Chapter 65

December 30, 1912

Cal's manservant leads Jesse down a darkened corridor of the Hockley plant. Jesse's hands were tied behind his back, while the servant had his gun trained at the small of his back. With the gun still trained at Jesse he dug into his pocket, fished a key, then opens a door. He shoves Jesse inside yet another darkened room, then he followed. This room was dank, water dripped from every crevice; it smelled of mold and dusty concrete, and the dust hung heavy, something that made Jesse struggle to breathe.

The meager lights flickered on, blinding Jesse as he was tied to a chair of sorts. The blinding light made his head ache even more, he felt nauseated, and wanted to throw up. Soon, Mr. Hockley emerged from the darkness. He quickly walks over, then backhands Jesse's face.

"Where is my son's fiancé?!" he yells. Jesse only looked at the man once more, before spitting out blood. He tried to get up, but the large man put a firm hold on his shoulder, to prevent him from advancing on the man. Mr. Hockley looked at his pocket watch.

"She was supposed to be married months ago, but you had to get in the way. Now I ask again." He places his hands on the arms of the chair, then leans close to Jesse's face, before yelling, "Where is she?!" Mr. Hockley raises a hand once more, but Jesse only looked at the man, as he spat out more blood.

"We have ways of making you talk, but in the meantime, we'll send your dear father a ransom if he wants to see you back, if at all." he sneered, as he twirls his finger at his son and the servant. The servant pulls Jesse from the chair, as he winces from the force the man has his grip on him. They walk down the same corridor they came earlier, until they walked to the front door, to a waiting car. Cal goes in, and the servant pushes Jesse inside, then Cal sits him upright in the seat, and finally, the servant, who sits across from Jesse, and next to his master. Jesse tried to shake his head to move his hair, but his head was throbbing, and didn't want to hurt himself even further. Cal then seemingly ran his hand through Jesse's soft hair with passion, then grabs a handful of his hair, as he tried to make Jesse look at him, then looks into the boy's intense eyes. Jesse looked back at the angry, hungry eyes of an animal that wanted to clearly kill him.

...

They arrived at the Hockley mansion later that evening. Without waiting for the driver, Cal gets out of the driver side, and the servant pulls Jesse from the passenger side, as he grabs ahold of the boy's arms. He puts a firm hand on Jesse's shoulder, and the gun trained in his back again.

The servant puts his gun away, as a maid comes over and asks if Cal needed anything.

"Just a cup of tea and for my servant, a bottle of brandy." Cal says, and the maid quickly disappears into the kitchen, not noticing the bruise or cuts on Jesse's face, as the servant quickly leads Jesse to what would have been Rose's old room.

Cal's father soon enters the room, and sees Jesse tied to the chair. He had a couple of glasses, and a bottle of scotch in his hands, something Jesse despises, as he never drinks alcohol, nor smoked. He sets the brandy and glasses down on the floor, before he gets out a small table from a nearby closet, then places the glasses in front of him. Mr. Hockley pops the bottle, and bubbles begin fizzing from the neck of the bottle. Jesse could smell the rancid liquid as the man pours himself and Jesse a cup. He gives the cup to Jesse, before attempting to make a toast.

Cal and his servant both enter the room, then they both do the unimaginable. Cal grabs the small glass, while the servant forcibly opens Jesse's mouth. Cal tries to pour the liquid into Jesse's mouth, as he spat out the liquid that began to burn the inside of his mouth and throat. He began to grab the bottle of scotch from the table, until his father put his hand up to stop the madness. He knew Cal had gone too far, but at the same time, he wanted the boy to suffer, and he had suffered long enough indeed. Jesse sat there, head spinning as the alcohol took effect on his now delicate body. His mouth hurt, from the force the servant tried to open, and from the punches he received from both Cal and his father. He began to get sick, and started feeling dizzy, as he moves his head, as if to try to control the alcohol taking over him. He also hadn't eaten since the day before the wedding, and that only made him feel worse.

