Date: Fri, 10 Dec 2010 10:26:40 -0800 From: The Good Pen Subject: Survival Chapter 2 (Gay Male Adult/Youth) Survival By Mark The Good Pen The following story is a work of fiction, the characters described in it are not meant to resemble any person living or dead. This is my story and my own words, if you want to post or make a profit on a story create your own. I value feedback especially when I am trying to get a new story off the ground. All feedback welcomed at thegoodpen@inbox.com just please put "Survival" in the subject of the e-mail. My Completed Work on Nifty: Sierra Inn (Gay Male Adult/Youth ) April 20, 2010 Wanting Perfection (Gay Male Adult/Youth) May 7, 2010 Survival Chapter 2 The awareness of something wet between my legs seemingly brought me back to consciousness. I opened my eyes and for a blissful second did not remember where I was. Then I looked around, or at least I tried to. I was lying on the floor in the middle of a small room. A video camera was staring down at me from a tripod positioned right at my feet. My hands were still tied together, but there was no tape on either my hands mouth, or my ankles. With that realization I quickly tried to get to my feet, only when I tried to bend my left leg to start the process of getting off the ground it felt like a bullet had gone through my knee. Unable to control myself I yelled out in pain, and lay motionless on the ground. Not a minute passed before the door to the room flew open and Neal came storming in as my shriek of pain subsided. He kneeled beside me with a roll of duct tape in his hand, and taped my mouth shut, with several pieces of tape. "Don't you even think about doing that again, you little shit," he said, before straddling my waist. "Lou!" Neal yelled as he turned his head to face the door. "Bring me the phone!" *** If you want to get Tyler talking, all you have to do is say one word, baseball. He loved the game, ate, breathed, and slept it, still does. He's been playing it since he was six, and was insistent, almost from the moment I met him that one day he'd be playing in the majors. It was only when Tyler's little league coach, Larry Thurman showed up at the Ward's house twenty four hours after I had, that I remembered how much Tyler loved not only baseball but his former coach. I had only met Larry once or twice before that day, but from the way Tyler talked about him you would think he was some type of God. In actuality he was an insurance adjuster who volunteered to coach in his spare time. He had been Tyler's coach from the time Tyler was eight until the season before that fateful summer. Coach Larry, as Tyler called him, had been the one that noticed something wasn't right with Tyler and by the middle of their third little league season together Tyler had unburdened himself to Larry. I wish now, that I had had somebody in my life like Larry, somebody I felt safe going to like that. So as Larry stood in the Ward's living room trying to comfort a now even more distraught Lisa I just stared at him, wondering how you become so caring, so loving. My gaze drifted from the two standing by the couch over to Al who was sitting in the recliner. Al liked Larry, he really did, but as he had admitted to me that morning he was not happy that Tyler had gone to Larry instead of going to him and I guess there was some jealousy there. At that moment, though, I am sure that all Al was thinking about was the safe return of his son. "Jackson, come here," Lisa said suddenly motioning with her hand for me to join her and Larry. "Have you met Larry, Tyler's little league coach?" "Yeah once or twice," I said, as I shook his hand. "Yeah you were at our last game of the season," Larry said. "You picked the right game to come to." "Well with what I know about baseball it wouldn't have made a difference," I said. The inane small talk momentarily brightened the mood in our immediate area. I think everyone needed that. "Tyler really likes you," Larry said. "I've heard a lot about you, and from Tyler that's unusual." "Ditto," I said, with a little smile. The little relief my conversation with Larry had given me quickly disappeared when the phone rang. I'm sure it's all hindsight but there seemed to be something in the way that phone rang that just screamed that the phone call was not going to bring anything good. Never the less, Al leapt off his recliner and dodged for the phone in the kitchen. I followed behind Lisa and Larry. "Hello," Al said into the receiver. "He wants to talk to you," Al says, turning towards me and holding out the receiver. Slowly I walked over to Al and took the phone from him. "Hello," I said slowly, my voice cracking with nerves. "Jackson baby," Neal said. "How they swingin'?" "What do you want?" I asked angrily. "Just to talk with you," Neal said. "My partner saw your car parked out front of the Ward's house. Seems as though I'm attracting quite a bit of attention from the authorities." "How do you know what type of car I drive?" I asked, nervously. "I know a lot of things," Neal said. "Like the cops are probably listening to every word I'm saying right now." "Look, I don't know what you want," I said, the thought crossing my mind that