Chapter 9
Morning arrived. Its weak light barely penetrated the grimy window glass, leaving the room dim and cold. Brook slowly became aware of the sounds of a waking household. Someone said they needed coffee. Someone else swore, telling them to make it themselves. Brook remembered where she was and cowered deeper under the mattress. A sour smell filled her nostrils, and with a shock of embarrassment, she realized it was coming from her own body.
She could hear kitchen noises; pots and pans were banging against each other and cabinet doors opened and shut. Obviously, breakfast was being taken. Brook's stomach growled its willingness to eat, but she suppressed the need. Food wasn’t what she needed right now. What she needed was to escape from this hell.
The door to the room crashed open and heavy footfalls crossed the threshold. "What the fuck!” Jase’s voice blared. “Where the hell did the bitch go?”
“What?” Benny asked, drawing nearer. "Hey, where did she go?”
“That’s what I asked you, dumbfuck!” Jase retorted.
Brook held her breath; maybe they wouldn’t find her. Maybe they would think she escaped and go looking for her; then, she could sneak away.
“Hold on,” Benny said. “What’s that lump by the wall?”
An instant later, Brook felt the mattress pulled from her. She remained still, huddled beneath the blanket. She kept her eyes squeezed shut, like a child hoping they wouldn’t see her if she couldn’t see them. But, of course, she wasn’t a child, and she knew full well they
could
see her.
“Jesus Christ,” Jase exclaimed. “I thought the bitch was gone.” He laughed. “I thought there for a minute I was gonna have to fuck you.” He punched Benny in the arm.
“What the fuck ever,” Benny grouched. “I’m gonna get something to eat.” He left the room.
Jase pulled the blankets from Brook and backed up a step. “Holy-hell! You look like shit warmed over.” He waved his hand in front of his nose. “And you stink! Gina,” he yelled over his shoulder.
After a minute, Gina, poked her head through the door, nibbling on a piece of buttered toast. “What the fuck do you want now?”
“Clean this bitch up,” Jase commanded.
“You clean her up,” Gina said and turned away.
“Pete!” Jase bellowed.
Pete entered the room and glanced at Brook. “Shit,” he commented. “She don’t look so good today. Look at her fuckin’ eye!”
“Get your old lady to clean her up and tell her not to backtalk me no more,” Jase said in a tone that left no room for argument. “I’m sick of her balking at orders. Her ass shouldn’t be here anyway.”
Pete ducked out the door and Brook could hear a muffled conversation coming from the hallway. A few minutes later Gina returned, her face flushed with anger. With a scornful look, she turned her eyes to Brook. “Get your ass up and into the can.”
Brook crawled to the wooden chair in the corner and used it to get to her feet. She dragged the sheet up and attempted to cover herself as she moved to the door, but Jase yanked it away.
"What the fuck do you think you’re doing? You ain’t got nothing to hide. Shit! You don’t need to cover up. We already seen everything you have.” He laughed uproariously and walked away.
Gina wadded the remainder of her toast into a ball and hurled it at Jase’s retreating back, but missed. She followed Brook into the restroom and slammed the door behind them. “I ain’t cleaning your ass up; you can do it yourself. She sat on the side of the tub to wait.
Brook lowered herself onto the stool. As she urinated, pain flared between her legs, burning like acid. She finished and wiped herself, noting the blood on the tissue as she did so. Brook groaned and stood. “What do I use to clean myself?” she asked.
“God damn,” Gina grumbled as she got to her feet, opened a cabinet, and tossed Brook a tattered washcloth. “Hurry the fuck up.”
Brook turned to the shower, but Gina stopped her. “Uh unh.” She shook her head. “No shower. Just wash up.”
Brook wet the rag at the sink and wrung it out. She peered into the mirror as she wiped her face. Her eyes were swollen, one nearly closed completely, and her face puffy. Her lips were bruised. She drank from the faucet, gulping the liquid like it was a life-line. It hit her empty stomach and sloshed around uncomfortably. For a horrible moment, Brook thought she was going to vomit, but her stomach settled enough to keep the liquid down.
She re-wet the rag, liberally this time, and used the cloth to wipe her hair, combing through the tangled mess as best as she could with her fingers. She scrubbed under her arms, and then began to clean her breasts. The cut bled a little as she cleaned it, but it wasn’t deep.
