't very much want to hurt you. But I have something he wants very badly. Now, do you know that feeling? Wanting something so badly, you'd do anything to have it?"

Again, she said nothing but she stopped squirming.

"Good girl. That's what I thought. Now cut off that light, Hank. Helga will be here soon enough."

She stared at Hank with pleading eyes but his head was down as he shuffled towards the light switch. She let her head fall backwards as the light shown down on her.

The light went out.

And she was alone.