I might be able to catch Neal off guard. "But if it'll get Tyler back home, I'll do whatever you want." As soon as the words came out of my mouth, Karen and her partner Glenn who were listening to the conversation on an extension shot me a death stare. "I don't know what you could possibly do," Neal said. "Other than being the pussy for me that you used to be. You remember that don't you?" "What do you want?" I asked angrily. "I'll take that as a yes," Neal said, with a little chuckle. "Actually I just thought of something you could help me with, as I'm sure you've had experience with this now. You see I've been trying to get Tyler, here, to shoot one off for the camera. But I can't seem to get him going. And seeing as his mouth is busy at the moment, maybe you can tell me how he likes it." "I don't..." "You still are a fucking pussy aren't you?" Neal interrupted me. "Just admit that you've been fucking him, and tell me how to get him to bust a nut." "I don't know," I said, angrily. "I haven't done anything like that. But please just let him come home!" "Sorry can't," Neal said, before hanging up the phone. I hung up the phone slowly, I felt as though everybody in the kitchen was staring at me, and they were. Though, only Karen and Glen had heard what Neal said. "I swear," I said, looking right at Karen and Glenn. "I have never..." "Jackson," Karen interrupted me, her voice calm though. "Why don't we talk outside?" *** "Who is this Jackson person?" Lou asked after Neal hung up the phone. "Eh he's the son of somebody I used to know," Neal said, as he tightened the rope around my right wrist, connecting it to a bar on the wall. "He was a pretty good fuck when he was younger, but got all weird when he graduated from high school. Jackson's Uncle was the lucky s.o.b to take this one's cherry. Wasn't he?" Neal asked as he kneeled on the floor by my head and ran his fingers through my hair. "I got him all set up and the best the stupid cunt can give me back is sloppy seconds." "Seemed pretty tight to me," Lou said. "I know," Neal said. "But it's the principle of the thing. Anyway, we have to get ready for tonight." "Don't you think this will draw too much attention?" Lou asked. "Damn Lou, you are stupid," Neal said as he shook his head. "Come on, we have a lot to do," he said as he got off the floor and led Lou out of the room, shutting the door behind them. Jackson had never told me about exactly what had happened to him, and definitely not who had done it. I found out the first day that Neal and Jackson knew each other, but as I laid on the floor after hearing what Neal had told Lou I started to think that maybe Jackson wasn't who I thought he was. I had no clue that Jackson's Uncle was the guy, Kyle and I referred to as the camera man. We didn't know his name, all we knew was that he smelled funny and would always have a camera with him. The realization that Jackson, a person I had grown to admire was related to a man that was the subject of my nightmares, was too much for me. Even in the midst of everything else that was happening, it was that realization that made me start to cry. *** "Karen, I swear I haven't done anything with Tyler," I said, in a total state of panic as Karen and I stood in the front yard of the Ward's house. "I believe you," Karen said reassuringly. "I tend not to trust kidnappers. It's a funny habit I developed. But since you're so willing to help, I thought that maybe you'd be willing to do something to help us." "Anything," I said, quickly. "We need to find out where Neal is," Karen said. "Do you know of anybody who might know where he is and would be willing to share that information?" "Just my Uncle and Blair," I said, slowly. "Would you be willing to talk to them?" Karen asked. "Me?" I asked, surprised. "Why me? Can't you do it?" "People like your Uncle and Blair aren't too fond of the police," Karen said, shaking her head. "If they can, they might be more willing to help you." "They never helped me before," I said. "Well, hopefully there really is a first time for everything," Karen said. "How are we going to do this?" I asked. *** "Finally," Neal said from the end of the bed. "It's about fucking time." "Sorry, I'm not as young as I used to be," a strange voice said from above me. The room was dark again my eyes were taped shut and I was tied in such a way that made it almost impossible for me to move myself. My left knee still was hurting and I had passed out more than once from the pain so I was totally disoriented to how much time had passed. "Eh, I'm just giving you shit," Neal said. "So when you guys leaving for Italy?" the voice asked. "Later tonight," Neal said. "I'm just waiting on a phone call." *** The sun was just setting on the horizon as we walked up the walkway and into the large brick building. I felt my stomach churning, my heart pounding in my chest. When I had agreed to help Karen, I never thought it would involve doing this. I kept telling myself as we went through the security check that this is for Tyler, I have to do this for Tyler. And as I was sitting at the large square table in the small room, with Karen next to me, I decided if doing it gets Tyler back, it's more than