Agony pulsed through her as she washed between her legs, but nothing compared to the pain between her buttocks. She tried to muffle her cries. She rinsed the rag multiple times but she still felt filthy; was filthy.
Once more, she tried to appeal to Gina. Turning to face the girl, she pleaded, “Please help me get out of here. I’ll get you money. All the money you want. You don’t even have to tell anyone I gave it to you. Please.”
Gina snorted. “You’re an ignorant bitch, aren’t you? Do you think I need your money? We have plenty of money. Plus, we got the cash from your purse, and your credit cards. I should be able to pick up some nice shit before anyone figures it out.”
“You have money?” Brook couldn’t hide her disbelief. “What about this house? You can’t have much money if you live here. But, I can buy you a house, a big beautiful house.”
“This ain’t my house, stupid; it's Jase's. We just hang out here when the guys have a bunch of jobs to do. Makes it easier to plan shit. We ain’t fuckin bums, you know. God damn it anyway, just get your ass back to the bedroom.” She opened the door and shoved Brook through.
Back in the room of her torment, Brook pulled the filthy sheet around her body and peered through the window again, trying to determine if she had missed anything, if she
could
get out by breaking the glass. Maybe the bus wasn’t as close to the window as she thought. Pressing close to the glass, Brook looked up and down and to both sides, but she'd been right; it was much too near to squeeze past. She wouldn’t be getting out this way.
Brook gasped aloud as the sudden memory of the clothes in the closet hit her full force.
How could I have forgotten there were clothes?
Throwing off the sheet, she darted to the closet and began snatching things at random. She came up with a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, both too small. She squeezed into them nonetheless and immediately felt more in control, though she knew the feeling was only an illusion.
Dressed, she determined to attempt another escape. It was worth a try, even if she failed. Maybe they were all in a different room or distracted by something. Putting her ear against the wall, she listened, but heard nothing. Maybe they were outside and she could slip away like a shadow. Although Benny had put a lock on the door, he had used a simple hook and eye and hadn’t done a good job of installing it. It was too large and Brook could open the door far enough to flip the lock open with her little finger. So, the door was no trouble. All she had at her disposal was stealth, and she planned to use it. She could slip right out of the house before anyone was the wiser.
She moved cautiously to the door and was reaching for the handle when it opened, startling her. Jase walked in with his penis in his hand. “Say hello to Big Mack,” he announced. “He’s making a house call. Come to see how Missus Pussy is holding out.”
Brook backed up, but there was nowhere to go.
It took a moment for Jase to realize what he was seeing. He came to a dead stop. “Where the hell did you get those clothes?” he demanded, erection forgotten and swinging in front of him. He hollered over his shoulder, “Gina! Did you give the bitch any clothes?”
“No,” came a distant answer. In a moment, Gina’s sallow face appeared in the doorway. The instant her eyes fell on Brook, she flew into a rage. “Those are my fucking clothes! Get them off!” Rearing on Jase she screeched, “I told you not to put her in my room in the first place!”
Gina started toward Brook, but Jase put up an arm and blocked her. He kept his gaze on Brook.
“Didn’t you hear me say you don’t need no clothes around here?” The look on Jase’s face froze Brook to the spot. “You just fucked up big time. You’re gonna pay for this.”
He gave Gina a shove towards the door. “Get the fuck out, bitch! You’re starting to annoy the shit outta me.”
But Gina was furious. Shaking with rage, she growled, “Not until she takes my clothes off!”
“Oh, she’ll take them off, don’t worry none about that,” Jase said. “Now get the fuck, out of here.”
Gina, finally hearing the threat in Jase’s tone, left. She threw Brook a hateful look before slamming the door on her way out.
“Take them off,” Jase said, an odd gleam in his eye as he turned back to Brook. “Real slow. Sexy-like. Give me a little strip tease.”
“No!” Brook dropped to the floor, one arm held up in a protective posture.
“NO!” Jase bellowed. “NO?!
Brook quaked. “I don’t know how,” she said in a little girl’s voice.
“You have about one second to learn.” Jase’s voice was husky. He took himself in hand again and began a slow stroke. “And you better make it good. Real entertaining.”
