Mikey POV

A few hours after hurting me, father came down and hurt Gerard. He hardly made noises. He only closed his eyes and flinched with every whip at his back.

It was scary to watch.

Then, Father left us to our pain.

He told me I would start tomorrow.

It chilled my heart.

"Gerard?" I whispered, in a tiny voice. "We're getting out of here, right?"

"....no."

I saw limp tears falling down his face. The spark I had seen earlier was gone.

"Gerard... don't fade on me please.... I... I need you!"

He was slumped against the wall, looking off into the distance. His eyes showed no pain... no faith... no hope.

"GEE! PLEASE DON'T GIVE UP! If... if you give up... I'll be forced to!'

Nothing. Silence and tears from unfeeling eyes.

"I thought he loved me." I whispered. "I really thought he loved me."

Father collected me for work after some sleep.

The other customers had been discreetly informed of the new location. They came shamelessly.

The first one was a boy my age. He showed no mercy. After I was done bleeding... there came another... and another.

One every two hours.

It was dark when I was finally allowed to stop.

Ray came into the room, with Father close behind, and handed me pain pills. I took them and
drank them silently.

Who would have thought. This morning, I was the happiest man alive. Now, I was terrified, bleeding and lost.

To think Gerard went through this every day.

After one day of it, I was ready to die.

Gerard had hope. Out there... there was a man who loved him. Cupid deceived me.

I was taken to a room and shackled to the wall.

After Father left, I curled up to calm my aching heart... and to plan an escape from this world of pain for both me and my brother.

---

Frank POV

That night was terrible. I kept having nightmares of Gerard being tortured. I imagined the greasy-haired man hurting him.... Gee screaming for me to save him.... Over and over... that... beast brutally snatching my angel's sanity.

Then... his eyes would go blank. That man would laugh and hurt him harder. Gerard's blank stare would be fixed on me as the man's grunting and skin slapping sounds filled the room.

Then, his eyes... would close... and the man would be finished with him.

After waking for the tenth time, I couldn't go back to sleep.

There had to be... something I could do!

In that moment, I received a phone call.

I jumped off the bed.

"Hello?"

Silence at first. Then, a shaky voice. It dictated an address. I ran off the bed and began to look for a pen. I found a key and ended up engraving the directions into the lounge table.

Near the edge of town... there was a house. Now, the captives were being kept on the left side. On the right, there were offices that were being used to keep up appearances. I mustn't be confused by the large staircase down the middle. The true way to the whorehouse was through a door in the basement.

The voice told me to call the police.
It told me that I was the only one that could do it.
I asked how they got my number.

The man on the other side told me that he had assisted another person in following me around for a while. He knew my number... my address.... my shoe size, age, name of my parents and social security number. I gulped.

"T-Thank y-you." I stuttered.

The person on the other side told me his name was Ray.
He told me to tell his mother what had happened. Then, he hung up.

I immediately called the police.

In a few minutes, they were at my door.

A blond policeman with shining blue eyes.

"Will you be willing to come with us, Mister Iero?" He asked softly, after I was done explaining.

I nodded and stood, pulling my shoes on and grabbing a box of cigarettes.

---

Ray POV

I walked into the room to find Mr. Way there.

"Wrong choice, Raymond."

Before I could speak, a shot rang out... and my right shoulder was bleeding. My hand rushed to it.

I saw him reach up the wall... to a blue button,

I pushed myself forward and knocked him off balance before he ever came in contact with it.
My shoulder groaned in protest.

Mr. Way smiled and spat in my face.

"I already sent a man." He sneered. "Your mother is DEAD."

I pressed the man on the floor. No... he was lying. Of course he was. Mother was safe. I had

called her before I had called that Frank guy.

No more.

I reached for the gun and we began to fight for it.

A hiss rang out.
A bullet in my ribs.

I gasped, but didn't weaken. I was gonna die anyways. At least, I would take this bastard with me. It was what I owed Mikey.