worth it. "Jackson, I'll be in the next room," Karen told me as she stood up. "He can't know that I'm here, you understand?" "Yeah," I said, nodding my head. "Good," she said, as she went to the door to the left of the large table. "And good luck." Just as Karen disappeared into the next room the other door, on the wall I was facing opened, and in walked a prison guard leading my uncle into the room. Gary Travers, was my Mom's brother. My Mom left me and my Dad when I was four, but Gary stuck around until he got a job offer in Phoenix when I was seven. Back when he lived in L.A I liked him, he was better to me than my own Dad was. So when I was fourteen, I had actually begged my Dad who couldn't get off the bottle, to allow me to move to Phoenix and live with Gary. That move, changed my life forever. And then that day at the prison, I looked across the table at the man in hand cuffs, the man I used to look up to, the man who had betrayed me. "I didn't think I'd see you here," he said, as the prison guard left the room. "I didn't think I'd be here either," I said, nervously. "But something's happened." "What's that?" Gary asked. "I need you to tell me where Neal is," I said, slowly. "How the hell would I know that?" Gary asked. "You get visitors don't you?" I asked. "Not really," Gary said, shaking his head. "Well when was the last time you heard from Neal?" I asked. "I don't know," Gary said. "A month or two ago I guess. But he didn't really say too much, just snuck in some cigarettes for me is all." "He didn't tell you where he was living?" I asked. "Well yeah, he said he was living in Phoenix," Gary said. "But he didn't get specific. Why you askin me all of this?" "Neal has Tyler," I said. "And he told me that it's because he's finishing what you and Blair started." "Well I didn't put him up to it," Gary said. "What I started ended the day that little cunt opened his mouth to his little league coach." "Where is he?" I demanded angrily. "I told you, I have nothing to do with it," Gary said. "Think about it, Jackson, what good would Neal having that little shit do me? It's not like I'm going to get any in here. At least not from Tyler." "If I find out you're lying..." I started but was interrupted. "Why do you care so much about that kid anyway?" Gary asked, his eyebrows raising slightly. "You didn't seem to care for him much before." "This isn't about me," I answered quickly. "Look I want the truth!" "I'm telling you the truth," Gary said. "You know how Neal is, he doesn't say much. I'm lucky he comes here at all, after how I tried to turn him in, so I don't ask him questions." "He didn't say anything to you?" I asked. "No," Gary said, shaking his head. After Gary was escorted out, Karen came back into the room, and I thought I was done. I felt nauseous and really wanted to leave, but Karen had other plans. A few minutes later the door where Gary came in from opened again, this time Blair Livingston was escorted in. Gary met Blair through Neal, and actually followed Blair out to Phoenix in the mid eighties. I had only met Blair those times that I try to forget about now. Still as Blair walked through the door, he was nothing like I remembered him. He seemed beaten down where in the past he always had a bounce in his step. "I don't get many visitors," Blair said, as he sat across the table from me. "Can you blame people?" I asked, the distain I had for the man coming through in my voice. "I guess not," Blair said, with a little shrug. "Why are you here?" "I need to know where Tyler is," I said. "Excuse me?" Blair asked, his eyebrows raising slightly. "Neal took Tyler, and now I need to know where they are," I said. "Sorry, can't help you there," Blair said. "I haven't heard from Neal in ages." "So you didn't ask him to finish what you started?" I asked. "I think you're talking to the wrong person," Blair said. "If anyone would know anything about where Neal is, it's your uncle. Not me." "I already talked to Gary, he didn't say anything," I said. "So then I guess you're wasting your time," Blair said. "Blair, I'm begging you, if you know anything just tell me," I said. "I know you didn't mean to hurt him, I know you feel bad for what you did. But Neal doesn't care about Tyler the way you did, he's going to hurt him." Blair stared down at the table, seemingly contemplating what I had said. I didn't know how much of a soul Blair had left, but I was appealing to whatever might still be there. In a weird way, even though he was the one that started hurting Tyler in the first place it seemed as though at the same time he became Tyler's protector. Neal was sadistic beyond belief and would want to do things that would have scarred Tyler, not only physically but emotionally, so much so that there would have not been a chance for recovery. Gary was into taking and selling pictures and what videos he could get out. Most of this was before the internet really exploded so what he was able to sell was limited, but he tried none the less. Blair on the other hand, while being predatory in nature, was not sadistic and had no interest in monetarily profiting off of what he was doing. He simply desired young flesh, and that was the end of