Brook struggled to her feet. She swayed unsteadily back and forth, hoping if she moved, it would keep him from hurting her more. She began removing the clothing, slowly, sobbing as she did so. Her movements felt jerky and awkward.
“Good,” he said. “Keep going. Turn around and bend over. Now slide off those jeans; show me that butt. Do a good job, and maybe I'll go easy on you.”
Terrified and embarrassed, Brook did what he asked. When the clothes were removed and tossed aside, Brook stood before Jase, arms crossed over her body.
“I could surely use a blowjob,” Jase stated in the same tone he might say he could use some food or sleep.
Anger rose inside Brook, overriding her fear. “I’ll bite it off and spit it in your face,” she said, her voice bitter.
“Is that right? You’re still pretty mouthy for someone in your predicament. We’ll have to work on that.” Jase backhanded Brook and sent her reeling onto the mattress. He considered her threat and came to a decision. “Okay, no blowjob. I think I’ll have some more of that tight ass instead. But first a little more pussy.” He dropped to where Brook cowered, slipped between her legs, and took her with unnecessary force. Her scream echoed off the walls and down the hallway.
Jase spent what seemed to be an eternity, pounding away, oblivious to Brook’s misery. Brook soon fell quiet. Jase didn’t even seem to notice when she tuned him out; when, in fact, she tuned out everything.
Brook focused her attention on the tattered valance hanging over the window. Little brown cartoon monkeys danced across a faded green background, and Brook guessed this room, at some distant time, must have belonged to a little boy. She wondered where that child was today. Was he out there in the world somewhere right now, all grown up and happy in his life, going about his daily routine? Or did he die young, leaving his parents with an aching grief that would never end? The thought added an inexpressible sadness to the horror she was enduring. Then she thought, maybe the child grew up to be one of the animals who now tormented her. Maybe this room
had actually belonged
to Jase when he was a child.
The thought slammed her back to current time just as Jase withdrew and flipped her to her belly, taking her from behind once more. Brook squirmed, unable to move out from under Jase’s weight. Fortunately, in this position he didn’t last long, and with a hoarse cry, he released inside her. He stood, pulled his pants up, and without a word, left the room.
Afterward, Brook curled into a fetal position, holding her hands tight over her lower abdomen. At least she didn’t have to worry about getting pregnant. That dream was long past. But, some wounds never heal completely. She drifted back in time and cried fresh tears of sorrow for a past loss. Sorrow for herself. Sorrow for the brutality and bitterness of life.
As she wept into the folds of the filthy sheet, she tried not to focus on the liquid running from her anus. She didn’t know if it was semen, feces, or worse, but was afraid to ask to use the restroom because each time she did, Gina was more hostile toward her. Brook would rather lay and suffer than face Gina's hateful attitude.
All too soon, Benny sauntered into the room. “My turn,” he whispered into her ear as he flipped Brook to her belly and crawled on top of her. “Are you glad to see me?”
“Why are you doing this to me?” Brook anguished, voice low, barely a whisper.
“Aw, baby doll,” Benny cooed. “I’m not doing it to you. I’m doing it
with
you.”
He laughed softly, and then grunted as he entered her. Brook lay perfectly still, trying to mitigate the pain, hoping Benny would find her less appealing and lose interest. She soon realized Benny didn’t care one way or the other. He was focused on his own interpretation of the episode.
“I like women,” he panted softly, as if confiding in her. “And they like me. But I’m picky. I don’t fuck just anybody. I’m what you might call
selective.
”
Brook felt each stroke of his organ like a knife stab.
“You’re lucky,” he continued. “A lot of women wish they could be doing what you’re doing right now. That’s because I’m different. I’m not like those other guys. I mean, to Jase you’re just something to be used. Kind of like a toilet, you know? When he wants to fire off a load and needs a place to put it, any woman will do. You’re just handy, that’s all. And Pete, well, he just pretty much goes along with Jase. He don’t do a lot of thinking for himself. But me, I’m deep. I analyze things, really study on them. I know how to
appreciate
a woman. I know what I’m doing between the sheets. You can tell that, right?”
Brook said nothing as he pumped away. He seemed to enjoy his own words as much as he enjoyed the act itself and didn’t seem to need a response from her. His breathing accelerated.