Chapter 7

I wasn't sure of what to feel. I attempted to reason out the crazy story in my entire mind. If what this guy was telling me was true, then Jack was really in love with me that he was stealing something from his own mother trying to protect me.

I cast my thoughts backward, looking for a hint of what sounded like insanity. I went as far back as the night I had met Jack in the club. I could see it clearly; his black leather pants looked uncomfortably hot in the humidity and his tank top barely covered him. He had been all blonde hair and smeared eyeliner, smelling of stale cigarettes and Vodka. An easy smile on his lips and a twinkle in blue eyes that spoke of mischief. Then some other strange thing happened-

The image was a punch to my face and brought a tight knot in my stomach. I would spend my past weeks trying completely not to think about him, not to imagine him. Now he was there before my eyes, laughing, trying to invite me for a drink, and promising not to take any advantage of me.

I was tired and defeated, I had to drop into the stairs and let my elbows rest on my knees.

"So I think or I guess the witch mother killed her own son over that unknown thing?"

D seemed at my assumptions. "Mother witch? No, it was a brother who killed his brother-"

"His brother?" Ortiz had gone, and the police had reported that he was out of the country long ago...

If D's words were true, then that was probably when the two had stolen that 'thing' and maybe Ortiz had taken it somewhere else and hidden it. But if he was over there taking care of the 'thing' then why would he even come back?

I narrowed down my eyes suspiciously. "Why would he do that?"

"Because Jack wanted to hand over the thing to his brother in a promise that you wouldn't be harmed, but Ortiz wanted to be released from his mother's slavery. But it doesn't work that way either, if one belongs to to the mother witch's slavery one belongs to her forever.

Jack knew that; he knew that there would be no deal unless they were willing to suffer for their misdeeds." D sighed almost sadly. And so- as it has happened since the dawn of humanity, brother killed brother: Cain killed his brother Abel once again!"

I struggled for words, "He couldn't have" I had in mind Jack's mangled body, laying pale and mutilated in a pool of sticky congealed blood, his spinal column showing through where his throat should have been. "How did he do that? I had an eye on his body, his throat was ripped out no human could have done that, I swear!"

"But it wasn't human" A fake smile flicked at the edges of his curled mouth. "I didn't mention anywhere that his brother was human, did I?"

"What?" As if there could be something else to be. If he wasn't human then who was he? Once again, D seemed to hesitate and then another smile escaped his mouth. "Would you rather prefer to see?"

I jumped to my feet and watched around widely. "Wait? Do you mean he is here? Or what exactly are you trying to say?"

"Yes!" He retrieved the candle. I have him locked up right now. It is probably safe, infarct is perfectly safe. Come and let me show you." Though he spoke softly, his last word held an essence of command.

Part of me struggled with the idea, however, I had to follow him almost against my will. Even though my feet moved, I didn't get why I wasn't running away. It looked as if some outside force stopped my escape and propelled me forward through the darkness.

We crossed the room and stopped before the door set into the furthest corner wall. He carefully unlocked it with yet another key, I noticed other doors along the walls, leading to another secret-looking place: who knew how many secret passengers and storerooms.

"Through here!", He ducked inside and followed into a narrow corridor. Dark damp walls seemed to close in, around me. The spark of fear pushed away the last of the overwhelming desire to comply, and I stepped back towards the doorway, my hand went into my pocket and felt my phone. A lifeline to safety.

All I desired to do was to run out of the God-forsaken temple, climb into my car, and drive back to a gas station where I would be all rounded by electricity lights and Twinkies and motor oil and all of the other mundane things that proved the difference between reality and fantasy: between waking and nightmares.

Either way, it could be, D was insane and there was no one there, or else he had Jack's murderous brother held captive in the dark basement. Neither option was good, and I knew it was time to run.

"It is alright!" He assured. "He is restrained"

If he even exists, I thought. For all I knew, this man was high and hallucinating. High, just high. I imagined turning and running, tripping up the weak wooden stairs while a junkie, high on god-knew chased me down.

He looked strong and fast. Could I even get far? So far I had cooperated with him and he hadn't tried to hurt me: had not even attempted to touch me, if he planned to kill or rape me, he could have probably gotten it over already. Maybe, I just played along, I had to live so strong to get over this.

I had hoped to sound brave and in control, but my slitter betrayed me already.

D led me probably twenty feet down the corridor, to another locked door. Something was moving inside and it terrified me. Fear sliced through me. What if this man was only slightly delusional and Ortiz was really there? What if they knew one another? What if he was the one that killed Jack and he was going to kill me as well? Visions of my own helpless body wrapped in garbage bags flashed through my mind as D unlocked the door and pushed it open.

"Get me out of this hell!"