The maid had seen it all, and she began to feel a tinge of sadness for the boy who was tied to the chair, while her masters Cal and Mr. Hockley laughed about getting over their revenge, and for the torture of the boy. Cal poured a bottle of scotch, and everyone clinked their glasses before taking a swig from it. She heard footsteps approaching her, and she quickly picks up the feather duster to pretend to get at the dust in the picture frames, as the men continue their drunken celebration.

...

The men had gone to sleep, as the maid quietly makes something for the boy who was tied to the chair in Rose's room. With a candlelight, she brings him a decent meal of chicken, rice and potatoes, with steaming gravy and melted butter, and a dinner roll. With her heart pounding, she tries to untie Jesse, until she came across a knot that was too tight. Tears overcame her, as she looks at the boy, hair hanging over his face, and she could see splotches of blood on his lips, and a dark spot under his eye, assuming it to be a bruise. He slowly opens his eyes, and her heart began to beat faster, as she saw incredible beauty from this young man. She could feel herself blush and tingle as he began to smile as best he could, despite his mouth hurting.

Jesse felt like he wanted to kiss her, but he was already a married man, and he didn't want to betray his wife. The maid brushed his hair away from his eyes, then slowly planted him a large kiss, on his lips, as he tried to tell her he was already married. She smiled, as she stuffs the chicken into a roll, then puts it in Jesse's mouth. With difficulty, he managed to chew the food, as it began to hit his stomach. He felt a slight energy as his stomach began to digest the food, and he began to feel a little bit better. The maid cuts up slices of the potato, pouring the butter and gravy, before she fed him once more. By this time the maid was completely mesmerized by Jesse's eating, the way he chewed, and was lost when she saw his pronounced adam's apple bobbed when he swallowed the food. She mixed the rice into the gravy before spoonfeeding him, and watched him chew once more. Jesse felt better when he finally ate all the food the maid prepared. She was about to feed him the second time when she heard footsteps that were muffled from the carpet, but nonetheless heading her way.

She snuffed the candle, then quickly crawls under the bed, when the footsteps continued down the hallway, then turning, before she heard the door close. It was some time until she realized the person was in the bathroom, as she heard the toilet flush, then the person she recognized; Cal was yawning as loud as he can, before he proceeded to go back to his room, until her blood began to run cold. Cal stopped in front of the room, then tries to open the door. The maid realizes she had left her utensils in front of Jesse still, and the room was filled with the aroma of cooked food and the smell of a candle that had just gone out. She tries to remove the tray, as Cal rattled the doorknob. With a loud grunt, Cal broke down the door, just as the maid safely made her way back under the sanctity of the bed.

Cal sniffs, as his eyes slowly adjusted for the darkness, then looks at Jesse, then tried to figure out where and how he had gone out to get something to eat. He was ready to hit Jesse over; instead, he decided to untie Jesse, then takes him out of the room before Cal slams the door. He takes Jesse down to his room and tied him next to his bedpost, so he can feel any movement the boy was making. Jesse felt his eyes welling, and let a single tear fall. Meanwhile the maid slowly crawls out of her hiding place, oblivious to the feeling she was putting herself into, before she cautiously makes her way back to her bedroom.

...

Cal and his father had gone back to the plant, while the servant stayed at the house to keep watch on Jesse. Jesse watched on, his hands and legs were tied to the chair, while he watched the large man in front of him playing a game of solitaire. He took a swig of his scotch, then returns to his singular game. The large man sneered at Jesse, as the maid came in with a light snack for the man, and nothing for Jesse. She knew if she tried to feed him, Cal would have his way with her, but she lightly smiled at the man, before turning back to the kitchen.

Cal returned back to the house later that day, as he found out Jesse was eating somehow, and the ransom began to fall apart again, despite the pleas from his servant. He took Jesse back to the plant, into the storage room he was in when he was first brought in. The servant began to clean out the room, preventing an escape that Jesse might have in mind. He also went a step further by asking a worker to weld a piece of steel to the door, permanently sealing Jesse inside.

Or so he thought.