it. But Blair somehow got caught up with Neal and Gary bringing Tyler right along with him. And while sitting in that room at the prison, I desperately hoped he felt guilty for doing that. "Look, I don't know where he is," Blair said breaking what seemed to be an eternity of silence. "But I do have his phone number, you could call him." "Yes, please," I said trying not to leap through the ceiling. Karen had left a pen and pad by me on the table in case I did get a phone number or address so I quickly got Neal's phone number before Blair could change his mind about giving it to me. "Thank you, Blair," I said. "Jackson, can you do me a favor?" Blair asked. "It depends on the favor," I said. "Can you tell Tyler that I'm sorry?" Blair asked. "I didn't mean for it to be like this." "I don't think that's my thing to tell him," I said. "I think when the day comes that he's ready to hear it, you need to tell him that." Blair nodded slowly, as the guard came back into the room. Whether Blair knew it or not, he had just thrown his supposed friend under the bus again. I watched Blair being led out of the room by the guard with his head down, pointed towards the floor. Maybe there was a part of me that wanted to feel sorry for him, but after all he had done, all the pain he had caused I felt that he deserved to be in pain now. Before I could really think too much, Karen came back into the room and grabbed the piece of paper with the phone number Blair had given me. "Let's go," she said. *** Even by his standards, Neal was extremely angry. I was still tied to the bed in the dark room, and the door was shut but I heard him screaming at somebody. He was screaming so loudly that what he was saying was inaudible. Suddenly I heard the door open and the thought occurred to me that with how angry Neal sounded, that it was all coming to an end for me in that room at that moment. I felt a hand run over my face from where one piece of tape covered my eyes to where another covered my mouth, then back again. "This guy in Italy's one fucking lucky son of a bitch," I heard the voice from earlier tell someone. "Yeah I know," Lou said, as I felt the mattress move. "We've had him for over twenty four hours now, hasn't put up a real fight once." "Been trained well, I guess," the voice said. "I don't know why Neal's so anxious to get him overseas." "He wants the money," Lou said. "That's all he's ever after." "Shit, there's more to life than that," the voice said, as I once again felt the warm hand on my face. This wasn't my first rodeo with Neal, I had been dealing with him off and on since I could remember. I knew better than to try to fight him. He was hard to handle when you were doing what he wanted, if you tried to go against him he was down right deadly. I had seen his wrath first hand years before being kidnapped, I knew what he was capable of. So even though I hated what was being done to me with a passion I knew better than to fight it. Instead I laid there and took it, only whimpering when the pain grew more intense, but otherwise staying silent. *** Karen drove to her precinct sirens blaring the entire way. I have never been one to get car sick, but I came damn close on that car ride. When we finally did get there I followed Karen who was in a mad dash to a room towards the back of the precinct. In the middle of the room were four desks each with a computer on each. The only other person in the room besides Karen and I was a short man sitting at one of the desks. "Pete, I need you to run this number for me," Karen said, handing the man the piece of paper with the phone number Blair had given me on it. "Sure thing," he said, as started typing something into the computer. "Are you going to be able to get an address?" I asked. "Hopefully," Pete said as he waited for the computer to process what he had put into it. I still do not know how long we waited for that computer to spit an address out, at the time it seemed like it took hours. All I could do was stand there and wait, feeling totally helpless. "Got it!" Pete said all of a sudden. *** I could hear that Neal and Lou were talking from down the hall. I couldn't make out most of what was being said, only bits and pieces. I kept hearing the name Caresky, it seemed as though Neal couldn't put a sentence together without including that name in it. Suddenly there were footsteps coming down the hall and into the room. "How are we going to do this?" Lou asked. "We can't fly all over the place." "No shit, Sherlock," Neal said, his voice coming from directly above me. "We're going to drive it." "Drive it?" Lou asked, his voice sounding as though he was shocked by Neal's suggestion. "Look, Caresky may have thrown me a curveball but there's no reason that we can't pull this off." "What do you mean we can't pull this off?" Lou asked. "Neal, I agreed to help you get him to the airport to get him on Caresky's plane, but this well it's just too much." "Shut up and get the car ready. We have a lot of driving to do." *** I begged Karen to take me with her, but she wouldn't. The SWAT team was going to be going to the address that Pete had pulled up on the computer and it was against police policy to allow