Mr. Way frowned. This is when I managed to snatch the gun from him.

His eyes were opened wide in fear.

And I aimed right for that smug face.

The shot didn't kill him. It was too high. It passed through his collarbone.
The man screamed in rage and headbutted me. I shot him twice in a row.
The shoulder. The ear.
Then... I began to weaken.

Mr. Way pushed me off. I gasped for air as my back hit the cold floor.

I was losing too much blood. Too much blood....

Oh God... Mikey... I... I was too weak... I couldn't stop him!

Mr. Way gave me a kick that cracked my rib. I doubled over and gasped.

Then, the bastard pressed the button on the wall and left me to bleed out.

Doors opened. I heard people being led out.
Carefully, I turned on my stomach and dragged myself to the door.
There was blood dripping down the corridor.

I thought back to where I had shot. It was possible I had hit an organ. In that case, Mr. Way would die in the next twenty minutes... but would it be in time?
I gasped. No more strength to drag myself.

With my blood, I began to write on the.floor.

B...A...S...E...M...E...N...T

---

Gerard POV

The alarm was set off.

My door opened and a man came in. I allowed him to lead me out. Across from me, Mikey was struggling against his guide.

Police sirens again.

I taken by a window. Another window. I paused.

Frank.

My Frankie had come out of a police car. He was looking up at the house wildly.
Before I could call to him, I was yanked away from the window.

I turned to a gun. I was pressed against the wall and it was put into my mouth.
Father was shaking. As was the gun. He was bleeding and panting.
Mikey was being dragged down the corridor.

I closed my eyes and felt the metal with my tongue. It had a silencer drilled into it.

"FREEZE!"

The gun was pulled from me and was aimed somewhere else. Then, I was grabbed and pulled back. This time, the gun was being held against my temple.
A man dressed in blue with a black gun. Two. Three.
A shot rang out. I heard my original captor fall. I was frozen in place. The gun was still on my head. All eyes were on me.

"If you move," Father hissed. "I'll kill ya. Ya hear?"

I choked out a 'yes.'
Slowly, He took hold of my shoulder and pulled me back. I was shaking madly.
He pulled me towards a staircase... then yanked me in.

"Go down."

I went down the steps.

We went all the way down and found a black car.

"Get in." He said, simply.

"Let me go." I whimpered. "You got what you wanted-"

"GET IN!"
I got into the vehicle.
He went around and got in after me.

"Dad... you're gonna die. There's too much blood."

"Wrong. YOU'RE gonna die."

Fear gripped me.

I tried to grab the steering wheel. He pushed me back with the gun.
Then, he floored it.
I was thrown back as the car picked up speed.
It shot out of parking and into the street.
There was blood dripping onto the floor.
We drove recklessly, avoiding traffic. Finally, he slammed the brakes down.

"Okay, Gerard."

He stopped the car on the un-fenced edge of a bridge. I blinked. Then, he pulled out a pair of handcuffs and cuffed me to the seat.

"This is my stop." He said, wickedly.

Tears fell silently from my eyes as Father drove the car nearly fully over the bridge. Then, carefully, he stepped out.
I heard when he got into a back car… and when that car hit the one I was in.
And then, I was falling. Falling.

Falling.

A crash. My head was bleeding. And water was invading fast. The front glass cracked, but did not break. Thankfully.

I screamed. The sound bounced back to me. I struggled against the cuff. Nothing.
I screamed again. The water was up to my neck.
Limp tears on my face. I leaned my head back on the seat and cried silently as the water went up.

My neck... my chin.... my lips... my nose.... The car was fully underwater now. Lights were dancing behind my eyes.
I exhaled and bubbles came out.

Frankie... I'm so sorry.

I opened my mouth to take in all the water.
The car jolted. It began rising.

I passed out.

Notes

getting closer to the end... thoughts on this chapter?