a civilian along on such an operation. So I was stuck riding back to the Ward's house in Pete's car. I had never been one for praying. Life had kicked me around a little too much to allow me to believe there was anyone upstairs listening. But as I rode back to the Ward's house I found myself actually praying that this was going to work. I couldn't stand the thought of Tyler spending another minute in Neal's grasp. Tyler had so many things going for him the last thing he deserved was to have it all thrown away by some maniac. When Pete and I finally did get back to the Ward's house everyone was gathered around the kitchen table where the police scanner had been placed. Karen's partner Glenn was pacing the kitchen as they listened to everything going on through the radio. "What's happening?" I asked Sarah as soon as I got into the kitchen. "They're still trying to get the SWAT team together." "What's taking so long?" I asked. "That's what I'd like to know," Al said, as he stared helplessly at the scanner. "It takes time," Glenn said. "They have to get the guys briefed on the situation, they have to figure out what's the best strategy for going in. I know it's hard but it's better to be fully prepared." "I just want Tyler back," Al said. "I know you do," Glenn said. "And you'll get him back, trust me." "SWAT team is on their way," Karen's voice suddenly came over the scanner. "Address is near downtown approximately ten minutes from the station. I need all back up officers on standby." "Here we go," I said to myself as I felt my heart start to beat faster in my chest. *** "Lou would you fucking hurry up!" Neal yelled. "We don't have all fucking day!" I could tell by the hard floor underneath me, and the smell in the air that I was back in the van that I had been in when I was first kidnapped. I had no clue where we were going, but I had the distinct feeling I was in trouble. Without another word being said I heard the doors of the van being slammed shut, and the engine start. "Time for a little road trip," I heard Neal say from the front of the van. "First stop, Tulsa!" "We're going to get caught," Lou, who by this time was sounding angry, said. "I know we are." "Shut up and drive you big cry baby," Neal spat back. "As long as you stick with me you're not going to get caught. Just trust me. Now turn down 7th Street, I want to take the 10." "But the 40..." "I said take the 10." *** "Where are you?" Glenn asked Karen over the radio after sometime had passed without us hearing anything. "We're riding down 7th Street right now," Karen said. "We have to get to Highland. I'd say ETA is about five minutes." "Good, we're finally going to sink the bastard!" Glenn said, the excitement thick in his voice. As I stood leaning against the kitchen counter I looked around the room. The Ward's weren't the most functional family, at least if what Tyler had told me was true. But at that moment they seemed to be as close as a family could get. Sarah was sitting with an arm around her Mom's shoulder. Al had Kyle on his lap holding him close. All four of them were staring at the police scanner as though the voice of God himself was going to come out of it. I couldn't imagine what they were going through. I was a wreck, and I wasn't even related by blood to Tyler. I wanted so much to hear good news come across that scanner. But I knew Neal better than to get my hopes up too high. If, in fact, he was going to go down he wasn't going to do it without a fight. *** "Oh shit the cops!" I heard Lou yell as the van started to slow down. I could hear the sirens and for a minute I thought I might be getting rescued. "Would you relax? They're goin' the other way!" Neal said. "But what if they're going to your place? What if they're looking for us?" "So what if they are?" Neal asked. "We're not at my place now are we? They can ransack that fucking house and not find a single clue about where we're going. Relax man we're in the clear now!" "No we're on the run now," Lou said. "You know they'll be lookin' for us. And once we cross state lines with the kid. Shit man, then it'll be the Feds!" "Would you stop your blabbering," Neal said. "You know how long I've been doing shit like this? Let's just say when I started you still had hair, and maybe even some balls too. There is no way we're going to get caught. This is all too far underground. Now get on the interstate and drive. We got a lot of ground to cover." I could hear the sirens from the police cars passing. I heard them getting closer and closer only to get further and further away and with them went my hope of being rescued. "You're too fucking confident," Lou said after a couple of minutes had passed and the sounds of the sirens had disappeared. "No, I just know that we're not going to get caught," Neal said. "And to prove it to you, watch this." "Neal what the fuck are you doing with that cell phone? Neal!" *** "You said what?" Glenn asked Karen over the scanner. "The house is empty!" Karen said, a mixture of frustration and anger coming through in her voice. Before my heart had time to sink to the floor the phone rang. To Be Continued... Feedback welcomed at thegoodpen@inbox.com Chapter 3 Coming Soon!